Sunday, August 3, 2014

Timothy Monson

I can't believe our little boy is 20 months old! I knew when he joined our family we would never be the same but I had no idea how much love and joy he would bring. He is such a delight! He is particular about a handful of things but is otherwise easy going and just happy to be alive. Some of my favorite things that he does are
He loves book. Especially books that include cars or dinosaurs. He loves to flip through books. Notice I didn't say read because he doesn't have time to listen to a story or discuss anything in the book, he just loves to look at the pictures and turn the pages.
He loves baths. But only in the master bath and only to stand and play with his toys around the rim of the tub. He especially loves stacking and unstacking the cups and also the little animal water toys. He rarely plays in the actual water but the bathtub is one of his favorite places to be.
He loves the dishwasher. He will go over and pull on it multiple times a day to see if it is locked or if he can get into it. He loves to restack this dishes, particularly the cups. He is pretty good about not getting onto the dishwasher and he does his best to not cause trouble because he wants to be able to stay and help unload/load.
He is fascinated by the vacuum. If he gets a chance during the day he will go over to the vacuum closet and drag the vacuum into the living room, beaming with pride. Sometimes we will turn it on for him and let him dream of the day when will be strong enough to vacuum. I'm not sure if he loves it because it's a machine or because he see's Kirk vacuuming but it is his very favorite toy.
He loves trains and will often wander downstairs by himself to play with the trains. He isn't coordinated enough yet to keep the tracks together or drag the train on the tracks but it certainly doesn't keep him from trying.
He loves to escape. He checks the front and garage door constantly to see if maybe we forgot to lock the dead bolt. I dread the day when he learns to unlock the dead bolt. He is the kid that waits for the nursery leaders to be distracted, opens the door, and then runs away as fast as he can.
Speaking of nursery, he hates going. He does ok once he is there now but it took a couple months of nonstop crying to get him there. One Sunday in particular he was being really difficult in sacrament meeting. Kirk wouldn't let him down because he would just run away. When Kirk finally let Timothy down he ran as fast as he could to the nearest escape, pretty dang proud of himself. Until he realized he ran straight into the nursery. He did a quick 180 and tried to run away but it didn't work! Just today Kirk took Timothy with him while he stood in the hallway waiting for Audrey to go to the bathroom during Sacrament meeting. The nursery is across the hall from the bathroom. Timothy cried the whole time they were waiting for Audrey because he didn't want to go to nursery!
He's a picky eater and has to have a variety of the few foods he will actually eat. He gets tired of the same food quickly. He always likes chips, juice, and anything sweet. And I've never seen him turn down pizza. He has Brinkerhoff genes in him for sure.
If he ever finds the garage door unlocked he goes out and sits in his wagon waiting to go somewhere. He can even buckle himself in. In fact he won't let us buckle him into the carseat, wagon, or stroller anymore because he wants to do it himself. It's mostly adorable but can be frustrating.
He loves to watch the movie Cars on my phone. At all times of the day no matter what is going on, if he can sneak access to my phone he will watch Cars.
Car is his first word. He also says "rawr" and "brrrbrrbrr" (or however you make a car sound). And that is it. No matter how hard we try he won't udder a single word. He claps to say please and makes the sign to eat. He can sign done (if you make him) but otherwise finds communication completely useless. He makes a lot of the "uh uh uh" sound. Kirk and I are delighted ;)
He gives big open mouth kisses but really only when he is in the mood. And then he will cover you in them. He rarely will give a kiss on demand, especially if he wants something in return. He is still quite cuddly and will snuggle almost anyone. He gives loves to the most random people but it's just who he is. Although he's not a social bug he does not dislike strangers. He feels comfortable around everyone, just depending on his mood.
He sleeps about 12 hours a night and takes 1 three hour nap during the day. He shows zero interest in potty training and only occasionally shows interest in feeding himself. I've tried teaching him body parts. He learned eye and belly in 2 seconds flat and has no interest in learning any other body part. He has his father's nonchalant attitude on life. There is no rush and no pressure. But he is a determined bug when he wants something. He was blessed with his mothers determination. So a nonchalant determined little boy who loves juice and dinosaurs. Who isn't phased by any kind of injury and only comes crying to mom when Dad doesn't give him what he wants or Audrey won't leave him alone. He loves playing cars and it's so fun to see his delight over the simple things in life. We are incredibly blessed to have this boy in our family.

Thursday, June 5, 2014

April

The very best dads read to their kids 
Sometimes brown crayons look like chocolate
I love this gorgeous girl
We went to Vernal for conference weekend. We stayed with my parents and had a great time with them and the Coons.
Fun at the park!
How in the world can I say no to this boy!
For spring break the kids and I went up to Logan. We had fun at the park and baby animal days.
This creative girl made her own glasses
Grandpa Howcroft gave her a Howcroft Field Service
hat that she has a hard time taking off.
Kirsten drew a replica of herself on a cardboard
box to "scare daddy" when he came home.
We went to Vernal for Easter. We spent Friday at the Green River with my family finding eggs and playing in the sand.
We had a ton of fun finding Easter eggs and celebrating with the Howcroft's Saturday and Sunday
Kirsten and her cute friend headed to the
zoo on a school field trip
Jumping on the trampoline at
Thanksgiving Point
We didn't buy these pictures but her outfit is
hilarious and of course her favorite
Kirk's Grandpa Ralph Olsen passed away April 22, 2014. He is one of the good ones. Always full of love and kindness.
He will be deeply missed. Our girls were devastated and the tears they shed were precious. We love you Grandpa!
Roasting hot dogs for FHE with the
Coopers up Springville Canyon
I never tire of cute pictures of this boy sleeping
This girl loves Elsa hair
Love this goofy girl
Timothy screamed through his day of nursery
but he also colored for the first time
and I find that very adorable
Family picture at Grandpa's funeral
Sleeping like an ostrich
Very happy to be pants free!

Sunday, June 1, 2014

March

Kirsten had a Little Pony birthday party of her dreams.
We played games that Twilight Sparkle, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, and Apple Jack would be proud of!
Proud of her new necklace from Chelsey.
Making good use of her new shirt stickers.
Hiding in the space behind our bed is
Timothy's favorite space to play.
This boy loves blackberries!
They decided to go camping with *everything* in their room.
Kirsten's 6th birthday! She got a new bike and a hula hoop! We had such a fun day celebrating our sweet girl!
Two days after turning 6 she lost her first tooth!
Do you see that cute curl above his ear?
It makes me so happy!
He loves to "help" me do laundry.
We love to play with our favorite friends at the park!
We love when Bekah comes to visit!
Dressed up as a beautiful fairy!
She loved dressing up at her fairy party!
Another ear infection :/
Audrey was so excited to dress in all green for St Patricks day
We celebrated St Patricks Day with some of our favorite friends!
Kirsten loves to put together new outfits!
So happy Grandpa Howcroft came to visit!
Learning to feed yourself can be messy.
Hula Hooping with Tiggerific
New swimsuits! We can't wait for summer.
Oh goodness I love this boy!
Love him a lot!
Those boy loves to sleep with his Teddy Bears
"I wish to have wings"
We had an awesome weekend in Burley with Kashina and Todd. They are some of our very favorite people to be with.
These curls make his momma happy!
Staying up past bedtime to sneak in some one on one time with mom.
Things get crazy around here
especially when Kirk is out of town.
This boy is always causing trouble!
Always trying to destroy something...
Cute girls eating breakfast.
Oh, and this cute boy eats breakfast too.
He spends a lot of time jabbering at the window.
Cute kids enjoying the park
Kirsten was ecstatic about snow in March. She had her snow pants on in two seconds flat.
Winter was not long enough for this girl!
These girls LOVE baby Ross
A cute Easter wreath I made with my sisters.
She falls asleep with things on her head all the time.
Ross and Timothy in their Easter best!