Insta-Tuesday {8.30.16}

insta-august

{8.6.16}

He's home! Elder Jacob Walker, my baby brother came home on Thursday and we are SOO excited to have him back! Austin was born just two months after he left in 2014 and I'm so glad for him to finally meet his Uncle Jake. Just so happy to have him home and have him safe. He's always been such an example to me and I love him so much! #ldsmission#edmontoncanadamission

{8.9.16}

insta-david

Getting ready for the Olympics in 2028. Lydia told us she needs a higher balance beam.

{8.9.16}

insta-david (video)

Lydia, "Am I ready for gymnastics yet?"#workingonherfloorroutine

{8.11.16}

These kids are so lucky to have a grandpa who will take a whole day to come down and build a balance beam for them to play on. Lydia is thrilled to be a real gymnast now. #retirementisthebest

{8.12.16}

Logan has my ❤.#alsoiloveweddings #courtneyandsam

{8.13.16}

Date night at the temple tonight. #babysittingswapforthewin (I will say, the only time we aren't SO so sad that@karlishields and @garretsshields aren't in our ward anymore is when they watch our kids while we go to Ward Temple Night.) Wish I would have gotten a picture at the temple but we had such a nice time that I wanted to document it. It's such a blessing to be able to go and feel Gods love in such a tangible way in such a beautiful place.#ilovetoseethetemple

{8.15.16}

Bees Game for FHE tonight. 🐝 The kids rolled around on the seats (quite literally), we got ice cream in a tiny plastic baseball hat, and stayed out way past bedtime. It was all pretty much the best thing ever. #saltlakebees #PeadenFHE

{8.18.16}

I was wondering where all my Tupperware went. 😳😆😆😂 Ha. #austinwashere #almosttwo

{8.27.16}

Camping at Payson Lakes this weekend was perfect. Good weather, yummy food, and great friends. We didn't have any structured plans. The kids played in the mud, rode scooters around the campsite, and threw rocks into the (toxic-algae-infested) lake. There may have been tears when the kids had to say goodbye at the end. Last weekend of the summer= WIN! 🌲🏕🔥

{8.29.16}

This girl has been begging to go back to the dentist for weeks. The place we've gone to has a TV in the ceiling, they give balloons and toys, AND you get a NEW toothbrush when you go. (All things she kept talking about and was really excited about.) I'm so proud because NO cavities. She did great and I'm glad that going to the dentist is such a good experience for her.

{8.30.16}

Pool to ourselves today (in our tiny time slot between babysitting kids). So perfect. I'm kicking myself for not doing this every single day this summer like I had planned. 

Oh, Summer... 😍😎😆🏊☀😘 

Peaden Middleton Summer Camping Trip 2016

We have had an amazing summer, but this last weekend's annual "Peaden Middleton camping trip" was an absolute highlight. We went for the 2nd year in a row with Mike and Ali Middleton and their two kids Henry and Andi who happen to be almost the exact same age as Lydia and Austin. This year we went to the Payson Lakes Campground. 

Shantel and Ali drove up on Thursday afternoon and Mike and I met up as soon as we got off work to join them and took Friday off of work. I'm posting these pictures now...but I will be honest, Ali is a fantastic photographer and was taking pictures all weekend, I'm hoping for an update later on with some of the photos she took. 

Thursday night was mostly about setting up camp, making dinner and enjoying the fire. The Middleton's made delicious chicken tacos. Once we got the kids all bundled and the fire going we all made smore's and talked by the fire. 

Originally we planned to spend the weekend swimming in the lake, canoeing and paddle boarding. However...this summer there was a big issue with many of the lakes where there was an algae bloom that caused the water to be unsafe. Unfortunately the Payson lakes were affected as well, which means no swimming, boating or touching the water. This picture below is as close we we let the kids get to the water all weekend. We did still enjoy a nice walk down to the lake to check things out.

Things  did work out really well because with the water off limits, we were all pretty happy to just relax and let the kids do whatever they wanted. For Andi and Austin, this consisted of playing in the van. They loved crawling all over and spent a good amount of time in the driver's seat. The other thing they really enjoyed was following Lydia and Henry around to do whatever they were doing.

Lydia and Henry spent almost every free second playing in the dirt. When we first arrived they started off with digging dirt and putting it in piles. The next day we got out the trucks and they drove trucks around building "houses." They would gather sticks, dirt and anything else to complete their projects. They played so well together all weekend and had a great time.

We got a chance to chat with Mike and Ali and play some games while they kids had fun in the dirt.

Some other highlights from the trip was the kids scooter around the campsite and campground.

It was a big weekend for the kids and Lydia needed a rest during one of our hikes around the campground.

For dinner on Friday night we did pizza sandwiches that were so good.

Right after dinner a big rainstorm came through, it did not last long, but we hid out in the Middleton tent while it came through, You can see the picture below with Henry and Lydia playing an intense game of Raccoon Rumpus.

We did pancakes, eggs and then either sausage or eggs for breakfast both mornings.

We packed up Saturday around lunch and went to Grotto falls. Somehow I do not have a single picture at the falls, which is so sad, but we hiked up to Grotto falls and the kids loved it. We had to cross over a bunch of little bridges on the way up. The water was pretty low which made it fun because we could get right up to the falls. We ate lunch and then headed back down and home.

The most dramatic part of the weekend was when we met back at our house. We switched stuff over and then Henry went to get in the car. Lydia just totally lost it, she was so devastated that Henry was leaving.

We had such a great time. We are lucky that are kids have such great friends. We are even more lucky to have Mike and Ali as friends. We had a great time laughing, cooking and enjoying seeing our kids have so much fun. We are already looking forward to the 3rd annual camping trip next year.

Austin Scott: 22-23 Months

Stats: Definitely size 5 shoes. 12 month pants. (And honestly, the 12 month shorts I still have to turn the waistband over to make them not fall off.) 12-18 month shirts. 

Some things I want to remember about this month:

--This little boy and his dad. They melt my heart. Such good sports to come home-decor shopping with me on a Saturday afternoon. 

--Plays so well with Lydia. He loves babies. He is SO good at putting train tracks together all by himself, and also so good at putting the Vtech tracks together. 

--He says "Amy", and he loves his Aunt Amy. 

-He follows Lydia everywhere she goes. Whether he actually is capable of doing the things that she's doing isn't as much of a factor as the desire to do everything she's doing. He walks on little pathways as he follows her, on the back of the couch, running around the house. He's a little shadow and he loves her. 

--Also, he hops/skips around the house and I love it! If you say "Austin, can you hop?" He smiles and starts running/one leg hopping/skipping. It's hard to describe, but I hope I never forget him "hopping" around the kitchen with his one little leg doing most of the work and his big smile on his face.

--He loves babies. His favorite word is baby and he carries one or two babies around with him much of the day. He asks for them when he goes down for his nap and hates when other kids come over and want to play with the babies. We have 4 or so babies from when Lydia was this age- but she never loved them the way that Austin loves them. It is so funny too, because when we put him to bed, he insists on having all of the babies in his bed. We're planning to get him a little boy baby for his birthday, but he doesn't mind these little pink and purple babies. He just loves them.  

He loves real babies, too. Anytime we are near a real baby he spends all his time hanging out with them, trying to hold their hand, touching their toes, and smothering them with attention. It's so sweet.

Also, we're expecting baby #3! Austin talks about babies all the time, we are talking about our baby all time, and I just know he's going to be the best older brother!

--He loves ice in his water. He'll get a cup and stand by the refrigerator asking for "wa-wa" and as you start filling it up he'll insist "ice! ice!". Even if he's sitting at the table and I'm filling up his water he'll shout across the kitchen "ice!" 

-He's pretty particular about his food. Not as much the type of food, as he'll eat almost anything, but the presentation. He prefers to eat with utensils, and rarely will eat with his hands. He loves cherry tomatoes that he can stab with a fork, but he doesn't like regular tomatoes that have been cut up. He wants to dip everything he eats in "sauce" (and he actually does really well with the dipping - he dips and eats the food not just dips and sucks off the sauce), and he needs a large pile of sauce on his plate at all times. He likes to pour/dish his own food. It's funny the little things that he's particular about. He's a foodie in the making.

-Occasionally, I'll help feed him and pretend that the spoon is an airplane. He loves this. He'll request different vehicles midway through. He'll stop me and say "choo-choo", so I'll start making train noises, then he'll laugh and switch back to "ah-pan" so I'll swoop the spoon like an airpane. He also requests "cah" (car) and "mo" (motorcycle). He's got such a good sense of humor, and he thinks it's so funny. Often, he has a process where he puts his fingers in his mouth before I can get the food there and I have to say "take your fingers out of your mouth" as he laughs and removes them. Then he says "hot" and blows on the food before he'll finally allow it in his mouth. Sometimes, even when I don't do this - he'll hold his fork and pretend like it's a train or an airplane as he's feeding himself. I love it. 

-He still holds my hand as we go down the stairs (not because he needs it - just because he loves me) and pretty much wherever we go. There isn't much better than walking with a little hand holding tight to your own.

-We went to a Bees game and it was so fun and he was so cute.

--We've been going swimming a lot lately and Austin loves it almost as much as Lydia does. He's gotten much more comfortable in the water, and although he stays at the little shallow end of the pool - he squat/walks all over the area and even has started using our little donut float to rest his upper body on while he kicks his legs forward. He's almost always done in the water before Lydia is done, but he's super content to just get wrapped up in a towel and sit on a chair while he watches us swim. He usually sits here happily for 20 or so minutes - just chillin and watching the rest of the kids swim.

- "I hep too!" "Too, I hep, too!" This little guys always wants to help. Whether it's cooking in the kitchen, cleaning up something, or using a measuring tape - he loves to help. And he's insistent that you let him do exactly what you're doing. Because it's not enough to give him a little task - he wants to do it all.

--Other common phrases are "Mom, ope'nit" (Mom, open it), "Treat! Me!" "Me, too. Me!" The best part about these phrases (and most others) is that the words can be rearranged. "Ope'nit, mom, ope'nit" Or "Me! Treat. Me!" or "Too! Me, too!" It's so funny. When he wants something he says "Me! Me! Me!" and he can sense a "treat!" from a mile away.

-He's started singing real songs this month and it's so darling I can hardly contain it. His favorites are "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" and "Shoo Fly, Don't Bother Me" (the second verse of this is my favorite: "Feeh, feeh, shuh dar!" = I feel, I feel, I feel like a shooting star.) He's also started singing the alphabet song and although he doesn't sing every letter, he gets many of them right at the correct times. He's just the best. 

Little Austin, this is the last post that I'm going to write to you before you turn the big T-W-O. I can't believe it's almost your birthday. As I look through these pictures, and as I think about this past month - I know I shouldn't be surprised because you are so big and you're growing so much every single day. We love you and we're so glad you're in our family. Here's to the last 31 days of my baby-Austin because in one month you'll officially be a toddler, and I know you'll never look back.

The land of forgotten Instagram posts

A post by David

Often I take a great picture and have intentions to do an awesome Instagram post. Then things get busy and for some reason or another it never gets posted. Sometimes I think about posting a whole bunch at once, but somehow there are silly unspoken rules about "double posts." Any time I see someone apologize for posting two posts in one day (gasp) I wish they wouldn't. I'd like to post as many as I want and figure if people don't want to see 8 cute pictures of my kids in one day, they will probably stop following me. However, usually that social faux pas is enough to stop me from posting 10 pictures at once, Those pictures get lost in the land of forgotten posts. It is a sad place where the best pictures are lost and forgotten and have to live a life of shame with no cool hashtags. Well- I say no more- no more will these pictures be lost and forgotten, so I'd like to introduce you to the land of forgotten Instagram posts. 

Austin just being cute. He loves getting behind the wheel and driving. Unfortunately his parents are not really cool car people, so he will probably think that the Nissian Sentra is the hippest car on the planet. #notquite16

Poor Austin is feeling sick, luckily he has a mommy (a very tired mommy) to take care of him. The best part are his little fingers in Shantel's mouth. #whatagoodmom #feelbettersoon

Amazed at how good Lydia already is riding her bike, she is so fast! #wardwalkabout #checkoutthosestreamers

Lydia with a big smile on her face. Grandma and Grandpa Peaden bought her that shirt while they were in Hawaii and it even comes with a turtle friend that fits in the pocket. #dreamingofahawaiivacation #keepsmiling

Lydia is so stylish! I love the soccer shorts with footie pajamas underneath. We've been telling her it is too hot to wear footie pajamas and that she needs to wear shorts. She is a very good listener, even if that was not the intent.

Austin rolling around and being cute in his bed. He has such a great sense of humor.

Shantel has been dreaming of this project for months and we finally bought the peel and stick tile and made a "wooden" wall behind the toilet. It turned out amazing and I have to give Shantel credit for always being willing to try anything. #success #nowshewantstodecorate

Happy Fathers day to me. This is one of the sweetest things and it absolutley melts my heart to see Lydia and Shantel and Austin put together such nice Father's Day gifts.

I loved this question and answer that Lydia did in class, here are her answers with my commentary. Some of these things are true and some of them are so funny because they are Lydia's favorites.

 By Lydia: Age: 4 Year: 2016

My Dad's Name is: David

My dad is 64 years old. (Shantel and Lydia both think this)

My dad has whitish brown hair and blue eyes. (True)

My dad's job is he works at work. (True)

My dad's favorite food is hot dogs & his favorite treat is donuts and Popsicle's. (These are Lydia's favorites, cute that she said those for me)

My dad's favorite color is all of the colors. (Also, this is Lydia)

My dad likes to wear t-shirt & warm pants. (T-shirt: true, warm pants: false)

My dad laughs when we play silly games. (True)

My dad is happy when he is home. (True)

My dad gets mad when I hit him. (True)

My dad always says, "I don't know." (This is something Lydia always says)

My dad calls me Lydia (True- for a while I called her Lyddie or Lyddie-bug, but she requested to just be called Lydia, so we always call her Lydia)

My favorite thing about my dad is he plays chase the monster.

I love my dad because he gives me stuff when I want something.

My dad loves me because he likes to play chase the monster. (This is one of our favorite things to do together- even if it takes a lot of energy, usually she wants to play this right when I get home from work).

Contemplating buying this to hang above our tech center. Thoughts? #classybutcool #hour3inikea #notsurehowtogetout #notsurewewantto

Love this shot of Lydia and Austin with Camille.

Told Shantel I would buy groceries tonight because she has not been able to get to the store. Now I have a full cart and the registers are down at wal-mart. They hope to have them up soon, so I am just hanging out reading a book. #registerswerenotfixed #2hourwalmarttripandnogroceries #gotosaratogaspringsnexttime

Saturday morning. Rare for Lydia to fall back asleep after she is awake, but oh so nice when she does and will cuddle in bed. #loveweekends #lovemywifewhoisupwithAustin

Nothing like the thrill of riding a roll coaster. #7peaksfunpark #thrillseeker

Love seeing these two play together. So cute to see Austin wrestle Lydia and so nice that she will happily let him smother her. #bestfriends #downforthecount

Went to dinner with our friends Amy and Derek Perkins and stopped at a bakery on the way home and had delicious cupcakes. #Bombayrestaurantinprovo

I know this is not the prettiest picture, but I am pretty proud, and I have worse pictures. This was my guide on what the sink should look like so I could put it back together. I am not a handyman at all and struggle with those kind of things. Our sink has been leaking and finally got worse to the point that I needed to do something. I took the sink apart, went and bought some replacement parts and then put it back together and now it is working perfectly. Glad I was able to figure it out feeling proud. #installedincorrectlybythebuilder #Iamawesome

Lydia has really been loving Paw Patrol lately. She loves the shows, but also has some little pup figurines that she will play with for hours. At the store she found a whole section of Paw Patrol clothes. We took a picture of every single thing so she could remember that she wanted to save her money and come back and buy all of it. I love her in this hat. #pawpatrolreadyforaction

So grateful for this beautiful family. Shantel and I recently went and saw "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat." We really enjoyed the play, but recently I have been thinking about the lesson behind the play. Joseph was inspired to save during the 7 years of plenty so they would be ready during the 7 years of famine. I think that Shantel and I have been incredibly blessed and we are really enjoying this time of life. Spiritually I hope that we are treating these as the 7 years of plenty and building up our spiritual reserves so that we can be ready for the 7 years of famine or trials that we all face. Then we can be a strength to our children and family during those times despite any trials that may come.