TWO YEARS OLD!

I AM TWO!! Isn’t that awesome?? The actual weekend of my birthday (Oct 9) , Grandma Cari came to visit. We had so much fun and she spoiled us rotten. For my birthday, she bought me some little Tonka trucks and a cool “slide” for them to go down.

One of the highlights was going to the pumpkin patch to pick out some Halloween pumpkins. There we also enjoyed playing in the corn pit, petting the animals, climbing on the old fashioned tractor and finding our way through the hay maze.


Grandma and mom also got to go to a BYU football game. Since it started when I usually go to bed, I went and spent sometime with some friends and fell asleep there. If you were watching closely, we heard that mommy and her Canadian gloves made it on TV!


Last weekend was super busy but I think it was a good thing because mom was getting awfully anxious for the ultra sound. Daddy was out of town in Oregon with the football team so it was just mommy and me. Over the two days, mommy babysat 5 different children (from 4 families). Amongst all the, what seemed like constant babysitting, on Friday mommy was able to make 2 pies, and a huge crock pot of soup. This was in preparation for a ward party we went to on Saturday. Mom had the crazy idea of taking 2 kids she was watching along with me to this ward party by herself; probably not the smartest idea. There was a lot of people there and between carrying around a very mobile 18 month old boy, dealing with some of my temper tantrums and trying to hold a constant conversation with a very bright 4 year old girl, needless to say there were a couple of stressful moments. Mom was relieved when we finally made it to there friends house to put all of us to bed. However that was a struggle in its self; finally by about 9:45 there was silence and mommy could relax. Even though this sounds a bit crazy, mommy LOVES babysitting and overall had some great learning experiences (and maybe a taste of the future). Plus, any of these families mommy helped out are always completely willing to watch me at any time which mommy is VERY grateful for. We are lucky to have so many nice, trustworthy friends around!

Poll

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Big Boy

Mom: “Our routine ultrasound is scheduled for October 19 and we are very excited to see our little baby! We anticipate a report that there is healthy development and we also hope to have the gender be revealed. Feel free to vote for which gender you think it is.”

This video is from back in August; our family enjoying a warm summer rain. Mom and dad love that I love the rain.



I have improved so much on my bike and here is a little clip of me riding with my favorite partner.



Check out my huge muscles.



Well mommy got really brave and decided it was time I was potty trained. One huge motivator is the fact that we will have an addition in our home with diapers of his or her own. Mommy does not want to change or buy two sets of diapers! One of mommy’s close friends and neighbors shared a method that had been successful with her two boys so mom decided to give it a try. Another reason we did it so young was this method recommended training at 22 months (we waited an extra month and did it when I was 23 months). The method pretty much had mommy stay within feet of me in my t shirt and undies for 3 days straight. On the first day, mommy told me about a million times to keep my undies dry and praised me every couple minutes for doing so. Then when I inevitably wet my undies, mom rushed me to the potty. Since she loaded me with liquids I had to go a lot and eventually gained some muscle memory. What also helped was that she reminded me pretty much every 30 seconds to “tell mommy when you have to go potty”. The first day was very hard with lots of accidents and lots of messes to clean up. Mom was lucky to have her experienced friend just a phone call away for lots of answers to questions and moral support! By day 2 and 3 I actually caught on and mommy and daddy were so proud of me! BTW mommy strayed a bit from the method because she kept me in diapers at night but at this stage we thought that was the best for everyone.
When going potty on the toilet actually became part of our daily routine it was quite an adjustment and mom struggled a bit with the patience she required with my control of our day. But now since I am pretty much fully trained and very good at holding my potty in until I am at a toilet she is loving life and hasn’t changed a poppy diaper in weeks!! One struggle we face is that I am scared to go on public toilets (can you blame me, they are scary places). We are working on that but luckily have had no accidents while out and about yet (I have held it for all three hours of church multiple times). There was a lot more than I wrote here that made our potty training experience successful thus far so if you are interested in the method we used, talk to mommy. She highly recommends it!

Potty training sort of ruined my awesome sleeping habits so mom and dad have had to get me back to putting myself to sleep. Night time was easier but mom struggled with my daily naps. What ended up working was quite surprising. Mom didn’t like the idea of locking my bedroom door because she asked me to tell her when I had to go potty so instead she left the door wide open. She doesn’t know if I feel more secure this way or what but it works and she is relieved I can put myself to sleep again.

This is a picture of my friend Juliette and me. My mom and her mom switch off babysitting quite a bit because neither of us have family really close. We also go on walks with her and her mom almost every morning. When other friends join us we take up the whole road and others refer to us as the “stroller brigade”.


Here is a clip of mommy and me just playing (sorry it is long an may be a little boring). I love to sing and this shows some of my favorite songs. I am much better at the actions to the songs than this video shows however. I have found that doing “Row Row” with baby is better than with mommy because her belly is getting bigger and she can’t assume the proper position for the song’s actions.
Ever since I taught this baby how to use the potty, we have been best buds. Before I used to carry her around by an ankle but daddy taught me how to properly hold her and hopefully I remember when our real baby comes around. She doesn’t have a name and I just call her “deedee”.


Me playing with mommy’s cousin, Larissa. She is an excellent play mate and mom loves going to Smiths because Larissa often gives her a little break from me 


Playing at the park with daddy on his day off.

Another Play

I forgot to mention another awesome play that mom and my cousins put on while we were in Yellowstone. Mommy helped Cousin Marin write this play and it was called "Tales of Vacations Past". It was a story about a little girl with a bad attitude about family vacations until a ghost comes in her dreams and shows her the fun she had in past family vacations. Marin played the little girl, Troy played the ghost and Kit Kat played the cousin. I can't wait until the next one!

Yellowstone 2011

Sorry this entry took so long to get posted. I was waiting on some more pictures but it will have to do without them for now.

July was a very busy month for our family. It started out in Yellowstone National Park with Daddy’s side of the family. Mommy and I had a nice drive from Salt Lake to Island Park, ID with Cousin Sarah and her son, Peyton. Daddy drove the truck with Uncle Ike so they could haul some quads. Besides grandma and Grandpa Cooper, we were the first ones there. The whole family arrived later that night and it was a fun reunion. Mommy couldn’t remember the last day I didn’t have a nap and this was the first of many on this trip.
The first day we drove into the park and stopped by a Fishing bridge to have lunch.



Then we headed back making many stops at some cool sights. Next we saw some huge, fast rapids. Unfortunately, Cousin Kit Kat lost her hat in the rushing river. Seeing Uncle Tim chase after it, throw a huge log into the water and only miss the hat by inches was an unforgettable sight. Kit Kat was pretty sad that she lost her hat, and seeing this, Cousin Marin offered to buy her a new one. How sweet!



After the rapids we stopped at some really stinky mud volcanoes. At this stop was the closest we ever got to a buffalo and they are amazing creatures.




The next two stops were mommy’s favorite. First we walked (I was carried) down over 300 hundred steep steps to see a beautiful waterfall.



Next we went to a huge canyon called “Artists Point”. A long time ago people would come take pictures of this location and send them to government in hopes that they would make it a national park, and obviously they got their wish. It was here we finally discovered why the park is called Yellowstone: the cliffs were actually yellow. This view was breathtaking, and if mommy and me wouldn’t have been so tired, we would have loved to stay there for hours.



The next day was 4th of July and it turned out to be a crazy day. Some of the family went back to the park we our family stayed at the cabin. After my nap, we drove to a near by lake so see if they were lighting off fire works later. We ended up spending a good chunk of time there and daddy, Marin and mommy even swam in the cold water.



A while after we got back, out of nowhere, a crazy storm began and we enjoyed watching that bright lighting and listening to the booming thunder. We even saw hale close the size of a quarter.


Wednesday was a really fun day for both me and for mom and dad even though we were apart for most of it. I stayed at the cabin with granddad and we had a very relaxing day. Granddad was so nice to watch me for the day and it was great to spend some one on one time with him!! While we relaxed, mom and dad had an action packed day and went white water rafting down Yellowstone River. Even Grandma Cooper braved the adventure! Here is what mommy said about the experience:
“When we first got to the loading docks, we were surprised that we had to wear full length wet suits. We soon learned why however; the water was freezing and even though they were uncomfortable, they were worth it. The first half was the most exciting has we hit some nice sized currents. The latter half was relaxing and informative (our guides were very knowledgeable). We got to see some cool sights and even swim a bit in the freezing water. Afterwards, we drove back to the loading docks on a bus, peeled off our wetsuits and grabbed some yummy ice cream. Gardner, Montana is such a cute little town and I hope to go back someday.”

Thursday I was able to go back to the park for the big Old Faithful day. Before we actually saw it erupt steam and water, Grandma Cari and Granddad Tim treated the whole family to lunch at the Old Faithful Inn.

No one had ever seen a structure like this. Here are some pictures mom found of the Inn off the internet.




After lunch we walked a quick hike around Old Faithful and sat to watch the magic.


Before we went back to the cabin, some people wanted to go see wolves and others wanted to go on another hike. Our family decided to go on the hike but I fell asleep on the way there so our car decided to go home. This was the first time this trip I had fallen asleep in my car seat and was mom ever relieved!


The last day was spent at the cabin. Daddy took a couple of groups out to go shooting and mom did a lot of organizing and packing. The next morning we said good bye bright and early to drive with Grandma and Grandpa Copper to Ashley Lake.

Ashley Lake 2011

After our week in Yellowstone, Mommy and me drove with Grandma and Grandpa Cooper west to Ashley Lake (they wanted to stop on their way home to California). It was a pretty quiet week for the most part with Grandma Schlenker, Auntie Laurel and Cousins Ashton, Nick and Beckham. Now that I am a little older, I was much better at playing with the older boys. We like to chase each other and ride bikes outside. I showered baby Beckham with hugs and kisses and mom hopes I will still love babies as much when our addition comes along. Each morning it became sort of a tradition that Grandma Schlenker would take turns taking each boy out on the Kayak. Mommy really liked the mornings it was my turn so she could go back to sleep and try to battle her nausea. I learned to really enjoy these outings.


Cousin Ashton made bead bracelets for each member of the family including me!


There is never a shortage of sweets and junk food at the lake.


Later in the week, Auntie Laurel and the boys went home and Uncle Derek came with many of his friends. Many of them became my buddy and they liked to copy my dance moves on the boat.

Mommy and me flew home but 4 days later were back because daddy was able to get a couple of days off and hadn’t been to the lake yet. Grandma Schlenker was still there and later came Papa, Uncle Mark, Auntie Laurel and the boys again. We enjoyed lots of good times on the boat and I eventually stopped bawling my eyes out every time mommy went for a ski.
One evening after one of many fire pits/wiener roasts, I watched as daddy and my cousins went swimming in the cold water. Watching wasn’t enough for me however so I decided to jump in too. Since it was almost bedtime, mom and dad stripped me and we called it “bath time in Montana”. Mom and dad were so proud of me for braving the cold water and daddy will never forget how much fun he had with me.




Of course we did lots of quadding and I continue to love it.



And tubing


After a few fun filled days, Daddy had to go back to Utah to work for a couple of days. He insisted that mommy and I stay however because he planned to drive back when his work was done for the week. Even though he had to deal with a lot of driving, it was worth it because our last full day was the most fun.
In the morning I was able to ski behind the boat… well sort of. Grandma and Papa Schlenker own this floatation device called a Ski Trainer that can be pulled behind the boat. It is meant to give little guys like me a chance to gain some confidence behind the boat. I wasn’t scared at all but just in case I fell daddy was right there dragging by a ski rope.




Later in the day our neighbors, the Wallaces set up a huge slide (made from a large pipe), a swing rope and lots of floatation devices in an obstacle course trying to mimic the show "Wipe Out". Anyone who wanted to got a chance to try it. Of course mom and dad couldn't resist along with most of our family. Mom said it was super fun even though it was probably the hardest physical thing she has done in a very long time. Dad also did very well but no one beat Uncle Derek's time of 1 minute, 8 seconds and Uncle Mark's time just 8 seconds longer.

Uncle Mark always pushing the limits. I hope you can see how high he is throwing me.

moving on

Mommy and me went to visit daddy at a football scrimmage and we got pretty decked out in BYU gear.

While we are waiting for pictures from the summer, I figure we could move onto other updates that have happened here in August. First big announcement is that mommy is expecting baby #2!!! She is due March 7 so is almost 12 weeks along. Even though the baby is due in March, we are all going to be prepared in February incase this baby comes early like I did. So far the doctor says the baby is healthy and growing well. We haven’t been able to hear the heart beat because, like with me, mommy’s uterus is retro-flexed (sitting more inside of her than a typical women). Hopefully by this next doctor’s visit in September mommy will have grown out of it because of the expansion and we can hear the heart beat. I can’t wait. Mom and dad are still trying to help me understand what is going on. Most of the time I think the baby is in my belly. I’ll probably understand more when mommy gets a nice gut on her.

August has been a crazy month and a little hard on all of us. BYU football team’s fall camp started so daddy is working very long hours. I never see him in the morning because he usually gone by 5:30am and rarely see him at night because he gets home after I go to bed. It has been extra hard on mommy this month because she has been dealing with a lot of nausea from the pregnancy. Whenever we do spend time with dada we make it special but I’m excited for fall camp to wrap up in a couple of weeks.

A while ago mommy got me a trike from a garage sale. It was never the best but it allowed me to get around outside. Now that I am definitely grown out of it, daddy convinced Grandma and Granddad Wilcock and Great Grandma and Grandpa Cooper to get me an early birthday present. They got me what is called a Strider. It is basically a little two-wheel bike with no pedals made for toddlers. It will hopefully teach me how to balance on a bike without training wheels. I have had it for a couple of days and LOVE IT!! Every chance I get, I out riding around on it. I am already the envy of the whole neighborhood.



Daddy’s birthday was on August 21 and he turned 29!! Mommy and daddy are going to wait to really celebrate until fall camp is over, but for now, we did the best we could. Luckily his birthday was on Sunday so we let him sleep in. Then we woke him up with his birthday gift mommy made for him. Daddy was so impressed that mommy had kept the gift a secret and he really loved it. She made him a quilt of all his old track and field t-shirts from high school. He has kept them all this time because of all his memories and now he can snuggle with them. Mommy isn’t quite finished but she got the hardest part done and we can show the final product when she is complete. After church, mommy made him a yummy Italian meal and key lime pie for dessert. What he really wanted was a relaxing day and I think he got that.


Over the summer my vocabulary has exploded. I am a great copy cat and it really helps me communicate. I am learning names of friends and family and they love hear me say them. My dancing has greatly improved and I can even jump now. Also, I am sleeping in a big boy bed now. Mommy wasn’t sure if I was really ready but since I was getting good at climbing out of my crib she didn’t really have a choice.

Daddy putting me to sleep the best way he knows how after a long day.
I am growing up so fast that next month, mommy and I are going to work on potty training! Keep us in your prayers 