baby in the tub.

Life with our 3 sons...

Life is good. Life is great, actually.

With our 3 sweet boys- we've spent lots of hours staring at Beckett, listening to the crazy stories that come out of Carter and helping Dawson read and learn our address as part of his homework. Life with 3 boys is just beginning. In just a few years, I can see myself running from soccer game to soccer game...eating Happy Meals on the way and stopping arguments over who's super powers are the coolest. Bath nights will be an adventure and date night (for Jason and I) will be essential to keeping our sanity. We can plan on boy scouts, stinky socks, ESPN, bags of chips disappearing minutes after purchase and hopefully some important talks on dating the 'right' girl. Oh boys! I love them so much!

Yes. Life is good.

These 3 complete our lives! Jason and I feel so blessed to have these strong, healthy spirits entrusted to us and we hope and pray everyday to be the best parents we can.

I'm trying to live by the montra- if it will be funny in 5 years...save yourself the time and LAUGH NOW! Just today, Carter fell bum first into the toilet...it was trauma central for about 2 minutes and then we were laughing about it. Just gotta roll with the punches and remember to keep smilin!

Beckett Charles Rasmussen

Another milestone!

Dawson has been begging Jason for weeks to teach him how to ride his bike without the training wheels. After FHE it was to the front yard! It took him about 20 minutes to get the hang of it and then he was FULL SPEED AHEAD!! Way to go Dawson!


Another priceless moment in our evening....

Dawson has lost a tooth!

Dawson lost his first tooth on August 4th. It had been pretty wiggly for a few days and we waited till the timing was just right and it came right out!

Before!

After! The tooth fairy brought him $5.00! Carter even saw the tooth fairy! He said "She looked like an angel, Mommy! She was tiny and she flied!" Pretty exciting stuff around the Rasmussen household!

I felt the baby move!

Just for the record.

I have to write stuff down more. I know.

Carter came out of the bathroom yesterday morning and announced very proudly- "MOM! I JUST PAINTED A MASTERPIECE!" I will leave it to your curious mind to figure out what he used for a paintbrush.

Disneyland & Cali 2011

I'm a little late in posting our trip to California! Oops!

We ventured to Disneyland again, this time with my parents, cousin and brother's families. All of us strutted our stuff in coordinating Mickey & Minnie shirts...thank goodness the men were good sports! We ate lots of churros, watched and loved the parades and rode all the rides we could!

We took the boys to the "Minnie & Friends Breakfast" one of the mornings in the park and they LOVED every minute of it. They got to see lots of characters and of course- Minnie Mouse!

Gramma Terri & Papa Chuck!

We finally got the boys to stay awake long enough to watch "World of Color" pretty amazing show...it was a little hard to see everything and it was a bit chilly, but magical non the less!

After 3 days in Disneyland we went to Carlsbad and Oceanside with my Cousin's super fun family! We stopped at a strawberry field that lets you pick your own berries. It was a fun experience, that we certainly didn't want to pass up! Then we headed to the beach where the boys played and spashed in the ocean.

We also took one day and went to LegoLand. Not our favorite place...but the kids seemed to tolerate most of the rides and attractions, pretty well.

Our little graduate. Officially.

Because of Dawson's September birthday, he misses the Kindergarten deadline by 6 days. So for the past 3 years, this little man has done preschool. Well, he is officially a preschool graduate. If they gave a dimploma for a Pre-K Associates Degree- he would have earned it!

Dawson with his teacher, Miss Jamie!

Singing the National Anthem

All SMILES!

Some things Dawson learned this year:

1: HOW TO READ!!!

2:  The days of the week, months and how to count to 10 in Spanish and German.

3: Learned countless games and songs that he brings home and teaches Carter.

4: How to fingerpaint with pudding!

5: How to do simple addition, subtraction and 1 times tables!

LOVE YOU DAWSON!

I've been tagged. Hasn't happened in a while...

4 Shows I watch:
1. Modern Family
2. Glee
3. Desperate Housewives
4. AFV

4 Things I am passionate about:
1. My family
2. Serving on the Miss Utah Board
3. Diet pepsi
4. Not wasting time

4 phrases I use a lot:
1. I love you (spoken to the boys and Jason)
2. Where's Dash? (usually he's chewing on toilet paper)
3. Can I get a refill of diet pepsi, extra ice please?
4. Don't be mean to each other, please!

4 things I've learned from the past:
1. Sometimes you don't get what you pray for. And it's okay.
2. Stupid people should always be considered comic relief.
3. Skinny people drink soda pop too.
4. Put your big girl panties on and deal with it. Shut your trap and move on.

4 things I did yesterday:
1. Folded LOTS of laundry
2. Went to a board meeting
3. Had lunch with some friends
4. Talked to Jason till we both fell asleep

4 places I'd love to visit:
1. Disney Cruise Islands
2. England
3. New York
4. My future to see what life is like

4 things I'm looking forward to:
1. Raising my kids (an adopted daughter, included)
2. Lots of trips with our kids
3. Owning a cabin
4. Retirement

4 things I love about Spring:
1. Days it doesn't snow.
2. Days it doesn't snow.
3. Days it doesn't snow.
4. Winter clearance sales.

If you read this and stayed awake...I tag YOU! All of you.

Pictures from my phone

I forget to share these little gems.

Carter at our favorite frozen yogurt hangout. That kid loves frozen treats!

Good thing I know he wasn't this way for long.

Oh this kid. Dawson pretty much keeps me laughing all day. This was his latest disguise.

He has a "thing" for Indiana Jones.

He thinks Peter Pan is magical.

He loves his blue bow tie because magicians wear bow ties.

He got the mustache from a Mario Brothers Party.

So...he combined all of his favorite things into one outfit.

(You can't see the vest and ropes across his chest, "because Indiana Jones can't  let people know what he's gonna do next.")

He was dressed this way for a solid 3 hours. Good thing I didn't have any errands to run. (?)

Dawson and his buddy.

Mothers Day!

Mothers Day 2011 was a wonderful, easy going, and full of great food event. On Saturday night, we went to P.F.Changs for dinner with our awesome neighbors and then saw Water for Elephants. I give it 2 thumbs up...both the the dinner and the flick. Sunday morning, I awoke to the smells of french toast, bacon and sausage being prepared in the kitchen- which certainly got me out of bed! The boys fought over the 4 sausage patties and Jason I just watched. In about 10 years- it will be really interesting when all 3 boys are fighting over food. Awe, can't wait.

Then the boys gave me their gifts. Too precious for words. I love that Jason takes the boys shopping and lets them have 100% control on their purchases. This year, I got 2 bottles of nail polish and a unique hair accessory with a strawberry in the middle of it. I loved it and laughed all morning. The boys kept checking in to make sure I liked my gifts...I LOVED THEM!

Church was wonderful. The primary kids sang and both boys smiled and waved from the front of the chapel. So sweet.

After church I was treated to a delicious dinner prepared by Jason and the best chocolate/raspberry cake dropped off my neighbor Kate. I love food anyway...but now that I'm not throwing up everything I eat, there is a new found appreciation for culinary works of art. Mmmm!

Another awesome gift of the day:

We have reached the 20 week mark!

Hives and some perspective.

Carter got out of the shower one Sunday morning and within 12 hours his entire body was COVERED in bright red, itchy hives. At first I figured they would go away, but after Wednesday came and went, I got him into the doctor. The doc pretty much said, what I had assumed- that they were unexplained hives and they should go away. He wasn't running a fever or had any other alarming symptoms, so we just waited. On Friday, he looked pretty good. Most of the hives on his face were gone and just a few remained on his arms and legs. THEN IT HAPPENED AGAIN. This time, we figured out the culprit! A couple weeks earlier, Jason had sprayed the yard for bugs and used a store bought pesticide, making sure he soaked the playland to keep spiders and wasps out this year. Carter had very limited exposure to the playland, because of the crappy weather- but once he did, the hives appeared. Long story short- we are pretty sure that's the reason. We have since, power washed the play land and the hives have not returned. Whew! Poor kid though. Since then, I have signed us back up for professional bug killing services.

Dawson has been playing a new character almost every day it seems. One day he is Indiana Jones, with sling bag, belts and fedora. The next day, he's a magician with a bow tie and cape. The other day, he was a photographer. I loved seeing the shots he took- all on his own. Its fun to let the kids take the camera every once in a while to see the world from their perspective. Here are a few of my favs from his photo shoot!

His Preschool Mother's Day gift. A planter with big eyes. Love it.

(It's also fun for me to play with photoshop)

Easter 2011

We had a great Easter this year, full of all the fun things that I remember as a kid. We got up early Saturday morning and went the the local Fresh Market grocery store for their egg hunt. Sounds totally strange, I know...but it was warm, totally under crowded and our kids made away like candy bandits! It was hilarious!

We spent the rest of the day with family and friends, eating good food and enjoying one another. We dyed eggs and the counter tops...and had a blast! The boys got Pillow Pets from Gramma Terri and Papa Chuck and haven't put them down since!

 On Sunday, the Easter Bunny made a stop at our house, delivering a bike to Dawson and a HUGE gumball machine to Carter. They thought the Easter Bunny was totally rad after that. Later, we ventured to Price so the boys could see the grandparents! We made our first stop at the hospital to see my dad, who has been really sick for the last week. Poor man, I love him so much and it has been hard to see him, so miserable. The kids loved seeing Papa though! Later we went to Jason's parents where we enjoyed a fantastic dinner, lots of fun with family and the boys got special gifts from Nana and Grandpa Doug. Kaye has been recovering from surgery, so the boys had to make certain they gave soft hugs as their thank you!

We did include a discussion about the Savior and Dawson had lots of questions. Its sometimes difficult to explain to your son, the gift of sacrifice our Father in Heaven gave us. I tried really hard not to get emotional as we discussed Jesus dying on the cross, so I sped up and talked about the joy of his resurrection! Dawson and Carter know that we celebrate Easter because of Jesus, his life, death and resurrection and that is a wonderful thing to know!

Miss America's Teen in UTAH!

April 9-13th we had the opportunity of hosting Miss America's Outstanding Teen here in Utah. It was a fantastic trip and once again visit with my dear friend, Ms. Dianne (the Business/Tour manager for MAOT). It was a whirlwind trip...non-stop fun, site seeing and of course- going out to eat! I'm pretty sure those extra pounds on the scale weren't ALL baby!!

We took them to Music and the Spoken Word on Sunday morning and then took a tour of Temple Square and the visitors centers. I was even enlightened! Lacey and Ms. Dianne asked lots of questions and it was exciting to share pieces of the Gospel with them. Lacey was especially interested, as she is a very strong Christian. She was impressed with our church and was particularly interested in the Temple. Awesome experience, for sure! That night, the Miss Utah Board sponsored a dinner for Lacey and it was lovely. Dawson even got to plant a special smooch on his 2nd National titleholder...I'm sure it won't be his last!

Tiare, Lacey and me at Hagermann's Bake House where they got to be "bakery apprentices" for the day...they were both in heaven.  That night they were special guests at an autograph party at "Bags That Fit" in American Fork...cutest stinkin store ever! When I'm all done havin babies...I plan to spend a lot of money in that store! Darling clothes! On Tuesday, the girls went to Midway and swam in the Crater. They all giggled and played for a couple of hours and then we hit some shops and had lunch at Tarahumara, a Mexican restaurant in Midway. Oh my gosh- it was delicious!

(the crater)

The rest of the evening was spent in Lehi, with the girls speaking to Achievement Day & Young Women's groups. The girls were able to share their platforms and eat cupcakes and have fun with some girls their own age. We finished up the night at Texas Roadhouse were Lacey got to try her first dip of FRY SAUCE! She was in love with it and immediately wanted to know how its made!

I took them to the airport on Wednesday and came home and went straight to bed! I needed a nap! It was a fun trip and THANK YOU Jason & Becky for taking the boys for me! I only get to keep doing these fun things because of great people like you!

And the verdict is...

BOY!!!!

Clear as can be and we are SUPER excited for another little champ!

My Little Reader

Dawson finished his 25 book reading chart in preschool! He started his quest in October and completed his chart, passing off each book with ease. It was pretty exciting as his parents to watch him learn and read. Got me kind of emotional at times, actually. We went to the library and I let him pick books in the beginners section, much to our surprise last night, he was flying through book after book. I love it! For accomplishing his big goal, he got to pick dinner...of course at McDonalds and we bought Tangled and watched it together.

We register Dawson for Kindergarten on Wednesday- Seriously. Can't believe it! I'm so excited for him to begin his first year of "real school" with confidence and I hope his thirst for learning  only continues! He did tell me tonight however, that when he grows up, he just wants to go on Wipeout. Hmm. I guess career planning will be and important conversation someday!

Happy Birthday Jason!

He still has that cute nose.

Such a good big brother, then and always.

GQ at 6 years old. Not much has changed there.

Has a testimony, honors his priesthood, amazing example.

He still has those jeans.

First time daddy. He is and was a NATURAL.

Loves to cuddle his boys.

Loves me. Even though some days I don't deserve it.

Happy 30th Jason! We LOVE you!