Maverick: 11 months old

The thought that my baby is almost a year old makes my heart break. How has this year gone by so fast?! I've been realizing there's subtle ways I've been subconsciously rebelling against my baby growing up. For example: as of a few months ago, he was still in size 2 diapers. I have no idea why I was not more eager to move him up a size or two! He's pretty doted upon in this house, we love our littlest dude.

Eats: He still eats baby food the best. From a spoon not by himself, but best if mom is feeding him not someone else. He loves chocolate, ice cream and meat. He loves any kind of crackers or cheetos. He loves his bottle.

Sleeps: He still wakes up between 6-7 AM for a bottle then goes back to sleep until around 9. In the afternoon he takes about a 2.5 hour nap.

Plays: Obsessed with climbing stairs and playing in the bathroom. He bats at the toilet paper and unrolls it then takes it as far as he can. Or he stands at the toilet and plays in the water. He stands on his own all the time and is really good at it, but hasn't taken any steps on his own  yet. He walks really well pushing things around. He loves chasing balls around and he gets around pretty fast!

Also: He loves any attention he gets but especially just wants to feel like he's a part of things. He's very social. He's happy and smiley and generally such a good natured baby. He is getting good at waving to accompany his smiles for people. He still doesn't talk really but occasionally will say "mama", "baba" or "maa" for more. He'll says other noises and chatter a little but not purposefully. Some of our favorite nicknames for him are: the Mav man, Maveronimus, Mavers, even the kids call him these. 

Firsts: First time to Austin to Grandma and Grandpa's, first time boating and wakeboarding (with dad). First major league baseball game. First time standing on his own.

joys of motherhood: july

This month was was full of so many joys, although I wasn't quite as good about documenting them. Here are a few to remember:

On the first Sunday of the month, our congregation holds a "testimony meeting" where any member can come to the pulpit and share special experiences, their gratitude and testimony of the gospel that they know to be true. Caitlin decided that she wanted to try. Paul asked her if she knew what she wanted to sat and she said yes. He walked up to the front with her and she confidently  stepped up to the mike and bore a sweet and simple testimony.  She said she loved her family, loved jesus and she was glad to come to church. She did it all by herself and I of course had tears in my eyes.   

Nolan tries to drag out bedtime with anything possible every night. He loves to be told stories and when I say "no more stories but ill sing you a song" he says "ok I want a song about..." and makes up these elaborate character and plot lines that I am supposed to sing about. Usually involving several cars and their dialogue from the movie. He is adamant so I basically sing a story to him and it seems to work. It's like "Cars: the musical" every night in Nolan's room.   

Caitlin wore a black and white dress and she kept saying "I just look like a zebra! I'm just like a zebra!" Then she stopped and said "But, I'm like a human zebra because human zebras can still talk and wear jewelry and stuff. So I'm ok, I'm a human zebra." You make it work for you girl.  

There's a popular song right now by Andy Grammer that says, "nah nah honey I'm good.." (singing about turning down a drink but whatever). I asked Nolan to do something (pick something up or come over, something like that) and his response was "nah nah honey I'm good" sung really quietly. I said "what?" and he sang it a little louder for me. I couldn't help but laugh!

"Good parenting is largely the art of being a supreme opportunist" Marjorie Hinckley 

I might add being really good at distraction as well

neither here nor there

the month of July via instagram

8 years in Ohio

Paul and I were apart on our actual anniversary (I was in Texas and he was back in Utah working) but were able to be together the weekend prior and the weekend after. For our trip this year we selected: Ohio. We mostly chose this state because Jeff and Melissa were blessing baby Olivia so we were able to be there for the blessing. Seemed like the perfect excuse for an anniversary state getaway!
Let me preface this by saying I had one of the worst traveling experiences of my life getting to and from this trip. It's definitely a good thing it was only me and not with my kids or I would have been a complete train wreck. It's also definitely a good thing this trip was so fun in between traveling!!

I flew out Friday morning and had an early flight. I was the last person on board and there was no room in the overhead bins so they told me they would gate check my carry on and lets just say that was the last time I saw it for the rest of the trip. It never arrived to Cleveland and luckily I had Melissa there to lend me clothes and makeup and then I bought a few other things I needed. Most spare moments we had were spent on the phone trying to track down my suitcase and encountering extremely rude and unhelpful customer service people. The whole thing was very stressful for me and gave me a pit in my stomach when i thought of everything I had lost. Nothing INvaluable, but plenty that was valuable. After arriving to Cleveland and finishing at the airport I took a shuttle to the rental car facility and selected my car and was in the exit portal when they told me since the car was under Paul's name I was to allowed to rent it, even though I was listed as a second driver on the account. I had to reverse back to my parking spot and deal with more rude and unhelpful people inside and, sparing a lot of details, I was stuck at the car rental building with only my purse and a cell phone that had lost battery and absolutly nothing to do but wait for two hours until Paul arrived on his flight. I was a hot mess of frustration and hormonal emotions. Paul arrived with my own pint of ice cream and saved me from the whole ordeal and we started our weekend together.

We checked into our hotel then went out to dinner then drove to an outdoor amphitheater in Cuyahoga falls to go to the Tim McGraw concert! We had found out just a few days before that he would be there and were able to snag awesome last minute seats! the drive was absolutely beautiful... so lush and green and huge trees everywhere. We had the perfect weather the whole trip.  The venue was gigantic, and we were 9th row. We were extremely overdressed and under intoxicated and the people watching was fantastic. Tim sang some of his greatest and we had a really fun night. We stopped by Jeff and Melissa's that evening so see them, the Dicksons and Andruses. It was fun to see their house and where they've made home for the past year.

Our hotel where we stayed was about 10 minutes away from their house and was an awesome location and fun place. The next day we slept in, got breakfast then met up to go to Cedar Point: "the rollercoaster capital of the world" and that it was. Due to long lines we really only got to ride on about 5 rides but they were all awesome! On one we went 0-120mph on 3.8 seconds then climbed 420 feet and came back down. There was one coaster called "Maverick" that we also loved! We had so much fun. Paul won a gigantic unicorn that he gave to Madison and Emily and it was later stolen in the parking lot. (Thanks to awesome guest services they got a replacement a few days later!) we ate tons of cotton candy and stayed 'til after the park closed at midnight. It was a fantastic day.

Sunday we got to attend Olivia's baby blessing at Jeff and Melissa's ward. Olivia is one of the most beautiful baby girls I've ever seen. She has the cutest round face and pretty eyes and she's such a sweet baby. I loved spending time with her and her cute sisters. We had lunch after church and went to Kirtland that evening to see the temple and visitors center and Newell K Whitney store and village area. We randomly saw my cousin Parker at the visitor's center too! We had waffles for dinner and played games back at Jeff and Melissa's.

Monday morning Paul flew out early and since I still didn't have my luggage I went shopping for a few replacement items. That afternoon we explored West Side market and got lunch downtown before heading to the airport.

I got notices that my flight was being delayed from Cleveland and I was going to miss my connection. I called the airline and they said the best they could do was have me spend the night in Chicago and get a flight the next morning or spend another night in Cleveland and fly out first thing. I told them these were not options and gave them a piece of my mind and eventually they switched me to another airline all together so I could make it home that night. Even that flight was delayed but it worked out fine and I made it back to Dallas around midnight. I went to check one more time on my lost luggage and found out it had been mis-tagged under someone else's last name and had gone to Pennsylvania. I got it back two days later.  

Back to the anniversary portion... I love my husband. Love that he knows how to cheer me up after rotten luck, love that he dances and tries to sing to me at concerts, love how mush he loves his family and how he always tries to make me happy. I love our little tradition of going to a different stat every year and so far not one year has disappointed... they have all proven that life in unpredictable and fun and adventure can be found anywhere when you have the right person by your side.

After Austin we went to visit my parents. In DALLAS we:

-Went swimming, shopped for toys, played at home, more swimming

-Visited the Perot Museum downtown and loved it! Some of the exhibits were a little old for the kids but they enjoyed it and also liked the kids area.

-Caitlin got to go to "Princess Camp" (hosted by a few young women in my mom's ward) and my mom and I took the boys to the mini Lego Land at Grapevine Mills.

--My parents were kind enough to watch my kids while I got to go on my anniversary trip with Paul. The kids had a great time with them and I'm so glad they were well taken care of and had so much fun with Grammie and Papa. 

-Ran errands and more swimming, got frozen yogurt

-Met up with my friend Jeanette Andersen and her cute daughter and went to the splash pad and lunch. 
-Went to a Ranger's Game! It was a blast, the kids loved it. I loved taking Nolan by "Nolan Ryan Expressway" and the kids were cheering and saying "Go Rangers Go" by the end of it. The cotton candy and lemon chills were a plus also. Our seats were great and we could see what was going on and the kids could get into it. 

-Packed up then played at McDonald's before our flight back.
The kids colored, did crafts, played with play dough while it was hot outside and swam in the morning and evenings when it cooled down a little. They loved having ice cream every night and watching movies and terrorizing the cats. Maverick got really good at finding an open staircase to climb up whenever he could. He also grew in his love of ice cream.

Texas Trip

Every summer should have a good Texas trip. We spent 2 weeks in Texas: first in Austin and then Dallas and we had so much fun. We enjoyed being with family and doing lots of fun things, as well as just hanging out and swimming and enjoying summer time... as much as you can enjoy 104 degrees and humidity. Geez!


Flying alone with three kids is always a little tricky. I've learned direct flights and a seat close to a bathroom is a must. Also nice flight attendant and fellow travelers... but those unfortunately I can't pay for myself or guarantee.

In AUSTIN we:
-Went swimming, had a movie night

-Rode the "Zilker Zephyr" train at Zilker park, went boating, more swimming and painted nails

-Went boating, ate Rudy's, hung out with family, ate Chuys, and more swimming

-Went to church, had family dinner, celebrated Mike's birthday, ate popsicles and had wagon rides

-Visited the "Thinkery" children's museum
We got to spend lots of time with Mike and Jenna's family and also Rebekah and Jordan. One special part of our Austin trip was that Paul got to be there! He flew in for the weekend to see us, his family and help celebrate Mike's birthday and everyone was pretty much stoked about it. The kids were a little unsure of the boating, they mostly just wanted to swim in the water but when Dad came out with us he was able to get all three kids up on the wakeboard and I took them all on the tube! The kids loved seeing their aunts and uncles and also playing with Bailey and Audrey! It was a constant party!

{ Dickson Days }

We had our first annual "Dickson Days" July 13-17th and it was fantastic. Each day had a different theme and we did activities, ate food and learned things about the theme. This is a tradition I want to do with my kids every summer.. a chance to unplug, get closer, learn and have fun with each other. We had a blast!

Day 1 was "Art Day": We talked about artists and creativity and what art is. We paintes canvases to put in their rooms, made posters, and did shaving cream marbling. We had a painters palette rainbow lunch, played with play dough, made melted crayon art, helped make a puppet theater and puppets then put on a show and had pencil shaped popsicles for dessert! I wasn't sure how many of the projects we would get through but the kids' excitement coupled with pretty short attention spans let us get a lot done! Everything turned out great and was fun to do! I love seeing their creative little minds working.

Day 2 was "Money Day": Tiny silver dollar pancakes for breakfast, learned about different types of money: what we use it for and why we need it. We visited Dad at work and he told us about how my makes money for our family, we got free lunch from chik-fil-a then we had a lemonade stand and for dessert we got to buy snow cones with our earnings! My kids have a super limited concept of money. They literally thought that Paul "makes" money at work... chisels and shapes and pounds out little coins. Caitlin was excited to have a lemonade stand not to make money but to just have everyone come by. She asked me beforehand to text all the mommies and invite people to come to her lemonade stand. We put out everything and when we were waiting for people to come she said, "Well where is everyone? Why aren't they here?" As if she was expecting everyone to come all at once for a party!

Day 3 was "Nature Day": We hiked with friends: caught bugs, collected leaves and ticks and rocks, and played in the waterfall. then we had a picnic lunch at the park, made nectar for the hummingbirds, and caterpillar snacks for us, then had a campfire dinner of hot dogs and s'mores. The hike we did was to Battleground Falls and it was about a mile there and a mile back. The kids were such troopers and there was no complaining. The hike even had a few steep climbs and they did so great! The waterfall at the end was really fun too. We had 5 moms, 13 kids (3 of them being babies carried in backpacks) and 1 dog in our hiking group. I let Maverick get down and play by the rocks at the base of the waterfall and he had no fear. He was rock climbing and getting around amidst the steep slopes and rocks and water!  

 

Day 4 was "Service Day": Taught the kids that "Service is when you do something nice for someone else". We talked about being Christlike, serving others, diversity, and being happy. We talked about ways that people serve us and how we can serve them. We brought donuts to our local fire station to thank them for keeping us safe and we got an awesome tour! We talked about how good we feel when we are kind and started a "warm fuzzies" jar. We made cookies and gave them out to neighbors. We also made hearts and "heart attacked" a few doors. The kids loved being sneaky and imagining how happy they would be when they opened their doors! I taught them diversity by cracking a brown egg and a white egg into a bowl to show we are all the same on the inside. My favorite part of the day was watching the kids be so quiet as they taped hearts to people's doors and ran away giggling.

Day 5 was "Sports + Science Day": When I told the kids what day it was they said "What's science?" We kept it simple with some fun experiments. We played arcade games and then had a Playground Olympics including: 40 m dash, farthest putt, longest bar hang, trampoline tricks and a slam dunk contest. Volcano cups and hot pots, the "naked egg" experiment, and home made lava lamps. We ended it with a RZR ride and some exploring, dinner and a yummy volcano dessert! We had to be a little flexible today as we had some other things going on, and a few things come up but it ended up still being a fun day. For sports I found that Caitlin was a lot more competitive and focused than Nolan. But if given a challenge Nolan will do it and he does have skill.

I felt like I had all these perfect little activities pinned in my Pinterest boards and saw other moms doing cute things with their kids and part of me felt like I would push it off until my kids were older, but then i thought "Why would i wait to create memories and traditions with my kids?" So I did the pinterest projects and I put aside some of my other mom duties for the week and spent time having fun with my kids and I'm so glad I did. I'm excited to see how this tradition grows and changes over the years to fit our growing family. We love being Dicksons!