Peek a Boo

This little girl has quite the personality! Every day she does something new that just amazes me, it can be as simple as yelling at the top of her lungs at church, grunting when she wants something or just yelling to get her brothers attention.

And I promise that is all the videos for one day!

My Rock Star!

Ethan tends to get a little crazy most of the time. And when he does we are always in for a treat. Sometimes he will grab his guitar and rock out for us. This is a video of a mild rock out session....

Notice how he quickly gets bored and moves on to something else.... Welcome to our life!

Video Try...

So I have seen some videos on a few other blogs and after my friend explained it to me I thought I'd give it a try too. So about a month ago I was up with the kids early one Saturday. We had already been walking at the park and Katelee had spilled all of her water on her shirt. So when we got home I put some new pants on her and just left her without a shirt since she would be napping soon. A little while later the kids were doing their own things and this is what Katelee was choosing to do:



I must confess this video is about a month old. Since this video Katelee has taught herself to stand up in the middle of the floor. She was trying real hard in the video to do it, and now she has mastered it. However she still cannot walk. Most kids learn how to walk and then later they learn how to stand up with nothing to help them, not my daughter, she does things on her own schedule.

This video just shows you how much fun this little lady loves to have. She loves to laugh, especially when her brother is laughing with her! She is such a joy to have around. I hope that these videos show you that.

Blackburn Family Pictures

A while ago my cousin, who is a WONDERFUL photographer took the Blackburn Family's pictures! And they turned out great, I just wanted to get some of these online so we could have them to look at for ALWAYS! Thanks Tiff, you did a great job, specially for what you had to work with! The grandchildren. I would have given Katelee a Pine cone too, but it would have just been in her mouth the whole time!
Candid picture of Ethan and Grandpa. My son just loves his Grandpa's!

Matt, Anjali and Matilynn! They all have nice bums don't they?

My cute Niece, Matilynn!

The Blackburn Kids!

Look at this cutie! I just love his smile, it makes me smile no matter the reason for his smile!

And my precious Katelee, she loved being in this box and playing with all the girlie stuff!

Here is one of the Blackburn Family photos!

And here is one of our little family!

And another one!

The Breaths We Take....

Yesterday my mother gave me the newest George Straight CD. If you don't know, I'm a huge lover of music. I listen to each word and try to explain why the artist wrote the song. I find that music helps me express my feelings as well as relieve stress and pain from my life. I have been a lover of music almost all of my life. Anyways, on my way to work today I listened to it a bit and pretty soon I had tears rolling down my cheeks. This is not all that uncommon, however I didn't stop crying the entire song. It goes something like this:

He looks up from second base
Dad’s up in the stands
He saw the hit, the run, the slide
There ain’t no bigger fan
In the parking lot after the game he said
“Dad I thought you had a plane to catch”
He smiled and said “Yeah son I did”
Life’s not the breaths you take
The breathing in and out
That gets you through the day
Ain’t what it’s all about
Ya just might miss the point
Try’n to win the race
Life’s not the breaths you take
But the moments that take your breath away
Fast forward fifteen years And a thousand miles away
Boy’s built a life he’s got a wife And a baby due today
He hears a voice saying “I made it son
He said “I told you dad you didn’t have to come”
He smiles and says ”Yeah I know you did”
Just like it took my breath when she was born
Just like it took my breath away when dad took his last that morn
Life’s not the breaths you take
The breathing in and out That gets you through the day
Ain’t what it’s all about
Ya just might miss the point
If ya don’t slow down the pace
Life’s not the breaths you take
But the moments that take your breath away....

From the very first line talking about his parent at the game the tears started. I didn't even know what the song was about, but the memories of my parents in the stands at ALL of my sports games came to mind. My father worked till 3-3:30 everyday, yet he was at all of my games. My mother was always there too. Babysitting kids in tow if they were still there when it was game time! (even at the bowling matches and endless tournaments I attended!) I always appreciated it, however now that I'm a mother I have a whole new appreciation for that. My parents have always been active in our lives. They cared about the things we did, the friends we hung out with and just US in general. We were not rich, my father worked hard, sometimes cleaning pools on the side on his Saturday off to help us make ends meet, and my mother would babysit as well, but I wouldn't have wanted it any other way! We grew closer as a family by spending so much time together. We hardly went out to dinner, but when we did we enjoyed the new atmosphere with one another. I remember when Dad would get home from work we would always ask him to go out and play with us. He would always scold us for not saying hello first. So we would then say, "Hi dad, wanna go out and play?" He had just had a busy day at work yet he always went out and played with us. I know Mom probably enjoyed that a lot, getting a break from us kids for a while while we bugged dad instead!

This song could have been written by me, describing my parents. My mother was in the delivery room for each of my kids births. My father was in the waiting room for each of their births as well. When my father gets home from work each day, Ethan asks him to go outside and play, and my father does. My mother watches my kids everyday and yet she still loves them with all her heart! My dad continues to tell me to enjoy every minute with my kids because before I know they will be all grown up. I grew up with two wonderful examples of what parents should be like from them. How blessed I am to have them in my life, to have their examples to live by and to have their never ending, always growing love in my life, the life of my children and the life of my future children. I have been forever enriched from my parents and will never be able to express my true appreciation for them.

How important it is that we don't miss the point of life, that we don't get carried away in unimportant things. I am not a perfect mother, but I hope to be at least half the parent my parents were for me. I hope to enjoy the "breaths" that will truly give me the capability to support my life! I love my children and hope and pray that I can be the great parents to them that mine were to me!

Katelee's First Pony Ride

The kids love to go over to Uncle Matt and Aunt Anjali's house. They have so many toys the kids just don't know what to do with themselves. The other night while over there Chris put Katelee on the pony and she had a blast. Doesn't she look like a pro at riding. I couldn't believe how much she liked it and she would even rock a little too. Look at the smile on her face! Can't beat that!

A Rare Jem!!!!

The other day I was getting some things together in the kitchen and noticed that Ethan was being quite. Of course this is very usually since most the time when I'm in the kitchen he is destroying anything he can get his hands onto. I peek into the living room and see this! Of course I grabbed the camera to get a document picture that my son can be still other times and not just when he sleeps! After I took the picture Ethan looked over at me like "what are you taking a picture of lady?" I just smiled and went back into the kitchen. He continued to lay on his mat for about 2 more minutes and then was back to his normal self! I love this kids energy but am so grateful for the little minutes of rest that he sometimes gives me and Chris!

Happy Birthday Matt... My Favorite Brother Ever!

My Brother turned the big 29 back in July and I told him I was going to post about it. So here we go. Growing up me and Matt were pretty much inseparable. We dug huge holes in the back yard on long summer days. Matt would hold me by the ankles and lower me into the hole so we could make it deeper. We rode bikes for a bigillion hours each summer and never really cared that we were roasting. We use to play cars, micro-machines, Lego's, push each other in the wagon, (debate is still going on about who pushed who the most, but I'm pretty sure I was always pushing) and the Blackburn famous "knock Procter off the road." As we have grown up and moved on to families of our own, I'm still very proud to say that we are close. I know I can always count on my brother to help me out when I need it. He is always willing to do whatever we need him to do and he never asks why or tells us no. No matter the time of day I always know I can call him and he will answer, or at least call me back really quick! In High School my brother was a senior and I was a little freshman, but he still let me hang out with him. (Plus he never had to wait in line for food, he would always tell me that he'd pay if I went and got the food... Those that know me well know I'm always down for free food!) Matt has always looked out for me and it has always been a comfort knowing that. (Even though I was and still am bigger than him it's nice to know he has my back!) Ethan and Katelee love their Uncle Matt as well. Ethan can spot Uncle Matt's truck from anywhere! He always wants to go over to Matt's house and especially his boat! Matt has always been my favorite brother and the kind of brother I hope Ethan will be one day! Thanks Matt for the memories from our childhood and the ones we continue to create! We love you a ton!

Turtles!!!

My Aunt and Uncle have a whole bunch of Desert Turtles in their back yard that Ethan has really grown to love! After Sunday dinner at my parents house we usually walk down the street to their house and hang out for a while. We are almost guaranteed that after about 10 minutes or so Ethan will want to go outside to see the turtles. Luckily this one Sunday I actually had my camera on me and took some pictures!

Here is Ethan with Aunt Anna and a few of the older turtles! Aunt Anna was feeling brave to sit so close to them, they usually go for your feet!

Here are some of the older turtles without any of the kids in their faces!

I was trying to get Ethan and a turtle in a picture together. Ethan is still a little afraid of them up close. He loves to throw food at them, but that is about it! We finally got this picture and then......

The turtle turned to attack! :) Just kidding, but Ethan sure thought the turtle was going to get him! He was up faster than I could say "Watch Out!" (Don't you just love Ethan's necklaces? Aunt LaRaine has the coolest and most toys ever, Thanks LaRaine for letting us hang out with you guys every other Sunday!)

And on the way home Aunt Anna, Ethan and Cousin Matilynn all held hands on the walk home! It was the cutest thing ever! Ethan can be pretty mean at times but he really does love his cousin! A BIG Thanks to Aunt Anna for always hanging out with my kids and making sure they have a great time! We love you!

Oh Ethan!

Story #1: Last night we did our nightly ritual of family prayers, hugs and kisses and then off to brush Ethan's teeth. But what Ethan did after he hugged me is priceless and a little scary! Ethan came and gave me a hug and then he grabbed the back of my head and kissed me. He normally does this but this time he just keep him lips on mine. It lasted a few seconds and then he pulled away and looked at me and said "I yuv kissing!" I started laughing and said "you do?" and he smiled and said "Yes!" It was hilarious! Oh I just can't wait until he is a teenager, hopefully he grows our of "luving to kiss!"

Story #2: We have been potty training Ethan for quite a while. Well Sunday and Monday Ethan wore big boy underwear all day long and had no accidents. So we tried it again on Tuesday. I was on my way to lunch at work and I get a text message from my mother that says, "Ethan just peed in his pants. I told him I was going to text his Mom and tell her. He said Please Don't do that!" He has really started to talk and I'm very happy to say that most the time he is polite by using the words 'please' and 'thank you!' Sometimes he uses them and doesn't really mean them, such as: "Get me some candy, NOW, please!" Or "Move Katelee, Get out of the way, PLEASE!!!"

Story #3: Every Sunday after church we ask Ethan what he learned in nursery today. His reply every Sunday is "School Bus!" Every Sunday in nursery they have singing time, which they sing a few songs but apparently they always sing The Wheels on the Bus.... This is the only thing Ethan thinks he learns that day even though he knows this song by heart! I can only imagine that his favorite subject in school will be recess or lunch! Silly Boy!

Story#4: We have always commented on how crazy Ethan is, he never calms down and only relaxes when he is sleeping! We have never been able to figure out where this comes from, I always blame it on being born in 2006, which I still think contributes to this behavior, however the other day my mom got some old "family letter" her side of the family use to write while my Grandparents were on their mission to keep them informed of everything going on! In the letters it mentioned that something like this: Hilary is just so busy I can never get anything done around the house. When I clean the bathrooms I have her wash the walls to give her something to do just so I can clean for 5 minutes. She is a handful.... Hilary is calming down a little, but Grandpa still has given her the nickname of Hurricane Hilary! After reading these letters I have come to an acceptance that Ethan is simply following in the footsteps of his mother. I was a great infant as was Ethan, and I was a little wild and crazy as a toddler just like Ethan is! Please pray for us as Ethan enters his teenage years! :)

The Nelson Happenings!

So quite a while ago we pulled out all the carpet downstairs and put in some wood floors! I absolutely love the new floors as does Ethan. He loves to run and drop to his knees and slide. I don't know how his little knees handle all the things he puts them through, but he always seems to be fine. Well when we put the floors in we pulled off all of the base boards and moved the furniture into the garage. Needless to say most of the small furniture is STILL in the garage, Chris parks in the parking lot because only one car will fit in the garage because of the furniture still in the garage. Well the other day we finally painted and put the base boards in. And here is the finished product! So we still have to get the transitions in but those are quite expensive and we just don't have the money to get those yet! But one day we will have everything done and a garage that can hold two cars! I can't wait for that day!
The other day before church I wanted to get a picture of how cute the kids looked! I wish I would have taken a picture of what they looked like afterwards because it is never as nice as the before. Ethan usually gets water all over his clothes from washing his hands a million times during nursery! And Katelee usually has her shoes off, her clip out and sometimes even her bloomers off because she has pooped on them! But I love how they always look so exhausted after church! These kids are such cuties and we absolutely love them!
The other day I got home before Chris and started dinner. Katelee had already gotten into the dogs water and spilt it ALL over the kitchen floor! Ethan was in and out of the garage playing with his kitchen that is still in the garage from the beginning issue of this post! So I finally locked Katelee up in her highchair and gave her some olives to eat. This kept her very happy, and even made Ethan want to stay inside which really helped me out while cooking!

This is Ethan's smile for the camera... And he never looks at the camera! Gotta love that crazy kid! Notice Katelee didn't care about the camera, she wanted the food on her tray and nothing more!

And here is just another random picture of the kids helping me cook dinner by staying out of the way. Thank heavens for chopped olives! :)

Katelee is 11 Months Today!

This little lady is only a month away from turning ONE! I can't believe it! Where does the time go? So far Katelee only has two teeth, both on the bottom. Her hair is getting longer, but still way shorter than Ethan's at this age!

She is finally sleeping through the night, but every once in a while she will try to cry and see if we will come in there and get her! Sometimes we do, it just depends on her cry! Katelee has a pretty short temper and loves to grunt and yell at anyone that tells her "no" or takes something away from her! It is quite comical, but I'm already dreading her teenage years!Katelee loves her brother and tries to do everything he does, including getting into trouble! And she loves to dump the dogs water and get her food ALL over the place! I would love to say that it has only happened once, but that would be a lie!
Katelee is finally pulling herself up on things and even knows how to fold her arms. When we have family prayer at night she always folds her arms to start with. She is about 18 pounds and hates to wear shoes. We put some on her before church and before we get there the shoes are off and on the floor! Katelee is a joy to have around, she really is a good baby! She takes good naps, most of the time! You just lay her down and she goes to sleep herself! She smiles and laughs when I come to pick her up after work, which really makes me happy! Nothing is better than seeing my two little kids at the end of a long day! We are so happy that Katelee chose us to be her parents and can't believe how fast time flys!

Fourth of July (only a month late)

So I do realize that it is August and that the Fourth of July was over a month ago, but I still need to post about it! So we had our usual Bar-b-Que at the Howard's house. The food was delicious and the food and company were great! We then came home and just relaxed for a while, trying to recoup from all the sun we enjoyed! We put Katelee down and were about to put Ethan down when Grandma and Grandpa Blackburn called and asked if Ethan could stay up a little longer and watch some fire works they were going to buy. We figured it was a special occasion so why not? Ethan and I laid on the ground while we waited for them to get to our house. Luck for Ethan Grandma and Grandpa brought Aunt Anna and Uncle Enrique with them!

This is Ethan and I laying on the ground! You can tell Ethan was really tired, he never just lays anywhere!

Ethan had fun picking up after the Pop Guns! But he wasn't so big on setting them off! I think the pop scared him...

Ethan playing with his first Sparkler! He wasn't scared of it at all, in fact we had to keep moving it away from him face!

Ethan watching the show from Grandma's lap!

And then from Aunt Anna's lap! Ethan had a great time, and slept very well that night! Even with all the crazy noise around. I am so grateful for the opportunity we have to celebrate our Country's Independence Day! I hope to instill in my kids the importance of this country and how blessed we are to live here! I am thankful for all of the men and woman who continue to fight for the freedoms that so many have previously died for! This land is a choice land, and I pray we keep it that way! Happy Fourth of July, a month late, EVERYONE!

3 1/2 Years

What can get accomplished in 3 1/2 years? Lets see:

• 
  
  A missionary can leave, come home and probably get married


• 
  
  Ethan will be ready to start School


• 
  
  Katelee will be 4 1/2, and I'm sure just overflowing with attitude


• 
  
  Perhaps Ethan will be potty trained....


• 
  
  Housing prices will be to about 60% or so of what we actually paid for them


• 
  
  Another Presidential Election


• 
  
  I'll almost or actually be 30


• 
  
  Our car lease will have expire and we'll get another car, Yeah!


• 
  
  I'm really going for maybe 2 more kids in that time span, but that is still to be determined...

What is the point of 3 1/2 years? Chris has officially started Physical Therapy School! Which will last 3 1/2 years, starting NOW! His first classes started today. We have been preparing for this day since we got married in 2005, and it has finally come! I know that Chris has been looking forward to this day for a while as well as the rest of us. I am so proud to have Christopher as my husband. He has not allowed anything to get in the way of his career decision, even a nagging wife who at times has questioned what else he could do with a Kinesiology Degree, besides PT school.... Chris has taken summer classes to graduate quicker, while also working part time at the Bank. He is a very dedicated student and has truly made all of his family proud!

Chris I just wanted to tell you that I'm so proud of you! You are a great guy and I love you! Keep up the hard work! Now I expect you to be #1 in your class, but that isn't asking too much is it? So check back in 3 1/2 years for pictures of Chris's Graduation from Touro University!