SPRING BREAK! WOO HOO!

Yes, it's been a while since my last post, but nothing's been going on in our life. However, last week was spring break and it was a awesome!!!

Brent did well on his midterms the week before, and we completely soaked up every minute after. I had an afternoon to myself last Friday, did some writing and shopping and enjoyed some alone time. We vegged for the weekend, and then we had a day hanging out with friends on Monday. Ultimate frisbee, volleyball -- and sore muscles!

On Tuesday and Wednesday we went to Chickasaw National Recreation Area with our friends Jordan and Katrina, and Zack and Keri and their little girls. It was the funnest camping trip! We crowded all our tents onto one camp site, we had awesome food and yummy smores, and Drew and Ady got DIRTY!

Our camping spot was near the Lake of Arbuckles. The water was cold, but there was a big beach and we loved the beautiful weather -- in the 80s both days.

Drew and Ady, the diaper twins, loved playing in the water. Ady gave herself a mud bath and Drew splashed as much as he could. The big boys got brave and went out for a dunk.

On Wednesday we went to Turner Falls, did some rock climbing, kind of, and played in the water. We all got a little too much sun, but that's the sign of a good spring break in my book. :)

Drew and Ady found plenty of ways to get dirty. Drew ate some dirt, so Ady thought she should too. It looked more like fall than spring at the recreation area with dead leaves all over the ground, but it made for fun crunching and a soft landing spot.

(Yes, that's a dirt handprint on Drew's face.)

Both evenings we took a walk down along the shore of the lake and skipped rocks. Drew is truly happy when he's throwing things, and I think throwing rocks was probably the funnest thing in the world to him. He was so mad when it got too dark and we had to walk back to camp.

We watched the absolutely beautiful scene of the sun setting against the lake, and we caught these tiny frogs that swam in the shallows near the shore. I think that was my favorite part of the trip, besides enjoying time around the camp fire (although we didn't actually get to have a camp fire because of a fire ban -- we enjoyed the glow of charcoals).

Ady has one of these little frogs in her hands.

Zack and Ady by the shore

Thanks so much you guys! It wouldn't have been so great without you. :)


This was our first chance to get out of the city and see what Oklahoma has to offer. We needed the time off. It was the best week I've had since we moved out here. And Oklahoma has some beautiful spots. I can't wait to do something like this again next year!

His first haircut...

After two or three strangers telling us, "Oh, she's so cute!", we decided it was finally time to get Drew in for his first haircut. I don't think he looks like a girl, even with the long hair, as many of you have agreed. But it WAS getting long (when it was wet, it almost got in his eyes in the front and touched his back in the back), so it was time for a haircut...

(The before shot)

I took Drew to my friend Brandi, who does a great job cutting my hair (ironically, she grew up down the street from me in Brigham but I didn't meet her until I moved out here). I figured I wanted a professional to do it for the first time. I would have been way too nervous and probably took a chunk out somewhere. Drew cried a little at first, and fussed a little when she used the trimmers, but other than that, I just read to him and kept him distracted and he was very good.

Brandi put some folded up matts on her chair and put him in a cape that had arms. Everyone keeps asking if I was sad or nervous for his first haircut, but I wasn't because I wasn't doing it. :) Brandi did an awesome job, and I wasn't sad because I knew this was coming. I've actually been putting it off for a few weeks. Plus, I think most moms want their kids to stay little forever. I love this stage, but I don't want him to stay here. I'm excited to see him grow and learn, so this "rite of passage" into little manhood doesn't make me sad. He definitely looks more grown up and handsome.

I'm just glad that there's still enough to get mussed during his nap. I think it looks so good, but a little hard to get used to. It's quite short, but hey, he IS a boy...

(post-nap)

We're in the Army now...

It's even more official -- we're in the Army now! Brent swore in tonight and signed all his papers. He's now 2nd Lt. Brent Talbot. Weird, huh?

One of his professors is with the Army and he swore him, as well as our friends Dave Smith and Isaac Sebourn, in at the dental school.

It's a relief to know we're guaranteed money through dental school. I'm so grateful that we've had such a good feeling about the Army and we know it's the right decision for us. We could also end up living in some pretty cool places. :)

Good news...

Yeah! It's official: we've been accepted to the Army's medical scholarship program! And they'll start paying as soon as we can get everything signed, which means they'll pay this semester's tuition, books, etc. We also get the signing bonus and monthly stipend. :) This is great news for us, and we're really excited about the Army's program.

Brent will start out as an officer, but he does have to go to officer training. That might be this summer or it might not be until after school. We'll find out as we get into it. It also means we may qualify to buy a house... Either way, we're relieved to have the money sooner than later and know that we're doing everything we can to pay our way in school. Yeah some more!

Happy New Year's

We also had a great New Year's Eve at Brent's brother's house. Mitch and Julie have a new puppy; just add some grandkids and way too much food! We watched Kung Fu Panda, played pingpong and add lots.

Here's Drew trying to get Ace to bite his finger. He loves that puppy!

Mitch and his puppy -- Julie and Mitch are so funny! They're like parents of a newborn because they have to get up with the dog to let him out and are trying some discipline.

Merry Christmas!

We had a great Christmas! Every year my mom makes apple French toast for breakfast, and we all open our presents. It's not joyful chaos around my house like it is at my in-laws. We only have three kids in my family, and so we've always taken turns and watched each other open presents. It was a little more bedlam because now it's three of us and our spouses plus a grandchild. It was lots of fun.

Drew, however, did not quite get the concept of ripping the wrapping paper, which I thought he would enjoy immensely. He enjoyed the tissue paper littering the floor after the presents much more.

Besides his Superman beanie and gloves, he got several outfits, a nativity book and finger puppets, a shape ball, a big plush basketball and a little doggie in a doghouse.

My grandparents got Drew this cute little FisherPrice set called "Drew and his Rescue Chopper." How fun! It's still at my parents house awaiting shipping to OKC along with most of our other presents. I got new clothes, socks, etc., and Brent got the original Star Wars trilogy on DVD. Then my parents so generously gave us the gift of part of our plane tickets out there, which was my favorite gift of all. It was a great trip home, and very needed. We miss all of you so much!

Wow, Drew really is super. Look at those muscles...

Snow day...

We flew to Utah on Dec. 22, and Dec. 23 was snowy! I went to get some essentials at the store, but other than that, we just got ready for Christmas and stayed off the streets. But Christmas Eve was beautiful! Brent and my brother, Tyler, and his wife, Lindsey, took Drew outside to enjoy the snow.

They pulled Drew around my parents' front yard on a tube, then Tyler and Brent piled up the snow in a pile to make Drew a mini-snow hill. He didn't act really excited at first, but as soon as he got down the hill, he was saying "more, more!" He loved it!

My mom bought him this cute little blue coat for Christmas. He also got a Superman beanie and gloves. He had a blast until his pants got soaked through and he was cold. I wish I had this picture a few weeks earlier -- this would have been on our Christmas cards. It's my new favorite picture of Drew.

He also made this cute little snow angel after I went in the house. Next to it my brother made a big one, but you can't really see the proportions. But trust me, it was cute!

My sister, Sarah, and her hubby, Brennon, traded around their work schedules so they could be with us for Christmas Eve. My grandparents also came over and we had a great evening reading the Christmas story, playing a Christmas game and just being with each other.

These aren't 3D glasses. They're Christmas light glasses. When you look at lights, little images or words appear around each light. My mom bought them for us to go to Temple Square with one year, and we teased her they were too dorky to wear in public. We laugh a lot when we pull them out. Drew liked trying them on, although we couldn't get him to look at the lights.