ugh, double ugh

On Thursday evening, I heard Tyler talking in his bed fairly late (around 9:30pm). I went in to check on him and he said "Well, you'd be so proud of me, cause I stayed in my bed, but Cam made somfin yucky in his bed." Of course, I thought Cam had dirty diaper. Nope. He threw up all over. And then fell asleep in it! (Sorry, I know it's gross, but it was my life for the past few days, so I am kind of numb to what is gross...)
Anyway, that was the beginning. Over the past three days, I have cleaned up more throw up than I ever thought was possible. Tyler started throwing up on Friday morning (poor kid had to miss his own birthday party (combined with three other friends) and he had been looking forward to it all week long :( ). I have done so many loads of laundry, it is insane (I think we are on load number 5). As soon as I cleaned up one kid, the other one started. And the sad thing is that Cam is so young, that he didn't want to have a bowl under his little mouth. He would just want me to hold him. It is such a sad thing that it is hard to push him away when you know how sick he feels. And so, yes, several times I got thrown up on. Ty was the same way, but he did a little better getting it into the bowl.
Friday afternoon was the worst. Both kids were right in the thick of this awful bug. I can honestly say it was one of the worst 24 hours of my life. Awful. Cam throws up all over me. I just clean him off. Clean me off (hair and clothes). Scrub carpet. Tyler starts throwing up. Clean the couch off. Both kids want me to hold them. Both kids crying. Start a movie. Cam throws up again. Try to get a load of laundry together to go and wash stuff so our house doesn't smell disgusting. Come back to find Ty throwing up again. Clean up the bathroom. Scrub out the bathtub. More kids crying and throwing up. No one could nap cause they were so sick. And the day went on and on.
I can't even tell you what a relief it has been to have gone 36 hours with no one throwing up.
Thank you, thank you, thank you that this is over! I never want to relive that again!

My Dad: The Super Hero

So, I guess that all little kids just think their dad is amazing. I know I sure thought that (and still do!). If there was anything that I didn't know....my dad knew it. If there was anything I couldn't do...my dad could do it. I know Scott felt the same way about his dad. He told me once that he used to just look at his dad's hands and think "Wow! One day I will have big strong hands just like my dad"....as if those hands could stop a train (and to be honest...they probably could have!)

Anyway, this is EXACTLY how Tyler feels about Scott. EXACTLY. I know that Ty loves me, but man, the way he loves Scott is just out of this world. Just yesterday, we were riding bikes out in the front as we were waiting for Scott to get home from work. One of our neighbors was just getting his mail when Scott pulled in the driveway. You could hear both kids scream (at the top of their lungs) "Daaaaaaddddddyyyy!" and they both ditched their bikes and bolted for their dad. Ty jumped into Scott's arms and wrapped his arms and legs around Scott so tight and Cam clamped onto Scott's leg. The man that was getting his mail just stood there and watched and then as we walked away he said "Wow". It is so cute to see how much those boys love their dad.
Cam has been "reading" a lot of books lately which means that we need to repair them when he is through, but Ty confindently says "It's okay. Dad can fix it when he gets home"
Or when the Netflix on our tv wasn't working Ty just said "Mom, let's wait for Dad to get home. He knows how to fix it." (What about me, Ty????)
After going to the bathroom and feeling so proud of himself, Ty shouted "I am getting bigger and bigger and soon...(gasp) I get to be like daaaaadddd!"
Then, two days ago, we decided that rather than just sit around our house, we were going to walk around Target and look at the toys. As we were walking down the main aisle, on one of the end caps they had a special on some kind of body building equipment. On the front of the box, it showed a man flexing his muscles. One of those guys that has probably worked for 20 years to look like that and they make you think that after a few weeks with their program you will look like that...anyway, Ty runs right up to the box and said (soooo loudly) "Hey, that's my daddy!!" About three people kind of chuckled to themselves and another man walked by and said "I wish my kids would say that about me." Too funny. But still, that just goes to show that for Ty the strongest man in the whole world is his dad.
Then yesterday we had kind of a scary/learning experience when Ty opened the door for someone when I was there and he told them to come in. After the experience I sat down with Ty to explain to him how scary it is to let people in our house that we don't know and that we should never open the door when mom or dad isn't right there with us because someone could take him away. I'll admit, I was kind of trying to scare him a little bit so that he would grasp the severity of what I was telling him. Anyway, after telling him a few times that someone could take him away he said "Mom, it's okay. Dad would be soooo frustrated with those guys. And my dad would save me."
Ty's dad can do anything.
Ty's dad can save anyone.
Ty's dad is the strongest man ever.
Ty's dad can fix anything.
We sure do have a Super Hero on our hands!

A quick chuckle

The kids have been doing the funniest things lately. I keep meaning to write them down because I knew as soon as I sat down to blog them, I wouldn't be able to remember any of them. But here are a few that I do remember:

• The other day, Ty asked me (in a very dramatic voice) "Mom, can I please have a microwave?" (shocked, confused) I said "Why do you need a microwave, Ty?" and he says "because I really need to sing!!" yes, that is right. Ty sings with a microwave aka microphone
• Because of the dreary rainy weather, the boys have been in desperate need of "running around crazy" time. But since we can't go outside...we started our own fun way of getting energy out: We put Aladdin on and skip to either the genie song (I think it is called Never had a friend like me) or the Prince Ali song. Ty and Cam dance and sing and it is really cute. I'll admit...I think we danced to those songs probably 15 times today.
• When Ty asks for things lately he adds a "Pleeeeeeeaaaaase" on the end. It is quite funny. Sometimes (like yesterday) he starts his question with something like "Mom, you are so very pretty. Can I have a fruit snack?" Who does he learn that from??
• Ty sang his own rendition of "Santa Clause is Comin' to Town" yesterday. It included phrases like "He sees you when you won't nap. He knows if you hit Cam. He knows if you aren't a good listening boy or if you aren't obedient." He sings these songs when he is laying in bed trying to nap. It always makes me chuckle.
• Today, Cameron fell over and hit is head on the wall. He started to cry and just as I opened my mouth to calm Cam down, Ty shouts "Dog-gone it! Oh, come here Cami-boy!" And suprisingly enough, Cam went to Ty and not to me!! Ty hugged him for a minute and then said "Where does it hurt? There? Okay. Let me kiss it better" And then it was all over. Cam went on playing and so did Ty. Who need mom anymore?
  
• When Ty got up from his nap the other day he ran right to me and gave me a big hug. Then he promptly picked up my hand and licked it. A big lick. I pulled my hand away and said "What are you doing?" He replied "Oh, sorry. I was just pretendin' to be a dog". Oh. Okay. Good to know.
• (I might have already posted about this...but maybe not). Ty frequently finds things of Scott's around the house and pretends to be "dad". I will find him in Scott's hat and work boots or something. One day, he came in to the bedroom wearing Scott's shoes and hat and said "Well, I'm goin' to work. Bye baby!" Then went to Cam and patted his head and said "You're a good boy!" Funny enough...those would be exactly Scott's words!
• I don't know exactly how this happened, but the other day, Scott and I were coming home from somewhere and we each loaded one kid into the car and then as we were walking to our doors (Scott drives usually, so we crossed paths at the back of the car) we somehow got into a "balancing on one foot" war. We stood there for a long time and I completely forgot that we had two kids waiting for us in the car. It is fun when you are in love. (PS. I totally would have won the balance war, because I have much better balance, but Scott cheated and so I fell off the curb)
• Cam LOVES to wrestle. LOVES it. He is always running at full speed and jumping on Ty or falling on him. Ty is usually a good sport about it and tickles him or something. But today he was watching tv when Cam came running and landed right on him. Ty did a little throat growl sound (like he was really angry) and then said "Uh..Cam! I don't want to play right now. Your makin' me so frus-rated!" Poor Cam. Totally didn't understand and went in for another attack giggling all the while. Man, if you can't tell, these boys sure give me a run for my money!

• The other day we were walking out of Costco and we were waiting at the door so they could check our reciept and Ty shouts "Whoa! You have a mustache!" and points at the person behind us. Sure enough, there was a old man with a big old mustache. I have to admit, it was pretty shocking and noticable. Not the kind that just blends in with the face. I probably would have shouted that too...in my mind! Luckily, the man was really kind and joked around with Ty after that.

Life is so full of spice when you have two active little guys! (there is also some crying in there too!) We love our cubs!

A little late...but oh well!

So I feel like I have barely been surviving over here lately. I don't know if it is the post-Christmas blues or maybe the fact that it is just kind of cold, rainy, and blah outside, but life has not been kind over the last week.
Yes, I think I have cried everyday. Poor Scott.

But today, I feel like we kind of pulled out of our slump and so I thought I would actually post! I know it is late, but here is what we did during December:


Packages that came were so much....for many days!


Acting out the nativity on Christmas Eve...Ty wanted to be the donkey (I gave him the option to be something else..but that is what he chose) and Cam was baby Jesus. Ty has socks for ears and mittens for hooves. Clever boy.


A close-up of this little burro.


Cam desperately wanted to join in on the fun of wearing socks on his head. This is how it turned out for him. I still laugh when I see this picture.


We did a pretty small Christmas..but it was so much fun to set up all the present for the boys when they woke up. Ty left out a plate of cookies (on the stool) for Santa. They each got one fun toy, a cereal, and a couple little stocking stuffers. I think that Scott and I had more fun setting it all up and getting it ready than we thought we would.


And so it begins...all Ty wanted to do was play with the toy that Cam got. Cam was pretty upset.


Cam LOVED this ball he got from his friend Leah. He carried it around for days and days after that.



Here is Cam sporting the new clothes from Grandma and Grandpa and the coon skin hat from Papa


I love that they got matching outfits. And the coon skin hat just tops it off. Ty likes to wear the hat and have the tail come right by his cheek and he rubs it on his face cause it feels "so fuzzy".

I neglected to get pictures of the rest of the day. We went to the Laytons house for scones. Yummy. So yummy. And then came back for naps and movies. You would think that we would have started Christmas dinner. But, umm, no. The Laytons came over and we put the kids down for bed and we were going to eat dinner after they went down. Unfortunately, I forgot about the hours of prep time it took to cook some of the food. So we ended up eating a little late...but the crab legs were out of this world. I hope we get to eat crab legs with the Latyons every year! Then we busted out the blow up mattress and a big bundle of blankets and we fell alseep watching the Harry Potter movies.


In the morning we had the McPhie Christmas morning casserole (even though it was the 26th). It was so much fun! Yarr, Ty!

Over the next few days, we had lots of late nights with friends, dinners together, and just all together fun times. It is sad to be away from family for the holidays, but it makes up for it when you have friends that feel just like family! We really loved Christmas this year!

Our weekend get-away

On Wed (Dec 9th) morning, Scott handed me a piece of paper before he went in to work. He said it was an early birthday present. It ended up being the first clue on a treasure hunt that he had put together around the house. I searched high and low (literally) for all the clues and it finally led me to my suitcase. The last clue said that I needed to pack for 4 days and 3 nights at that I needed to be ready to leave by 4pm THAT NIGHT! I cried and cried (out of excitement!)
I couldn't believe it! I was so excited. Scott had worked out every single detail of a get-away weekend for us. The kids had babysitters all lined up. People were coming over to sleep at our house so the kids would be able to sleep in their own beds. Scott bought airline tickets and made hotel reservations...not to mention dinner reservations and entertainment. It was so much work for him...and he did it all by himself and kept it a secret from me (which is another huge task)! It was such an amazing suprise!
I knew we were flying there, but Scott didn't tell me where we were going. Finally, around 5pm, wonderful Amy showed up at our house and was ready to take over. Ty and Cam didn't even flinch as I said my goodbyes and walked out the door.
Finally as we were almost to the airport, Scott told me where we were going: LAS VEGAS!

It was a weekend full of yummy dinners (for my actual birthday dinner, he took me to PF Changs), two cirque du solei shows...umm amazing!, two movies (New Moon and Blind Side), lots of laughing...tons!, staying up til 2 in the morning, sleeping in til 10am, room service, the Titanic exhibit, the shark exhibit, CSI experience, and more. It couldn't have been more perfect! Here are a few pics. You can tell that Scott takes most of the pictures because as I looked back at them, they are all of me and we don't have any of him!


Me and Scotty in front of the Bellagio



Right before we saw "Ka". It was the most amazing thing I have ever seen!



Just being crazy...if you can't tell, I am posing just like the lady on the billboard behind me



I asked for a diet coke at lunch...and they brought me an iced tea on accident. I am embarrased to say that I actually spit it out on the table. Do people actually like that drink??



Just walkin' the strip. Chilly...but fun!



At the shark exhibit, there were some huge jellyfish. Scott asked me to do my best impression and, unfortunately for me, he snapped a quick picture!



We stayed at the Wynn...super nice! (side note...when we were checking in, they asked if we wanted to upgrade our room and it would be as cheap as an extra $25/night. The guy was really trying to sell us on it, saying it was such an incredible deal. We opted not to, just to save money. As he was finished up getting us all checked in, I casually asked if they had a car service that drives you to places on the strip. He just laughed at me. Seriously, I don't even think he answered me. Later I found out that they do have a service like that...but it is in a Rolls-Royce and costs something like $300 per ride. I think he thought that if we weren't willing to pay an extra $25, then we probably weren't interested. Ya think???



I love my Scotty! He is so great to me. He is my little Mary Poppins (practically perfect in every way)...except he would be the rock star version of her!

Maren

Last night was a dream.

I went to a piano recital that was so perfect. The programs, the setup, the kids, the pieces, the treats afterwards, etc. And it was all done by Maren. She so kindly let my piano student join her recital.

Then I came home and ate some cookies from a fabulous cookbook that Maren put together. It is my favorite cookbook in the world. Everything I have made from it has been delicious. And when I look at it, I think of my friends.

Then I cuddled up and watched a movie that Maren gave me. "A Cinderella Story" with Hilary Duff. Guilty pleasure. Love that movie.
I was tempted to make myself some delicious hot chocolate with candy canes that Maren gave me, but I decided to save it for tonight or tomorrow night. I can't wait.

Needless to say, I LOVE my friend Maren. She is simply amazing. I want to be just like her.

Bring on the Pictures

Cam and Ty LOVE playing/wrestling with each other. In this occasion, Ty was in the middle of belting out "Hot, hot, hot...hot chocolate" from the movie Polar Express. (Which reminds me that today Ty said he wanted to serve his mission at the north pole. I was laughing, but Scott so calmly said that there are lots of elves there that need the gospel).

They sure love each other...doesn't this look just like love :)


Ty found a great hiding spot!


When Ty ran off to go hide for "hide and seek", Cam wanted to join in. So he took off too. This was the best hiding spot he could come up with. I think it is perfect!


Carving "punkins" with daddy


Cam's contribution to the pumpkin carving was teeth marks in the lid


Ty loved squishing all the seeds around in there. He was literally up to his elbows in pumpkin guts!


Family photo.
I love the irony of it....


This is the cutest fireman I've ever seen!















My daughter from Denmark (okay...I trained her on the mission...but she does call me mum!) came and stayed with us for a day. Ty had a crush.















Ty is a budding musician. He loves to play the piano. He HAS to have piano music up there so he knows what he's playing (of course).














Cam is just about the cutest thing ever. He smiles ALL the time. For no reason. Just a happy kid.



My mom sent us a package with all the stuff for decorating pretzel sticks for halloween. Thanks Grandma! We had so much fun!