Trip to San Diego

We spent a few weeks in San Diego visiting Stu's family in late Jan/Feb. It was such a great time and, as usual, we LOVE spending time with the Grater Clan!!!! I was very nervous to fly with the boys by myself, but after much research on the internet to get prepared I'd have to say it went smoothly overall. Burke was an angel on both flights, and Sam only got upset for a few minutes each way. My favorite part of the trip was seeing everyone and of course the warm weather. I wish we lived closer to everyone so we could hang out all the time! Sonya and I would be regular yoga partners for sure :) We love you Grandpa and Grandma Grater, Grandma Faye, Auntie Sonya, Uncle Paul, Trixie Moo, Kid Kiddo, and Maximum Trouble and we miss you all like crazy!

Burke seems to be getting bigger every day lately. He is talking up a storm and so fun to play with. Sam is a delight and is growing like a weed too. He smiles and laughs a lot and has many, many ticklish spots which are irresistible to get. I feel so lucky to be the mom of these 2 wonderful boys and I love hanging out with them.





Flying out of SLC with the kids.....alone!! You can't tell from this photo, but I was so nervous and my heart was beating fast.


Auntie Sonya and Burke taking a lunch break at the park.



Bath time!! Sam is a clean little cherub. :)


Sam loves his Uncle Paul.


Burke helping give Trixie a bath.


Meeting Aunt Tiffany for the first time. She fed Burke like a champ!


Awwwwww... Grandma Faye was so wonderful with the kids.


How old are you Burke? "I'm 2" (we worked a long time to get him to do this)


Burke cleaning off the patio, what a big helper!


Happy 2nd Birthday to Sir Burke!!! Grandma Sue and Grandpa Guy got him a Raiders football. He loved it! Once he learns how to read I'm sure he'll dislike it, but for now it's a fun ball to play with. ;)



We snuck in while Burke was asleep for his nap and hung balloons from the ceiling fan in his room. When he awoke, we watched him on the monitor, as he squealed with delight..."Momma, Daddy.....ballooooooons!!" It was awesome. This will be a tradition for sure.


Happy Birthday cake. We couldn't ever get him to actually taste it. Oh well, guess Mom will have to clean up after him :)


Burke and Max were fast friends.


Sam sitting up like a big boy.


Burke and Auntie Sonya playing together at the park. Check out how Burke is looking at Sonya. He idolizes her, it is so cute to watch them together.


Trixie had to get in on the fun too. :)


Burke and Trix marching to check out the playground. Stu played on this exact playground when he was a kid, just like Burke. Pretty cool!


Playing around with Dad at the park.


Sam staying warm with Granddad.


Eating dinner at the RV park Guy and Sue were staying at.


I love this picture of Auntie Sonya and Sammy.


Awwww.... Sam is so cute. I hope someday he can tell us what he is so amazed at. :)


All the guys together. From left to right: Sam, Stu, Burke, Guy, Uncle Larry, Paul


Listening to tunes with Grandma Faye. Burke is in heaven cause he LOVES listening to tunes.


Dick playing guitar at the Super Bowl party. He put on quite a show for us.


Gary and Lupe hosted the Super Bowl party this year. What a back yard they have! It was a lot of fun hanging out with everyone.


Sonya and I were feeling a little crafty one day so we whipped together these adorable banners for the boys, one for Sonya and one for Faye. Mine say 'happy birthday Burke' and 'happy Birthday Sam', Sonya's says 'celebrate' and Faye's says 'Bless this home'. I love how motivated Sonya is in life and thankfully it rubbed off on this project cause we finished them about an hour before I flew home! I seriously could hang out with Sonya all the time. I am lucky to have you as a sister-in-law Son, I think you are wonderful!


Sonya, Paul and Sue at the Super Bowl party.


Stu and Guy during the white elephant exchange at the party


Uncle Larry, Burke and Faye laughing at the silly gifts everyone brought.


Mom and Sam having fun at the party.


The boys and I made it home to SLC!! It was a long day of travel, but the kids really were great. Its so good to be home!!!!


The crocuses stuck their heads out today by our front door. Spring must not be too far away.


It was 54 degrees outside today so Burke and I had to go enjoy the sunshine. Could he be any cuter?! This is how he smiles when you say 'say cheese' for a picture. I love it so much.


Picking berries off the bush out front. Check out that double chin and his big marshmallow cheeks. I know those will fade as he gets older so I am always kissing them.


What a handsome little guy!



Happy 2nd Birthday Burke!! We love you.

December Video Follow up

We forgot to add some videos to the update. Here's a couple to delight our friends and relatives.

Family Fun in December

December has been a fun and busy month. Marie and Joe and baby Max came in town for the holidays....5 whole weeks in Utah!!! Marie came in a week early with Max to make my Grandma Maxine's funeral. They stayed with us until Joe arrived and it was so fun! You just don't get to spend from morning til night with a new mom and baby, so it was a special experience for us to share so much time with them and be part of their routine. Max is amazing and we love him so much. They are still in town and we've spent a lot of time together with my family. It just feels right to have Joe, Marie and Max around! :) Sam learned a lot from Max while they stayed at our house. Max is much more vocal and active and Sam really stepped it up a notch in those departments once Max showed him the ropes.

Simon's back went out again :( he has to be confined for 8 weeks, which he hates, but he is already doing a lot better. What a fighter!!! We love you Simon!

Sam is growing like a weed and such a mellow, happy, smiley baby. He is holding his head up now. A few weeks ago Stu did a raspberry on his belly and it opened the laughter and smile gates. Ever since then he has been smiling like crazy. His whole life, all he knew was concern......until now!!!! :) And he LOVES his Daddy!! He breaks into the biggest grin whenever Stu talks to him. Maybe because Stu showed him how to laugh :)

Burke is repeating everything we say. Guess I can't be a swear bear anymore. wink-wink ;) He is the best big brother ever and loves to play with motorcycles, balls and ride his new bike. We think he is the cutest little guy ever!


We raked up 70 bags of leaves this year. yep, you read that right...70!!!


Sam being adorable.


We had a triple date at our house with Abe and Vanessa, Joe and Marie, and Stu and I. Of course all the kids were there too. We watched Louie C.K.'s new comedy stand up.... awesome!


Baby Max. The most adorable thing ever!


Sam smiling again. His jowls continue to grow on a daily basis.


Mom and Burke chillin' on the couch.


Dad and the boys playing around. I am pretty sure Sam sees something that no one else can see. Check out the look on his face. :)


Christmas Eve dinner at my Mom's house.


The whole family was there!


Christmas morning. My favorite decorations on the tree this year are the hand prints of Burke and Sam's hands. So cute!


Christmas morning.


Dad and Burke putting Burke's new pedal-less bike together. Burke was in awe of the whole process and we can't get him off of it.


I took about 10 pictures of the boys on the couch and this was the best of the bunch. Burke wouldn't stop making funny faces and sliding down the couch. :)


Sir Burkeshire on his new bike!


Hello world, here I come!!


The first time meeting Max!


Sam helping Mom trim the tree.


Burke helping Mom trim the tree.

October Adventures

October was a wonderful month. Sam is now 8 weeks old and sleeping through the night, yep, 7 hr stretches for a week now!!! Hats off to the BabyWise sleep training method we used with both Burke and little Sam, it worked wonders for both boys. I feel like a new woman with more sleep and life seems to be getting into a better rhythm all the time with the kids. I was holding Sam the other night just staring at his beautiful, chubby face and body, wondering how I got so lucky to have 2 healthy, happy, handsome boys and the best husband in the world. He seemed to read my mind and smiled back at me.... then pooped the mother of all loads in his diaper. I couldn't help but chuckle. :) Burke is repeating everything we say and is so fun to play and hang out with. A few days ago, he and I were out in the front yard enjoying one of the last days of fall this year. I took a break from raking the leaves and watched him as he ran up and down the sidewalk. He likes to run as fast as he can for about 20 ft. then stop and turn around and wait for you to say 'more' then he runs as fast as he can the other way. He'll repeat this about 10 times. It is hilarious! I wanted to get the video camera to record how adorable it was, but I knew he'd just follow me inside so I drank in the moment and tried to burn it in my memory. Having kids is the funnest and most rewarding thing I've ever done in my life. Especially with Stu as a partner. :) Enjoy these pics. We love and miss you all!

p.s. woke up to 3 inches of snow this morning. Winter is here. :(



Happy Fall Time, Burke LOVES pumpkins!! Or as he says "pumins"



Sam couldn't miss out on the fun. :)




Burke and I finger painted. He decided to do 2 paintings and also paint his body, oh and of course taste it too!



Happy Halloween!! Stu and I were X-ray techs and Sam and Burke were our little skeletons.







I took the boys to Ruthie's house a few days ago to take some pictures. We got a few winners. :)













I don't know if you can see the blue on Burke's lips or not. We were bribing him with M&M's to get him to lay down with his brother. :)