March

We did several fun things in March first up was Salt Con our favorite gaming convention.  We signed up to be volunteers so that we could get a three day pass to the convention for free.  Seth and I volunteered to teach games and Scott volunteered in the game library.  For several weeks before the convention we attended game nights so that we could learn the hottest games.  The convention organizers were really generous and even let us check out the games in between the game nights so we could learn as many as we possibly could.  I will have to do another post just on the games we played.   Seth took Thursday and Friday off from work just so that he could get as much gaming in as possible.

Here we are in our volunteer shirts after a shift.  Phin is wandering around in make-shift pen we created playing with his Home Depot tools or dumping a Costco bag of Wheat thins on the ground.

The Monday after the convention was Free Cone Day at Dairy Queen.  We met Amy and Zoey at a park to play and then headed over for our free cone.

Phin thought it was pretty great to have a cone all to himself.

We also rode Frontrunner down to Seth's work one Friday evening.  Phin is obsessed with trains and thought this activity was pretty sweet.

Seth had a little work to finish so we wandered around his office and even found a white board for Phin to draw on.

We walked over to Fashion Place Mall which is across the street from Seth's work to see the Lego display.

After the Lego display we went down to Fort Union to eat at one of my favorite spots...Teriyaki...which brings back so many college memories.  Then we waited in line at Rita's for a free Italian Ice.

Easter Egg hunts started pretty early this year so on April 21st we took Phin over to Bountiful City Park for the hunt.  He needed quite a bit of coaxing to pick up the eggs.

We also bought tickets so he could do the Easter Egg toss...

the fishing pond...

and finally the bounce house.

The next Saturday we headed to Dick's Market for their hunt.  Phin was in the two and under group and the hunt probably lasted at least five minutes.  It was so nice to not be overrun by bigger kids.

We enjoyed a free cookie and a doughnut after the hunt while Phin checked out all his goodies.

Then we headed up to a hunt sponsored by a Reality Group.  The view of the Bountiful Temple was pretty impressive.

They had tons of eggs...but there were also lots of kids.  This hunt was over in less than a minute.

After the hunt we got our picture taken by the Chick-Fil-A cow who gave us gift certificates for breakfast sandwiches and frozen lemonades.  The following week we headed up for breakfast before Seth headed to work and Phin had a blast in the playground area.

Not everything was picture worthy in March.  I went to the dentist at the beginning of the month because I had a bad taste in between two of teeth which also happen to be crowned.  I found out that there was decay beneath both crowns...I didn't even know that was possible.   I had a second appointment in the same week to get the crowns replaced and got more bad news...I would lose one tooth.  My dentist recommended that I see and oral surgeon to have the tooth extracted and possibly prepared for a implant.  So near the end of March I had that tooth pulled and an implant placed.  No bueno...

I did get tot attend the Women's Conference at the Conference Center with my bestie, Amy and her mom. I walked away with a deep appreciation for the family I have been blessed with...and the teeth I still have.

21 MONTHS

Phin turns 22 months in less than a week...so I thought I should probably get busy writing about his 21 month milestone.  We got to spend a night hanging out with the Richards Boys...they are four bundles of energy and Phin fits right in.  He decided Andrew's toddler bed was just the perfect place for him to sit and read a book.

We pulled out our bike trailer in January and found that Phin's head has grown quite a bit...he still loves wearing his helmet even if he looks a lot like Toad from Super Mario brothers.  We ended up finding him a slightly bigger helmet at the DI for a couple dollars.  Phin loves going for bike rides.  We have the trailer set up and locked by our car and he looks at it very longingly whenever we get home from being out and about.

Phin is become quite a bit more independent when we go to the playground.  He loves to run around and will even go down the slides all by himself.

This playground happened to have an old fashion merry-go-round...which we have learned isn't super common these days.  Phin loved spinning around with his Daddy.

Phin has had an obsession with doors this month.  He is always walking around and closing the doors behind us...in this case he decided to open the closet door and climb right in.

I don't know where he learned to eat like this..

Phin has also developed a little obsession with trains.  We introduced him to Thomas the Tank Engine and he says "choo choo" whenever he wants to watch a show.  He also overgeneralizes "choo choo" to any large vehicle.

One day I was getting ready and when I came back to the bathroom I found that Phin had climbed right up into the sink to get a better look at himself.

I forgot this little gem from Seth's birthday.  Phin decided to pee in the toilet twice on Seth's birthday.  Like my brother JB says..."even a blind squirrel finds an occasional nut."

February

Somehow time has gotten away from me and it is already the middle of March...so I will take a moment to rewind and record all of the events from February.

I attended the Utah Assistive Technology Team Conference at the beginning of the month.  This is one of my favorite conferences to attend and it just happens every other year.  I love coming away from the conference with fresh ideas on how I can become a better speech therapist...but more than anything I love being able to spend time with other speechies.  My sister-in-law Collette attended the conference along with several of my graduate school co-horts.  It is always so much fun to catch up with the ladies I went to graduate school with...hard to believe we started graduate school over a decade ago!

My father and I celebrated our birthday in February.  I have always loved sharing a birthday...it is nice to not be the only one being sung to.  This year we went out to Pat's BBQ and ordered a massive plate of meat.  They have recently changed their menu so that you order by the pound...we got a little carried away.  We topped off all the meat with delicious bread pudding...and then marzipan back at the folks' house.

We went on a few Connect pass outings with Amy and Zoey. We ventured to the Natural History Museum of Utah.  The kids loved all of the hands on exhibits.

We also spent some time with Beth, Philip and Eliza.  Phin and Eliza enjoyed jumping on the couch and watching Daniel Tiger together.

They also started a little synchronized slide club...they could work on their synchronization a little more.

The night before Valentine's Day we went to our ward building for a Big Band dance.  Phin loved the music...but mostly wanted to run around in the hall outside.

I tried to be festive and made the Pioneer Woman's Red Velvet Pancakes for breakfast on Valentine's...they were delicious.  We also celebrated Zoey's birthday at a fun Elmo themed party.

Later in the month we went to This is the Place with Amy and Zoey on the most beautiful Spring-like day.   Phin's favorite part was the train ride...really I promise he loved it.

He also loved seeing the animals...as long as they didn't get to close.

He also wishes we could bring one of these playhouses home.

We also managed to go to the zoo with cousin Aaron...no proof of that trip because my camera battery died.  It was also one of the windiest days of the year...and the wind chill was pretty bad.  We did enjoy watching the seals inside of the building and also got a great view of the polar and brown bears.

We also celebrated Seth's birthday in February.  We had one of the most perfect days ever.  We enjoyed a bike ride in the morning, followed by a nap, a walk to the grocery store and then homemade pizza for dinner.  Unfortunately I forgot to take a photo of any of the perfectness...oh well Happy Birthday!

20 MONTHS

Phin is now 20 months old.  He decided to celebrate that milestone by eating a chicken bouillon cube.  I was busy making dinner and had unwrapped several cubes and placed them in a small cup.  Phin climbed up next to me and I thought he was just pretending to stir the bowl.  Then he went over to Seth and signed "more."  Seth asked what he was eating and I said I didn't know...then Phin started to cough.  Let's just say the bouillon cube did not settle well.  

We also had a bit of a scare this month.  Seth was in charge of a family feud activity for the Young Men and Young Women in our ward.  Phin and I went with him since the activity was open to the ward.  After the activity we were busy getting a hot chocolate bar ready when Phin pulled a cup of hot water over on himself.  He burned his right arm pretty good and cried steadily for the next hour.  Seth and our home teacher gave Phin a blessing and he was able to sleep through the night.  His arm was tender but never blistered and he recovered fairly quickly.  How blessed we are to have the Priesthood in our home.

Phin watches our every move and we often find him imitating us. 

Phin has started to play dress up on his own.  Here he is sporting the Mario hat from his Halloween costume and his church shoes.

Phin loves popcorn.  Here he is eating some popcorn with Seth.

We are a little crazy and have started introducing the potty.  Phin is at least not scared to sit on it anymore.  We think we are going to really buckle down over Spring Break and see if we can make any progress.  We are hoping he is a quick learner like his cousin Aaron.

Phin loves to cook with me...especially if he can lick the beaters.

The weather here has been so delightful.  There have been several days where I have opened the sliding door to our balcony and Phin has loved running in and outside.  Just before I took the picture below he was reclined in the chair enjoying some sunshine.

Phin also discovered the back of our couch this month.  He loves to climb up and along the back.  The other day I actually discovered him standing on the back.

Phin is pretty good at finding ways to keep himself entertained.  Here he is playing in Uncle Jeff's drapes...they were quite a novelty since we just have blinds.

I think he started to think he was a puppy dog while we were visiting Jeff...most days I think he is a puppy dog as he follows me around and can almost always be found at my feet.

Phin loves to play games and sing songs.  His favorite song right now is roll your hands...he will start to roll his hands when we are out shopping to get me to sing the song.

He loves to figure out how things work.  I am pretty sure that before long he is going to be taking things apart around here to figure them out.

He can be a little shy and timid when he is first meeting someone or experiencing something new.

He loves hats.

He also loves to pretend that things are hats.

I have said it before...I don't know how we got so luck for this little guy to come to our family.  We love you Phinner!