My Princess is 4!!

I cannot even believe it, my sweet Princess Payton is 4 years old! Sharon flew in for the weekend. It was so GREAT to have her here. It was nice to have familiar faces around in an unfamiliar place. Sharon has not missed a birthday of Payton's yet. She was there when Payton was born, came to Vernal for her 1st BD, Arizona for her 2nd and 3rd, and now Iowa for her 4th. Thanks so much for coming Sharon! Don't stop now, the tradition must carry on. Here is a picture of the three kids with their Build-A-Bears brought to them with love from Grandma Sharon and Papa Dale. We went to Chuck-E-Cheese the day before Payton's actual birthday because Sharon flew out the morning of the 19th. I took mostly video of the time there but here is one with Payton and her Chuck-E cake, letting us know how old she is.
On Payton's actual birthday, I had to get up and leave for Omaha to take Sharon to the airport, we left at 6:30am. I took Maggie with me and Ryan got Kutter off to school. He then took Payton to breakfast, at McDonald's of course, for a little daddy-daughter date. After that, Payton wanted to go to Wal-mart where she was able to pick out a couple small "prizes" for her birthday. I think she came home with some Lee press-on nails, a purple wig, and some lip gloss. She is ALL girl!!

Daddy went to bed when I got home from Omaha and Payton and I spent the day together. We went out to lunch with the girls, McDonald's of course. When Kutter got home from school, we had a little party and opened presents before Daddy had to go to work. She wanted a Nintendo DS like her brothers. She got that and a purse to carry it in, surprise, surprise. We figured we would splurge on her gift this year since we were not able to have a party for her like we did for Kutter. She got a game that you take care of babies on, right up her alley.
Ryan had ordered a Hello Kitty cake for her at Wal-mart when they were there earlier. She was so excited for it because it came with a real purse on top with a kitty that opened up to a mirror. When she got her slice of cake, she was not willing to wait for a fork. It was her birthday, she can do what she wants, I guess.



Happy Birthday our perfect little Princess. You are such a joy to have around and we love you so, so much! We are so lucky to have you as a part of our family!

Kutter Lost His First Tooth

Kutter finally lost his first tooth. He discovered it was loose when we arrived in Iowa. I thought for sure it would be out in a week. A month later, the tooth still was hanging on and did not seem to be getting any more loose. I really did not think much about it until Kutter came out of his room one night and said he had a bump in his mouth. Upon further examination, I found his permanent tooth was coming in behind his baby tooth. No wonder his tooth was hanging on so tight. I told Kutter he needed to work real hard to get his baby tooth out or we were going to have to go have a dentist take it out. Over the next couple of days, he wiggled as much as he dared. Finally, one night he let me have a go. I tried to tie a piece of floss around it but there was just nothing for the floss to hold on to. Every time I yanked a little, the floss would slip off. Kutter told me he would go to bed that night and would let me have two more chances with the floss. So the next night came. I still felt it would be hard to get the floss around it. I ended up pushing on the tooth until he said OUCH! This loosened it up enough that it gave me an edge to slide the floss around. I tied that thing good and tight. I can testify to you now that I was way more nervous that Kutter was. I was having horrific flashbacks of being a kid and my mom trying to yank out my tooth. I was motivated to get this tooth out for Kutter because I knew it really needed to come out. So I closed my eyes, gripped the floss, and pulled on that thing like I was starting a lawnmower. I screamed when the tooth flew out and hit me in the face. The scream was the only thing that scared Kutter. He was so excited that his tooth was actually gone. He immediately wanted to call his best friend from Arizona, Connor. We called Daddy at work and told him the good news. Later, when Ryan came home from work for lunch, I had to have him console me because I was so traumatized that I had to pull Kutter's tooth out. Plus, I was in shock that my child was to the point of losing teeth. Where does the time go?
Kutter lost his second tooth about 2 weeks later. It was a much easier process this time. The tooth was good and loose. Kutter wanted me to pull it out again with the floss. I reluctantly agreed but it went much smoother. The tooth came out like it was stuck in butter. It was almost fun this time around. I think Kutter would let me pull out any tooth I want just so he can get a visit from the tooth fairy. He is totally bummed out that he only has 20 teeth to lose. I told him to hit up his grandpa's next time he is around them, ha ha ha. So grandpa's, beware! Kutter is losing teeth and is expecting to be paid!

Taking Down the Christmas Tree

I had planned on leaving the Christmas Tree up in our apartment until we moved into our house. I was just trying to keep some life in the place since we had no decorations or furniture for that matter. Maggie had other plans in mind. I was doing the dishes in the kitchen when I heard the tree tip over. I turn around to see this:Now being the good mother that I am, I went and checked to see if she was okay, then I left her there to go find the camera. She, luckily, pulled the tree down so her head was sticking out the bottom. The tree fell on her from her shoulders down. She planned it well. I guess the tree had to get put away, I am sure she would not be so lucky next time. After the initial shock wore off, it was actually a bit hilarious. The funny part is, she was not even phased. Most kids would cry just out of shock, not our solemn, somber Maggers. Not even a peep!