18-21

It's been so long since I've posted updates on the progress of the kids I decided I needed to do one for the last few months with Brooke since she has grown so much. So from 18 to 21 months this is what she has been up to!
*At her 18 month check-up she was almost 27 lbs and 32 3/4 inches tall.
*Wears 2T clothing but is closer to a 3T (sometimes 4T) on bottom, and size 5/6 shoe
*At 21 months she is 29 lbs and with a shoe size ranging closer to 7 now
*In April, Curt took her crib front down and she has been loving her "big girl" bed


*This girl can talk and you can actually carry on a conversation with her
      -"Mommy, I want appey juice and water...in my cup"
      -"Kempton don't touch!"
      - the typical "no" "mine"
      -"Bye, see ya later"
      - she's very polite and very good and articulate with "thank you" and "your welcome" but has started
      prefacing it with "say" (we'll remind her with "what do you say?" and she comes back with "say
      your welcome"
      - Curt was giving her a hard time the other day and threw some cheese at her cause she was whining
      about it and she sternly looked at him and said "Daddy, don't hit me with cheese!" It's hard to take
      her seriously sometimes.
      - "I can't go sleep, I'm tired,  I sleepin', I go potty, poo poo all gone, stinky (waves hand in front of
      nose), I want hug kiss, Where'd Harley Tug go, I want cereal, I want waffles, where ____ go?"
      - We got her to tell me dad this one day and now she only says it to him "papa, oh no you didn't"
      - C'mon lets go outside, (she's knows all the neighbor kids' names Hailey, Riley, Kenzi, Jace,
      Gunner) and loves to go play with the older kids who dote on her.
      - In case you haven't noticed yet, she's very sassy and likes to boss people around and put them in
      their place... I took a piece of her cereal and she says to me "mommy, don't take cereal my
      bowl"
      - "Daddy that's not nice, don't do that, I want story book ducks
    

*Her favorite things she like to have with her are her plug (only at night), flannel blankets, and her cup, she wants her cup with her at all times 

*She loves to dance and will grab Kempton's hand when music is playing and say "Kempton, come dance

*She likes dressing up and whenever you do her hair or let her wear a necklace she says "I cute" or "so pretty" and she's obsessed with shoes

*She likes to eat and will try just about anything. She's gotten pickier about meats, but loves spicy foods and things you wouldn't think she would try...pepperoni, enchiladas, salsa, stir-fry

*Loves animals with a passion. She is always smothering the dogs and loving on them and has to kiss and hug them at night before she goes to bed. Brooke even spoiled my mom's two dogs who didn't care too much for her attention but she eventually won them over.

*She can ride Kempton's 3-wheel razor scooter thing as well as he can. 

*Loves riding around in the power wheels and can even drive the quad one by herself. 

*Brooke started swim lessons last week and absolutely loves the water. She will put her face in the water as your gliding her around and can hold her breath for a good amount of time for her age. We know cause she is constantly wanting to swim under the water to get toys. She has to ask before she can jump in and says "pool pease, ready?" in a high pitch little squeak.

*She loves her brother and loves to follow him everywhere, lucky for her, Kempton loves her too. He even had her dress up in his smaller Buzz Lightyear costume so they could be super heros together. 

There is just so much about this little firework I wish I could write down but she is just growing and changing so much it's hard to keep up with all the silly things she says, can say, how she says it, and all the things she is capable of doing at her age. She is a spitfire with a STRONG personality and lots of attitude, but she is also one of the sweetest and goofiest kids too. We love this little girl with all her dramatic moments, outbursts, and crazy dancing, but we especially love the times when she just wants to snuggle and tells you "mommy, I hold you"!

March-April

In March we had the opportunity to go camping with some friends, and since the weather was surprisingly warm and perfect for that time of year, we couldn't turn it down. There was a creek right next to our campsite with enough water running through it for all the little kids to play in, and for the big kids (our husbands) to reroute, dam off, and build a huge ramp and puddle to jump the quads over.  The kids had fun watching, and K and his friend didn't mind being duped into standing right next to the pool of water when the guys came crashing through it.

The second day we were there we piled all the little ones onto the back of the hunting quads our friends brought and we all went for a little drive up the creek. Brooke loves to explore and was such a great sport the whole weekend. As always, K is happiest when running free outdoors.

During Spring Break we went to the zoo a couple of times. The kids loved seeing all the animals, especially since they recognize and can name almost all of them. One of the highlights for both of them was Stingray Bay where they could stick their hand in a pool of water to "pet" the stingrays. I don't care for sea life and have no desire to touch them, but Curt and the kids had a lot of fun.

























Later in March we got a visit from the Vanderwalkers who were in town for their spring break. One night we all went out for pizza and bowling. Surprisingly, Grandma Lax is a pretty good bowler and had more strikes then most of us younger kids. The little ones had a lot of fun too, except for Brooke. She was a brat since she was tired and frustrated that she couldn't run around the place. Kempton did pretty good and it was fun trying to teach him how to throw his ball down the lane. The kid was so ecstatic when even just one pin would fall down, and would rush you for a celebratory hug whenever it was anyone else's turn.

At the end of their trip we met up with Greg and Sandy for a little day trip at the Grand Canyon. Despite the beauty and grandeur of the place, it's a frickin' death trap for my kids who apparently have no fear or concept of cliffs. I literally had a mini heart attack about every five minutes with most of those occurring while they were in the care of their father who thought it was great to walk out onto every ledge with them so K could throw rocks. I finally had to walk ahead I was panicking so much. Seriously, is it too much to add a fence or something? So scary!!

Anyhow, we stayed all day and got see an amazing Arizona sunset. Brooke once again was a stinker since we were always having to hold onto her, but she found Sugar, grandma Sandy's dog, and she was once again in toddler heaven walking that old dog around. It was great getting to spend time with the girls who have just grown up way too fast. Lexi was so sweet with B and watching the two goofballs, K and Anna play was so fun. The kids missed them as soon as they were gone the next day.

P.S. I just love that pic of Brooke giving Grandma Lax a big kiss!

























The next morning, Brandi and the girls left from Flagstaff to go straight to the airport the next morning, and Greg and Sandy were headed back to Utah, we decided to take a detour home and stop off at Slide Rock in Sedona. This place is so pretty and this one section of the Oak Creek where the water has created these slides and pools is a great place to play. That is unless your me and don't care to play in 52 degree water. Seriously I couldn't even put my foot in the water it was so frigid, but not Curt.

Curt braved going down the "slides" a few times since there literally were not that many people willing to be submerged in that freezing ice bath. Kempton watched from the sides and after seeing his dad go a few times he wanted a turn. Curt asked him over and over if he was sure since it was so cold, but the kid wanted to go. That decision didn't last long. If you follow the pics from left to right you can see the change in the kid's expression. As soon as they dropped into that first slide he started panicking, whether from the cold water or fear of going under were not sure, but he was freaking out. By picture four, he was done and trying to jump ship. He was arching his body so much and screaming it was so sad, but since your in a channel you can't exactly just stand up and get out. Curt held him for as long as he could until he could get him to the side where I had a towel waiting. He just kept saying that was scary, but still didn't know if he was just shocked from the cold, or if he was really concerned that Curt was going to let him go. Poor kid, he was fine after that and spent the rest of the day just throwing rocks in the water.

Since I wasn't letting Brooke in the water, despite her great efforts to go swimming, she learned how to climb up the steep side of the rocks that were there. She just went where ever she wanted and had fun doing it too. I swear my children have no fear of climbing.

























Easter Saturday we spent at my mom's and had a little egg hunt for the two kids (since my dad wouldn't be in town the next day for the big family one). We learned two things that afternoon, Kempton can run and run and run and run and never tire. And Brooke likes to lay in the grass and pose, and I mean hilarious calendar girl poses. It was a fun day and we are forever grateful for the wonderful relationship our kids have with all their grandparents.

Easter Sunday we went to my aunt's house for dinner and a big egg hunt with all the second cousins. Brooke had fun getting eggs and since everyone else bolted straight for the grass, she cleaned up all the ones on the porch herself. I may be bias, but I think my two cuties looked adorable in their Easter outfits, but then again I made everything Brooke was wearing (dress, necklace, hair clip) so I am extra bias!!