Merrill After All

This weekend we were in Idaho Falls for Maeley's blessing. Saturday was such a nice day so we decided to get out the "cycles" and go for a spin. The boys told me they didn't want to go but being the good mom I am I put them on with me and we went for a ride. For the first ride Brax told me he was "All done" but then he would tell me to GO FASTER! He ended up loving it! Taylor was hesitant too but once again ended up loving it. They would switch from my cycle to my dad's and wanted to keep on going. BraxtonTaylor
Braxton riding with Papa
Taylor and Mom
31 weeks pregnant and still riding cycles! :-)

Another post

I had to post once more today!

Justin just called and got the great news of

PASSING THE UTAH STATE BAR!!

We are so proud of him!! He was also offered an associate position in the firm he has been working for yesterday. He was working as an intern and now he is a full on employee and on a salary! First time ever!! Way to go Jus! We are so proud of all your hard work!!

Chad Reed is no more

and we have two broken hearts.

In our house anything motorcylce is "Chad Reed". This motorcycle is Braxton's favorite toy. The front wheel broke last night so I tried to glue it this morning only to have the whole front fall off. It is now sitting on the counter with another round of hot glue drying to see how long it will last. My guess is 2 minutes.

Hopefully we can make it until Christmas when we can get two new "Chad Reed" motorcycles. It may be a long few months :-)

Singing in the Rain

The other night there was a huge rain storm. We were waiting for Justin to get home and the boys kept running in and out getting hit by the huge drops. Braxton fell and insisted we take off his wet shirt and Taylor soon followed. They had a great time getting soaked!

Preschool

Today was the boys first day of Preschool so of course I had to get some pictures! Brax
TaylorKam arriving for his first day too!Brax, Taylor, Simon, Elliott (was visiting for the first day), and Kam.

We learned the letter "A" today so for our snack we ate carmeled Apples. They were delicious! After lunch I asked the boys what we learned in preschool and they actually told me "A" so hopefully things will stick with them :-)

Butterfly Cupcakes

The other night I went out with Em and we made these cute butterfly cupcakes. We had lots of fun and didn't get home until almost 12. Yikes! That's a little late for me :-) We made flowers out of starburst and sugar
The finished product

So cute!

The next morning after breakfast the boys and I ate the cupcakes. They weren't too sure about the butterflys at first because they thought they were real but once they figured out it was all candy they loved them!!!

Brax

Taylor
Messy Brax

Taylor showing me his cupcake in his mouth :-)

Pictures from the Fair

Here are my few pictures from the fair that I couldn't upload the other night. Quinn, Elliott, Taylor, and Braxton all loved their corn dogs. YUM!

Taylor was ok with the goat until it got to close! Taylor enjoying the ride with daddy!

Brax was done with the train ride after a few trips around the track.

The family ride :-)

Idaho State Fair

Today we went to the Idaho State Fair with the Hatch family. We entered the fair, walked through the animals, and headed off to the food. YUM! It's the best part of any fair in my opinion :-) The boys loved looking around and seeing all the animals. They are truly my boys though because they loved the food. They had corn dogs, fries, some funnel cake, and drinks. After we ate we went to the rides. Smart huh!?! We picked one ride, the train, and the boys had a great time.

For some reason my pictures aren't uploading so I will load them tomorrow but for now here are two great ones. Taylor loving his corn dog. It was huge and he ate a good chunk of it.

For some reason all the food got placed in front of me. Seriously! It wasn't all mine. I did TRY most of it though and it was delicious :-) Funnel cakes are always a favorite of mine and it was SO GOOD!

Liberty Park

The other day we met up with some friends from Spokane at the park. It was so much fun seeing them and seeing how big all the kids have gotten. We haven't seen them since May and all the kids are so big now! Ava was only about 6 months old when we started law school and then Taylor and Braxton came at the end of the first year. Then Lauren, then Lyla. Now we are all pregnant and due within a few months of each other. That makes 9 kids between us in a few short years! :-) These park adventures may be interesting next summer.Lauren (2), Lyla (17 monts) , Brax (2 1/2) , Ava (3 1/2), and Taylor (2 1/2)

Feeding the ducks

Playing on the toys (or the wall).

Family Home Evening

Tonight we took the boys over to the temple for FHE. They loved every minute of it. The kept showing us "Noni" (Moroni for those that don't know) and told us that is where Jesus lives. We love having the temple so close and having such a great teaching/learning tool so close. The boys know that "Noni" is on the temple and the other buildings are churches. Such smart little boys! So fun to see them learn and grow.

Taylor

Braxton

Daddy and his boysTaylor and Braxton

Attempt #1

Is it considered failure when you try to potty train for 5 hours and the kids just isn't understanding? After 12 pairs of underwear, 3 loads of laundry (had to wash the underwear because I don't have enough and blankets trying to avoid the carpet), and lots of carpet cleaning we gave up on Taylor potty training today. He just wasn't understanding. He would say he had to pee and then get on the potty and then sit there and nothing. 2 minutes later he would pee on the floor. He did make it to the potty once and then when we went into the kitchen to get a treat he peed all over the floor. We will just try again when he is a little

older and more interested in it all.

Good try little buddy!

Powder Mountain Races

We had a great time watching Chad and Justin race yesterday. The boys loved all the action! The parking and people were absolutly crazy and there were so many of them!! The race was put on by Jeremy Mcgrath, a Pro motocross racer. It was fun watching him take the course...(I thought this was pretty cool picture with Tydon and Mcgrath)

My favortie part of the races is the starting. To hear all the motorcycles start at the same time and then go! AWESOME! :-)

Chad and Justin are in this mess of riders somewhere.

My nephew Kamdon loves cycles and he is passing that love on to my boys. Whenever they saw the racers they would yell "Go Chad Reed" (another pro racer that wasn't there). However Kam thinks that Chad Merrill and Chad Reed are the same! :-)

Chad racing... Justin racing...

The boys having some fun. It was hot and there was lots of walking but the boys were troopers! Eating lunch...

Sorry for the mess in your truck Jus.

Inspired: Rain Gutter Bookshelves

Inspired: Rain Gutter Bookshelves

I think this is the cutest idea! Love it! Just need a house to have a room like this :-)

My stinkin cute niece

Maeley Lynn Browning Congrats to Sar, Dave, and Makinley. She is so sweet and we can't wait to see her. My boys keep seeing pictures and smiling with an attempt to say Maeley.