Nyles' 4th Birthday!

On Friday, August 12th Nyles turned 4 years old!  He was so excited for his birthday, he couldn't stand it!  He has been asking how many days until his birthday since about 3 weeks leading up to his birthday.  I let him take my desk calendar and put in his room so he could see it as a reminder of when it would be.  Needless to say he was SUPER excited when his birthday finally got here.  Now he asks if he can have his birthday again.  Of course we tell him next year it'll come again, so we have to wait until then.  He didn't really like that answer though.  He was hoping every day could be his birthday :)

Since Nyles loved his swim lessons so much, when we asked him what he wanted to do for his birthday, he said SWIM!  We decided to go try out the newer Draper outdoor pool, since we heard good things about it, and we had never been there.  We invited his cousins to come w/ us, then come back to our place for pizza, cake and ice cream afterwards.  Shortly before we were going to leave to go swimming, Carter fell asleep.  So I told Steve to go ahead and I'd catch up as soon as Carter woke up.  Well, Carter apparently was really tired, and slept the whole time they were gone, so I missed the fun at the pool.  Stacie met Steve there w/ her kids though, and brought 3 of the Lake kids as well.  Pauline showed up w/ Charlotte and Ezra shortly after they got there as well.  While they were gone I set up and got ready for the party afterwards.

Nyles ready to go swimming.....after we rub in the sunscreen of course :)

After getting back from swimming, Steve went and picked up the pizza.  Pauline followed Steve over from the pool, then Chris showed up after work.  Rose and her girls showed up, along w/ Dave and Joann.  Stacie came over after running home to change the kids, but the Lake kids had to go to a high school reunion w/ Melanie and Brandon that night.  We appreciate everyone coming and showing Nyles your love for his special day.  He had a GREAT day w/ his cousins and family.  Thanks again for coming and for the thoughtful gifts too.  Here are some pics of his big day.

Nyles first thing in the morning opening his presents from mom and dad.

He picked this one out himself.  It is a digger that comes apart and you can put it back together w/ a screwdriver.  He loves to "fix" things.

Nyles reading the instructions ;)

Steve insisted on getting him some Nerf guns. 

Steve said we had to get 2 so he could play w/ him :)

They're pretty fun actually.  We've been shooting them out in our back yard.  They sure go far!

The fish cupcakes I made for his party.  Nyles LOVES fish!

Swedish fish w/ bubbles on the cupcakes.

Nyles blowing his candles out.  

The wind kept catching them so it made it a little tricky, but we finally got it.

Chris, Pauline, Rose,  (Carter in the bouncer) Ava, Ali, Joann, Stacie and Phill outside on the patio where we had the pizza, cake and ice cream.  It was a nice evening again outside.

We came inside to open gifts.  

Dave was inside trying to get comfortable w/ his knee, so we brought the party inside to be w/ him.  We appreciate him coming :)

Nyles opening gifts.

A card from Great Grandma LuDean McGrath.  He also got a card from Great Grandma VaLere Hegerhorst and Grandma Cathy Hegerhorst.  Thanks so much!

Nyles had his 4 year Dr appointment a couple days after turning 4.  Nyles weighed 40.34 lbs which is in the 83 percentile, and was 41.34 inches tall, which is in the 74 percentile.  We were pretty surprised how much he's grown this past year.  He's always been on the smaller side, since he was born 3 weeks early, but he has definitely caught up now and then some.  Nyles got 2 shots at his Dr appointment.  He wasn't scared at all and was excited to get them, though kept saying afterwards, "Why do shots have to hurt so much?"

Nyles eating dried apples at his Dr appointment.  

Steve got a dehydrator and has been trying it out.  Nyles loves the apples; he eats them like candy.

Nyles got adjusted at the Chiropractor.  He was sooo excited too!  He definitely doesn't take after me when it comes to going to the Dr's office.

Since we met our deductible and max out of pocket it doesn't cost us, which is awesome!

         

Here are some of his favorite things:
-Nyles loves to be tickled, he'll actually asks to be tickled
-Loves fishing and hunting w/ Steve
-Love tools and pretends to fix things
-Loves to build things
-Loves riding his bike
-Loves stuffed animals and has to have several to go to bed w/ him every night, and a couple toys too
-Loves water: playing w/ the water hose in the yard, playing in the water table, swimming, splash pads, taking a bath
-Some of his favorite foods are: noodles or rice w/ Parmesan cheese, Chocolate chips, dried apples, jerky, pretzels, homemade cookies, pancakes w/ Grandma Hegerhorst's homemade strawberry jam, popsicles, bacon, and yogurt.

Nyles helping to vacuum.  

He has been a big helper and helps w/ chores in or out of the house.

He definitely is a thinker and is very curious about how things work and why things are they way they are.  His favorite word is WHY?  Sometimes he says it when he doesn't need to (like after every statement), and we're trying to teach him when to say it, but regardless he has a curious mind and likes to know more than just the underlying reasons.

Nyles enjoying being a big brother.  He loves to hold Carter, though he gets a little heavy at times.

                                           

We can't believe Nyles is 4 already.  He is growing up so fast!  We are so glad to have Nyles in our family.  He is a wonderful big brother too.  He is such a joy!  We LOVE him soooo much!

Carter's Baby Blessing

On Sunday, August 7th Steve blessed our baby boy, Carter Alan McGrath, at our ward building.  We are so thankful to everyone who came and supported us.  We really appreciate your love and support.  My parents came down from Idaho on Saturday and stayed with us until Monday morning.  All of Steve's siblings and their families were able to attend, in addition to two of my sisters, Rose and Pauline and their families.  We especially appreciate Steve's dad Dave coming considering his condition (he had knee surgery the month before and is still recovering).  Also my mom's foot is still healing, so we appreciate her efforts coming down as well.  We're so thankful to everyone who came that day, as I'm sure you all made a sacrifice to be there.

The men who stood in the Priesthood circle were:  Dave McGrath (Steve's dad), Grant Hegerhorst (my dad), Chris Grayson (Pauline's husband, so brother-in-law to us), Brandon Lake (Melanie's husband, another brother-in-law), Phill Monson (Stacie's husband, another brother-in-law), Ryan Hammett (Carrie's husband, another brother-in-law), Dave Thomas (our friend, used to be neighbor in our condos) and Steve who gave the blessing.  Steve did a great job with the blessing.

Baby Carter just before the blessing in our front yard.

Family pictures.  Nyles wanted to have his pliers with him in the picture :)

 My side of the family:

Back Row- Dad, Mom, Steve, Rose, Summer, Pauline, Ezra and Chris.

Front Row- Nyles, Penny, Carter, Sophia, Ava, Ali and Charlotte

Another family picture after the blessing at the church.

Cute baby Carter!

After Sacrament Meeting, we went over to a city park and had lunch.  Ironically, it stormed off and on, both being windy and rainy here and there.  Luckily we had a large pavilion to take shelter under, so it didn't bother us much.  We only had to catch a few paper plates from flying away and have the kids get off the playground at times when it down poured.  We cooked up a ham again (like we did for Nyles), and my dad smoked a turkey in his smoker oven he just bought.  Everyone brought something yummy to go with them like salads, fruit, veggies, rolls, and desserts.  We had plenty of food needless to say.  Thanks again for bringing food; we really appreciate it!

LuDean and Dave watching Carter while we eat lunch at the park.

Steve's side of the family: (we were only missing Brandon who was doing his church calling and couldn't get away).

Back Row- Chandler, Ryan, Penny, Aunt Diane, Phill, Conor, Stacie, Steve, Kim, Joann and Jeff.

Middle Row on table- London, Cameron, Isaac, Nyles and Alexa

Front Row- Carrie, Lynsie, Melanie, LuDean, Noah, Carter, Dave, Olivia and Ethan.

 My dad holding Carter.

Nyles eating a cookie with Grandpa Hegerhorst.

Carter had his 2 month appointment the next Wednesday as well.  He weighed 12 lbs 9 oz and was 23.25 inches long.  He also got 3 shots and an oral vaccine.  He cried for a bit, but was fine afterwards.  He's definitely grown since he was born.  He's such a happy baby most of the time though.  He coos at us, smiles a lot, and even started laughing recently.  He usually only wakes up once to feed at night, so we're loving that.  We're so grateful Carter is a part of our family.  He is such a blessing to our family and we are so thankful he's finally here.  He is such a joy!  We love him so much!  Thanks again everyone for your love and support; we really appreciate it ;)

  

Second half of July

July has come and gone.  It seemed to have gone just as fast as June did.  Summer always seems to do that.  Before catching up to August, let me recap the last couple weeks of July.  

Since Nyles enjoyed his first swim lessons so much and he did so well, we figured we'd keep the momentum going and have him take the next level, Preschool 2.  He did really well in this class as well.  His confidence grew tremendously in his ability to get in and under the water.  Like last time he wanted to be first in whatever they were doing, and was always first to volunteer for something.  By the end of the 2 weeks he was doing awesome!  He was putting his face and whole body under the water and trying to swim on his own.  He was also willing to jump off the edge to his teacher and do all the required exercised they had him do.  Needless to say, he LOVED it!  He passed this level s well.  Ironically his teacher changed every couple days, but he still did great with each teacher (we think the original teacher decided to go on vacation).  Here are some pics of him during swim lessons.

Nyles sitting at the edge of the pool waiting for the lesson to start.

Nyles racing to the end of the pool.

With his teacher trying different swim moves and loving it!

 Nyles w/ his classmates and another teacher (she was the best one).

Nyles jumping in; so happy!

The last day they jumped off the diving boards again.

Steve encouraging Nyles to jump off.

 Carter enjoying Nyles' swim lesson.  Just snoozing away :)

 Nyles went down the slide w/ his teacher.

My cute boys on our way to church.

Carter showing us his cuteness.  Nyles enjoying being a big brother.

                             

As I mentioned in my last post, we finally got our windows in!  They are making a HUGE difference.  Both in the noise we hear from outside and also with keeping the cool air in and the hot air out.  Not to mention we can actually see out of them now.  Who would have thought you can see out of your windows?  We are loving them.  Our sliding glass door was also installed the following week.  The first day it was installed Steve asked if Nyles left the door open because we could actually see outside now.  We're excited to open the windows once the air cools down as well, now that we have screens on all windows and the sliding glass door.

 Sliding door inside, before and after.

Sliding door outside, before and after (and now a screen too!).  

                  

  

Old windows outside-when we first bought the place.

New windows outside now.

On the Sunday, the 24th of July, we got together w/ my sisters Pauline and Rose.  Rose picked up her girls in Bluffdale then came over to our place a little after 7 pm.  We then shared desserts that we all brought and enjoyed the nice evening outside.  It was a little warm outside, but still nice in the shade.

Steve and Chris relaxing.

Ava, Rose, Pauline and Carter enjoying the nice Summer evening outside on the patio.

Carter just slept out on the patio while we all chatted.  He didn't even wake up after Ezra accidentally kicked a soccer ball and hit the bouncer.  The kids played in the yard w/ the soccer balls and petted the neighbor's cats.  It was a fun evening for all!

The next evening we went over to Dave and Joann's and had a BBQ w/ them and Stacie and Phill.  They're living there until their house is done being built the beginning of September.  It was a nice evening.  We went out and had a few fireworks afterwards as well.  Dave is slowly recovering from his knee surgery he had on the 11th of July, so it was pretty low key, but still fun.

Carter loved the attention from Stacie and London.

 Steve being silly w/ my phone.

Nyles holding baby Carter.  Carter not sure if he's liking it or not.

Nyles wanted to hold his giraffe as well.  He said he was holding 2 babies :)

Steve cut up some 2 by 4 wood blocks we had laying around and make smaller blocks for Nyles to play with.  Steve said his grandpa McGrath made him some when he was little and loved playing w/ them.  Nyles is loving them too!  Here he is building a swimming pool w/ a diving board.  Notice Carter is just sleeping away, not even bothered by the noise.  Hopefully it stays that way.

 Steve holding our boys, Carter and Nyles.

Steve took Nyles out to Zach's house out in Eagle Mountain, where they shot guns.  Nyles loved it of course!  Here are some pictures of them practice shooting.

Steve helping Nyles w/ his real gun.  Nyles relaxing in the shade.

 

Nyles getting ready to shoot w/ his gun.

Zach reloading while Nyles shoots his gun.  Steve and Nyles shooting the clay pigeons.

Nyles and I were playing out in the yard.  Carter was just relaxing and snoozing here and there.  He's getting bigger that's for sure.  He doesn't fit many of his 3 month clothes, so I got out the 3-6 month ones.  He'll have his 2 month appointment tomorrow so we'll find out officially how much he's grown in height and weight.  I think he's at least 12 pounds.  I also recently put him in his crib to sleep at night time instead of in our room.  He's done REALLY well thankfully.  At first I kept waking up thinking I heard him and then I'd go feed him every 3 hours, but now he's going from about 10:30 pm to 4 am, then goes back until 7 am.  I'm loving the sleep!  He's even gone a few times until 6 am.  This might be a perk to having a bigger baby ;)

On Sunday the 31st Steve and I had the opportunity to speak in Sacrament Meeting.  The bishopric asked us to speak the week before I was due, but then changed their mind since I might not have made it if I went into labor early.  They said they'd ask us after the baby.  They didn't give us a topic, so I ended up talking about finances and being prepared, and Steve spoke on being prepared spiritually for promptings and also our food storage.  He gave a great experience from his mission when he and his Japanese companion were caught in a huge snow storm and a neighbor luckily followed a prompting to go check on them.  The neighbor ended up bringing them back to his place where they stayed the next week and had to rely on their food storage.  Great experience!

Since I went first I also got to introduce ourselves a little.  I told about how Steve and I met and started dating, according to me anyways.  I based my talk from an article in the July's Ensign called "An Eternal Perspective on Personal and Family Finance."  You can read the whole thing here but I mainly talked about the 'hows' of finance.  There were 6 steps I discussed:

1. Pay the Lord first in tithes and offerings.

2. Create and use a budget.

3. Avoid debt.

4. Prepare for emergencies and build a financial reserve.

5. Save for short- and long-term expenses.

6. Protect yourself and your family through adequate insurance.

I also read the statement's from the August Ensign about preparedness, focusing on finances again.  You can read the whole article here.  I asked everyone to rate themselves on these statements. 1=Never, 2=Sometimes, 3=Often, 4=Almost Always, 5=Always

1. I seek ways to save money by reducing unnecessary expenses.

2. I regularly put money aside in a savings or investment account.

3. I avoid going into unnecessary debt.

4. I pay an honest tithe and donate a generous fast offering.

5. I take care of my possessions so they last longer.

The Bishop stopped Steve after Sacrament and said he felt we were truly inspired w/ our topics.  He said several families needed to hear what we spoke about and all of the families were actually in attendance that day.  He said he appreciated us speaking on our topics and mentioning that we weren't assigned the topics, showing that we were really inspired to speak instead of just the bishopric telling us what to speak on.  That's always nice to hear.  Hopefully someone was touched and it inspired some action.  We can all work on these areas of being prepared.  Thankfully Joann and Stacie came to sit w/ Nyles and Carter, plus London and Conor too and kept the kids busy and quiet during the meeting.  We really appreciate their help and support!  Thank you!

That night we played out in the yard.

Nyles and Steve playing badminton in our back yard.  It's nice to have room to play outside.

Well another month has come and gone and it's already August.  Here's to another great Summer month!  Hopefully you're enjoy some fun times w/ family and friends!