What a zoo Paige is 2!

When I was younger my mom would always make a banner on our birthday and put it up on the garage so everyone in the neighborhood would know it was our birthday. She would always put sayings like, "Shut the door Geri's 4!" or "Do a jive Jon's 5!" and every year we would take a picture by the poster. It was a fun memory I have growing up. So I would like to say I kept the tradition going but I didn't, unless putting it on the blog counts.
I can't believe my baby is 2! It has gone by way too fast, and it makes me feel a little antsy. The reason being is once you have a two year old the world around you starts wondering 1. when are you going to get pregnant or my most favorite 2. are you pregnant. The second one can be really awkward if you are wrong. So I am working out extra hard to make sure no on makes that mistake. To answer you question, no we are not pregnant and I'm not sure when we will have another one. Now back to the real fun, we celebrated Paige's birthday this week. She turned two on the 20th but we had a little party for her on Monday. Until they are a little older we just do family and close friend parties. This year we did a repeat of most years and had dinner at the park and then let the kids play. Dan gave me a hard time about the food because each year I stress about what I am going to make and each year he tells me to order subs or pizza. Of course I never listen and went with tacos. It actually turned out delicious and was really easy. What can be easier than throwing chicken and salsa in the crock pot, I know ordering something. I had a big helper in my mom who always makes things easier for me and she does a great job of making things look and taste great. The party turned out fantastic, minus the little fiasco we had just before opening presents. Who would have known that the lights don't turn on at the park till 7pm. So, we opened presents in the dark with a little help from grandpa's headlights. Although Paige couldn't see what she was opening she was excited to have her own stuff. Every time she opened something she would say,"not sissy's?" We have the best family and friends who just went with the flow. Happy Birthday little Paigey! Here's a few things we love about Paige:
1. She is very independent. If she doesn't want to do something she will let you know.
2. She is still so tiny. I haven't taken her in for her 2 year checkup yet, but she is still only about 20 lbs, maybe a little over, and super short. She is a petite little thing.
3. She is starting to talk like crazy. Some of her favorite phrases are, "not sissy's", "mommy hold you me", "what happened", "where going" and a few more I can't think of.
4. We have been working on zoo phonics (which is basically all the letter sounds) and colors. She actually knows all her sounds and colors.
5. She is feisty. Paige will not back down and is many times the one who pushes first. We are really trying to work on this. Although I don't mind when she sticks up for herself.
6. She is so close to being potty trained. She will go in the potty but just hasn't quite got that she has to tell me when she needs to go.
We love our little Paypay and can't wait to see what this year brings!




I put this little guy in because I couldn't stop laughing. Usually I try to only choose pictures that I look good in or at least okay, but this one just had to be posted. What is up with my smile? I swear ever since I got braces my smile has been off and super cheesy. You know when you tell your kids to smile nice for picture day and not to do a cheesy smile, well this is a great example of a cheesy smile. I think I may have to start using it for that very purpose. It may scare the cheesy smile right out of Hollyn.

October Break

This last week Hollyn had the whole week of school off for October Break. I was actually really looking forward to it for a couple of reasons. One, we have to get up pretty early to get Hollyn to school on time. If we don't leave the house by 7:30 or shortly after she is late for school, so we are usually in a rush to get out of the house. It was so nice letting the girls sleep in and then being able to cook a nice breakfast. Two, I fell like I don't get to spend much time with Hollyn during the week. Between school, homework, and after school activities, there's not much time left for us to just hang out. So, we decided to have something fun planned for each day. Monday, Hollyn had Hollyn day with my mom, because Paige and I were in Nebraska. Hollyn day is basically going to lunch with my mom, and then going to pick out something from Target. She loved spending the whole day with Grandma. Tuesday we made a stepping stone for my parents garden. It has Hollyn's name on it and her hand print, and of course she had to add a little flare. (I'll have to take a picture of it, because it turned out really cute) Wed. we went to the local pumpkin patch called Mother's Natures Farm. I guess pumpkin patch here in AZ is a pretty loose term, because there were no pumpkins on vines. We were really spoiled in Nebraska having actually pumpkin patches. Plus in Nebraska pumpkin patches were more like a theme park. We had a good time though riding on the hay ride, looking at the animals, going through the corn maze and looking for the perfect pumpkin to decorate.





Thursday we headed over to the Phoenix Science Museum, which is a fantastic museum. You could spend the whole day there. We spent almost 4 hours and could have stayed at least another hour or two. The highlight of the museum were the spinning thing, building toys, and the floating balls.



(And yes those are braces on my teeth. I finally took the plunge and got braces. I have been wanting to do it for years, and when a great opportunity came my way I couldn't pass it up. Plus I was looking for a younger look, but I think I overshot it by about ten years. Fifteen is not really what I was shooting for. On a side note, if you need an orthodontist, I highly recommend Tyler Robison)



To end off the week Dan's mom did parkapalooza on Friday. It consisted of going to each of the cousins parks (3) and then ending at Nonni's park for sack lunches. The kids thought it was the greatest thing ever. I wish I would have thought of it. I can't wait till the next school break!

Why Nebraska?

For my birthday this year I decided to take a little trip. Where you may ask, to Nebraska of course! Every time I told someone where I was going they would ask me this question, "why Nebraska?" For one, it was my home for the last three years. Nebraska is actually a beautiful place to visit in the fall and spring time. Just stay clear of their winters. Fall is by far my favorite time of year. The leaves are changing, the weather is perfect, and the pumpkin patches are amazing. The people in Nebraska are also the nicest people you will ever meet. They are so loyal, just look at how devoted they are to their football team, win or loose they love the Huskers. Another reason for visiting Nebraska is great friends. I met some amazing people while living in Nebraska and it was so great to see them and hang out with them. I was able to stay with my good friend Anna and her fantastic family. Paige played with her boys all day long and Anna and I shopped, ate, crafted, and caught up. What else could a girl ask for. I always have a great time with Anna, it's an easy friendship with lots of laughs. Minus the beading fiasco, we had a great time. Anna had a great idea to bead headbands. They looked really cute, but were a pain in the rear and literally took hours to make. I love you Anna, but I will never bead with you again!! So now when instead of asking why Nebraska, you will be saying why not Nebraska. I"m sure you are all booking your vacations there now.

These two were so fun to watch. The are only four days apart in age and they play so good together. Paige has been calling him Shisha (Elijah) ever since she could talk and she didn't forget his name when we got there.

HE PASSED!!!

So I guess that in priesthood they gave a talk about the differences in being prideful and being proud, or something along those lines. I still need to read the talk, but I guess the gist of the talk was that it's okay to be proud of others for doing something great. This is my proud moment, I am so proud of Dan for passing the BAR. All those hours of studying and weekends and vacations sacraficed have payed off and we all couldn't be more happy.

What could be better than the beach and cousins?

Last weekend Dan's parents took us all to the beach for a little fun and relaxation on Mission Beach. We use to stay on Mission every summer when I was younger, but I haven't been back for several years. I forgot how much I enjoy it! The sand was soft and warm, the sun came out every day, we stayed right on the beach, and the kids were busy playing with cousins all day on the beach. I'm not sure if the beach will ever be the same for my kids again without their cousins. I think that September may be my new favorite time for California beaches. They weren't crowded at all and the weather was perfect. It was actually warmer than when we stayed in Oceanside in July.
There is something about the beach that just makes me happy. I mean really can anyone be grumpy when they are sitting on the beach? One of the great things about Dan's family is that most of them are so close in age and they get along so well. There was no fighting or kids being left out. Plus Dan's siblings and their spouses are pretty fantastic too! I am hoping that this is a new family tradition for the Broadbents.

Girl's Trip

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This weekend I headed over to Las Vegas to meet some of my favorite ladies in the world Traci, Kim, Holly and Maren. I have known Traci since we were in elementary school and Holly, Maren, and Kim since junior high, but it was rooming together at BYU freshman year in Helaman Halls where we all became close friends. We haven't all been together for at least five years, but when we get together it seems as though our frienships haven't skipped a beat. We had an amazing time shopping, eating out, getting pampered, and just catching up on each other's lives. One of my favorite things about these girls is that we all have a similar sense of humor and so needless to say we stayed up late, or at least late for us old ladies, and laughed and laughed and laughed some more. I love these girlies! Thanks ladies for a great weekend, and I can't wait for the next one.
Thanks to my hubby and mother-in-law too for making the trip possible and watching the girls. I know neither one of them missed me too much because they were having so much fun.

CRAZY SOCKS!

Today Hollyn had Crazy Sock Day at school. She was so excited to wear crazy socks to school and I think the teachers know what they are doing when they schedule the school spirit days on early release day. I'm pretty sure crazy socks equal crazy kids. I was actually really excited to pick up Hollyn early from school and spend the afternoon with her. A friend and I panned a day of swimming and pizza. It's amazing how much pent up energy these little guys have after a day or even just an afternoon at school. Their little bodies are like Mexican Jumping Beans sitting at their tables just waiting for a chance to jump out of their seats. Kindergarten teachers are saints in my book.
Look at those bruises. Now that's one active kid. I think she got her balance and grace from her mom. For some reasons my legs always look like a five year old with bruises all over. Too bad it's not very attractive on a 30 year old woman.
I was also able to go to Hollyn's classroom last night for Curriculum Night. I know it may sound dorky but I love me some Curriculum Night. I remember when I was teaching school I always had a poor turn out for this night. Granted I was teaching sixth graders, but I never understood why parents wouldn't want to come and hear my discipline techniques, the curriculum for the year, and then be able to ask any questions. Hollyn's teacher is fantastic and I'm not sure how she does it all. She has a website where we will go and download their homework for the month, find fun websites for the kids to go to, site words, recipes, and tons of fun activities to work on at home to help kids practice what they are learning at school. Her teacher also has a Smart Board which is about the coolest computer you have ever seen. It looks like a white board but it projects the computer up on the screen and you can actually touch it to move things and it has special pens you can write on it with. It's pure genius and any teachers dream. Needless to say, I was very impressed by Hollyn's teacher.