pic-a-day {6.15 - 6.21}

We took the girls on their second camping trip this weekend. It was a lot of fun once we got over a grumpy Saturday morning. Sleep schedules being thrown off can make things pretty hard. But they girls slept really well in the trailer. They were able to get on and off their bed, so they had a lot of fun running around the trailer before they actually napped, but they did really well.

We caught a couple of fish, and saw quite a few deer, and a few elk. The girls get so excited when they see...any animal, really. It's pretty impressive that they are able to spot the animals.

My grandpa gave us this table. I think his dad made it. The girls are loving it!

 They really do love each other. It's pretty great having twins.

 They were two months old the last time I got a picture of them both asleep in my arms. I don't remember that happening too often after that.

 They played so cute together while we were camping. They would just wander around the camp together while Matthew and I cooked, or relaxed on a blanket. It was great!

Popsicles are a favorite, daily treat.

pic.a.day {6.8 - 6.14}

My little girls are so funny lately - well they are always funny, but lately they are SERIOUSLY funny.

Alya is so busy. She runs around the house pulling all the toys and books off the shelves, she pulls all the rags and towels and utensils out of the drawers, but she never really stops to play with any of it. She is our little cyclone.

Lyla wants to hug and kiss everything. When we go fishing, she says " 'mere fishy fishy. Hug you. Kiss you." She wants to hug and kiss all the birds, ants, spiders, really anything. She loves to smell flowers. She pulled me out of church one day to smell the flowers around the building. She managed to pull me out of church because she threw one of her worsening tantrums. Her tantrums have been awesome lately. She threw two fits this week that lasted a good 15 minutes. It's been pretty intense.

The girls also love the park, but they are very territorial. The swings are THEIRS. There are two swings and when the girls are ready to swing, they both better be available. Alya refuses to swing unless there is one available for Lyla too. It's cute that she wants to take care of her sister, but it's kind of embarrassing. Haha!

pic.a.day {6.1 - 6.7}

We are so happy that it's starting to warm up. The city has opened the splash pad, so we have spent some time at the park / splash pad. It's been a lot of fun!

Matthew and I had the opportunity to spend some time together on Thursday. Matthew had to pick up some plants for work in Idaho, so we asked my friend to babysit for us, and the two of us took a little road trip. It was pretty nice, I'm not gonna lie!

Then, my cousin got married on Saturday, so we made a trip up north and spent Friday and Saturday night at Matthew's sister's house. They watched the girls for us while we were at the wedding, then later that day, they watched the girls while Matthew and I visited the temple. It's been SO long since we've had a chance to go to the temple, and it was great to be there! I am so grateful that we have friends and family who are so willing to help Matthew and I.

Then on Sunday, our friends blessed their baby, so we went even farther north! It was a lot of fun to see our friends. I wish we could have visited longer, but it was good to see them for even a short amount of time. We then went to Matthew's mom and dad's and were able to visit with Matthew's grandma and grandpa - which was also way overdue!

It was a great weekend! I feel like summer is such a busy time, and I love it! I am so looking forward to this summer! I am so excited for our upcoming camping and fishing trips and family reunions.

Play dough is their favorite right now. They like to make snowmen best.

 Enjoying suckers in the shade on a hot day.

 My big girls! Lyla loves her play dough, and Alya thinks she's big enough to sit on the stool while she colors.

 Me and my girls. I love them more than words can say.

 Our buddy Gavin giving the girls a ride.

 "Who needs hands!?" If someone will hold it for them, or they can balance it somehow, they do not use their hands. Ever. It's always been this way.

Spending time with friends. (Alya and Lyla were WAY past nap time.)

pic.a.day {5.25 - 5.31}

Between Memorial Day and Matthew's birthday, I'd say we had a pretty good week! It was so good to spend some time as a family. It sure makes me excited for summer. I can't wait to spend more weekends camping, or fishing, or whatever it is we decide to do. It'll just be great to have something to look forward to on the weekends!

 These girls have the cutest smiles! I love capturing them! (Alya) // Dad and Lyla.

The girls get so excited about the idea of touching the fish, but they get so nervous! It's pretty funny. This picture pretty much explains their emotion. They stand as far away as they possibly can, but they want SO BADLY to touch it. And when the fish flops around, it scares the dickens out of them!

 Mountain climbers. Lyla // Alya.

 Dad's fishing buddy. She and Matthew were pretty much joined at the hip all night. // Alya enjoyed throwing - or rather setting - sticks in the water.

Dinner by the camp fire. I really LOVE this. It's so nice to be having fun away from home.

Daddy's girls. // Alya has always liked wearing "big" shoes. She did pretty good in my heels.

Pic.A.Day {5.18 - 5.24}



I have not been great about taking daily pictures lately. But lets be honest...none of us really care that there is a picture documenting all of the - for lack of a better word - boring stuff we do everyday. We just want to see cute pictures of my cute girls! They are getting so big, I just can't even believe it. 

 

Alya is so funny! She is so happy right now and has been very adventurous. For example, at the park one day I caught her studying the giant rock, and before long, she was climbing. She made it all the way to the top without needing any help from me. Lyla saw and was obviously not far behind. My little girls think they are big girls, and they really need to stop!

This picture might very well be one of my favorites of Alya. This is what we call her "weird face." It pretty much sums her up perfectly.

She also started this little walk. The girls walked around the yard like this basically all afternoon. // This is a blanket I made for my little sisters' friends' baby. I LOVE this blanket and I was kind of sad to give it away!

The girls enjoyed their first shower this week. We have tried showers before, but this is the first time they had fun. They loved it so much I couldn't get them out!

 A girl and her dog. Lyla likes Mo so much!

Anniversary (#5)

Sometimes I can't believe that we have already been married 5 years. Other times, it's very easy to believe that we've been married 5 years! :)

Matthew and I celebrated our "golden anniversary" (at least that's what I'm calling it.) Our 5th anniversary was on 5-15-15. Kind of exciting, right!? I guess our golden anniversary will actually be our 15th anniversary. But still, those numbers are kind of fun!

We decided to leave the girls with a sitter and take some time for just the two of us. We went down to Blanding and explored some old Indian ruins. We also ended up looking for some "collectors items" for Matthew, and were lucky enough to find a few!

We had a really good time and saw some pretty cool ruins. We weren't lucky enough to find any petroglyphs... but probably only because we overlooked them. But it was amazing to see how well preserved some of the ruins were.

We were able to explore a few new roads. We took a back road to one of the few places where there is access to the shore at Lake Powell. We camped on the beach and cooked Matthew's famous potatoes and tried to fish. It was a lot of fun!

 A restored kiva in Mule Canyon

House on Fire ruins

 

One of the many cactus flowers I photographed

The hike to these ruins was well worth it

Our two favorite things: Pretty things to take pictures of, and horns

There are actually three ruins in this picture ... the one in the middle is basically a hotel as far as ruins go

This man has made me pretty happy for the last 6+ years

A view from above our camp spot on the beaches of Lake Powell

I had a great time with Matthew celebrating our anniversary. We've had some good times and some bad times, but it has all been amazing. I wouldn't trade anything we've experienced over the last 5 years.

 

Thanks hon, for a great weekend and for so much more.  I love you!

Pic.A.Day {5.11 - 5.17}

A couple of big things happened this week! As I mentioned in a previous post, I started potty training the girls. And as you know, it did not go as I had planned. Which is not surprising! Anyway, I had the girls in diapers for a little while and one day, I was letting them "air out." I thought to myself, I will just put them in a diaper if they have an accident.

By 1:00, Lyla was accident free!!! Every time she had to potty, she told me! I have been so proud of her! Her accident free streak lasted for a while. I dropped her off at my sister's house for the weekend, and I think she had a few accidents over the weekend.

This week has not gone as well for her. I don't know if she's just adjusting to being home again, or if it's just a lot to remember that she is not wearing a diaper. She's had more accidents than not, but I am still really proud of her! She is working hard and I am just planning to continue to let them go at their own pace. I really don't want to push the potty training right now. I really thought they were ready when we jumped in with both feet, but I don't think they were quite as ready as I thought they were. Lyla is definitely showing some progress though! I am so proud of her.

Alya is mostly just happy to be wearing her diaper. She just doesn't care! She'd much rather just play, and not have to worry about when she has to use the potty!

May 15 was mine and Matthew's five year anniversary. We took the girls up to my sister's house and went down to Blanding to hike to some old Indian ruins...and "explore" as Matthew calls it. (By explore, he means that he hopes to find some...collectors items...)

We had a great time and saw lots of pretty things.

 Mon: Lyla loves Hominy. Here she is licking the spoon to get every last drop of Hominy that she possibly could. // Tues: This is how they help me make muffins. I love it.

 Wed: Dad set up the tent in the backyard, and it was a HUGE hit with these two.

 Thurs: Watching (and smelling) the rain. Notice Lyla's not wearing a diaper!!!

 Fri: The House on Fire.

 Sat: Us.  

Sun: We camped next to Lake Powell for our final night away. It was beautiful! We had such a great weekend.