Family Fun Time

We love when Bryce family events happen, because it means Oma and Papa come to town! Oma came early and stayed for most of the week with Katey, but we got her for a few days and Papa too. We first saw Oma on Wednesday! She, Katey, and Hope came down and brought all the things to do applesauce. Apples went on sale at the store and the apples from Grandma and Grandpa were ready, so we needed to do applesauce! I'm sure canning wasn't on Oma's wishlist when she came to visit, but having her helping hands was a lifesaver. She kept the process moving even when we had to stop to take care of kids. Kade was very excited to do applesauce, so he tagged along to help us remove stickers, load apples into the sink, and to do his favorite activity of pushing apples down into the saucer. He was an awesome helper all day, too. In total, we bottled 36 pints and 14 quarts, about half of our normal yearly production. The applesauce was so yummy! When I took a break to go get Jay, I told him Oma was at our house and he basically ran the rest of the way home! He was so excited! I had Hugh and Hope in the stroller, and Jay pushed it all the way back to our house. Canning is a team sport for me, and I was so grateful for Katey and Mom and coming to my house to can. We were all exhausted by the end of the day and went with a very simple dinner while Matthew was at a work event. 

Kade, the apple smasher

Jay pushing Hope and Hugh

Fresh bottled fruit is beautiful! 

Thursday was Jay's first school fieldtrip! We got to go to Miller Farms, which is a huge farm about a half hour north of here. I rode the bus with Jay and his class, which was very fun! Jay was very excited to get on the school bus and did very well. He was so excited to explore the whole farm as soon as we got there and it was a little hard for him to wait in line to get on our hay ride. They had huge trailers that pulled the class and all the parents around to various fields. The kids picked carrots, potatoes, corn, pumpkins, peppers, cabbage, etc. We would stop at various fields, pick, and then load up again. Jay loved it and enjoyed the changing scenery. He also enjoyed being with Mrs. Alaina and Mrs. Tiffee. We started at the front of the trailer near friends in the class, but ended up at the back with the teachers. The ride was long enough that Jay ate his lunch the last couple of stops so as soon as we returned to the beginning he was ready to play! They had a huge dirt pile to sled down, a sand pit, old fire engines to climb on, and so many other fun toys. Jay had a great time running around to everything! I did lose him once, and I was grateful for another mom who hollered, "Jay's mom, he went that way!" I was just trying to help a little kiddo get set on a sled down the dirt hill, turned away for a second and Jay was gone. Bless that woman for watching out for me. Several kids fell asleep on our way home from the farm and Jay crashed at home. Oma watched Hugh for me, so Jay and I got to enjoy the day together! Hugh was great for Oma and let all of his cuteness shine. He didn't even get sad when Oma pushed him away in the stroller and we went into the school! I was so grateful he was in good hands so I could spend the day with Jay!

Jay, very excited to see the tractor pulling us! 

Massive carrot Jay found! 

Jay picking a carrot

Potatoes!

Pumpkins, they were a little pokey and Jay was not excited about it after touching this one.

Corn

Fun on the machines!

Best toy, a wagon!

You can tell, he was on the move!

Enjoying the bus ride home. 

Papa flew in late Thursday evening, so we got to enjoy him and Oma together on Friday. Plus, because it was a deadline week for Matthew, he got to take Friday off work as well! Papa, Matthew, and Jay raked up leaves and filled a couple bags in the morning, and then we headed to the park. The wind came up and the sun hid behind the clouds and it was chilly! Oma ended up hiding out in the car for the most part, she forgot to bring a coat from Arizona. The boys didn't even seem to mind the cold, so we adults withstood it as long as we could then called it quits and came home for lunch a little early. We had fun going out to dinner with Oma and Papa at Chile con Quesadilla, one of our favorite Mexican food places here. BYU had a big football game that evening so we played and then watched football once that started. I was so tired I went to bed at halftime. I did get woken up by the hoops and hollers at the end of the game when a big last second play scored a touchdown and we won! It's fun to hear that and I was grateful I didn't hear any little voices after that. 

Papa and Jay working on leaves

Jay and Oma swinging!

Hugh driving the tractor

Hugh and Me

Hugh loves swinging!

Hugh loved reading books with Oma 

Pre-nap story time 

Me, Matthew, Jay, Papa, Oma, and Hugh! 

Saturday was our Roxy day! She chose to be baptized and it was so fun to watch her on this special day. Roxy has spunk and energy that I love, and she is so kind and is quick to make friends. Papa and Katey gave the talks at her baptism and it was really neat to hear their testimonies and learn from them. The Spirit was truly there during the baptism and baptisms always remind me of the joy I feel as I follow Jesus! We spent the afternoon together with cousins playing at the park and enjoying being together on a beautiful fall day. Betty had a volleyball game and we all went to cheer her on! She had a big fan section this time. At the park right before dinner, there was a big party happening for a one or two year old boy. They had these huge cupcakes, the size of Costco muffins. When they opened those, Jay could not keep his eyes off and wandered very close to watch the crowd enjoy. The mom of the birthday boy noticed Jay's curiosity and offered him one. Jay was so excited! He ran to the table to get a fork and a plate to fully enjoy the experience of a massive cupcake. He shared with his cousins and enjoyed several bites himself. Jay has a way of looking so longingly, I think he could probably get anything he wanted from anyone. They offered him a drink too, but we turned them down and I tried to redirect his energy to different areas of the park. Jay, Hugh, and Hope were awesome turn takers climbing up the slide and going down. Spending time with family fills my soul, and that's what Saturday did for me. I felt full at the end of the day! 

Jack, Lindsay, and Roxy

Hugh 

Oma spinning Jay

Dad and Hugh 

Tia and Jay

Jay thought this slide was very fun!

Jay loved teetering with Allen

Allen, Jay, Betty Jane, and Kylee all spinning together

Up one slide, down the other - Jay, Hope, and Hugh 

Papa and Hugh

Uncle Jack teaching Hugh a fun trick!

Sunday we all got back together and enjoyed our Sunday dinner. I made a jello salad and a pumpkin cake. Both were a hit, and when I can make a GF dessert for a crowd and everyone loves it, that's a great win too. We had a great time visiting and playing and we got to take Oma and Papa home with us. The perk of living close to the airport is we always get the guests their first and last nights because no one else wants to do the airport run. Monday was another beautiful fall day and we spent the sunny morning hours playing pickleball! The boys did pretty well at the park, and Oma and Papa gave us enough players to have two games going! It was fun to play and great to be outside. We were sad to take Oma and Papa to the airport and say goodbye, but we had a great time with them. Naps happened for about ten minutes in the car, so when we got home I attempted nap time, but it was fruitless. Because I didn't get my personal time during naps, when Matthew got home, I ran downstairs and whipped out a hooded towel, I think I made it in 20 minutes! I was impressed with myself and took the towel to a last minute baby shower for a friend. She seemed excited and I was happy to give hers something special for her sweet baby. 

Tuesday was a day I would qualify as not a great day. I took Jay to school and the van felt like it was driving funny. I had a tired appointment to get our pressure sensors fixed, and well, we didn't make our appointment. I had a flat, flat tire at the school. I pulled the van into a spot and walked home. I was going to meet a lady at my appointment to sell my BOB stroller, so I was able to throw Hugh in and get home without too much of a hassle. The lady came to my house and bought the stroller! I was sadder to see it go than I thought I'd be, but I think she'll love it! And, I have another very nice stroller so I'll be just fine. Right as I sold that, I got a call from the school that Jay had some diarrhea and I needed to come get him. We hopped back into the stroller and I walked back to the school. We played at the park and a guy came to change our tire. I had the wrong lug nuts for my spare, so he couldn't actually change it. I had to get a full on tow guy to come, so later we walked back to the school again. Matthew was able to come home an hour early so I could get to the tire shop and pick up the van. The tire was ruined, I drove too far on it, so they didn't have a replacement in stock but did put our spare on with the correct lug nuts. Wednesday, I got the new tire and all the sensors fixed so next time I have a flat I will actually know! There was a super kind woman at the park on Wednesday night where we played while we waited for the guys to work on the van. Her son has autism and she was so warm and kind and understanding of Jay. It was refreshing and helped me feel not so alone. 

I didn't have the spare in the van, so it rode in the stroller back to the school. 

Bye bye Van!

Thursday my friend Rachel Jones came up from Littleton. She brought this massive playdough set and the boys have been loving playing with it every day! It's been a blessing for me! It was great to visit with Rachel and share the joy of Hugh and Jay with her. The boys warmed right up and embraced her as they would any kind friend. She stayed with us for lunch and pushed the boys in the swing and taught them how to use all the cool playdough tools she brought. 

Hugh, Rachel, and Jay

We had a Speech Evaluation for Jay this week with a new therapist. I am hopeful she'll be able to get us on the right path for Jay. He's still very behind in Speech and it seems like he might be realizing it more and more himself because he can't communicate the things he needs as well and people expect him to because he's almost five. I also think I got all the paperwork filled out to get him considered by the state to see if we can receive any funds for helping with his therapy bills. Woohoo! And, we're continuing to try to educate ourselves by reading our book about Autism. 

Matthew made a goal around Conference time to start waking up at 5am to get his scripture study and a workout in before going to work. Jay has found this routine very exciting and usually also wakes up at 5. It's meant earlier mornings for all of us, and we're trying to adjust. A few days after Jay saw Dad reading his scriptures downstairs, I was on the couch and Jay runs up the stairs. He ran into the kitchen and grabbed several of his notebooks and said, "Jay read scriptures!" He continues to read his scriptures in the morning with Matthew, which is very sweet. I am hoping we will eventually move the wake up for Jay to a little later than 5, but for now we're doing what we can and we're all getting better study and exercise because of it. We also have a big motivation to go bed early! 

Here are some fun photos of the boys, playing with things in new ways and learning every day!

Jay laying out all the pillows.

Jay's most recent school papers.

Jay looking fly and ready to ride his bike. 

Hugh loves this wooden cup and playing with it every meal. 

Hugh loved the water fountain at the car shop! He got soaked. 

He liked having the box as a hat and was so cute walking around offering milk to everyone!

Adjusting, Adjusting, and Living Life

It feels like forever since we got home from Germany, but we can't quite get into the swing of things. Every week feels a little different and nothing quite the same to let us feel like we've got a routine. Jay had some big struggles this week, understanding the difference between school days, pickleball days, and church days. We may just have to figure out how to live life with every week different and teach Jay how to manage as well. 

Our week started with taking the van to get serviced up in Firestone. The car shuttle took us to Katey's house after the boys got a little play time on the battery powered tractor while we waited for Katey to get back from school drop off. We headed up to Berthoud to check out their new city park and splashpad. The splashpad wasn't working, which was very sad. The kids managed to find the one little puddle and enjoyed it as much as three kiddos can! The park was very cool and so fun. Jay loves asking Katey to come with him places and Hugh and Hope were happy as clams staying close and doing their own thing. Jay was very sad when we didn't go back to Katey's house to play, so we'll have to make another trip up there soon. 

This was a very fun racetrack at the car place

Hugh and Aunt Katey

Aunt Katey, being super Aunt with Jay, Hugh, and Hope

Jay and Hugh were having the best time together in this swing! 

Jay did awesome climbing up to the big slides! 

Jay, Hugh, and Hope, enjoying their personal puddle.

I also had my first Family Lunch with Jay at school. Waiting in lines is excruciatingly painful for Jay and whoever is in charge of him, so they brought him straight to me so we could sit at the table and visit while he waited for his teacher to bring him "lunch." Luckily, since this is 9:30 in the morning, they served a little more breakfast-y foods. Jay had a huge breakfast, so he didn't eat much. Hugh and I enjoyed seeing him in the middle of the day and I was grateful we could make it. 

Uncle was able to come and swap out our vanity! He was able to pull it out carefully enough to leave the tile and just slid the new one in. He was done in about an hour and a half with everything! It looks so good! We love our new faucet, and we haven't had any leaks! I was able to sell our water damaged vanity for half price and the new replacement faucet Amazon sent me. With what the faucet company gave us to repair our vanity and selling both parts, we ended up not losing that much which is a huge blessing! 

Isn't it beautiful?! I love it! 

Friday we decided to let Jay skip school to come pick apples at Grandma and Grandpa's house. It was a beautiful morning and we didn't want to lose the chance to get some home grown apples. Katey and Hope joined us on our drive down, which was super nice. We had a great time picking apples! Jay played with his suitcases around the yard, and Hugh and Hope toddled around everywhere. They were not the best helpers when trying to sort apples because they loved putting all the apples in the box, not just the good ones. We got about two boxes, which is exciting! These apples have so much more flavor than what you can get from the store. Our visit was too short, but we made it home for lunch and naps and then Katey and Hope had to leave. Also, I found out we have our own apple tree! It's more like a bush, and I don't know how we'll salvage it, but we have a few apples which is so fun! 

Jay, Aunt Katey, and Hugh

Hugh and Hope, the little swinging couple

Jay with his suitcases while Grandpa picked apples

Grandpa reaching far!

Hugh helping Grandpa gather apples from the ground

Hugh enjoying the little swing

Hope pushing Hugh

Jay living his best life on the swing

Little chickie Hope

This apple is from our bush! We got a total of 5. 

Friday evening we had a game night with the Jackson's. Anna and Ethan are good people and it was fun to have them over. We learned a new game which required so much memory, it made me realize how poor my memory is. I lost almost every round we played, except one when Matthew lost. I am grateful for their willingness to come to our house to play so we can put the boys down and enjoy our evening without having to find a sitter. 

General Conference was obviously our weekend highlight! This is the first conference we've stayed home for all the sessions in a very long time. It was so fun to be able to enjoy our home and our space. When it was nap time during the afternoon session, we could put the boys down and enjoy the session with a few less distractions than usual. Of course we had our yummy treats and time outside between sessions that helped us all stay happy and more awake. I loved hearing all the promises we can receive as we follow our Savior, Jesus Christ and become more like Him. I was given courage as a parent and mother. And, I was told I should do a better job studying General Conference - which I am seeking to do now!  

They boys did awesome helping each other clean up

They mostly loved the BYU TV commercials that came on at the end

Sunday evening we drove up to Katey's house for dessert with the family and to test drive her neighbors car. We loved the car, but we ultimately decided it isn't the right car for us right now. We both wish it was, but we both had many stupor of thoughts as we contemplated the decision. And, although it was hard to say no to the nice car, we both feel much more at peace. Katey made amazing cheesecake brownies, which we enjoyed as we talked with Jack, Lindsay, Katey, and Jason and let the kids play. 

Books on the blanket during Conference, it actually entertained them for a few minutes! 

I got to go to Starbucks and grab a yummy treat with a friend on Monday evening. Michelle has a 23 year old son with Autism and we spent a lot of our time talking about being a mother of an autistic child and the challenges it has. Although our challenges are very different, it was nice to have some one to talk with. She also lived in Germany for a few months after she and her husband got married, so it was fun to share with her all of our adventures! 

Katey and I did a quick park date in Platteville to swap some games and give her some shoes for Oma. Hope and Hugh played well together. They loved running back and forth between the cornhole holes and would wait for each other and run down, then do the same thing on the other side. I hope these two kids stay close and always enjoy each other. Their joy and sweetness is so fun to witness! 

Friday I got to host Gluten Free Cooking Club at my house! It's a club with a few ladies in our ward and we've been taking turns this year. I have loved getting to know a new group of women and I enjoyed having them in my home. Hugh was afraid I was going to leave him, so he hung tight to me all morning. We made pumpkin cake, enchilada sauce, Brazilian cheese rolls, and refried beans. Everything actually turned out very yummy, which was a huge blessing! The ladies were so great with Hugh and when Jay got home they listened to his jumbled way of saying things about school with so much grace. They all thought the boys were so cute! We had a yummy lunch, they left, and Matthew was kind enough to help me with the mounds of dishes. In the evening, we went out to one of our favorite Mexican food places and enjoyed a meal made by someone else! I had done enough cooking for the day, and the boys actually did pretty well for being in a restaurant setting. 

Saturday was our garage clean out day! We have been wanting to organize our garage for a long time AND we needed to move stuff down to our basement that belongs there instead of in the garage. It was an all day project. It involved the whole family and the boys loved playing with all the things we were taking off of shelves. They did a great job entertaining themselves and mostly staying out of trouble. Jay and Hugh both love to help and it was cute to see them join us in simple ways. We swept out the garage, hung tools with our own makeshift hanging boards and hooks, and threw away things we didn't need. Our neighbors recently told us they were having a mouse problem, particularly in the garage and I feel very blessed we found no signs of mice anywhere and hopefully our cleaning helped with it even more! 

Here's our before picture

Three men, three buckets, and three helpers!

After!

This is the side view

This is our freezer nook

Sunday evening was a fun Blaylock gathering at Andrew and Jessica's new home in Parker. Steph and Ken and their kids were in town, which made it all the more fun! There were kids running everywhere and in all directions! We loved being able to visit and enjoy Jessica's fine cooking. She always does a great job hosting parties and her food is always amazing. Her home is decorated for all the holidays and this was no exception. Hugh loved looking at all the decorations and would say "pumpkin" or "spooky" which made everyone smile! Hugh also loved playing catch with Uncle Mike and Brady and Caden. He's gotten super great at catching the ball and loves playing catch. Jay loved the suitcases he found in the basement with Grandpa and also loved playing in the backyard. We all went on a walk after dinner and enjoyed a beautiful path behind Andrew's house. Jay ran almost the entire walk and Hugh and I did our best to keep up with the crew. 

Jay, Ty, and Henry jumping on the trampoline at Andrew's house

Monday we continued the fun with the Armstrong family! Steph and the kids came up mid-morning to do laundry and enjoy our company! I loved our morning together. The kids seemed perfectly happy to play with all the various toys in the basement, outside, and in the house. Michael had a magic 8 ball that he asked all sorts of questions and it was fun to think back to when I used a magic 8 ball to guide my choices as a little kid! Jay was so excited when he saw everyone come get him from school. Jay was eager to play and enjoyed the bit of cousin time he got. I loved having a chance to visit with Steph and catch up on life. I am grateful she was willing to make the drive to see us! 

Jay pushing Hugh, with Kenzie, Michael, and Ellie in the background. 

The boys are growing in all the ways and are at such fun ages! Jay loves saying "Trick or Treat", he started on his own accord when I put up the fall decorations. He's a super helper with the dishwasher and usually unloads all the plates and utensils. He knows where everything goes and is more than happy to help. Whenever Matthew lets him help with dishes at night, he's anxious to join in! Jay is doing so much better at pooping in the potty and once he does and he gets to wear his special unders, he talks about them all day. He'll say things like, "special unders go to the park" or "special unders go to school." It's very funny! One morning I asked him if he wanted to choose his shirt for the day, or if he wanted to, he grabbed his unders and reached into the shirt drawer and said, "unders choose shirt." I have no idea where he picks these things up, but they keep us laughing and his sweet personality continues to impress me. Hugh is the "come" guy. He loves asking people to come, and uses the sweetest hand gestures with him. He'll look up at me with those beautiful blue eyes and say, "Mama come outside" or downstairs or wherever, and it's hard to refuse! He's so kind and growing so much. He even learned to jump with two feet off the ground. He doesn't always get two feet off, but he still loves to try! He also loves shooting hoops - maybe we have a future basketball star! 

This cute moment was a short moment, but they do love each other.

Sandbox fun, I think we need a bigger box! 

Hugh shooting hoops!

Little chick Jay

Hugh, growing up and learning to jump, it's fun to watch! 

Jay - my always ready helper!

Swinging in the back yard