A Kiddo Update

Grant is nearly 4 years old (in January) and is growing up so much. He carries on adult conversations all day long and I feel like I'm talking to someone much older than he is. His latest conversations have included things like...

"hmmm, I suppose so"

"I'm pretending to be an adult, mom"

"Are there cars and trucks in heaven?"

"Did Heavenly Father change my body so I'll never die too?" (After we talked about the 3 Nephites)

"When I go on a mission, I'm going to take my green blankie."

"Mom, someone is grilling salmon. I just love salmon!" (We were on a walk and could smell this from a neighbors house.)

 

We still have an occasional tantrum or 3-year-old moment but overall, Grant is getting a better grasp on his emotions and on being mature and well-behaved. He is currently in a cooking class and enjoys his teacher and making new things each week. He loves making anyone laugh, especially his little brother. He is getting to be such a better eater and lately has tried (and liked) asparagus, cooked spinach, mushrooms, and adores broccoli (with butter and salt of course). Grant sleeps from 7pm-7am every night and only takes a nap maybe 2-3 days per week. Grant knows how to pray but for some reason has been nervous to do it lately so we're working on that. He knows some scripture stories and loves saying the name Mohonri Moriancumer. Grant has memorized the first two articles of faith and we're working on the third one. He is a sweet, smart boy and a great big brother.

 

 

Preston is 16 months old and is a fun boy who is into everything! No drawer or item or table full of stuff is safe. He just started coloring (scribbling), "vrooming" cars around the carpet, and climbing onto chairs/tables/etc. Poor guy is always sporting some bruise or scrape because he's very curious. He walks everywhere but sometimes still stumbles and falls. His head is still in the 97th percentile so balance can be tricky. Preston repeats lots of words and has recently said...

please

apple

doctor

no no

cake

yum yum

bath

 baby
blankie

Preston is a picky eater and is totally past the baby food phase but then really doesn't like much of what I cook. He just spits things out and throws things off his tray like crazy. Hence the reason my kitchen floor is always dirty. Preston is currently growing 3 more teeth at once so he has been a little fussier. He goes to bed at 7pm and wakes around 6:30am (although I don't get him out until 7am). He obeys simple commands and is really starting to show his personality. He loves dancing too and is very much a daddy's boy. Preston is our sweetheart and still such a baby to me.

 

Baby girl is doing well. I started feeling small movements around 17-18 weeks but now they seem stronger and more frequent. She's growing and likes to hang out on the right side of my tummy. The belly bulge is totally here to stay (for a while at least) and even strangers now comment on the pregnancy.  I'm in the awkward clothing stage where the regular clothes are way too uncomfortable (and don't button) but maternity clothes still feel a little baggy and unnecessary. My appetite is back full-force and the nausea is gone. Woo hoo! The fatigue is still prevalent but really, I think that's just how it's going to be until my kids are out of the house. :) We have no name for her yet--we can't agree on anything. I love seeing her on ultrasound at every appointment. (Our doc does a quick ultrasound to check heart rate and such instead of the Doppler.) Grant has just started saying things like "When is my sister going to come out? I miss her in there." It's sweet.

 

16 Weeks Along

 

17 Weeks Along

 

20 Weeks Along

 (I swear I can only find striped maternity shirts. It's not a great combo--a wide, round belly and horizontal stripes. Oh well!)

Sean is extremely busy with school and work so I'm holding down the fort for now. We love spending time with daddy when we can and Grant literally counts down the days until Saturday (when daddy is home). Life is great and we feel very blessed!

Annual Zoo Trip

Every autumn when the weather cools off we enjoy a trip to the Phoenix Zoo with grandma Norine. It is so much fun and great to enjoy the outdoors.

We brought sack lunches to save money, but for a treat grandma splurged and got us slurpees. Yummy, red mouths for everyone!

Grant still enjoys a good ride in the umbrella stroller after walking a ways. Good thing we brought two strollers. Oh boy, what'll we do with another baby who needs a stroller? =)

Over the Years

A look back at Halloween over the years...

 

2010: Cowboys

 

 

2011: Pumpkin

 

2012: Lego block and another pumpkin

 

 2013: Crayon and a monkey

We had a great Halloween this year. Grant was beyond excited for the trick-or-treating. Preston was so content sitting in the stroller, watching all the action as we went around the neighborhood. We hit three streets and then we were burned out. The kids ate too much sugar but everyone was in bed by 7:30pm (only half-hour late) so it was a success in my book. These kids bring excitement and joy to everything and I love experiencing the holidays with them. These boys make life wonderful for us!!

Drumroll Please....

Yesterday was the day I've been looking forward to for a while. Sean left work early, my mom came to babysit, and we headed to the doctor's office. This wasn't the extensive, anatomical ultrasound (that's the next appt.), but we were able to get a quick peak and see the gender of our little one. We are excited to announce that Grant and Preston will have a baby sister!! I can't even believe it. It's weird to even write that out or say it. I'm so used to my boys. Sean was right again--shocker. =)

 

Sean and I stopped at the store to buy something pink to announce it to the boys. I picked these pink-frosted cookies, bought them, and put them in a brown, paper bag. We got home and told Grant, Preston, and Grandma that we had a present for them. Grant opened them, screamed "pink", and then was so excited about eating them that he didn't care about the significance. My mom totally freaked out. It was fun. Preston is still such a baby he doesn't know what is going on. But of course, he got a few bites and totally loved the "sister cookies". It was a fun day!

 

 

I Heart October!

October and March are my two favorite months of the year in Arizona. The weather is quite picturesque and there are more fun things to do. First off, I really like decorating for Halloween. I like that we have a whole month to enjoy before the actual holiday. These are the fun items that adorn my house.  

 

We decided to decorate our door into a monster. Grant named it 'Misty the Monster'. It's made out of streamers, paper plates, cardstock, and painter's tape--everything we already had on hand.

 Afternoon playtime with my boys.

 Grant went on a date with Grandma Norine last week and went to look around the Disney store. Turns out, if you're the first one there before they open, you get to be the magic Mickey for the day. Who knew right? They pick one child to wear the Mickey hat and robe, hold the magic pixie dust, turn on the lights, open the door, and be the first one inside. They gave Grant a free Mickey lanyard and made him feel so special. What a fun outing for his grandma date!

 My boys are slowly learning to share--it's a long process but we're getting there. Preston is old enough now that he wants ANYTHING and EVERYTHING that Grant has. He does not want to miss out that's for sure.

 Over conference weekend we pulled out the 4-wheelers at grandma and grandpa's house and took a little ride--such fun for the boys.

 Rachel and Mike were in town which was a blast. Grant loves these two and cried and cried when they left to return to Vegas.

 Preston took his first official ride on a 4-wheeler. He seemed to like it and rode around with his mouth wide open. (For my kids, that means they're excited and happy!)

 We had to stop at Home Depot between conference sessions for some air filters and they happened to have a kids project going on. What a fun, free surprise! Rachel and daddy helped Grant build an airplane.

Six months had passed so it was time to visit our favorite pediatric dentist again. I talked it up a lot and Grant did fabulously! I was so pleased. He did x-rays (for the first time), the cleaning, the fluoride, and the doctor's exam. No cavities here. Woo hoo. (Of course it helps that the staff/doc are incredible with little kids, they have movies playing on the ceiling, they give stickers and prizes, and the office is decorated for kids' enjoyment.)

Way to be brave big boy. The staff kept saying , "Wow, is he always this happy?" To which I replied, "no, but I wish he were!" =) We made our next appointment for 6 months from now and it's crazy to think we'll probably have a one-month-old in our family by then.

Numero Tres

 Without further ado, it is time to introduce you to baby Oborn #3 who is on its way to our family! We are excited (and nervous) and know this baby is supposed to come now. We found out we were expecting on August 6th and it's been hard keeping it under wraps until now. I've been really nauseous since about week 7 but I almost never throw up. I hate cooking, grocery shopping, opening the fridge, and watching those nasty Burger King commercials on tv. Yuck. I've also been extremely fatigued and have felt like the world's most boring mom lately because some days I lay on the couch while the boys play and I have no energy to move! I really hate the feeling of being tired because it exacerbates everything else into a big deal when it's really not. Hopefully the energy will increase and the nausea will decrease soon.

I think this baby is another boy and Sean is sure it's a girl. We will find out who is right on October 23rd! I'm really looking forward to that day. Baby's original due date was April 2, 2014 but was measuring a little small so my new official due date is April 9, 2014. It doesn't really matter what the due date is though because babies come on their birthday, not on their due date and not when we tell them. Here is the baby's first ultrasound picture taken back at 11 weeks. We are excited to meet this little person and see how he or she fits into our family!

Randomness

 

Grant absolutely loves mustaches and says he wants his next birthday to be a mustache party with a mustache cake!

 Grant has enjoyed his ABC class through Gilbert Parks and Rec. This is him and his teacher Ms. Carolyn.

Both our boys have a soft, green blankets that they love. They can't sleep without them. This was not staged by the way.

 Preston and mom enjoying a free ride on the carousel at the mall.

 For our anniversary last month I made Sean this gift. Since he's an accountant and loves numbers and I love sentimental things (like remembering specific dates), this was the perfect, inexpensive gift.