Conner is Shaking Hands

Today we were walking the halls during church... a normal occurrence :)

While walking, Conner overheard a man asking another man to shake his hand.

Conner quickly reached his hand up to shake this man's hand. Once he had shaken his hand, he reached for the other hand. Conner then proceeded to shake more hands... he would even grab hands that were hanging down to one's side and begin to shake.

It was fun to watch the smile that would cross Conner's face and the reaction of those he shook hands with. I just love my little toddler... he is such an amazing boy who is so smart and witty :)

Is "shaken" a real word??

-- Be sure to read all four of my posts today :)

Super Bowl Changes

Our day has not been intense due to the football game (go Utes)... but, because of some new changes that have occurred in our family.

This morning, we met with our Stake President. Believe me... we were both super nervous and anxious about this meeting. Once the meeting began, it was obvious that Nate was to receive a new calling. We were both shocked to receive the news that Nate was to be called as the second counselor in our bishopric.

We are both extremely humbled by this change, and I pray that the Lord will help and assist our family and home in this new change.

You Have an Attractive Chest

Remember Band-aid boy?

Band-aid boy registered for another one of Nate's anatomy classes at the community college, so we have four more months of Band-aid stories coming your way.

Last week, Nate was asked about the soy controversy and what he thought about it. After Nate explained his soy knowledge, he went on to explain that he has consumed soy his entire life and does not suffer from gynecomastia (a.k.a. man boobs).

To this comment, band-aid boy spoke up and declared in front of the whole class "Yes, you have a very attractive chest"

Yikes! What is a professor to say after a comment like that?? How would you respond... if you were the professor?


-- For those of you who are curious about the soy controversy, here is a quick explanation: the estrogen found in soy is a phyto-estrogen that is found in many plants... which is not a precursor to developing female characteristics or gynecomastia.

Conner Talks!

Seriously... Conner talks! It took a while... for a short period of time he was scared of speaking... but he officially talks! I have been trying to record some chatter... but as soon as he sees that I have the camera, he stops talking.

Here is our list of phrases and words:

"I'm kidding"
"Me too!"
"Baby Leb"
"I'm a race car!"
"Race car Conner"
"Conner Monster.... Rarr!"
"Play play dough"
"My turn"
"Baby tired"
"It's okay baby"
"I miss daddy"
"Daddy at school"
"Daddy at office"
"More abba-sauce please"
"Tank you"
"I'm Sally"
"My car seat"
"Watch Jonah"
"Bless you Baby"
"I miss baby"
"Mommy's hot"
"Play with friends?"
"Garbage trucks all gone!"
"Baby take away"
"Baby touch"
"My turn!"
"Baby's turn"
"Conner Messy"
"Sleep on couch"
"My own bed"
"Ride YeeHaw" (YeeHaw is his bouncy horse)
He is even starting to say family prayers at dinner and before bed!

He has also started to sing! His favorite songs to sing are:

Once there was a snowman
Wheels on the Bus
Elmo's world

I am loving the chatter... can you believe that I actually had an argument with him the other night about the whereabouts of Dad? Conner was determined that Nathan was at his office when he was actually teaching at school. The argument went something like this:

"Daddy at office"
"No, daddy is at school"
"No, Daddy at office"
"Nope, daddy is at school tonight."
"NO! DAD AT OFFICE"
"Conner, Dad is at school... okay?"
"NO! NO! DADDY IS AT OFFICE"
"Conner, Dad is not at his office... he is at school... want to play play dough?"
"NO! NO! NO! DAD IS AT OFFICE... NO SCHOOL! OFFICE! OFFICE!"

This conversation went on for a couple of minutes... then I gave in... Conner can be a very persuasive boy! I am so excited about his new found chatter, but I am somewhat apprehensive about the arguments we are having... and his ability to change the whereabouts of Dad!

Here is a little video of some talking... he was kind of occupied with play dough, but that distracted him from the camera!

My Sunday Brag Session - I Love My Kids :)

I can not believe how quickly our boys are growing up! We have had such a wonderful two weeks celebrating the holidays and spending time together as a family.

This year we enjoyed our first Christmas at our house. We had so much fun! We will be posting pictures soon :).

Conner:

Conner is just growing up too fast! I love his developing imagination. If you can not tell from the picture above, he has a butter container on his head. One morning he played with all of his cars while wearing his "hat".

Recently, Conner has become our little chatter box. He now says full phrases like "I miss daddy's car" and "Come on Mommy... Come on!" He is so much fun! His favorite book is Goodnight Moon - he loves to say goodnight to each item in the book!

We recently switched Conner to a "Big Boy Bed". He has made this transition very well, and loves sleeping in "his own bed". Each morning he runs to tell us that he slept in his own bed!

Conner now loves to climb. Everything has turned into a jungle gym... which makes me very nervous! He can now climb onto the top of our bathroom vanity, into his highchair, and has almost mastered the baby gate.

We had an intense afternoon a couple days ago when I found Conner playing in butter! He had reached up and grabbed it off of the counter when I was in the other room changing Caleb. When I returned, Conner had smeared butter all over my kitchen floor and was in the process of putting it in between his toes! He definitely keeps me busy!

Caleb:

Caleb is now eating big boy food. He is so excited about eating! Anytime I try to eat something or take a drink, he quickly grabs onto my cup or fork and tries to put it into his mouth! This last week, we decided to introduced solids a little early :). He is our Sweet Potato Monster! He can already eat an entire jar of sweet potatoes in one feeding!

Caleb is also rolling over! Around Thanksgiving, he learned how to roll from his back onto his stomach. He can now roll from his stomach to his back. Caleb has always been a stomach sleeper... the last couple of weeks have been frustrating to all of us now that he can roll from his stomach to his back! He wakes up multiple times at night angry that he is no longer on his stomach :)

Caleb is on the move! He has started to Skoot and Roll in an attempt to get to the items/toys he wishes to check out! He has also been desperately trying to sit up straight... it will not be long before he is sitting on his own!

Caleb is one particular baby. He does not like it when dad coughs and/or sneezes. Each time dad coughs or sneezes, Caleb quickly protests with a scream... poor Nate - he is such a good daddy :)

Merry Christmas!

Dear Family and Friends,


This holiday season has inspired much reflection in our hearts and home. We are so grateful for the star that arose in Bethlehem with the purpose of leading others towards the stable in which our Savior was born.

In an attempt to teach our boys what Christmas is all about, we have been reenacting the search for the Savior. These reenactments have caused our minds to ponder - what was it truly like for those individuals to locate the stable? How much more difficult would this journey have been without a star shining brightly in the heavens?

We are so grateful for the stars that shine brightly in our lives - we are truly blessed with inspired leaders, books, family, friends, and personal revelation that guide us towards our Savior. It is remarkable that we have not been left alone to find our way! We Believe in Christ, his teachings, and his love for all man-kind!

We appreciate each of you and your kind and generous lives that set an example to all who surround you. Continue to let your light shine as did the star of Bethlehem!

Merry Christmas to all!


Love,

Nate, Angie, Conner, and Caleb

--Card created by Cristi and the pictures were taken by Coray

Our Awesome Thanksgiving Utah Trip

Highlights of "Utah Thanksgiving Trip:"

• Caleb started to roll over from his back to his stomach.
• Spending time with both grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, etc.
• We enjoyed thanksgiving dinner at Great-grandma Shand's and Grammies.
• Meeting our little niece Elsie - she is so cute :)
• Meeting little Adelaide Trujillo... it was so fun to see some friends from Texas!
• Angie loved catching up with her girlfriends from high school :)
• A trip to temple square. Conner loved the trees with lights so much that he did not even recognize the cold!
• The trains at grandpa's and great-grandpa's house.
• Becca's performance at the festival of trees. We had such a great time looking at all of the trees and the wreaths (my favorite).
• The giant bubbles at the festival of trees.
• Miriam's awesome performance in the play "A Christmas Carol". It was such a treat to watch her - she is a natural!
• Kyle's choir performances.
• We loved playing with cousins. Miles always can make Conner and Caleb laugh. We love cousins.
• Conner loved playing ping pong with Uncle Preston and Uncle Kyle. To play, he would throw the balls at his uncles during their games.
• Conner's trip to the "Lehi Temple" a.k.a Cabala's with grandpa one afternoon. He loved looking at the fishes and animals on display.
• Conner loved helping us with the luggage at the airport.

We had such a great time! Thanks again to all of our family and friends who took time out of their busy schedule to hang out with us! We love you all!