Poor Lincoln.

 I think he started walking just so he could run away from me when I need a headband model.  I think I might need a girl one day...

 

Don't worry, he's still ALL boy. He loves to eat rocks. He loves to play in the trash. He loves bikes and skateboards. He loves dogs. He loves to dig his hands in the dirt. He loves to push cars around all day. And he loves to climb....

Love these conversations....

K:  "Hey look mom there's a crane!"
M: "Yeah! What does a crane do?"
K:  "It just lifts people up into the sky. Heavenly Father lives up in the sky!"
M:  "He does!"
K: "When I get big I'm gonna go up in heaven to visit him!"
M:  "Oh yeah? What are you going to do up in Heaven?"
K:  "I'm gonna play with the faces?"
M:  "You mean all the people up in heaven?"
K:  "Yeah. All the faces that live up there."
M: "You know mommy's Grandpa DeFreese lives up in Heaven too. He lives up with Heavenly Father."
K:   "I'm going to bring up all my toys and play with Grandpa DeFreese too! That would be really fun mom!"

Mr. and Mrs. Smith

Last Thursday we had the chance to go to the wedding of our close friends, Amy and Cole Smith. The wedding was beautiful! It was at a green house- Le Jardin. The ceremony was beautiful too and Cole's vows just about made me cry:)

I am sad though, the one picture I was able to take of the bride and groom turned out blurry and Cole's facial expression was kinda scary. BUT you can see how gorgeous Amy looked...

The reception was so much fun. I am pretty sure their entire family got out on the dance floor. It was awesome! Emily and Koby danced the night away. At one point, a circle was formed and people took turns bustin' a move in the middle. Koby wanted so badly to take a turn too. When he did, the crowd started chanting, "Go Koby, Go Koby!" ...and who would have known break dancing was on Koby's list of skills. This kid definitely entertains us!

Koby stole a dance with the bride

And the groom:)

Here are a couple nice pictures of Amy and Cole:

I don't have many friends so I am glad Cole married a really good one for me!

Break the Cycle

I recently was asked about Run for Innocence and I feel my explanation did not do it justice. I have been thinking a lot about it and would like to share my following thoughts with you:

Every day I am asked question after question by our inquisitive three year old. “What color is the sky mom?”… “Is my cracker going to melt?”…“What do spiders like to eat?”… “Do I have a brain mom?” etc. If I were to teach Koby the sky was green and the grass was blue he would believe me. When we go to a crowded place, our toddler, Lincoln, clutches my clothing. If it appears to him that someone wants to hold him, he clutches tighter and buries his face into my shirt. It’s amazing how much a child can trust a person.

We are all human; we are not perfect. As we go throughout life experiences occur that cause us to trust less and fear more. When a child is abused is any way and to any degree, no matter how small, their life is affected and from then on changed. It was said,

“Of all crimes, sexual abuse of children is one of the most devastating to the victim—whether or not there were multiple occurrences, and regardless of the extent of the abuse. …Those who are victims of such abuse often grow up with deep, unresolved feelings of guilt, unworthiness, anger, and betrayal.” –Thomas S. Monson

When I think about a 10 year old little boy-abused, scared, confused, and thinking it was his fault, it breaks my heart.

James has always had a strong passion to make a difference in the lives of those who have been sexually abused. That is why he started Run for Innocence. I have been supportive and happy to help. However, recently events have occurred that have caused my support to grow into passion. Right now we are working on raising awareness of this often misunderstood and secretive problem. We hope one day Run for Innocence will be able to help abused children get the counseling they need to live a happy life.

James, Emily, and I have been working really hard the last couple weeks to put together an awareness walk here in Utah. It is a walk to raise awareness for the serious problem of sexual abuse towards children. We would love it if you would join us and walk towards a better future.

When:  Saturday, April 28^th

Where:  Wines Park in Lehi, UT 

Please visit runforinnocence.org for specific details.

 Thank you to all who have helped and are planning on walking with us!

I guess it's worth it...

Although it was a fun weekend with family in town and I know Koby and Lincoln had fun seeing their grandma, grandpa, and aunts, it was tough for us parents having the kids hopped up on sugar and them not getting enough sleep.  We enjoyed a few breakdowns the past few days.

Last night Koby really didn't want to go to bed.  Finally after several books, going to the bathroom a couple times, three drinks, and a few songs, we got Koby to calm down and go to sleep.  As we left his room Koby yelled, "Dad!  I had fun playing with you today!  See you tomorrow!"  I guess I can endure the occasional tantrums for a comment like that :)

Anyway, here are a few more pictures from recent happenings that we haven't had a chance to blog yet.

Lincoln hanging out at one of his favorite spots... the TV stand.

Megan is allergic to cat and dog hair, so most likely we are never going to have a pet.  However, Koby has recently found a new friend down the street to play catch with.  He is quite a good baby sitter too.  Koby will play catch with him for hours.

Koby wears the gardening glove so his hand won't get gross.  The dog will run up to the fence with the ball, but will only drop it if Koby tell him too.  It's pretty cute.

Last month was also my grand parents 50th anniversary.  Here are a couple pictures from the party:

Koby was playing in the basement with the other kids while Megan, Lincoln, and I were still upstair.  He came up and tapped me on the leg.  I turned around and he said, "Dad, am I a princess now?!"  I just shook my head and made him watch ESPN with me when we got home :)

With the weather so nice lately, we have been able to play outside a lot more.  Koby and Lincoln love playing with our neighbors Kloe and Max, they are the nicest little kids.

Linc likes to look at our neighbor's dogs.  He got away from us after a diaper change that day and our neighbors got a little show.

Nothing cooler than shin guards, high socks, and no pants!

Well, I guess this blog has gone on long enough.  Until next time... peace!

"He is not here; for he is risen."

I love Easter. I am grateful James and I both grew up knowing who Jesus is and what he has done for us. I am grateful, like our parents, we can teach our kids that so they know they are never alone or forgotten.

This Easter was extra special because we got to celebrate with family in town. James' family made the long drive from California and we are so grateful they came to visit us all.

Saturday Koby got to dye Easter eggs with his grandma and grandpa! This was the first time I have ever attempted to do it with him. Dye and kids should not be allowed within 100 feet of each other. We only had one spill and about 5 cracked eggs. It was a success:) And he had so much fun with "Grandma Takako"...

Sunday was great. This year, James and I really wanted to help Koby understand that Easter is about Christ.  We decided to do a treasure hunt with the boys and have all the clues be about Jesus.The questions were simple, but effective. It was really fun and I think it really did help teach Koby.

After the hunt the boys enjoyed their Easter baskets. Lincoln enjoyed his First peep. Koby enjoyed all the jelly beans. Then, they both enjoyed bath-time with Koby's new bubble wands.

We enjoyed wonderful lessons in church. I discovered I have an even bigger respect for nursery leaders-Koby, along with all the sugar-high, napless kids, had a bit of a melt down. Poor kids. Their little bodies just don't know how to handle holidays sometimes.

After church we went to Janelle and Peter's house with the whole family for an Easter egg hunt. I am pretty sure Koby doesn't need to be in the "3 and under" group anymore because he sure did get more eggs than he needed. That kid is a sprinter, especially when there's treats involved.

Koby, on a mission.

James was a little too excited about jelly beans...

What a cute couple:)

We love our families. We miss you all.

Stop and Smell the Baby Powder

Our life has gotten busier and crazier. I keep thinking, "Oh next week, when things slow down..." The truth is they never slow down. I haven't rocked Lincoln to sleep at night in weeks, and I only have another month or two of rocking him for nap time. Instead of hurrying him into his crib today, I enjoyed the moment. This little guy is growing up so fast. He says "Mama," "Dada," takes about 4 steps(when he feels like it), and barks(grunts) like a dog. And just look at those sweet little lips...

Of course, I can't help but enjoy bedtime with Batman:)

Home Improvement

It's a good thing we've been addicted to homemade Cinnabons and cream cheese frosting the last couple weeks...because I worked my butt off , but was quickly able to eat it right back on again. 

James is useless in the yard this Spring because of his dang shoulders. So it was up to me to fix up our yard this year. Our house was a HUD home and the yard was UGLY so it's been tough work, but it's looking much better now. The grass still needs a lot of love...we are working on it.

Shane and James got tickets to the priesthood session last Saturday and headed up to Salt Lake so Em and I decided to take on another little project while the boys were away. We made little flower boxes. Shane's grandpa owned an orchard so they have access to cool crates and they were kind enough to share them. Em planted a herb box too. She is so self reliant ;)

I got bored the other week and switched the boys' bedrooms around. Lincoln is a light sleeper and the neighbor's dog woke him up from naps occasionally. Koby however sleeps like a rock (most of the time)...so he got the room next to the neighbor's. It's so fun to rearrange. One day I hope we will have a living room big enough to switch around as I please.

I love Hobby Lobby. These letters were like 3 bucks each. So much cheaper (and way cuter) than what I could make.

Oh and we painted our living room again. It's dark brown. I love it.

The "Before"...(How will they possibly fit a couch/TV in their, right?)

"After"

Also, I don't think I ever posted our bedroom. We painted over the ugly purplish brown. It is now a beautiful, warm gray. I love it. Hopefully we won't need to paint again for a long, long time. Painting sucks!

Here are some "before" pictures of our yard...

"Before"

"Before"

And here are the "Thus Far" pictures...

I went a little Bark happy with our trees too. I just hate weeding!

I still need to do the middle part by the AC thing.

I am grateful to live in a house and to not live below the single's ward anymore! We are so blessed.

*oh and James did an excellent job of making sure Linc didn't eat too much dirt while I worked. He isn't completely useless....he was very helpful:)