The Hat

My son is all boy. He loves Tractors, trucks, loud noises, wrestling with his dad, getting dirty, throwing things, and he especially loves his hat.

He wears his hat EVERYWHERE.
He has to wear it when he eats.

He pulls the bill down when he wants to ignore me.

There is no traveling without the hat.

Naps are not complete unless it is with his hat.

And, of course, the hat is required for a good night's rest.

Learning

Shortly after Lydia came home from the hospital, Ben learned she took a lot of mommy's time and wasn't going anywhere.

As much fun as bath time is, Ben has learned that we don't bathe with our clothes on.

Another lesson learned: Lydia's bed is not for Ben

On Halloween Ben and I both learned a few things. I learned not to keep the bathroom door open and Ben learned that when you put clothes in the toilet, mommy gets VERY upset. Benjamin also learned that the couch is not something we color on.

Ben learned that fingers can get pinched in the door.

Along with the hard lessons, we've learned some fun things too. Ben learned that the snow can provide lots of fun activities.

We all have learned how delightful Lydia is and she is learning how to smile.

Lydia's Birth Story

Thank you Kristin! We will treasure this forever. You have such a gift!

Angels Among Us

There is just nothing quite as precious and angelic as a newborn. Our Lydia has made our home feel about as close to heaven as you can get. Here are a few photos to show you how heavenly she is.
(I was the only one not taking pictures on the day she was born, so I'm getting them in pieces, but they are well worth the wait.)

Lydia

Lydia Genevieve Rencher was born October 6th at 3:24pm. She weighed 6 lbs and 4 oz and measured 19 inches long. The delivery was a BREEZE! I was induced, which meant I had an epidural the entire time and it was beautiful! I only had to push through 4 contractions and she was out, so I really feel like I cheated!

Lydia is so wonderful. She is just sweet and calm and BEAUTIFUL! I wish I had more photos to post, but I am very excited for the Birth Story we had done. A darling photographer, Kristin Brown, was at the delivery documenting it . I can't wait to show off more photos of our little Lydia!
Benjamin loves his little sister. He is constantly giving her kisses and always wants to hold her. We couldn't be happier!

Back to School

"Our Creator expects His children everywhere to educate themselves. He issued a commandment: “Seek ye diligently and teach one another words of wisdom; yea, seek ye out of the best books words of wisdom; seek learning, even by study and also by faith.” (D&C 88:118). And He assures us that knowledge acquired here will be ours forever. (See D&C 130:18-19)

Measured by this celestial standard, it is apparent that those who impulsively “drop out” and cut short their education not only disregard divine decree but frustrate the realization of their own potential." --Russell M. Nelson

I am married to a man who is definitely taking the commandment to gain an education seriously. He has decided to add another degree to his JD (Juris Doctorate). Should you need to find Mitch, you will most likely find him here:

At the Tanner Building of BYU where Mitch is getting not only his law degree, but his Masters of Business Administration. (I had to photoshop mitch into the picture, since I don't have a photo of him at BYU yet). Needless to say, he is busy busy busy, but we couldn't be more proud.

With Mitch gone so much, Ben and I have had to find fun new ways to keep ourselves entertained. During the nesting phase of this pregnancy, I've probably cleaned out each closet and cupboard about 3 times in the last month. This creates some fun new hiding places, so if you need to find Ben and I, you might find us here:

Good luck to all those back in school!

Hmmm

As I was doing laundry and cleaning up breakfast this morning, I noticed that Benjamin had become very quiet. I went searching for him and found this.

He was just laying in there petting his dog and hanging out.

At least he wasn't in the toilet! :)

SUMMER FUN

Ben & I (and Sophie & Kennedy) got a season pass to 7 peaks and I think it was the best purchase of the summer!

Benjamin seriously thinks he is a fish! I can't get this kid out of the water without him throwing a fit. He just splashes and swims and has absolutely no fear of water!

We've spent time with our friends. My good friend from High School is having a girl and is due the same day as me!! Congrats Linds!!

Benjamin has had some serious "Happy" Feet.

He absolutely LOVES shoes. He brings out his shoes and hands them to me - even if they don't match. He has to be wearing shoes ALL the time!

They don't even have to be his own shoes!

The Johnson's went up to the Weber's cabin in Wyoming. My dad celebrated his 58th birthday up there.

Benjamin even went down the GIANT slip & slide.

And since I couldn't go down the slip & slide, I slipped down the stairs and broke my toe!

WARNING - the photo is a little yucky!

I chipped the corner of one of the bones in my pinky toe!

The day after returning home from Wyoming with a broken toe, Mitch & I headed off to New York. I was probably the slowest moving thing in Manhattan. On the plane out, we discovered that our good friends & my former neighbors - the Heslops - were going to New York too. (Their hotel was even right next to ours).

Thank heavens for the Heslops. While our husbands were working, Joan walked around the city with me and I was SLOW (pregnant and broken toe). I can't tell you how glad I was to have someone to roam the city with me (I'm not sure how glad Joan was, but she was a good sport).

After visiting New York City, I've confirmed that Mitch has to be the best looking man on the planet. Nobody even came close.

GOTTA LOVE THE SUMMER TIME!

FOUR

On Wednesday, Ben & I came home from playing at Seven Peaks to this:

One bouquet for each year of our marriage with a note explaining why he loved me.
That night, Mitch took me here:

Afterward, we went to this movie:

I am probably one of the luckiest women in the world.
I love you Mitch!
Happy Anniversary!
It's been the best 4 years of my life!

& thanks to Sophie & Andrew for watching Ben!

Rencher Invitational 2010

Happy Birthday

MITCH!!
The night before Mitch's birthday, some of his family and I joined him for a crab dinner at Joe's Crab Shack. Joe's had him turn his bib around and wrote crab man on the back. Mitch decided that wasn't showy enough, so he grabbed 2 crab legs and ran around the restaurant while they sang Happy Birthday saying "I have crabs! I have crabs!"
It was a great evening! Thanks to those who came!

3rd Annual Rencher Invitational
For the last 3 years we have celebrated Mitch's birthday by having a Golf Tournament! Two of Mitch's favorite things in the world are family, friends & golf, so the combo is unbeatable!

There's the handsome birthday boy himself!

His stealthy team.

Andrew and the ladies.

The crazies :) and their beautiful wives.

Yes, this group is a bit outnumbered, but my dad made sure that he took enough shots to make up for the missing players!

My wonderful uncle and cousins!

I love this man more than anything in this world and I am so lucky to be married to him!

Thanks to everyone who made it to the tournament. It means a lot to Mitch to have those he cares about join him in the activities he loves!