The Nordquist Family

2011-09-18T18:29:00.000-07:00

This one's me :) with my little bow stuck on my head...my mom was pretty frustrated they'd done that

Daisy and the Toads

2011-09-18T18:21:00.001-07:00

While cleaning out the basement, my mom found this little children's story that I wrote in high school. I think it's pretty fabulous :)

Easter

2011-09-18T18:17:00.000-07:00

Parker loves his crafts!

We made and decorated sugar cookies: the recipe has been in my family for over 100 years! (or something like that...)

2011-09-18T18:16:00.001-07:00

cute things about parker

2011-09-18T18:16:00.000-07:00

although sometimes the cute new things Evan's learning seem to take precedence... that or the terrible mischief he gets into! (he hid in the pantry last night and dumped out half a can of gatorade before we found him, then left orange footprints on the carpet) Parker's been doing some great things too

he's super observant: he knows my medicine tastes gross...I've never said anything, but he's seen me grimace when I have to bite it in half

he sings a new song "heavenly father sent me to you" repeated to the tune of happy birthday

his favorite time to ask if we're glad heavenly father sent him to us is when we're wiping his bum

he loves to pray, and be grateful for everything

he loves helping us cook and prepare food... and LOVES oatmeal!

he loves learning... anything. tell him you want to teach him something, and he's eager as can be!

he doesn't like change!

the night before his birthday, he told me he was concerned about turning four: "I don't want to be four. I like being three!" I told him it would be ok, and he would have a lot of fun being four. He accepted it, and has just decided that he'll stay four forever. I told him we'd try it out for a year, then see

we had to tell him a few months in advance that we'll be moving to help him accept it... it helps that he's seen the place

Dr. Evan

2011-05-14T18:01:00.000-07:00

Parker was complaining about his mouth hurting, and so Thomas, being a fabulous future physician, asked him good questions to determine the problem. I thought he'd hurt his lip when Evan kicked him in the mouth when Parker was climbing up the slide when Evan was going down it. That wasn't the problem... it was Parker's throat. Thomas got the tongue depressor and flashlight, and looked in Parker's mouth. Poor kid's tonsils were so swollen, and his lymph nodes were full of lovely white lymph. At least we know his immune system was working! He didn't have any other symptoms, but we still kept him home until his throat cleared up... which it did on its own in a few days.

Evan thought the flashlight were super cool, so he decided to check Mommy and Mommy's baby.

Evan listening to Madeleine, and looking with the flashlight

Mommy, say "Ah!"

Catching Up... Since Christmas!

2011-05-14T14:13:00.001-07:00

Christmas Eve... opening one present each

Well, Parker opened a present, but Evan was too tuckered out to open one. He missed hanging up the stockings too!

Christmas Day

We forgot to get a pic of the tree BEFORE opening presents...

Yeah, Evan didn't keep his clothes on long... as soon as he opened the gloves, he had to have them on! He LOVES wearing gloves or mittens on his hands. If he doesn't have them available, he'll wear socks on his hands!

Flowbee!!

Grandma and Grandpa sent us a Flowbee for Christmas... one of the BEST presents we got :) It's absolutely fabulous for cutting little boys' (and big boys) hair. It attaches to the vacuum, which sucks the hair up in towards the blades. So, you can't cut yourself, and it doesn't make a mess! So much easier than clippers!

Parker cutting his hair "himself" He'll actually ask for me to Flowbee his hair when he feels like it's getting too long... and it was getting too long!

Sick days

The two weeks Thomas was on Christmas break were probably some of the worst weeks of my life! Although I didn't need to be on bedrest anymore, I didn't have a chance to see my OB-GYN until halfway through January, and he wouldn't renew my prescription for zofran until after I saw him. I needed to ration those nasty little pills for Sundays, Christmas, and after break when I needed to take Parker to school again. When I wasn't on the meds, I was throwing up...everything. I honestly don't remember much of break besides the bucket!

The boys eating pickles and popcorn (whose the pregnant one?) while cuddling with Mommy. Parker said that his cuddling me would make me feel better... and it did, at least emotionally!

Trousers

One of the highlights of Christmas break for the boys was turtle-sitting. Some of Thomas' fellow classmates, who have also become friends, asked us back in September or October if we'd be willing to watch their turtle over Christmas break. Since we weren't going anywhere, we agreed. The boys loved him! His name is Trousers, and now their turtle bath toy is also named Trousers. We ended up having to move his tank up on top of the entertainment center, out of reach, because when it was accessible on the table, Evan tried to feed Trousers popcorn, Kix, and whatever else he could get his hands on.

Thomas was kind of going crazy by the end of break, because he had to lift the kids up to see Trousers, and they always wanted to see him. I didn't mind too much because I was on doctor's orders not to pick up the kiddos or do any heavy lifting.

Family Pic!

Random Mischief

This picture of Evan turned out blurry... but you can still get the gist of it. He'd gotten into my mascara and eyeliner, and had done his own makeup. He knew it belonged around his eyes! I didn't let Thomas try and get a better shot because we snatched the kiddo up and cleaned him off!

Parker LOVES learning, and has been learning how to put words together. The kids enjoy playing with their tub letters putting words together. Usually Parker puts them up and Evan pulls them down. Parker's actually come along way since December now, and can put together a few simple words. We're so proud of him :) He talks all the time about how he loves learning, and tells us new things he learns in Primary or at preschool.

Cute as a bug

2011-02-22T12:11:00.001-08:00

These are some super cute pics from before Christmas that my friend sent over. Evan loved spending time with Daphne at her house. The boys definitely miss their friends! I love how the kids are mimicking each other in the pics. I know there are A LOT of pics, but how could I choose???

So cute... they're holding hands while looking at the books.

February

2011-02-22T09:45:00.000-08:00

Mini Pizzas

I'm not doing as much cooking right now, but still prefer homemade pizza to store bought, and even delivery sometimes. I wanted to have something nice for Thomas when he came home from whatever he was doing. I decided to make pizzas in our muffin top pan... it made the PERFECT little pizzas. Parker was so excited about his circle pizza. Serving was easy, and cleanup even more so.

I had some dough leftover after filling the one muffin pan, so decided to try the heart-shaped muffin tins. These turned out even better than the circles: they were mini deep-dish pizzas. Totally my favorite. Thomas was so excited about the heart-shaped pizzas. We were going to have them for Valentine's day, but ended up having leftovers and mac and cheese instead. This pregnancy nausea isn't much fun, and isn't very conducive towards creativity and festivity!!

Ice Skating

Thomas' school had an activity the end of January (so not really February, sorry!) where they went ice skating. The college was trying to have more family friendly activities, instead of the usual going to bars and calling it a social function. I didn't go, preferring not to share my nausea and misery with anyone else. Thomas said he could handle the boys himself. Thankfully he has lots of friendly and helpful classmates :)

Evidently Evan spent most of the evening adjusting his crash helmet--which was unnecessary, thankfully!

The boys didn't have as much fun as Thomas was hoping, although they had a good time, and slept really well that night, but they had a lot of fun watching from the bleachers. Thomas kept them out just a little later so the boys could watch the Zamboni. Who doesn't love watching that? Evidently it proved the highlight of the evening, and Evan dubbed it a "Mack" on ice. The boys are big Cars fans. All trucks, or vehicles resembling trucks, are "Mack."

Pillow Fights!

The boys have taken to "pillow fights" lately. This one happened on a Sunday evening, and so Thomas had a chance to observe and snap some pics. Evan had actually brought a pillow to Parker, asking for pillow fights. They'll hold the pillows in front of them, and bump into each other until one of them falls down. Then, the "victor" helps the defeated brother get up. They love it, and I've tried to establish rules that minimize how much they can get hurt.

Blizzard '11

Thomas was an angel and took Evan out with him to shovel out the car and the sidewalk in front of our apartment. Thankfully someone (probably the management) had propped the door open so they could get out. There was SO MUCH snow outside, about eighteen inches. Evan loved being outside; Parker didn't go because he didn't want to be cold. So practical :)

Evan claimed possession of Thomas' small emergency shovel, and couldn't get enough of shoveling. Thomas ended up helping shovel out nine other cars later that afternoon, eleven total. Evan felt the intense responsibility to "help" with all of them, and was extremely upset when I took him inside because his little cheeks, nose, and wrists were red from cold. He just wanted to stay and "shubel!"

sledding with Daddy

2011-02-14T15:43:00.000-08:00

One of the things we'd really wanted to do with the boys during Christmas break was take them sledding. Thomas was only able to take them out once, but they had a lot of fun, and still enjoy looking at the pictures and videos, and talking about it. I wasn't able to go because I was still on bed rest at that point in time. :(

The boys would probably have been content to just play in the snow outside the apartment...

Snowball fight!

Parker "helping" put the rope on the tube

Poor Thomas had to climb the giant hill pulling both boys on the tube. Because of the effort, I think they only went down a few times.

Their favorite part of the excursion was eating the snow. Evan took chunks of ice, and called it "pizza."

See the boys with their snow pizzas being pulled by a tireless, or tiring, daddy.

Christmas: prep and Ward Party

2011-02-14T15:05:00.000-08:00

We put up our two little Christmas trees, but I only put lights and ornaments on one of them, and then I promptly put that tree high, out of Evan's reach. I left the other tree on the floor, and took care of something else. When I came back to the living room, I discovered that Parker had taken the hockey shoelace that had held the tree box closed and wrapped it around the tree like a garland. He'd then hung whatever toys and random objects he could on the tree. He continued placing random toys on the tree for the next few days. Evan was pretty upset when Parker hung his pacifiers on the tree, and then Parker was upset at Evan for removing the pacifiers, but they got over it.

Our ward Christmas party was a lot of fun (and the homemade wheat rolls and cream corn pudding I brought were totally devoured), but Evan was still afraid of the Santa Claus!

Thomas took so many pictures of Evan with the microphone... I only chose a few

Domestic... Joys

2011-02-12T16:20:00.000-08:00

Ear Infections:

I never had an ear infection growing up, and neither had Parker or Evan. Then one night, Parker wakes up in the middle of the night crying about his ear hurting. He still complains the next day, we borrow an otoscope from friends (Thomas doesn't have the cap for small ears yet) and decide to take Parker in. As soon as Parker hears that we're taking him to the doctor, he tells us his ear is fine. He'd been reticent of seeing doctors ever since he got his cast off, because he found that procedure... uncomfortable. The doctor is really nice though, and Parker couldn't get enough of how "he talks funny!" because of his Indian accent. The doctor looks in Parker's ear, and Parker cheerfully says, "No, it's the other one that really hurts!" It WAS still hurting! Silly boy. Doctor took one look in the other ear, and said "Yep. That's a pretty bad one!" Antibiotics, and a much more cheerful little Parker. But, the cold that led to ear infections was contagious. Evan was really congested, not getting better, and super crabby. Took him in (after peeking and seeing his red ears) and found a double ear infection. Yay for antibiotics. Unfortunately, after several days on the drugs, the kiddo broke out in a crazy rash. Thomas took him in to the doctor (by then I was feeling SUPER sick from the pregnancy, and so wasn't doing much.) And Evan was off the meds. Evidently it doesn't mean he's allergic???

Poor little guy's rash was all over. He was actually pretty cheerful the whole time, Thomas just snapped these pics while he was playing with a wrapping paper tube, watching a movie.

Random Play:

I actually have no idea what those pictures are from, or from when... besides around Christmas time...

The boys absolutely LOVE to play with laundry baskets, and their big plastic tote that their toys live in... they like to trap each other underneath too...

you can see Evan's little face peeping out... and Buzz Lightyear, of course!

Evan's table dance....

Evan has a tendency to relate food and sleep... He falls asleep eating pretty often, and takes his last few bits while asleep...

The boys love Daddy's computer

Household Chores:

Evan LOVES the vacuum. Especially the attachments. Thomas decided to just take the hose off so that Evan could "help" without getting in the way. Kiddo could not have been happier.

When Thomas had finished the big stuff, he let Evan suck up some of the crumbs he made. Thomas and Evan both enjoy having Evan clean up his own messes!

Firestation

2011-02-12T15:52:00.000-08:00

We went to the North Chicago fire department with some friends for a tour. Back in September the fire department came to our building because someone on the floor above us burned some food. It set off the smoke alarms, and we all had to evacuate the building. Both boys were in bed, Parker asleep. So, I had to carry Parker and keep hold of Evan. Thankfully some nice neighbors helped me keep Evan close. Then it started raining outside. I made Thomas come home early from the library. The firefighter let us wait inside the lobby until the all clear. He was very official and by the book, until the other firefighters had cleared all the smoke out of the hall with their giant fans and we got the all clear. Then our friendly firefighter guard totally loosened up and told Thomas and me that we needed to bring the boys by the fire department for a tour. Any time he said, as long as it was after five, or was it four? Anyway, it took us several months to actually decide to go. We called some friends and planned it so we would go together. It was a lot of fun, and we got to see the fire trucks, an ambulance, and the fire station. It was also nice that we ended up with an adult for every child :) Evan loved it. Parker did too, but since he still had his cast on, he insisted on being carried.

The kids all got to try on a helmet to experience how heavy the helmet are. I love Evan's expression.

The ambulance! They're really exactly how they look on television. Not many things are, but ambulances are accurately depicted!

The kids all got plastic firefighter hats, along with coloring book calenders, stickers, and crayons. The hats didn't last long in our house before Evan sat in them and cracked them. ::sigh::

Evan loved all the knobs and buttons. The firefighters said that he wouldn't be able to mess anything up...hope they were right, because that little monkey can do things to my phone and computer that I can't figure out!

I'm not in the group picture because I took it! It was hard to get everyone looking in the same direction. The firefighters were fabulous. A truck that had been out actually returned as we were finishing up and honked at the kids...scared Parker a bit actually, but Evan loved it. We returned three days later (when the same group of firefighters were on--they have work a 24 hour shift, then have a few days off, then work another 24 hours. They have the same shift-mates, so they're all pretty close, like a second family) to deliver some thank you cards, cookies, and banana bread. Most of the people there were the ones who'd been on the truck, not the ones who gave us the tour, so they didn't recognize us at first, but once they did, they were appreciative of the cookies, etc. It was a fabulous experience, and one we'll probably have to repeat!

Parker's Babies

2011-01-25T12:01:00.000-08:00

So, ever since we told Parker about how I have a baby in my tummy, he's been talking about his babies. At first he had two, then anywhere between twelve and fourteen. It was fourteen for quite awhile: his fourteen babies, with their fourteen beds, and their mommies and daddies. Quite a crowded tummy! He currently has eighteen babies. Whenever he's hungry, he'll tell us "My babies are hungry!" If he enjoys the food, "My babies like this! They think it's yummy!" And, of course "My babies are full." Sometime though, the babies put up a stink: "My babies don't want me to do this! My babies aren't tired!" So funny. He can talk for over ten minutes straight about his babies! They go on all sorts of adventures, and even go to preschool, although not the same one as Parker. They're not always in his tummy either; they move around. They spend a lot of time at the zoo, and looking at the faux animals at the mall. I'll have to sit him down and transcribe some of his fantastic creativity.

Oh, on a side note. We have taken pictures these last few months, and there will be a massive updating of the blog as soon as they're uploaded!

Grey day contemplations

2011-01-20T13:22:00.000-08:00

I was driving home with Evan after dropping Parker off at preschool, and I was thinking about how the roads in Park City (it's in between Gurnee, where preschool is, and North Chicago, where we live) are, and how cold and grey it was. I was looking at the gas tank, and wondering if I'll have to fill up tomorrow, or if it can hold out until Thomas has to drive on Friday night. I was also stressing about having enough money to fill that gas tank, as well as pay rent and all our other bills. And then I realized, despite all these negative and difficult things--constant nausea and fatigue being top of the list--I was happy. As hard as things are, I know we're in the right place, doing the right things. I felt peace and contentment while driving over potholes, and very grateful for that gift of the Spirit. Things might be rough. I might often be miserable--but I can still feel peace and happiness. I wouldn't change it. Well, maybe sometimes I might wish I could, but we all have our moments!

Visiting Santa

2011-01-20T13:13:00.000-08:00

The boys and I went with McKays to Bass Pro Shoppe to visit Santa and get pictures taken with him. There was an ornament decorating activity provided. This is a picture from the two minutes total that Evan sat to color. He was crazy, and wouldn't stop trying to run away and see the big fish and the stuffed animals. Derick was great and helped me chase him though.

Showing off the finished product. Thankfully Parker was well-behaved while I was off chasing Evan. Thank you Michelle :)

Group picture! With Evan trying to squirm away the whole time. He actually did escape while I was taking a quick pic of all the McKay family, but once again Derick saved the day and chased him down.

After the Santa extravaganza, we took a walk in the mall. We went over to Rainforest Cafe and the kids got a kick out of the alligator and other animals outside. The alligator moves and makes scary gater noises. Parker still talks about the mall trip. Maybe we should go again...

After the gator's first roar! Fabulous faces.

Photo shoot ;)

They were having so much fun. I was sitting on a bench feeling nauseated and sorry for myself :)

We stopped by a pet shop on our way back through the mall. The kids loved the puppies.

It's clear by Evan's face how much he loves dogs.

This puppy kept jumping up and licking at Evan's face. He loved it, and couldn't get enough.

I took the boys to Bass Bro Shops with our good friends and their kids. We got to do a little craft while we waited for our turn, but Evan was more interested in running away and looking at the fish. I was very glad to have Derrick there to chase him! The kids had fun though: Evan with the fish, and Parker with everything else.

Cheese!

Evan screamed! He was scared of Santa. And, Parker has his finger in his nose... classic.

Sesame Seeds

2010-12-14T08:43:00.000-08:00

Although this post won't get published right away, I wanted to make sure to include it in the chronicling of our family. I am pregnant, and have been feeling pretty sick for the last few weeks. I finally explained to Parker this morning, since his friends knew, that I have a baby in my tummy. He looked at me kind of funny, and asked why.

"We're going to have a baby. This summer, you'll have another baby brother or baby sister."

His eyes lit up, and he was so excited! "A baby brother?" he asked in a hopeful voice.

"We'll let Heavenly Father decide." He had to think about that for a minute, but then shrugged, as if thinking any baby is better than no baby.

Later in the morning, I was lying on the couch, trying to keep from throwing up (you see, as close as I've come, I've yet to actually throw up, and I'm afraid that once it starts, it won't stop!) I told Parker that sometimes the baby in my tummy makes me feel sick.

"Mine doesn't," he promptly answered. "It's a nice baby. And mine can go for a walk, so it's not in my tummy right now. Yours can go for a walk?"

"Nope! It's in my tummy all the time!" But, by then he was off playing again, with his nice baby.

We're all very excited about the pending addition to our family. Don't misunderstand us, we were perfectly content with our two little boys, but we're not going to complain about another one! We'd been feeling for awhile that we'd be having another child, but didn't have access to maternity insurance. We decided to put things in the Lord's hands, and according to his timetable. We told him that we were willing to do what he asked of us, but we needed him to provide the way. And well, things fell into place! I'm not sure how I feel about having a baby during the hottest part of the summer, but we're excited. We know it's the right thing to do--and that's the most important of all! I'm so grateful for a loving Heavenly Father with whom we can communicate to know the answers to so many of our questions. How could you do family planning otherwise? I'm grateful to know that Heavenly Father's willing to entrust us with another one of his sweet little spirits, and I hope that means we'll be up to it!

Notable Quotable Parker

2010-12-05T19:25:00.000-08:00

"Evan, please stop, 'cause it makes me sad when you do that!"

Parker upon waking and seeing the sunlight pouring through the window, "No! I don't want it to be day!"

Me: "Okay, we need to get ready to go. Parker, you need socks and shoes, then you'll be ready."

Parker: "Evan's not ready."

Me: "That's right. He needs pants and a shirt, and then shoes and socks too, then we'll all be ready."

Parker: "No, you're not ready."

Me: "I'm not?"

Parker: "No! I don't like those pants. You need to change your pants!"

Enjoying the Last of the Warm Weather

2010-12-01T19:09:00.000-08:00

Today it snowed. I bundled up Parker in his snow pants, snow boots, and coat, and sent him off to preschool. He had his hat and his mittens in his cubby, and I sent an extra pair of shoes for him to change out of after recess. Yeah, so the kids didn't go outside today, and the teachers never took Parker's snow pants off him. Poor kid! They did switch his shoes though... Oh well. He didn't complain, and now we know that if its less than 30 degrees out, the kids stay in. But, the following are pictures from enjoying outside... before today's snowfall!

This pic is actually from earlier this fall, when Evan got to stay with Parker through recess at preschool. I had a visiting teaching appointment, and our friend Michelle was doing a fantastic dancing activity with the kids, so she kept the little ones with her. I'm so glad she snapped this picture! I love seeing the boys play together, and seeing how they get along. I'm so grateful they get along!

During Thomas' break, we decided to take the kids to the park for a lunchtime picnic. Parker was still having a really hard time on the playground, so he only used the swing. We actually took him to preschool an hour late, after the outside recess, because he was miserable watching the other kids play without being able to participate himself. We got his cast off the 22 of November, and he spent the next week crawling. He's walking now though, and as soon as its warm enough outside, he'll be able to go back to recess!

I was trying to show the boys how to pump their legs, saying "in, out, in out!" Evan had fun repeating me, but had no clue what I was talking about!

I love the expression on Parker's face in this picture.

Evan was running right here, as he would come down from an upswing, he'd move his legs like he was running in the air. It was hard to capture on film, but it was adorable.

Evan was loving the slide, and all the attention his daddy was giving him.

Evan and Thomas are both pointing up at an airplane, "un avion!"

The boys love it when we lift up the swing as high as we can and "drop" them.

You can't help but love this kid's hair!

How artistic is this?

I couldn't pick just one of these pics...

Evan was begging Thomas to pick him up and put him on the dinosaur's nose (the stairs up the side of the play equipment was like a dinosaur. "Monte! Up! Nose! Pease!"

Too adorable. He was actually holding on and kicking the slide to make as much noise as possible.

Thanksgiving

2010-11-29T12:20:00.001-08:00

Although we got it going a little late, we put up a bare tree trunk, and then the kids, Thomas, and I wrote what we were grateful for on leaves every day. Parker LOVED putting up leaves, and we did several leaves a day some days. I liked to do the leaves in the mornings, because it had a tendency to turn grumpy toddlers into cheerful, grateful little boys.

We really missed being able to go to Palfreymans' for pie-making on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, but I managed to make a mess of my kitchen all on my own. At least we have cell phones, so I got to call to ask questions and to visit with such dear friends and family over the phone! I didn't have any pie pans, so I bought some pre-made crusts in aluminum pie pans. You can see that the edge of my jumbleberry pie's crust burned. It burned on the pumpkin too, although the homemade crust I made for the second pumpkin pie and the jumbleberry tarts didn't burn, even though both pumpkin pies baked at the same time. Another reason to just make things yourself, right? The pies were all delicious though! I loved the tarts too. There was a lot of juice from the berries left over after I filled the pie, so I lined mini-muffin cups with pie crust, and then filled them with the berry juice... so yummy.

We finished pie-making sooo late. But, I didn't want to be making pies with the boys running around, and then we wanted to let the pumpkin pies cool for their two hours before refrigerating them... so, Thomas and I watched a movie. So fun.

We had Thanksgiving dinner at another student's apartment, along with a lot of other students. Ours were the only kids, but there was Trousers the Turtle! The boys LOVE him. Trousers stayed quiet on my hand for several minutes, letting Evan pet him gently (Parker refused to touch him) until he tried to make a break for it. Notice, Evan's holding both Buzz Lightyear, and SpiderMan. We actually had to go back Sunday to retrieve SpiderMan who had been recovered from in between the couch cushions, and Parker told Michelle, "I love coming here!" I'm glad, because Parker spent much of the afternoon being a stinker! The boys took naps there, which was great, until we accidentally woke Parker up to early! He cheered up when we started playing games though.

Evan loves animals! I'm really impressed with how gentle he is with them. When we went back on Sunday, Evan ran right to Trousers's tank, and started jabbering at him. He also begged, "In!" I asked, "Do you want to go in the tank?" wondering if I'd understood him. "Please," he answered. "How 'bout we take Trousers out," I suggested. Then Evan kept trying to lift up the bucket and dump Trousers back in his water, and get in himself. Oh well. (As Evan is looking at these pictures, he's asking "What todo doing in wader?"

For most of the meal the boys were sitting at their little table in their little chairs, but the lure of Mommy and Daddy's laps was just too strong! Evan actually ate really well: ham, yams, corn, and then pumpkin pie after his nap. Parker whined and ate chocolate ice cream. Ah, the joys of picky eaters! We had a fabulous time though, and I enjoyed being able to meet some of the other students in Thomas' class.

The boys at their special table. We brought the table and chairs from home...

These adorable turkey crafts were inspired by our favorite friends here. Parker wanted the turkeys to have blue bodies, which works, because I have no more brown construction paper, and a lot of turkeys have blue-ish faces! I traced the kids hands for the tail feathers. Evan's is on the left, and Parker's on the right. Evan ripped up most of his hands, and Parker wanted his turkey tail nice and full. I let them help glue on the faces.

And, why stop with one craft? I'd been saving toilet paper rolls for awhile, so I helped the boys with these snowmen, and we glued them to the tp rolls so they stand independently. I cut out the pieces, in the colors specified, and the boys glued them on themselves. Well, I put glue on the pieces, and the boys put them on where they wanted them. Evan's is the one-armed snowman. He got bored and ran away to play before gluing on the second arm. I love how he put the nose on though. My little artists. Parker's been begging me to do more "crafts" with him, so if anyone has any ideas... please let me know!!

A Thousand Words

2010-11-22T21:02:00.000-08:00

Goofing Around

2010-11-22T19:40:00.000-08:00

Evan and Parker both love talking on the phone: to each other, to us, to Grandma, or to no one at all!

The boys also love rough-housing, and climbing, and tumbling. One of their favorite jungle gyms is, well, Mommy! You can see that Parker wasn't letting his cast get in the way of his playtime! You can also see that Evan prefers to be without clothes. He won't sleep in pajamas. He'll let us put them on him after his bath, but he takes them off before he falls asleep. Whenever we're home, he's usually running around just in his diaper. Silly boy, but it saves on laundry!

I don't know why kids enjoy being upside down so much.

Notice, Evan has Buzz in his hands? Doesn't put him down!

And, both at once of course! Taking turns got too difficult for the kiddos!

And, after a long day of playing, Evan falls asleep watching Toy Story.

I thought the lighting of this picture was cool...

Broken tibia!

2010-11-22T00:19:00.000-08:00

On Saturday, October 23, 2010, Parker rolled off the couch and broke his right tibia. Poor guy. We'd skipped out on sending them to a friend's house for date night because Thomas had been filling sick all day, and it wouldn't be worth leaving the house when we could have a nice, quiet evening at home. And we did! Parker and Evan had been wrestling and rough housing, until we asked them to stop. They did, and Evan was playing on the floor and Parker was lying on the couch. Thomas was gathering the trash to take out, and I was loading the dishwasher. All of a sudden, we heard a thud, and Parker started screaming. He had rolled off the couch, and caught his leg underneath him. He screamed for about forty-five minutes, with cold sweats. He finally fell asleep in my arms, while Thomas was talking to a nurse deciding whether or not to take him into the ER. We'd really just called in order to find an ER that accepted our insurance. The nurse didn't know, so we called some friends.

Thomas took Parker to a hospital that had a separate pediatric ER. They took x-rays, for which Parker screamed because the tech kept grabbing his leg at the break. They actually sent Parker home, saying the x-rays were negative. They did reassure us that the radiologist would look at the films in the morning. It was nice to be able to give Parker a real bath Sunday morning... the last for four weeks! The hospital called during Sunday school, and Thomas took Parker in to get casted. Yeah, we were right: the leg was broken. It's actually called a "toddler fracture." Children's bones are flexible, but the insides are still fragile. Parker broke the inside of his leg, but the outside of the bone wasn't fractured--which is probably why the ER peeps missed the break. Thomas was excited to show the films to some of his professors... especially since there was no cortical interruption (breakage of the outside of the bone.)

We had Parker stay off his leg for the first few days, and kept him home from preschool. He asked us to carry him until Monday afternoon, when he started crawling to get around. It was a little tough getting him to the potty (oh yeah! He potty trained during general conference weekend!) but he did great. He wore a diaper for awhile, just because it was easier to not have to pull undies off over his sore leg. He still did really well though. We sent him to preschool when he was crawling, and he did great inside, but didn't enjoy recess. He started walking after about a week, and we figured out that Parker did better if we brought him in late, after recess. It's been a crazy four weeks, and we're excited for Parker to get his cast off tomorrow. Yay!

Halloween!

2010-11-22T00:04:00.000-08:00

We had a Halloween party at a friend's house, that we ended up missing most of. I had to pick up another friend from the hospital, which took longer than planned. Thomas ended up taking the kids over to the party while I waited outside recovery. Thomas picked up his costume, hockey gear, from the storage unit, and we grabbed half of Evan's costume, but didn't have a chance to change Parker into his. I'd wiped my undead makeup off because, well, I was in a hospital, and it wasn't Halloween yet! You gotta love how cowboy Evan is on his horse... with a toy vacuum! He loves vacuums, toy and real!

Parker's preschool had a Halloween activity the Thursday before Halloween, and so we took the boys. We were going to have Evan be a firefighter, and Parker be a cowboy, but then Parker decided he wanted to be the firefighter. So, Evan's costume turned out great: I made covers for his boots, and a belt buckle. Unfortunately, the firefighter hat for Parker was still packed up in a tote, and so his costume was incomplete. We dressed him up as a pirate for the ward Halloween party, and pushed him around in an umbrella stroller. We had Evan the cowboy push Parker the broken-legged pirate across the stage, and they won the "funniest costume" award. Despite the costume malfunction on Thursday, we still had fun. It was still too soon after Parker had broken his leg for him to get around well, and he was still crawling, so it was a little difficult, but worth it!

Evan on the hayride. What a face! He loved the tractor pulling the wagon. Unfortunately, he and Thomas missed the ride because the little guy needed a fresh diaper.

Evan's Birthday! Two years old!

2010-11-21T22:37:00.000-08:00

On October 15, Evan turned two, and was terrible most of the day! But, he was still adorable, and we had a great evening eating his favorite foods, and opening presents. It was our first birthday party without family close, but we had a lot of fun with an intimate family party. He absolutely LOVES Toy Story, and his favorite toys from his birthday were definitely the Toy Story ones!

We let Evan open one present before dinner. Our friends gave Evan a Buzz Lightyear toy, and Evan hasn't put it down for very long since he got it! He even sleeps with it most nights!

Evan was distressed that he couldn't get the toy out of the plastic.

Ah, the joy of new toys!

"Cheese!"

Buzz ate dinner with us. We had Evan's favorites: corn on the cob, canned green beans, and hot dogs! He ate really well that night too.

And the cake... Evan was so excited to come with me when we picked up his birthday cake, and now calls all cake "birday!" He's actually been talking a lot more lately, even putting together little sentences. One of his first efforts to actually communicate instead of just saying words was to tell me: "Mommy, Parker take toys!"

We had a tradition growing up that we've instituted now. No one is allowed to eat cake until the birthday person has taken a bite. Parker was so impatient for Evan to take a bite, but was so good.

Evan was more excited about the Toy Story wrapping paper than his gifts at first!

Grandma and Grandpa Nordquist sent Evan's presents in boxes, and the boys were just as excited about the boxes as anything else! They were just playing with their hamburger boxes today, actually, over a month later.

I love how kids have to play with their toys right away upon opening them. Grandma Nordquist always sends the best gifts, and always something educational!

Tupperware! A Cars sippy cup, and sandwich container. Thomas has enjoyed bringing sandwiches to school in it :)

You can see Evan's lips pursed, ready to say "Buzz!" in excitement about his Buzz Lightyear sweatshirt. The boys are also wearing the matching shirts I couldn't resist getting them. We also got one for one of our good friends.

Toy Story toys and the balloons from the birthday cake. We love hearing Evan say "Bullseye!" and all the other characters' names. I just wish the little ones weren't so easy to misplace! The boys love them though.

Here he was actually touching Buzz and Woody together and saying "mwah!"

Of course, Parker was just as excited about the toys as Parker was!

Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup and Rain Boots

2010-11-21T22:20:00.000-08:00

I couldn't resist getting rain boots for the boys at WalMart. I got them big enough that they'll get a couple of years out of them. Evan doesn't like wearing clothes, but he likes wearing his boots!!

The boys, all three of them, love my homemade chicken noodle soup. Thank you, Mom, for teaching me how to make egg noodles!!

What happened to His hands?

2010-09-27T20:28:00.000-07:00

I met my father at the Visitor's Center at the Sacred Grove today, and we had a nice visit as we walked through the trees. The rain was lightly sprinkling, and so we were unconcerned at the beginning of our walk, and enjoyed the freshness that rainfall brings to the earth. Unfortunately, the rain picked up more than we had anticipated, and even Parker, who had wanted to keep going despite the sprinkling, wanted to go inside to someplace warm. I loaded the kidlets into the car, and met up with my father at the Hill Cumorah's visitor's center, just up the road. This visitor's center was larger, had a Christos, and a room with buttons to push to watch videos. When Parker walked into the room with the statue of Christ, he noticed the hands for the first time and asked, "What's wrong with his hands? What's on them?" I let the sister missionary explain how when Jesus had been killed, they (I'm quoting her words) had put nails in his hands and feet when the nailed him to the cross when he died for us. Parker was looking pretty upset (I wonder if he thought that Jesus had just recently died...) and so I reassured him and reminded him that three days after Jesus died, he was resurrected, so he's not dead any more: he's alive still, and he loves us very much. Parker seemed satisfied, and the boys enjoyed listening to the recording of several of Jesus Christ's teachings from the scriptures. Evan actually ran into that room several times and wanted to listen to it. He also loved Jesus' feet and toes... it is really quite humbling to realize that the Savior of the world has feet and toes just like us, and that we truly are created in the image of God!

On the drive home from the visitor's center, almost an hour after our original conversation in the visitor's center, Parker suddenly said, "Jesus had nail holes in his hands because he died for us."

"That's right," I answered.
"Mommy, why did Jesus die for us?"
"Well, Parker, Jesus loves us very much. He died for us and suffered for us so that we don't have to if we believe in him. Do you remember how we talked about how Jesus takes our owies? (Our interpretation of 2 Nephi 9:21) Jesus died to take our owies, so that we can repent."

"Mommy, why do we go to church?"

"To learn about Heavenly Father and Jesus, and to repent."

"Ah. Ah-pent. I can ah-pent."

It was such a sweet and tender experience. We never know just what our sweet children are going to remember and keep with them. Parker had been thinking about the Savior's suffering for longer than I would have expected, and had been pondering it. He may only be three years old, but his testimony is growing. I'm so very grateful for the Spirit of the Lord that allows us to recognize truth, and to communicate it. I know that Jesus Christ is my Savior and Redeemer, and that it's only through him that we can find happiness, and I'm glad that my children are learning that as well.

Making the Best of a Bad Situation

2010-09-27T18:55:00.000-07:00

I have heard so many stories of cars breaking down, and have seen my fair share of them on the side of the road during trips. Every told me how brave, and even crazy, I was for embarking on an eleven hour drive alone with my children to head back home to Canandaigua for the week. I wasn't concerned, as I knew how fantastic the boys were both for our drive out to Chicago from Utah, and for our trip down to Missouri for Michael (Nordquist)'s wedding. From the wedding experience we also learned that it's best not to drive down immediately before a big event, but to give the boys some time to adjust to a new place before exposing them to all sorts of new people and situations... if possible. I now understand a little bit why people thought I was so crazy... although the boys really were fantastic.

We left North Chicago at 5:12, only slightly later than originally planned. I'd wanted to get on the road early to avoid the crazy traffic outside Chicago--our commutes home-hunting had taught us how awful traffic can be, and we'd planned well. There was still a lot of traffic, but it was moving quickly... very quickly... so I made good time. At around 9am CST (10am Eastern, which was the local time zone) we stopped for a bathroom break. I changed the boys' diapers and got them dressed, and decided to put a movie in for them. I couldn't get the adapter to pick up a signal. Then I noticed the clock light dimming. I turned off the car, and then couldn't restart it. I found someone to jumpstart the car, and decided (after a quick call to Pops) to get to the closest auto repair shop, which was just a mile away, off the next exit. I'd been stopped at a pull-off stop that's just right off, right on I-80, and the car died just after I got back on the interstate. I was hardly on, and still in the right lane, so I was able to pull off easily. My battery light was on, the power steering died, the clock died, and even my emergency flashers wouldn't go on. Crazy. I called Mike again and he gave me the number for AAA and my mom's account number. I was able to add myself to her policy for $60, and they said they would get a tow truck out to me as soon as possible.

After all the phone calls were made, I will confess that I cried. But, the boys were great. They read books, played with the file folder games, and ate grapes. The car got pretty hot and muggy though, and they started sweating. I would hold the door open every once in awhile to cool things off, but it was really loud. Two patrol cars stopped by at different times to make sure I was okay. The troopers were so nice, and the first one helped me and pushed my car further onto the grass on the shoulder... he even told me how to put my car in neutral since I was an idiot and didn't know how. You have to turn the key on...even with a dead car. Go figure. The tow truck guy finally called, after AAA calling twice to tell me that it would be just a little longer than anticipated. He called to let me know he was close, and to make sure he knew where I was. His truck only had a front seat, and there wasn't room for the car-seats, so Parker got to ride in the middle seat, and Evan sat on my lap. SCARY! But, evidently you just CAN'T let passengers ride on the flat bed of tow trucks! We drove the thirteen miles to the shop (since it was AAA affiliated, it didn't cost extra for the extra towing) I also found out I needed new tires... you could see the metal on the rear tires. Not a good time to recall the mechanics telling us how we'd need new tires soon last time we got the tires rotated.... almost a year ago. Ooops! But, what a blessing to figure that out early, before both tires blew out on my way to New York. j

I was hoping to just have a slipped belt, or maybe a dead battery, but the alternator was completely dead. Thankfully, Thomas was able to skip class and find our warranty information. Several phone calls later, we at least had that sorted out! The repair shop had a gas station, a "convenience" store, and a waiting room for customers in the back with a few booths and tables, as well as bathrooms. One of the employees got my laptop from the car, and the boys and I sat and watched the beginning of Lady and the Tramp. I eventually grabbed our cooler from the car and we had more grapes, juice, and cold pizza. Then the boys wanted to run around the shop, up and down the aisles. They also enjoyed looking at the giant, taxidermied moose head, and run into the back office to see the taxidermied quail, mooing, barking, and chirping the whole time, of course. The shop owners were very patient, and told me that they would be worried if they boys weren't running around. A woman came in, getting a tire repaired (it ended up having a nail and some glass in it) and helped me chase Evan while I made some necessary phone calls. We talked a little bit, and she shared some of her bag of pretzels with the boys, making instant friends with Evan. Her repair finished earlier than mine, of course, and she asked when my car would be finished. It would be at least another hour, so she offered to take us over to her house so the boys could run around and play.

Now, normally I don't get in cars with strangers, and especially don't take my children to strange houses, but I needed to get them out of that confined space, and felt good about it. The mechanics installed my car-seats in Rose's car, and we drove the few miles to her gorgeous house. Someday Thomas and I will have a real house! (But, we're grateful to be where we are now, and wouldn't trade it... it's just nice to know what we're working for!) Rose played with the boys, and we had a chance to visit. She was so sweet with the kids, and they had so much fun running around, playing with balls, and Parker couldn't get enough of Pac-Man. She even loaded us up with snacks. Before we left, Evan was looking at some resin ducks she had displayed on her floor. He kept petting one of them, and then picking it up and saying "hug." He was so gentle with it. She saw how he kept running back to it, and gave it to him, and since she understands small children, she gave Parker one too. Evan can't get enough of is "duckies." When the repair shop called, she took us back, and sat in the car with the boys while I settled the account, and ran to the bathroom one more time. We loaded up the boys, and they fell asleep almost immediately. She also gave us some cash, which was such a blessing, and so thoughtful. I hope that someday I can be that kind of a person, and that I'll have the opportunity to serve someone the was Rose blessed us!

Although Rose said that we'd given her more than she gave us, I'm not sure that's true! Although we'd tried to make the best of a bad situation, as the adage goes, because of the angel placed in our path, we were able to turn a bad situation into a delightful afternoon, and an experience we'll never forget. A recent conference talk (I'll attach the link when I have a better internet connection) teaches that when we pray for our friends and loved ones to be blessed and protected, we're praying for angels both earthly and heavenly to help them. I'm so grateful for the kindly woman in South Bend, Indiana who answered the prayers of my husband and mother to help me. I'm not sure how we would have survived the experience with the boys otherwise!

We got on the road again around 4pm, and the rest of the trip was blessedly uneventful.

We had to stop a few more times, for gas and dinner, and once around 10:30 because Evan was just inconsolable and needed to nurse (which was easier on me to relieve that pressure!) We got into Canandaigua at around 2am... later than I'd anticipated 1-because of the breakdown, obviously, 2-because of the stops, and 3-because I hadn't changed the time zone on my GPS, and so thought I was an hour closer to my destination that I actually was. The boys woke up when we got to my mom's house, which allowed me to wash their hands and faces thoroughly, a good thing, but kept us up longer than I would have liked. I put Parker's sleeping bag on the floor on a bigger blanket and he was good to go, but Evan kept trying to jump on Parker and explore the room. I turned the lights off, but it still took the little guy awhile to fall asleep. But, we arrived safely, and were able to get a decent morning's sleep :) Mom and Mike's second flight had been cancelled, so they ended up not getting in until the next morning, Thursday the 23rd. Aunt Beth had had a delayed flight as well--a lot of opposition in getting here this weekend! The boys were terrible on Thursday, but were better after that. All of my aunts and uncles were here this weekend (expect for two spouses...) So nice to see everyone!

Settling In, and Beginning of Preschool

2010-09-20T07:52:00.000-07:00

My friend (I'll have to get her permission to name her and her kiddos on here...) emailed me better pictures of the little ones at the Bass Pro shop fish tank... you can see how hard it is to get both kids looking at the camera, and smiling. You can tell they're emphatically saying "cheese!" in most of the pics... and you can see how Evan clenches his fists when he says cheese :)

Aren't they adorable??? When we were walking the mall, I had the two of them hold hands so I wouldn't lose them, and we got so many looks, and people whispering to each other and pointing at us... I'm pretty sure most people thought that I was blessed with some blond twins. My friend, who's also brunette, and I got asked where we found the blond kids. Ha ha. Comments like that just make me roll my eyes. I mean, really? Do they want a lecture in genetics? An explanation of .... or a confession to kidnapping? But, I'm sure they all mean well, and no offense is taken.

And now back to the original post. I really wish you could add new pictures onto a blog post wherever you wanted them!

This is Parker sporting his new hat. When I was patching the boys' jeans, we came across a hat I'd started for the boys when they were babies. Parker saw it and begged me to finish it for him. Every time I went to work on something different, he would bring me the hat, yarn, and crochet hook. I finally told him I would finish it while he slept, and it would be done when he woke up. He was out of his bed ten minutes after I put him down, asking for his hat. I had to tell him it wouldn't be done until it was day, and then he stayed in bed until morning. He definitely loves his hat. I'm going to have to make one for Evan, since he's pretty jealous of Parker's.

Parker started preschool the 10th of September, and loved it. After we dropped him off, Evan and I played with some of our new friends. We met some friends through church who have kids our kids' age. They've had fun playing together, and we mom's have had fun being able to carpool--switching driving the older boys, and watching the little ones. But, Friday, for Parker's first day, we all went to drop him off. Evan was pretty upset to have to leave him, but had fun getting in our friend's van and going to the mall. We walked around the Bass Pro Shop and the kids had fun looking at all the taxidermied animals, the boats, the giant tank with fish, and especially the stream and water wheel. We also went and hung out outside the rainforest cafe, and the kids had fun watching the moving alligator, and playing with the frog on the bench. We spent a few hours at the mall, and then picked up the older boys from preschool. As soon as they saw each other, Parker and Evan gave each other the BIGGEST hug, right in the middle of the classroom. When Parker came home after our friend brought him back from preschool, Evan hugged him in the hall outside our door. Those boys really do love each other!! And, I'm glad they're not afraid of showing affection. There's a little girl at church that Evan enjoys showing affection for as well... she's almost 18 months old, and Evan can't get enough of her. He likes to follow her around and give her hugs, give her toys, and play with whatever toys she's playing with. Last week we sat by her family, and Evan looked over at her, pointed at himself, then her, and said "You, me, Costco?" It was so funny. Evan is starting to talk a lot more, and put sentences together. I love watching my children grow! Evan refers to anything not home as "Costco." I guess that just shows how often we went to Costco in Provo! Any time we leave, he says its Costco. He even calls the park Costco, so I'm pretty sure he was asking his little friend on a date to the park. Adorable, right?

This is a terrible picture of the kids in front of the fish tank.
Isn't she the cutest little girl???
My little guys in the car, in their matching UND sweatshirts. Yay for hand-me-downs! Parker likes to make sure that he and Evan match :) Just so you know, Parker's finger isn't IN his nose, just next to it.

So, the brotherly love isn't always foremost in Parker and Evan's relationship. The picture isn't the clearest, but if you look above his left eye, you can see where Evan got a Sharpie and drew all over Parker's face while Parker was asleep. Ah, the joys of unpacking and the kids finding things in strange places until we get everything put away!

We were really excited about this purchase... it's a wet bag that fits all of our dirty diapers and keeps odors in until we wash them. People are so shocked when we tell them how we prefer cloth diapers to disposables, but we really do! We love our bumgenius diapers! The econobum aren't bad either, and allow us to go longer between diaper washes.

You may notice the toilet paper on the towel rack above the toilet. No, our toilet paper holder isn't broken, we're just trying to keep the toilet paper away from Evan. He still likes to rip off pieces of toilet paper, suck on them, put them behind his nuk, then roll them up and roll them across his face, then put them between his toes, and then finally leave these spit wads ALL OVER. If he can get his hands on the toilet paper, he'll have the whole roll shredded and soaked. Nasty.

This is Evan playing with the boats in the Bass Pro shop... he had so much fun. It was soo cute!

I was grinding wheat for flour, and so didn't hear when Evan got into the cereal and dumped the entire bag of Kix on the floor. I think he preferred eating the cereal off the floor... thankfully it was recently cleaned!! We've been trying a more natural approach to cleaning: vinegar, baking soda, lemon. It makes things safer for the kids, and works very effectively and inexpensively!

Forgotten Provo Pics

2010-08-31T07:14:00.001-07:00

I came upon these pictures that I'd forgotten to post, and felt that they deserved to be posted, shared, and remembered.

I love this picture of Evan: look of concentration, bumgenius diaper showing, trying to put the keys in the ignition, attempting to drive Daddy's truck.

It's hard to get Evan to sit and eat. He'll eat for a little while, and then get down. One day he snuck back to the table after lunch and grabbed the dish of green beans and the serving spoon, and finished his lunch in the comfort of the living room, where the boys had spread out all of their toys :)
The BYU newspaper printed coupons for McDonalds' new All-Fruit smoothies. Who can resist a free smoothie? Thomas visited the newspaper stands, and the recycling bins near the stands, and got a stack of over twenty newspapers with the coupons. We spent a few minutes clipping coupons, and the next few weeks enjoying smoothies. Evan especially loved them!

This is a classic brotherly love picture. Evan has a scratch on his back from who knows what, but if you look closely above it, you can see Parker's hand print on Evan's back. Parker had slapped him, and then Evan came running to us crying. I don't think Parker hit Evan all that hard, but the boys have our sensitive skin, where any contact shows up. Parker still got a time out though, and the incident hasn't been repeated! They still fight... but no more slapping!

Last night in Provo

2010-08-31T07:04:00.000-07:00

Mike decided to kidnap us and take us on a drive the night before we left Provo. It was beautiful! We didn't get too many pictures because it was getting dark, and we were trying to keep Evan out of the water, but it was gorgeous, and fun!

And, the boys were tired out!

Week Two in Chicago, and Week One in North Chicago

2010-08-30T15:22:00.000-07:00

Being new to the city, we thought the most direct route to the zoo would be the best. The apartment wasn't very far from the road the zoo is on, and it was only a few miles. But, Wrigley Stadium is also on Clark Street, and it took us much longer to get there than anticipated. Thomas snapped this picture while we were stopped in traffic. Getting to the zoo was one thing, finding parking was another! We drove around forever looking for a spot, and then surrendered to the need to pay for parking. The paid parking on the street was still less expensive than the zoo parking would have been. Unfortunately though, our adventures in getting to the zoo had taken longer than expected, and so we only got to go in a few of the buildings before they closed at five. We still had a lot of fun though!

Evan loved all of the apes, monkeys, and chimps. He called them all "Mokey!" And I didn't have the heart to correct him. He was adorable!

The second favorite attraction was the ducks... The zoo has a beautiful section of streams and bridges with ducks, swans, etc.

The owner of the apartment has cleaning ladies come every two weeks, and we got to benefit from their amazing skills! We thought it was cute how they put the boys' beds together. Parker was sleeping on his mattress on the floor, and Evan in his little bed.

We spent a lot of time driving between Chicago and North Chicago while we were looking at houses. Although the distance is only about 40 miles or so, the drive can take anywhere between 40 minutes and two hours. Needless to say, the boys weren't very happy during the times when we were trapped in slow traffic on the interstate, going less than thirty miles an hour, and surrounded by cars as far as we could see.

We had fun during our second week in Chicago, going to playgroup at the local church, and spending a lot of time house hunting. We didn't end up finding a suitable house, but the apartment complex next to Thomas' school significantly lowered their rent, and so we snatched one of the last apartments there.

Our last week in Chicago was orientation for Thomas. He took the truck down and moved a load at a time from the storage unit into our apartment. We met him for bowling one night, and Parker loved it! He enjoyed throwing the ball (pushing it across the floor, really), seeing the pins fall down, and eating pizza. He was so adorable. After he threw the ball he would squat down at the edge of the lane and watch until he saw the ball hit and the pins fall down. It could take awhile too, since he didn't push the ball with that much force, but he was so patient. After each turn, no matter how many pins fell, he would get so excited and give Thomas a high five and a hug, and jump up and down. "I'm really good at bowling," he kept saying over the next few days. It was adorable. Evan was a terror... he just wanted to steal everyone's balls and push them willy nilly. He also kept trying to run down the lane. We all drove back to Wrigleyville together, leaving the truck at our new apartment.

Thomas had unloaded the boys' toys into their room, and we'd shown them the new place. Parker had been apprehensive about moving, but as soon as he saw all those toys that he hadn't seen in weeks, he was ok with it. He didn't want to go back to Wrigleyville... but there was the Wii there! Since Thomas was driving the car to orientation, and the stroller was in North Chicago as well, the boys and I were trapped in that fantastic apartment. But, we had books, and toys, and the Wii. Parker loved "playing" Mario Kart. He would hold the extra steering wheel, and pretend to drive with me. When I wasn't playing with Thomas, I did a lot better, but still couldn't master the courses like Wario's mine where the carts can fall off the side. I spent most of those tracks falling off. If one of those would come up, I would say, "Oh, Parker, I'm not very good at this one!" And Parker would reassure me, "It's ok Mommy. I'm really good at this one!" As long as we finished the race, Parker would cheer "Yay! We won!" Adorable. It was the only time I've ever enjoyed playing video games!

Welcome to North Chicago

Our new apartment is on the second floor, but we're on a corner, and are right across from the laundry. It's been working out really well, and we're really enjoying having Thomas able to come home for lunch. It takes about three minutes for him to walk to school. It means we actually see him! He can home home, and then easily get back to campus for quiet study time.

Our apartment complex has a little playground: a few swings that are so low Parker's feet drag (which is perfect because then he can sit and swing on it without danger of falling so far) and a slide that takes effort to go down. The best thing about this little "playground" is that it's a good place to meet other moms and kids. One of the other mom's told us about a fantastic playground about a mile south on our road, and the boys and I went last week for a picnic.

Parker had slipped and bumped his head and shoulder, and was crying, so Evan came up to him, threw out his arms, and said "hug!" then wrapped his arms around his older brother. It was adorable, so I asked them to do it again. The replay wasn't quite as cute as the original, but still picture worthy :)

The highlight of the playground is this "boat." There are low walls, a ladder going up to the steering wheel and mast, and then a little cabin behind the stairs. There's more slide and tunnel equipment, a seesaw, lots of swings, a little three walled cabin with a table and benches, a toddler dinosaur slide and ladder thing (you can see it in the background) We had a lot of fun, and played for several hours. Then we went to a new grocery store to buy milk, etc.

The grocery store had the strangest set up I'd ever seen! It had everything in it you could have wanted, but was organized by ethnicity, not types of food. The produce section was enormous, and had some vegetables I didn't even know the name of. The rest of the store was divided into aisles by Asian food, Latin Food, Italian food, Turkish food, etc. It was so hard to find anything, since there were different kinds of rice, pasta, and beans in every aisle. The boys were good though. We got some Ovaltine to encourage Parker to drink milk. He loves it... even diluted :)

Week One in Chicago

2010-08-02T17:28:00.000-07:00

Well, we survived the 21 (actually ended up being about 23 or so) hour drive, and arrived in Chicago. What an adventure! The priests in our ward back in Provo helped us load up our U-Haul on Tuesday, then we spent Wednesday and then Thursday morning finishing up, and loading the U-Haul, car, and truck. We'd originally planned on leaving on Wednesday, but there's a lot more work to moving than we'd anticipated! Thomas also wanted to make sure to spend some more time with the young men, and his family, and I'd wanted to take the boys up to Salt Lake for my nephew Asher's second birthday. We may not have gotten everything done that we'd wanted, but at least we did that! I know my mom was glad to have the extra day. Mike had actually told us Wednesday morning that he wouldn't be too upset if we stayed an extra night :) But, I think they were ready for us to be gone by Thursday afternoon! Our neighbor across the street kept the boys at her house while we finished up. Finally, around 1 something, we were ready to go! Thomas drove the U-Haul, towing the car, and I had the boys in the truck. They were actually fabulous during the drive. Evan actually fell asleep before we got to the canyon! We hooked up the laptop, and so the boys watched Toy Story, Toy Story 2, Cars, and Finding Nemo... It's so strange to listen to movies! But, it kept them entertained. We also had lots of books, snacks, etc. We actually didn't drive that far Thursday before stopping. We'd stopped for dinner where there was a McDonald's play place. The boys had so much fun climbing up in the tunnels. We were pretty exhausted after dinner, and so we decided to stop there instead of pushing on to the next big town. We found a quiet little motel run by the sweetest old lady, and had an early night so that we could get an early start and a full day of driving on Friday.

We got going early Thursday morning, and then stopped a few hours later for breakfast. We had to stop a lot more to let the boys run around and get their energy out. It helped. It also helped that we brought a can of green beans and a can opener for snacks... Those boys are crazy about their vegetables, and room-temperature green beans are the preference! We also had lots of water bottles... so Evan spent much of the trip wet from dumping the bottles on himself. Parker was actually really helpful though: giving Evan snacks, his nuks, blankets, toys, or whatever he needed. Unfortunately, that helpfulness seemed to end the first week in Chicago... but more on that later.

My mom made reservations at a hotel for us Friday night at a hotel with a pool, breakfast, and that was just off the freeway. Unfortunately, we'd missed a key element of the directions, and ended up lost in the residential areas. We went down what we thought was a street, but what ended up being a narrow parking lot for an apartment complex. It took over an hour for Thomas to get the U-Haul out. He had to detach the car, and thankfully a resident came out and helped Thomas back out. The poor boys were miserable! But, Thomas got out ok, and we found the hotel no problem, once we had the right directions. We got to the hotel a little before 10:30pm, and so had half an hour before the pool closed. It was absolutely perfect. The boys loved the time in the pool, and then their baths. We ordered a pizza, and then fell asleep. Pizza delivered after a long day is one of the most delicious meals I think I've ever experienced. The boys loved it too. The hotel had wireless, so the boys watched an episode of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse online, and then fell asleep. We discovered that the boys love Fruit Loops the next morning, and then got on the road. It wasn't too full a day of driving until we hit Chicago. We stopped by a ward party for one of the Gurnee wards (where we'll probably be once we move closer to school) at around 7, and followed several people over to the storage unit where they helped us unload the U-Haul, truck, and car. Some of the men are fellow podiatry students at Rosalind Franklin, so it was nice to talk with them. Once the truck was unloaded, I took the boys over to a park to play on the playground to keep them out of trouble. They had a lot of fun finally playing. I loved feeling the humidity. It's not nearly as bad as New York, let alone the South, so I find it refreshing! I also love how much better Evan's hair curls! After we got the storage unit packed up, we headed out towards Chicago and the apartment we're renting until we find something more permanent. The last few miles definitely were the most trying! Thomas thought it would be easiest to take the most direct roads, the toll roads, and we got our cash ready accordingly. Unfortunately, the tolls were not attended booths, and required exact change. Thankfully the city has a website to pay missed tolls, and we were able to take care of our missed tolls online at the public library a few days later, well within the seven day time stipulation. Driving in Chicago in a loaded up truck was a little crazy, but Thomas found a place to park, and we unloaded the boys, who promptly fell asleep on the couches in the living room. Thomas moved the cars, and unloaded all our stuff.

The apartment here is amazing! It's fully furnished (which is why our stuff's in the storage unit) and is absolutely gorgeous! It's going to be hard to leave the master bathroom with its jacuzzi and granite counters and double sinks, and the kitchen with its stainless appliances... I'm still afraid to drive in Chicago though, so I make Thomas drive every time we go anywhere. We do have the internet now though, so that makes figuring out public transportation a little easier!

We called my mom Sunday morning to help us find a church building, and located one about four miles away, with a ward that meets at 1, but it still took us over half an hour to drive that four miles in some crazy traffic. We've since discovered better routes! Thankfully Evan's fallen asleep on the way to church the past two Sundays :)

We started looking at houses in North Chicago on Tuesday, and actually found one we really like. Unfortunately, we just found out its a short sale property, so it may take longer than we'd like to get it... we'll look in some other cities that are farther away! Hey, it's only been a week; we'll find something!

We went to the ward's play group on Wednesday morning at 11: they meet every week, which will be fantastic for while we're here. There are really some fantastic people here, and I talked to one woman on Sunday who has a little girl almost Parker's exact age, and she lives right around the corner! We also went to the ward Luau on Saturday, which was fun. We did leave early though, because the boys have been on a fantastic schedule. They've been waking up around seven every morning, and so going to bed early too. All it took to get them back on track was a drive of a few thousand miles :) Parker's actually been really good about going to his bed and going to sleep when he's tired, and he stays in his bed all night... finally! I'm not sure what did it, but after our first night here, he stopped coming into our room at night. I love it! I didn't mind cuddling with him at night, but I was always too tired to put him back in his bed, and now we don't have to worry about it! Such a big boy. He has been having a tough time adjusting to a new place though, and Evan's been hitting his head on the floor again when he's mad. They're having a harder time playing with other kids, and have been a little more aggressive than usual this past week. It's getting better, but even Parker's been throwing an occasional temper tantrum. The first few days he begged us to go back to our "real home," but now he's getting used to "Ah-Cago" he just doesn't like looking at other houses: he wants to stay here now. Poor guy. He'll be glad to have the rest of his toys back once we do get into the new house though!

We have our library cards, and will look into getting into some of the museums too: free museum passes with library cards! Today we've stayed at home all day though: it's been dark and windy, getting ready to rain.

Well, that's the update for the past week!

The boys have definitely been very... attached... to each other!

Still Playing catch-up: Misc

2010-07-13T12:04:00.000-07:00

Logan's Birthday party:

Logan is one day shy of four weeks younger than Parker, and his mom and I were pregnant at the same time, and have been friends since back home in New York. I honestly can't remember the first time I met her, but we've been friends since! When Thomas and I first got married, we lived in the same ward as Zac and Sarah, and so Parker and Logan spent their first growing up months together :) We're going to miss them!

On a side note, those shoes Evan's wearing in the pic only fit him for a few days: his feet are wide, and those shoes gave him blisters. We'll be keeping him in crocs til fall I think. No point in buying him more shoes that he'll outgrow quicker than he actually wears them! They get so big so fast!
If ever we couldn't find Evan, he was playing with the wheel, making vrooming noises :) They loved a new and different playground to play in, and the other kiddies.

The boys played in the ice bucket to cool off after the cake and hot dogs were gone, and the drinks removed from the bucket. I think they had as much fun with the ice as they did with the playground and the toys!

Evan's ER trip

No, we're not terrible parents, and Parker had nothing to do with it! Evan was running in our room and crashed into the corner of the wall where our washer and drier are hiding in their closet. Poor kid. Thomas heard the thud, then the screaming. We took Evan to urgent care, and my mom stayed with a very concerned Parker. Thankfully she was home; it made things a lot easier! We got to Riverwoods Urgent Care, and were pleased to find a fantastic parking spot, only a little surprised that it seemed so empty. We walked in the building and realized it was the wrong one. All of the medical buildings look THE SAME! No big. We just walked next door and got things taken care of... well, not really. I finished filling out the insurance paperwork, and the nurse had us bring Evan back to see the Doctor to ascertain if they would even be able to help Evan. The doctor said he definitely needed stitches, although glue might do it, but they weren't able to do conscious sedation or something there, so we needed to take Evan to the ER. so, back in the care and off to Timpview Regional. Thomas sat in the back with Evan, holding a towel-wrapped ice cube to Evan's eyebrow.
Observe the lightning bolt pattern? Thomas thought it was so cool. I'll admit that I was annoyed that Thomas was taking pictures, and that he'd taken the time to grab the camera, but I think Evan will appreciate the documentation someday... if he's anything like his dad!

Evan was so good, and so sweet while we waited. He was totally mellow though, which let us know he was hurting. I'd given him some Tylenol before we left, and I think it was helping. Thankfully we didn't have to wait too long. I think our whole adventure took about an hour...
This is in the room, after getting cleaned up. The cut would not stop bleeding, but Evan was so great! The doctor looked at it, and said that steri strips would be perfect, but since Evan would rip them off, we decided on glue. The cut had started healing enough between the Urgent Care and the ER that he didn't need stitches after all! yay! He was so sweet the entire time, and the nurses gave him a little dog beanie baby to hold and keep. Most expensive stuffed animal ever! He loved it though. He LOVES dogs. He'll chase them calling "Goggie! Goggie!" until he can pet them and hug them. He loves doggie kisses too... unlike Parker. Parker prefers to look, and observe the animals without touching or being touched.

Oquirrh Mountain Temple

I love how much the boys love being at the temple. They also loved the flowers, and couldn't get enough of looking at them and pointing to them!

Family Camp out

We decided to have a camp out with Thomas' siblings that are here in Provo, and Jonathan and Amanda were gracious enough to go camping on their birthdays, and I'm glad because we all had a great time.
Evan loved the picnic table, and by breakfast time, I'd given up trying to keep him off of it. He LOVES being outside, and had a great time.
left to right: Robby, Timothy, and Carlie Evans, Amanda and Jonathan, then us!
We had some great food. Thomas made dutch oven potatoes, we had grilled chicken, and I got to introduce everyone to Cornell sauce... mmmmm.... We had aluminum foil-cooked carrots, mostly for the three little guys, and Carlie made a great salad. S'mores, peach cobbler, hot chocolate for dessert later... so fantastic. Breakfast of pancakes, eggs, and bacon. But, I still ended up bringing grapes, juice boxes, yogurt, cheese sticks, and apples for the boys: and it's good that I did. They ate the carrots we cooked, but other than that stuck with the snacks I brought. Crazy kids.

Amanda made some fantastic peach cobbler, but Evan only wanted the whipped cream :)

Yes, that's me between the boys. I tend to get migraines in the morning, so I was covering my eyes. It's crazy how CLOSE they will get to you!
Evan woke up and was carrying his blanket around for quite awhile. Parker slept in... I couldn't get him to wake up for breakfast, and finally just left the tent flap open until he got up. Then, he sat up and said, "It's day!" And cheerfully slipped his shoes on and joined us all.

Family Scripture study:
We've been trying to implement daily scripture study and prayer into our nightly routine, usually after bath time, when they're clean and quiet :) We're pretty good most days. Parker likes to "read along" in his own copy, and this particular night he was repeating everything Thomas read. It was adorable. He's done it a few times since as well. I love it when they get into scripture study. Sometimes we only get through a few verses, and we wonder if they even caught a word. Other times Parker will ask questions, and even Evan will get excited about words he knows: like "hand" or "Jesus." As tough as it is sometimes, I know it's worth it. Children can feel the Spirit of the Lord, and when we read the word of God, they can feel it, even if they don't understand everything. Good habits are important too.

Evan wanted a turn reading too, but ended up being more interested in the book mark :)

Spring!

I took this picture from our back door in the basement. There are steps leading up to the lawn, so the flowers were above us. It was a cool effect.

Evan loves getting outside! He's wearing a ribbon he found, and has some kind of sticker label stuck to his pants. I stopped him from playing with that gas can. He loves playing with any tools he can get a hold of too. He loves running around with the toy hammer saying "hama!" We just try to keep the boys from getting each other!

Fun play time...

One of Evan's favorite things is to lie on the stairs and play with his cars. Parker's usually sitting at the bottom of the stairs playing too, sometimes with Evan, sometime next to him, and sometimes they're fighting. The bottom of the stairs seems to be a preferred play place though, and we're always picking up toys from there. Nothing like stepping on cars right after coming down the stairs! Ouch!
The boys are absolutely in love with the movie Toy Story and will watch it as many times a day as we'll let them. They also love each other. We did take them to see Toy Story 3 in theater, their first movie! We'd just gone to run errands, and didn't want to go home yet, but didn't want to go to a park since it was so hot. We drove past a new theater, and decided to check show times. It was 5:30, and the movie started at 5:20; I asked if we'd miss any of the movie if we bought tickets then, and was informed that there were still several minutes of previews. I bought the tickets, got the boys from the car, Thomas parked, and we made it for the last preview and the movie. The boys were pretty good. Evan got squirrelly and wanted to run around with the other little toddler babies that were walking around, but they were pretty quiet and attentive. Parker did want to watch the real Toy Story when we got home. I think that Big Baby creeped him out a bit. The movie was also aimed towards a larger audience, but he's still talking about it!

This picture is actually from before Parker's birthday though: we know because the nuk fairy came on Parker's birthday and took all of his pacifiers away. It was a rough transition for a few nights, but he got over it! such a big boy!
What big helpers! Evan has underwear on over his diaper because he liked to pull his diaper off and run around naked. We compromised with the undies. He will pee on the potty if you put him on it though, but won't initiate it himself. Still, he's doing better with the potty training than Parker is! Parker's only gone twice... ::sigh:: But, we're postponing further potty training until we move. Next week. Crazy.

Evan thought it was the coolest thing to stick his rubber ducky on his chest :) It entertained all of us for several minutes!

And, what's more fun than laundry baskets! The boys love laundry day when all of the laundry baskets are empty, and crying out with temptation to be played with! Parker actually pushed Evan in the laundry basket all the way from the living room to our bedroom.

Fun in the sun... and the pool

Thomas acquired the pool, brand new, when he helped one of his former professors move. Parker got the slide for his birthday. Thank you Grandmas and Grandpas! We love when Carlie and Timothy come over to play :)

And, what's summer without popsicles??
Parker's Birthday
We don't have a lot of pictures... mostly videos of Parker opening all of his presents. I uploaded one of them... We were going to do a Mickey Mouse cake, but Parker decided that he wanted a big boy chocolate cake with strawberries in it. Thomas made the cake and frosting, and garnished it with strawberries per request of our darling three year old. I had class that night until 6:30, picked up the fruit on my way home, and made it in time for our guests to arrive. It was fantastic, and Parker felt loved and special.
Hiking the Y
Yes, my bald husband :) Thomas is a young men's leader, and so goes to mutual every Wednesday night. This particular night they were hiking the Y, so Thomas took the boys with him so that I could get some studying done (and it paid off: I got two A's and an A-!)

Parker absolutely adores Bruce Brockbank...

The young men totally helped out toting the boys! The boys spent forever playing with the rocks on the side of the trail at the top, and Evan actually carried a rock with him all the way down the mountain, and left it in his car seat after he fell asleep.

4th Anniversary

2010-07-12T21:20:00.001-07:00

Four years ago today Thomas and I were married and sealed in the Palmyra, NY temple. What a blessing! He's actually at scout camp this week, but even had I known four years ago that I would spend today cleaning up after two busy boys, doing dishes, laundry, house cleaning, and then enjoy Costco hot dogs for dinner, I would have had no qualms. No regrets. I'm so grateful to be married to the best man I know. And, he's a great father to boot! I love how dedicated he is to all of his commitments: to the Lord, to me, to our children, and to his church callings. That's why he's at scout camp! He's a fantastic man who honors his priesthood, and who loves me more than I'd imagined possible.

Today:

Our family at the Oquirrh Mountain Temple after a sealing session: Thomas' cousin and two gorgeous adopted little girls :) The boys loved being at the temple.
You've got to love how Evan's squirming down, and Parker has lost his shoes. ::sigh::

And, four years ago...

This is my favorite wedding picture. It rained three inches on our wedding day... but it was fantastic! I love this pic because it wasn't posed.... He's so cute!

And, leading up to four years ago:

The mission:
I still think it's amazing that Thomas waited for me on my mission! He wrote me so faithfully, and was an answer to my prayers so many times during my mission. I understand what Elder Groberg meant when he said at a devotional in the MTC that he felt sorry for anyone who didn't have someone waiting at home, supporting, loving, and strengthening. I honestly didn't believe that Thomas would still be available when I got home from my mission: it seemed to good to be true! But, he was, and he is!

(My first investigator and baptism, Antonia. Such a sweetheart!)

The sparks of romance...before the mission...

Yeah... his "first" proposal. I was helping his FHE group out with a picture scavenger hunt. I went out of my way to help him out, and still, he didn't get that I was interested... but, hey, it all worked out! For the best :)
This one totally looks like an engagement pic, right? It's from August 2004. I kept a copy of this picture in my white handbook on my mission... always close at hand, and to heart. We've only been married for four years, but we've loved each other so much longer than that! Thomas has been, and is, such a blessing in my life. He is one of the tender mercies of the Lord, and I hope that someday I'll deserve him!

too much time at school

2010-06-26T10:57:00.000-07:00

So, one Monday, the 7th of June to be precise, I was up pretty late working on a term paper. Around 2am I came into my room, to get something, and found Thomas putting some lotion on his head... his bald head. Wow. I guess I wasn't spending enough time with my family!

No, really Thomas has wanted to shave it for awhile, and had been talking about it. He had Mike buzz it, then shaved it. Crazy. Way to take control of the thinning!

Getting Caught Up

2010-06-23T19:29:00.000-07:00

Summer has officially begun! I'm DONE with my classes! I finished up my last three classes this Spring, and will soon get a nifty diploma in the mail! I haven't been blogging because I was in school (and I loved it! I had great classes, with fantastic professors: a good way to end my undergraduate career!) Now I'm just catching up on the last two months!

The Duck Pond

2010-06-23T19:19:00.000-07:00

It wasn't all insanity with Daddy, and the boys did some fun things together, including several trips to the Botany Pond at the South end of BYU campus.

Thomas found things much easier if Evan remained strapped in the stroller: otherwise he'll run towards the water, trying to get in, yelling "quack!" at the top of his lungs. Notice that he's eating the bread?

They loved seeing the baby ducks, especially the ones hiding under their mommy!

Thomas the lumberjack

2010-06-23T19:09:00.001-07:00

Our next door neighbor wanted to get rid of this giant tree, and got quoted a really high price to remove it, so Thomas volunteered to chop it down for him. It was quite the project, but he had a lot of fun with it, and it led to many other tree-chopping opportunities! We have so much wood in our back yard now, and some mulch on our beds from all the branches!

Evan was so excited to go and "help" Daddy, he put on Thomas' gloves and one of Parker's shoes!

Running to get daddy

I think this is one of my all-time favorite pictures!

Craziness with Daddy!

2010-06-23T18:54:00.000-07:00

With classes starting after graduation, Thomas got to be a full-time dad while I was at school. 9 credits in only a few weeks!

The boys enjoying the spoils after a trip to Costco... their favorite place. If ever we run out of anything, Parker tells me we need to go to Costco to get more. Evan will ask to go as well: we like it since the boys can sit next to each other in the cart....

Graduation: April 2010

2010-06-23T17:53:00.000-07:00

Notice the "Y" on the mountain in the background? Thomas was really excited the picture worked out that way :) So, I reapplied to BYU back in January to go back for Spring Term and finish all my classes--since Thomas would be done, he'd be able to stay with the kids so that I could finish my three classes. There ended up being a huge hassle with my ecclesiastical endorsement. I'd had the necessary interview with my Bishop, and got the form in on time--Thomas hand delivered it--but it ended up being the wrong form for readmission (although it ended up that I DID need that one to apply for graduation). I wasn't able to meet with the Stake Presidency until after the application deadline, but called and talked with the admissions office, and they said that as long as I explained my situation, I'd be fine. I sent an email explaining everything, and did get readmitted, but for Winter 2011--not acceptable! I sent an email to the head of admissions himself, got a phone call the next day, and was readmitted for Spring. Being an English major paid off in that situation: it was a very well written email! The fantastic Humanities advisor got me all set to walk early (Thomas, his brother Jonathan, his wife, Amanda, and Thomas' brother-in-law Robby were all walking in April too....) and helped me choose better classes than the ones I was trying for. I took a full load in Spring, and LOVED it!
Thomas and Evan before everything started. The boys got to sit with both sets of grandparents! Parker eventually fell asleep--after his Grandpa Nordquist walked him ALL THE WAY around the Marriott Center.

Thomas, Theresa, Amanda, Jonathan and Robby.
Whoohoo!

You can see Evan "waving" on Mike's lap, Parker on my Mom's lap, and Thomas' dad further down... We sat just below them (well, several several rows down...) in the Marriott Center
We were lucky enough to be in colleges that they placed together, so we got to sit together the whole time. I will confess, sitting by Amanda was WAY more fun than graduation's supposed to be--but, we did pay attention too! I never would have walked had everyone else not been walking. But, a fantastic sister in the Relief Society Presidency of my ward talked about how important it would be for my children to see that I'd graduated from college, not just hear about it. And, it's always fun hanging out with Amanda!
Evan LOVES hats, and so had a lot of fun with ours after the exercises :)
The next morning we had the processional at Provo Tabernacle, EARLY! Mike stayed with Evan at home, but my Mom brought Parker since he was awake. She was too late too find seats with my in-laws, so she ended up sitting up in the balcony near us, so Parker walked back and forth between her seat and ours. That made it fun.
Once again, we were able to be with the rest of our family: no point in going to more than one processional! Jonathan and Robby both graduated in Construction Management, so we went to their Processional, which was a lot smaller than the Humanities one would have been: and a lot quicker! We created quite a stir since we were the very first people to get our diploma covers, and there were five of us. Thomas was the last of us, and actually got a laugh, as the announcer said "Also walking with..." We're just an unforgettable family :)

A Father's Advice to His Son

2010-04-30T13:28:00.001-07:00

I read this in my humanities textbook, and thought it was an interesting tribute to motherhood, both ancient and modern. It's translated from ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs, or so the book says...

(To explain... although Thomas, three of his siblings/siblings in-law, and I all walked for graduation in April, I'm finishing up my remaining required classes this Spring term... after a two year hiatus from school! I'm LOVING my classes so far, even though it's a lot of work. Thomas is being supportive, and learning and growing in his role as full-time stay-at-home dad for the next month and a half...)

A Father's Advice to His Son

Double the food which thou givest thy mother,

carry her as she carried thee. She had a heavy

load in thee, but she did not leave it to me.

After thou wert borne she was still burdened

with thee; her breast was in thy mouth for three

year, and though thy filth was disgusting, he

heart was not disgusted. When thou takest a

wife, remember how thy mother gave birth to

thee, and her raising thee as well; do not let thy

wife blame thee, nor cause that she raise her

hands to the god.

(I'm interpreting the last part to mean: don't make your wife angry with you, remember the example of your mother)

taken from Cunningham, Lawrence S., and John J. Reich, Culture and Values: A Survey of the Humanities, seventh edition. Australia: Wadsowrth Cengage Learning, 2010. 18. Originally excerpt from Mertz, Barbara, Temples, Tombs, and Hieroglyphics. 1978, 333.

Finally!

2010-04-18T19:07:00.000-07:00

If you click on it, you can zoom in and actually read it...

18 months

2010-04-15T22:23:00.000-07:00

Evan turned 18 months old today... yesterday Parker told me that Evan isn't a baby anymore. He's a big boy. He was right, although he still refers to Evan as "baby" sometimes. My baby isn't a baby anymore... and I'm glad he's growing up, and just hope I can raise him right! I've posted some pics to show just how much he's grown!

Nothing sweeter than a sleeping baby... er... little boy :) Evan loves to cuddle blankets, and calls both his blankets and his pacifiers "nuk!"
Evan discovered how to poke his tongue through the hole in the flower block, and thought it was the funniest thing ever for a few days.
Evan's growing up is intertwined with that of his brother. I LOVE this picture of the boys together. They'd both fallen asleep in the car, and had to be touching each other. No matter how they may fight sometimes, they do love each other, and get so excited to see each other each morning, or after naps.
Ah, the discovery of solids!
Evan's love of books started early... and he does love his books! He was so tiny! Now he's wearing the clothes Parker was then....

They were so excited to meet each other!

Bread Recipe

2010-04-14T20:43:00.001-07:00

So, I think I've fixed the problem with the recipe for the bread dough... the one for the wheat rolls... but i'ts a pretty long post. Shoot me an email if you'd prefer I just send you the two page word doc! (theresanordquist@hotmail.com)

Handy Bread Recipe

2010-04-13T17:53:00.000-07:00

**Disclaimer** this recipe is not mine, but was sent to me by a friend in our ward, and although I've only tried a few of the variations, but they've all been good. I doubled the soup bowl recipe and formed them into hot dog bun shape for the buns... just remember, the dough will increase in size, so make them a little smaller than you think... Enjoy! Oh... I like the "foccacia" variation for sandwiches... just cut the bread horizontally, make your sandwich, and enjoy! By the way, this IS NOT the recipe I use for my pizza and calzones... but if you try it for that, let me know how it turns out!

Handy Bread Dough

1 cup very warm water

1 Tbs. Dry active yeast

1 tsp. Sugar

1 tsp. Salt

1 Tbs. Oil

2+ cups flour (wheat, white, or mix)

1) Combine water and yeast in large mixing bowl. Add sugar, salt, oil, and flour (one cup at a time).

2) Knead into soft dough. Adding a little flour at a time, just to keep it from sticking.

Breadsticks

Topping:

§ ¼ - ½ cube butter melted (personal preference)

§ Parmesan cheese

§ Fresh crushed garlic

§ Italian seasoning (or herb of choice)

1) Double the dough recipe above to fill 11 x 17 jelly roll pan. Make dough as instructed above. Cover and allow to rest while preparing topping

2) Combine all topping ingredients

3) Roll out dough onto a greased 11x17 jelly roll pan. Spread top of dough with butter spread

4) Heat oven to 425º

5) Cut dough into sticks how you like. Allow to rise for 5-10 minutes

6) Bake for 12-15 minutes (baking time may vary)

Soup Bowls

1) Make dough as instructed above except increase sugar to 1 Tbs.

2) Divide dough into 5 pieces. Roll each piece into a round ball with seam side down

3) Place bowls onto a greased baking sheet. Cover and rest for 20 minutes.

4) Bake for 15-20 minutes (may vary) at 375º

5) After baking allow to cool enough to handle; remove top with knife and scoop out center for soup.

Focaccia

Topping:

§ Olive oil

§ Course salt (or regular)

§ Optional: Italian herbs, fresh herbs, thinly sliced tomatoes (seeded), sliced onions, parmesan cheese, mozzarella

1) Make dough above, except use olive oil in recipe instead of other oil and add 1 tsp. Italian seasoning (or herb of choice). Cover dough and allow to rest while preparing other ingredients

2) Heat oven to 425º

3) Prepare topping

4) Roll dough out to ¾” thickness onto greased baking sheet. Dimple dough with fingers to keep from bubbling while baking

5) Brush dough with olive oil and sprinkle a pinch of salt. Top with other desired ingredients

6) Allow to rise for 10 minutes. Bake 12-15 minutes (may vary)

Pizza Dough/Calzones

Sauce:

§ 1 8oz can tomato sauce

§ 1 tsp. Olive oil

§ 1/8 tsp. Garlic powder

§ 1 tsp. Italian herbs

Toppings:

§ The Sky’s the Limit

1) Heat oven to 425º

2) Make dough above. Cover and allow to rest while preparing toppings and sauce

3) Roll out dough onto greased baking sheet

4) Apply sauce and toppings

5) Bake 18-20 minutes (may vary)

Variation: Parbake dough after rolling out for 8-10 minutes. Remove from oven. Top with sauce and other toppings. Return to oven for 10-12 minutes

Stuffed Sandwich

Filling:

Sliced Ham

Grated mozzarella cheese

Sliced apple

Carmelized onion

Italian herbs

Spread (optional)

¼ c. mayo

¼ c. parmesan cheese

1) Make dough above. Cover and allow to rest while preparing filling

2) Prepare fillings

3) Heat oven to 425º

4) Roll dough into long rectangle on greased baking sheet

5) Layer filling ingredients on middle third of dough lengthwise

6) Pull each side of dough over the top of filling and bring together. Seal by pressing together with fingers

7) Sprinkle Parmesan cheese on top

8) Bake 18-20 minutes or until crust is golden brown

9) Serving approximation: 2 slices per serving, serves 3

Filling Variations:

1) Roast Beef: sliced roast beef, mozzarella cheese, Parmesan cheese, 1 tsp. Oregano, Saute ½ onion and 1 green pepper

2) Taco: 1 lb ground beef, ½ chopped onion, 1 green pepper diced, taco seasoning packet. Brown beef with onion and pepper. Follow instructions on taco seasoning packet.

3) Reuben: sliced corned beef, grated swiss cheese, sauerkraut, 1000 Island dressing

4) Spinach and ham: Spread [1-8oz. crm cheese, 1 tsp. oregano, 1 Tbs. parmesan cheese, ½ c. chopped spinach (frozen or fresh)], sliced ham

Cheese Roll

Filling:

Cheddar cheese

Mozzarella cheese

Parmesan cheese

(any kind of cheese you like)

¼ tsp. Garlic powder

1 tsp. Italian herbs

1) Make dough above. Cover and allow to rest while preparing filling

2) Prepare filling

3) Heat oven to 325º

4) Roll dough into long rectangle. Cover with cheese filling.

5) Carefully roll dough lengthwise. Stretch last two inches over roll and press into roll to seal.

6) Slice rolls into 1” slices. Place on greased baking sheet and rise for 20 minutes covered

8) Bake for 15-20 minutes (may vary). To check for doneness, pull up on very center of the middle roll. Check to see if it is doughy.

Variation: When making dough, knead 2 tsp. Finely chopped Jalapeno pepper into dough

Apple Roll

2 Tbs. Melted butter

Apple Filling:

2 peeled, cored, thinly diced/shredded apples

2 Tbs. Flour

3 Tbs. Brown sugar

1/2 tsp. Cinnamon

Dash nutmeg

Glaze:

1 cup powdered sugar

1 tsp soft butter

2 Tbs. milk

1) Heat oven to 325º

2) Make dough above, except increase sugar to 3 Tbs. Cover and allow to rest while preparing filling

3) Prepare filling

4) Roll dough into long rectangle. Spread melted butter onto dough

5) Cover with apple filling.

6) Carefully roll dough lengthwise. Stretch last two inches over roll and press into roll to seal.

7) Slice rolls into 1” slices. Place on greased baking sheet and rise for 20 minutes

8) Bake for 15-20 minutes (may vary). To check for doneness, pull up on very center of the middle roll. Check to see if it is doughy.

9) Drizzle with sugar glaze while still warm

Variations:

1) Fruit roll filling: fill roll with your favorite jam (good for breakfast)

2) Cinnamon roll: 2 Tbs. Melted butter, brown sugar, cinnamon, nuts, raisins

4) Healthy fruit roll: roll out dough into rectangle. Spread with apple sauce (in place of melted butter), sprinkle with brown sugar and cinnamon, top next with frozen raspberries or other desired fruit

Easter Egg Hunt

2010-04-09T14:54:00.000-07:00

I'll confess, we did the Easter egg hunt Sunday in between LDS general conference sessions instead of Saturday. We did it inside since there was snow on the ground outside... craziness! Thomas hid all of the eggs around the living room (even in his shoes) while the boys and I finished up lunch in the kitchen.
Evan is soaked because he dumped a cup of water in his lap, and it's on his bum because he sat in the puddle it left on his booster chair. Cute shirts on the boys, right Grandma and Grandpa Nordquist? Thanks!
We'd dyed eggs Saturday, some hard boiled, and some not. We tried to limit the secular things to Saturday, although we've enjoyed using the pretty eggs throughout the week. Parker had so much fun looking for the eggs. Evan just kept trying to open them all. But, then he got the hang of putting them in his bucket, but he'd put the ones we'd already found in the bucket.
Parker kept trying to help Evan with it :)
Mommy helping with some of the hard to reach places!
Twelve of the eggs were numbered, and those we'd put aside into a basket for our Easter activity...
Gotta love the basket ball "eggs" thanks Mom! The boys loved the basketballs too!

You can see the numbered eggs in the basket, and Evan trying to take them all and put them in his bucket. He's been saying "back" lately whenever he cleans something up, or puts it... "back." Guess he's heard us tell him "Put it back!" too many times :) He loves cleaning up now, and putting his dishes in the sink... sometimes!
He also loves the candy! I like chocolate better than jellybeans, so we just got peanut butter cups, m&ms and kit kats to put in the eggs. We had to be careful which candy Evan got a hold of though, since he's allergic to peanuts, poor bud :*(

The twelve numbered eggs each had symbols of the Easter story in them, so we had a little family devotional after the egg hunt to talk about the Easter story with the eggs. You can see Parker holding a picture of the Savior praying in Gethsemane, and I have a little picture of the sacrament being passed. Some eggs had pictures, some physical objects, depending on what I could find. I posted the list at the end of this entry, if anyone's interested.
Ah, more chocolate :)

I love Christmas, and being able to focus on the Savior at that time, and it's easy since the whole Christian world is helping out with it! Easter has such an incredible story and message, but it seems to get overlooked so much. Thomas and I really want to be able to teach our children about the Savior, so that they can come to know, love, and trust Him. We had been talking about what we could do to include the Savior more in our Easter activities, and then a sister in the Primary Presidency did this activity in Sharing Time. It was an answer to our prayers. It was a small thing, but it was so nice to know that even our small, not as important or life shattering, wants can be met. We'd decided against doing an egg hunt at all, cause what does an egg-laying, secretive bunny have to do with the Savior? But, they are fun. This gave us the opportunity to do both. And really, the hunt to find items about the end of the Savior's mortal life can remind us of the need to seek Him out everywhere in our lives. Sometimes His hand is hidden, sometimes in plain sight, and sometimes we need other people to help us find it, but He's always there. We had a good Sunday, and were so grateful to hear the counsel and teaching of modern prophets and apostles as they too testified of Christ.

Easter story egg hunt: (it's actually from a non-denominational Christian website; I can't take the credit!)

1. Item: Small cup or sacrament cup. Scripture: Matthew 26: 39-44 Jesus went to Gethsemane to pray. He asked Heavenly Father to bless Him. He did not want to suffer. He said to Heavenly Father "if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt." But Jesus wanted to obey Heavenly Father. He would suffer for all people who repent of their sins.

2. Item: 3 dimes. Scripture: Matthew 26: 14 - 49 One of Jesus's twelve apostles, Judas, made a deal with some wicked men. He would show them where Jesus was in exchange for thirty pieces of silver.

3. Item: Knotted twine. Scripture: Matthew 27: 1-2 When morning came, the chief priests and elders of the people decided to put Jesus to death. They bound Him, led Him away, and delivered Him to the governor, Pontius Pilate.

4. Item: Piece of soap. Scripture: Luke 23: 13-24 and John 19:6. Pilate asked Jesus many questions and then told the Pharisees that Jesus had done nothing wrong. Pilate wanted to release Jesus, but the Pharisees wanted to crucify Him instead. Pilate washed his hands in front of all the people, saying, I am innocent of the blood of this just person: see ye to it. Then he let them crucify Jesus.

5. Item: Square of purple cloth. Scripture: Matthew 27: 28-30 and Mark 15: 15-19. The people stripped Jesus, put a purple robe and a crown of thorns on Him. They mocked Him, saying "Hail, King of the Jews!" The spit on Him and whipped him with a reed.

6. Item: Nails. Scripture: Mark 15: 15-19 and Luke 23: 26-27, 33. After they mocked Jesus, they took the robe off Him and led Him away to be crucified. The soldiers nailed His hands and feet to a cross.

7. Item: Dice. Scripture: Luke 23: 24-34. When Jesus was on the cross, he asked Heavenly Father to forgive the people who crucified Him because they didn't know He was the Savior. The soldiers took Jesus' clothes and cast lots for them.

8. Item: Small rocks. Scripture: Matthew 27: 57-60. When Jesus finally died, His spirit left His body and the sky was dark. There was a big earthquake, and the ground and rocks broke into pieces.

9. Item: Strip of white cloth. Scripture: Matthew 27: 57-60. One of Jesus' disciples, Joseph, took His body and wrapped it in a clean linen cloth and laid it in his own new tomb.

10. Item: Stone. Scripture: Matthew 27:60, 65-66. After Joseph had laid Jesus' body in the tomb, he rolled a big stone in front of the tomb so Jesus' body would be safe.

11. Item: Spices tied in a small piece of cloth. Scripture: Matthew 28:2 and Mark 16: 1-9. Jesus' body was in the tomb for three days. Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Salome had brought spices to use to anoint Jesus' body.

12. Item: Leave egg empty. Scripture: Matthew 28:6. When the women got to the tomb, the stone was rolled away from the door and it was empty. They saw an angel there, who said to them, "Jesus is not here, for He is risen." Jesus was resurrected.

Weenie Roast

2010-04-09T14:46:00.000-07:00

Thomas met me and the boys at the MTC on Wednesday to volunteer in the French TRC, and then he ended up beating me home. Instead of starting what we'd planned on for dinner, he decided to clean up some of the dead wood in our yard. That worked out fantastically, since we had hot dogs in the fridge, and the make shift fire pit in the yard! So, Thomas and the boys played outside while I made some pasta salad (from a box unfortunately...), homemade fresh ground whole wheat hot dog buns, and a yummy salad. The boys LOVED it!

Evan loves fires... a little too much... Thomas had the hardest time getting it started, because it had snowed earlier in the week, and because Evan kept poking the kindling with a bigger stick
Parker had fun too... He came inside after and said, "That was fun eating something outside!"
Of course Grandpa joined us, and showed us up by making a tin foil dinner. But we'd eaten, cleaned up, and put the kids in bed by the time his dinner was done...
Thomas cooking the hot dogs. I love the fact that he's in his dress shirt and pants... I don't think he even came inside before getting started!
The now-famous hot dog buns. Now I know that we never have to buy buns again... Give me 40 minutes, and I'll give you healthier, yummier hot dog buns! I'll just have to remember next time that the dough will just about double in size... so the buns need to start out smaller :)

Easter Reflections

2010-04-04T09:16:00.000-07:00

As I was washing one of my pots today, I noticed the distinctive pattern on the bottom caused by careful scouring. All of my pots were a gift from my grandmother, and were ones that she used herself. She was a fantastic cook, and a wonderful woman. I could imagine her meticulously cleaning that pot, and her others, with careful attention and love. She was that kind of woman, and I can learn a lot from her! I can be more attentive and careful in my work at home.

This weekend is also Easter weekend, when we celebrate, and hopefully think about, the resurrection of our Savior, Jesus Christ. I'm so grateful for the experiences I've had throughout my life that have helped me better appreciate the resurrection.

The basic function of the resurrection is to allow us all the chance to live again, to take up our mortal bodies again, forever. This basic fact means that we'll be able to see our loved ones again. I know we've all lost people close to us, as death is an inevitability of life. My Grandma Golebiowski died over two years ago, now, but I still think of her often, and am grateful for the promise of the resurrection on her behalf!

I love this picture of my grandma, my younger brother, Michael, and me. One of the reasons I like it is that it shows why I don't look like the rest of my siblings and gorgeous blond cousins! (My hair was highlighted in this pic...) We also look happy.
I am so glad my grandma came to our wedding reception, having her there meant so much to us!
Another blessing of the resurrection is that it will allow us to have perfect physical bodies. I'll admit that when I was younger, that aspect of the resurrection didn't mean much to me! But, when my little brother broke his neck at fifteen and became a quadriplegic, I gained yet another reason to be grateful for the resurrection. He is undaunted in facing his current trials because he knows that they are temporary, and that he will indeed walk again. And, on a less profound note, as I do get older, I'm starting to appreciate the idea of not having some certain aches and pains, although I'm sure grateful for the body I do have, and for how well it works. (this pic is of Parker and Uncle Mikey Christmas 2007, Parker's first! Mike was not thrilled about my putting a baby on his lap, since he was afraid of Parker wiggling off, but they both did great!)

I'm also grateful for the promise that we can be together forever as families! (this is one of our FAVORITE pics from our wedding... totally unplanned... it rained three inches that day, and our umbrellas just happened to coordinate!)