It's good to be his mommy

I think Heavenly Father knew what he was doing when he made Bosty so stinkin' cute! Boston knows how to push all my buttons and is a little pistol, but he never fails to melt my heart with his sweet words. Recently, on a number of occasions, he'll be watching a cartoon or movie and the character will be in some situation that is sad. Maybe he's crying or hungry or scared. And Boston will sympathize with the character and then tell one of us "He needs my mommy." It may be followed by something such as "He's hungry. He needs my mommy to make him sammich (sandwich)." or "He's crying. He needs my mommy hold you me gorilla." That would be if the gorilla was sad and needed me to hold him. It's good to know that he thinks I hold the world up and make everything better, when sometimes I feel so inadequate. And he doesn't just say that they need any ol' mom, but they need his mommy. There is nothing to compare to the love of a child. I am madly in love with my boys (all four of them).

Happy day

Saturday was a good day. Ya know, one of those days when you finally get the kids in bed and you think, "I was a good mom today!" Occasionally I have one of those days squeezed somewhere between the "messy house, cereal for dinner, no time for reading books, boys still in pajamas, stinky from not showering, guilty mom" kind of days. So I thought I should definitely brag... oops I mean blog about it. While Chris took Caden to his guitar lesson (which I was able to barter music lessons for hair services-score one point for me!) I put Hudson in the baby-backpack carrier and did dishes (by hand) and cleaned the house. Meanwhile, Boston painted with watercolors at the table with plastic to keep it mess free (and he didn't even paint himself...for the first half hour). I played a cleaning music mix to help me work-Big thanks to Katie-I loved the mix! Then, when Chris got home, he offered to cook lunch. I never turn this offer down because it's usually pretty predictable. I know we will have either quesadillas, grilled cheese and ABC soup, or scrambled eggs with toast, or pancakes if he's really feeling crazy. Scrambled eggs and toast it was. But, as I started eating my eggs, they just didn't taste right. Not wanting to risk him never offering to cook again, I didn't complain. I thought, maybe I am just getting a cold and my tastebuds are all messed up. But halfway through the meal, Chris said,"So, can you taste my secret ingredient?" Caden blurts out, "Egg Nog!" Hmmm. Note to self: Monitor Chris when he cooks. Yeah, not so tasty. But I ate them anyway. Then we got all bundled up to take the boys sledding. Caden absolutely loved it! Boston, not so much. OK, he hated it. Chris took him down once and he cried. And cried. And then ate snow. And then cried some more because "he couldn't walk." That's his new thing. He gets all helpless on us when things aren't going his way. So I carried him to the van where Hudson was sleeping all cozy. And I liked it too, because by this point, the eggnog eggs were causing some stomach cramps. The sun was going down and most everyone had packed up their sleds and gone home. But not Caden and Chris. Not till the sun was completely gone. Because that's the beauty of having kids. You can sled for hours and noone thinks your crazy. Then we came home to a big pot of warm homemade vegitable soup. And it was GOOD! I mean "Shut my mouth, that sho is some good soup" good. Then we went to a Christmas party, so I dressed up. No, it wasn't a dressy one, but I was going out that's reason enough to dress up. The boys were on their best behavior. I'm not sure how I lucked out with that one. Then we went to target. OK that part sucked-it was a madhouse-so just forget that part of my day and I will too. Finally we went home and, inspired by Katie, I created a cleaning mix of my own so I can have another day like today. I liked it. I love my boys. I love being "mom" and "beautiful"(that's how Chris addresses me even on stinky, no shower days). It reminds me of a song "with all that I've done wrong I must have done something right to deserve their love everymorning and butterfly kisses at night" Now I'm just getting cheesy so it's time for bed. Night Night

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Vibe Hair Studio

We are really doing it! I met with a product rep today to find out more about a hair color and product line that I am interested in. He gave me a lot of info and sent me home with some stuff to try and so far, I LOVE IT. Oh, and Crystal, when you read this, they have a product that is like the powerdose that you love...I'll send you one! Sister perks ya know. Anyway, we are having a professional logo done up and hopefully it will be done before the end of Dec. so we can start blanketing the city with cards and advertisements. We sign our lease on Monday. We're getting pretty excited! I created a blogspot address for now and hopefully we'll grow quick and get a website built in the near future. But for now, check it out and once I decide for sure on a product line to carry, we'll do some giveaways for those of you who help spread the word about Vibe! So click here...Vibe-Can you feel it?

!2 days of Christmas giveaways-hurry

Click here to win some really fun and cool stuff for Christmas! DO IT NOW!

My cute friend

I have a cute friend. Cally. OK, I admit, I am totally and completely jealous of her. Somehow, with 5 little children, she manages to still look beautiful all the time and she sings pretty songs in church. Oh, and plays the piano, sews amazing things, and best of all...she drinks from the chocolate fountain and is still skinny! My apologies in advance for embarrassing you Cally, but you know it's all true! Anyway, my purpose in posting this is so you can check out her cute work and maybe win something sometime! Just click Calico and have fun!

Caden the Hunter

Caden's Uncle Dan took him to get some new snow pants, gloves, and a hat today. He was so excited, that he wore them out of the store and when he got home, he put on his shirt and vest to match them,that Uncle Dan gave him last year! He can't wait to be able to actually go hunting when he's a little older. He loves to try all kinds of meat and even tries to hunt the wild chickens that roam the neighborhood with his slingshot. Thanks Dan for being such a fun uncle and a great role model for Caden. You really make him feel special!

I couldn't take it any longer...literally!

I decided that long hair is just an added stress for me, so I cut it off! No more flat, stringy hair with knots from Boston twirling it. As you can see, he still twirls it-CONSTANTLY. But he's OK with the length. So we can both be happy now!

Do You Hear What I Hear?

This evening, when I got home, I was telling Chris about a lady that I encountered earlier in the day that was quite annoying and in everyone's business. I was explaining to him how she acted and told him that I wanted to tell her what I thought, so I was glad that it was time for us to go so I didn't say anything mean. As I was telling this to Chris, Caden blurts out, "You should've just told her the SH word." Our eyes got big as we both wondered how in the world he knew that word. Before we could question him, he said, "Yeah, shut-up lady!" Phew! We explained to Caden that although shut-up is not a nice word and we don't use it, that he shouldn't refer to it as "the SH word" because there are other words that are worse that people might think he is talking about. He couldn't fathom that there are words worse than shut-up and stupid. If only we were all that innocent-imagine how the world would be!

an extra special Thanksgiving

We spent this Thanksgiving with my cousin Lindsay and her husband Todd.It was a small gathering, but we had a great feast and got an amazing suprise when Chris Daughtry stopped by. I guess he and Todd have been friends for a while. Todd is in the music scene and met him a while back. We really thought he should have won American Idol, but oh well! It looks like things are going great for him anyways. Thanks for the fun Lindsay and Todd!

Opinions please!

Chris and I met with the builder of studio salons today where we will be leasing a small studio suite to run our salon in. It's such a beautiful place and we are pretty excited. I need your opinion though. We like the name "Vibe" (yes, we stole it from a salon in TN, but that's OK since were 2,000 miles away). Do you like that name or do you have any suggestions? Also, some of the newer salons are calling themselves "hair studios" instead of "salons" so... which is better...Vibe hair studio or Vibe salon? One more thing-This is my idea for a logo. Now I have absolutely no graphic design experience, so I would obviously take it to someone who does to have it perfected, but what do you think of my rendering? Be honest-that's what I need! Thanks!

Join the laundry basket revolution

Chris went grocery shopping for a few things last night. I know, what a man! But we'll talk more about that later. Anyway, while he was checking out, the bagger asked if he wanted plastic. What? In Tennessee, you just get plastic. No options. So Chris said, "Do I have another option?" And the guy informed him that he could choose paper or plastic, but a lot of people now just use the cloth bags. You know, the ones that you pay for and they fit about 2 vegitables inside, so you need about 500 to get your groceries! Chris is always so good with words, so he responded, "I don't believe in that crap." I mean, I know that Al Gore is a freakin genius and all, and I'm so glad that he is being a superhero and trying to save the earth from suddenly bursting into flames from global warming (if you believe that, you should probably just delete my blog from your computer altogether right now). Anyway, so Chris and I got in to our ever so deep discussion on which really is better for the environment. Paper uses a lot of our valuable trees, but plastic does not break down quickly. And the cloth bags-we decided they are just a great marketing scheme. So here's my suggestion...Next time you go shopping, load those big ol laundry baskets into your car, then take them in the store. When you check out and they ask "Paper, plastic, or cloth?" simply reply, "Neither" and bust out your laundry baskets. They do make it easy to carry your groceries from the car to the house! And they are pulling double duty. You can thank me later. Maybe I'll write a book and make a movie like my buddy Al, and I can profit from misleading an entire generation of impressionable kids! I'll hop off of my soapbox now so I can change some diapers (of the disposable sort).

Got Milk?

Boston decided that he needed more cereal and milk for his Sunday morning breakfast! As you can see in the picture on the right, after he filled his bowl some more, he attempted to fill a second bowl (left at the table by Caden for the cleaning fairy to fly in and swoop up and take to the sink). There was obviously still milk left in the jug and cereal in the box and he wasn't going to finish until it was all out! Funny thing is- He still thinks that we can't see him if he can't see us. Sometimes I wish I were two!

Bubbles, eyedrops, and elves

I know you're wondering..."What in the world do those three things have in common?" So let me tell you. Laughter. I think that I may have the most hilarious boys in the entire world! I'm pretty sure that Heavenly Father gave them such wonderful senses of humor to balance out the chaos that they cause on a daily basis. It allows me to lighten up and laugh when sometimes I want to cry. You know, those times when I'm cleaning Boston's artwork off the fridge (literally off the fridge) only to hear music coming from the other room and realize that he's now sitting on top of the piano and playing tunes with his feet (Sorry grandma and grandpa Yeager! No permanent damage was done!). And then I find Caden's collection of swords on the kitchen table that he fashioned from my foils that I use to highlight hair. And this is usually topped off with at least one blowout a day from Hudson. And that's a mild day compared to some. So, like I said, it is with great love and planning that I was given funny boys and I'll share the laughter with you.
Elves- I picked Caden up from school the other day and a Christmas song was on the radio. He said "They should play this song at Christmas. Is Christmas soon?" I replied "yes, we should start thinking about what you want to put on your list for Santa. What do you want this year." Caden thought for a moment and said, "I think I just want one of his elves. Then I can just give him the materials and he can make me all the toys I want. And he can make all the presents for us to give to people and we won't have to buy them." I agree!
Bubbles- I was relaxing for a quick moment in the tub the other day when Boston comes toddling in, strips down, and hops in with me. A few minutes later, he makes a funny face and says "Oooh Gross...bubbles my butt" If you are any good at interpretting 2 yr old talk, you know where he was going with that. My relaxing was short lived and I hopped out and let him enjoy his "bubble bath" alone.
Eyedrops - Boston had a cold the other day that gave him a little eye infection, so we had to put drops in his eyes throughout the day. With a handy stash of Halloween candy, we bribed him to be a big boy and let us put the drops in and in return he got to pick a piece of candy each time. So, tonight we took the boys to the local rec club for an evening of swimming. There is a water play tower in the middle of the kids area that has wheels, slides, waterfalls, and all sorts of things. When we walked near it, water was really splashing in our faces, and Boston paused there, then suddenly got really excited as he exclaimed "Eyedrops, eyedrops-I get candy!"

Caden's Reflections contest photograph

This is the picture that Caden took and entered it in the Reflections contest today at school. He named it "Mount Awesome". Good luck Caden! We hope you win a fun prize!

Merry Christmas to all...

and to all a freakin awesome gift!
So, we have one of these with our last name and we gave one as a gift to someone that said "inspire". It's a really great gift for those people that have everything already. Customize your own at http://www.framethealphabet.com/

Halloween

Hudson was the cutest little cow ans Caden was an awesome ninja turtle! Boston is anti-camera right now so we will try to get a Bob-the-Builder shot another day! We went to Caden's school in the morning to see the Halloween parade, then we trick or treated/trunk or treated in the neighborhood for about an hour. Then we went to Uncle Kevin and Aunt Holly's for a party. They had quite a big crowd, and Dallon, his buddies and Caden put on a pretty scarey spook alley in the back yard. Chris and I dressed up in some last minute, throw together costumes and I think we turned out pretty cute. I was the tooth fairy, and Chris went as none other than his very own dad-Monte!

Pumpkin carving night

For family home evening, we had great great grandma over and carved pumpkins. The boys had fun digging the "guts" out of the pumpkins and then we stenciled pictures on them to cut out. Caden made a Frankenstein face and Boston made an owl. Hudson didn't enjoy the slimy, cold pumpkin, but he sure was cute in it!

Twinkle Twinkle Boston's a star!

Growing up too fast!

Having three boys is nonstop chaos, but sooooo much fun! Caden is the best big brother ever. He tries so hard to be just like daddy so I'm sure he'll grow up to be a great man! Boston is nonstop energy and mischief and we adore him. Chubby little Hudson has a twinkle in his eyes just like his brothers.

Our family garden

This is our first year growing a garden. Check out that zucchini!

4th of July

Happy 4th from our "little firecracker"

Hudson Monte Yeager is born!

Little Hudson was born on June 23, 2008
He weighed 8 lbs. 12 oz. and was 20 1/2"
Mommy is so proud!
Look at those cheeks! So kissable.
This is what Hudson spends most of the day doing.

party boy

Caden won a contest at his cousins birthday party where he had to fish a marshmallow out of a pile of whipped cream only using his mouth. His face was covered in whipped cream, but he licked it clean in no time. He is excited to be out of school for the summer and spends all day outside!

Two year old things

Boston really did love the chocolate pudding-we promise! He just isn't too into sharing, so don't ask. This is the response you'll probably get. Food is serious stuff with him. Having such an attitude is quite exhausting so Boston and Elmo decided to take a nap.

Boston and Caden wearing their new hats

Left: Such sweet brothers. If only they were always like that!

Below: Caden proudly sports his Boston Red Sox hat that his Aunt JaNae and Uncle Dan picked up in Boston where JaNae ran the Boston Marathon!
Left: Boston loves his England hat that Grandma and Grandpa Yeager sent him! It is a little big still, so his ears stick out, but we think it is adorable!

Happy Birthday Caden!

Caden is now the big 6! He had a family birthday party with his Tennessee family in early January, then about a week after that, we took him and three friends to a Monster Truck show and they spent the night. It was a lot of loud, red-neck fun! He wanted doughnuts instead of cake that night so that's what he had. On the night before his actual birthday, we took him out to eat at Wasabi's Japanese restaraunt where they cook in front of you (it's one of his favorites). He ended up getting a stomach virus on his birthday, so we kept him out of school that day. He went back to school on 1/31 so I took treats and party bags to his class and they sang to him and had a little celebration. He maximized his birthday to say the least! Thank you to everyone who gave him so many nice presents! His next big idea is to save up enough money to buy a bubble gum machine to place in a business to earn money for a dog. I guess every boy needs a dog. We told him he'll have to help with the cost of a fence also, so he is conjuring up all kinds of ways to earn money. I'm glad to see that he's willing to work for something he really wants though. If I can just stay sane in the process! He is a determined boy!

Boston's Cardiology check-up

Boston just went for his annual cardiology check-up this week and everything looks great. His EKG had the same reading as it did last year, which is excellent. That means that his heart is functioning just as well even though he has grown significantly. He will have another check-up next January where they will do an echocardiogram and if everything still looks good then, they will space his appointments out further. Needless to say, we are thrilled!

Tough guy

We get together every Sunday with our Tennessee family and Caden and Joel (his cousin) have made it tradition to have a wrestling match on a foam pad. Since they are the same age and about the same size, they can handle each other pretty well. Boys will be boys!

Caden really enjoyed iceskating at an outdoor rink in December. He went a couple of times and did great right from the start! The mascot from the local ice hockey team and a couple of players were there skating with him one night and he even got the mascot's autograph. He was thrilled with that!