When it comes to grandparents...

...We think we have some of the best!! Seriously, I feel so blessed that my boys have not one, but two wonderful sets of grandparents who love them, miss them when we're apart, and spoil them silly!! This week we have been lucky enough to have Grandpa and Grandma Marchant visit us. You would have thought it was Christmas when they arrived, the amount of toys, games, and clothes they brought with them! The boys were, of course, in heaven!

It was a pretty short visit, but we packed in tons of fun! On Tuesday, the boys and I went with G&G Marchant downtown. We visited the mint and went to Hammond's Candy Factory again. The boys were a bit wiggly during the tour, but the lollipops at the end made it all worth it!

On Wednesday, Adam took the day off of work and we headed down to the Springs, where we toured the Air Force Academy. It's such a peaceful, beautiful campus.

Walking up to the cadet chapel

We thought it was awesome that this airplane had Ty's name on it!

Grandpa demonstrated how to launch Ty's new airplane!

On our way out, we saw a practice drop from an airplane. There were probably 8-10 soldiers that parachuted out of the airplane. It was super cool!

We also made a brief visit to the Garden of the Gods. We didn't last too long before the boys wore out and the rain hit.

And we had a nice picnic lunch, too.

This morning, Adam and I were able to do a session at the Denver Temple with G&G Marchant before they left to drive home. We feel so fortunate that we were able to have this time together, and we already miss them!

Tooth Troubles

I'm pretty sure I cursed myself. Remember just two posts ago when I mentioned that I thought McKay would be the child that lands us in the emergency room the most? Well, we still haven't been there (knock on wood again), but on Friday we had to make an emergency visit to the dentist. McKay knocked out almost a quarter of one of his top front teeth. Weird thing is, I am not even sure how it happened! All I know for sure is that when I pulled him out of his crib on Friday morning, it was intact, and when I pulled him out of the bathtub an hour or so later, it wasn't. There were a couple of times he fell down that morning, and he must have hit his teeth on the tile, but I didn't even realize it. Yep, I felt like the poster child for negligent parenting when I told the dentist that.

I tried to get a picture of Mac's tooth, but he is a VERY wiggly 17-month-old, and I just have a basic point-and-shoot camera. So, I didn't get any great shots. This was the best I could do:

The good news is that there was no nerve damage to the tooth or gums. We were referred to a pediatric dentist, who we visited this morning. The dentist filed the jagged edges off the tooth, and I really think it looks tons better. She also said she would put a composite cap on for cosmetic purposes, but she wanted to wait 2 months to be sure the tooth doesn't die first. If it does, he will have to have a root canal, and then she will fill it in. So he is going to look a little goony for the next couple of months, but oh well.

Speaking of messed up teeth, check this guy out:

The dentist let Ty pick out a prize today, too and this is what he chose. Nice, huh?

My Ty Guy

Calm. Happy. Mellow. Sweet. Content. That basically sums up Ty's personality. In many ways, he is really a mother's dream child. He obeys well (most of the time!), he is easy-going, and is just a joy to have as a son!

Recently, Ty had some friends invite him over for a play date. When I came to pick him up, the mother of his friends said, "I have never seen my boys play so quietly!"

Ty loves to read, paint, do puzzles, and play games. Right now he is really into Uno (Mickey Mouse Clubhouse version). We play it at least ten times a day! When it gets quiet at our house, I never wonder what Ty is getting into. I know he is just somewhere doing one of his quiet activities.

Playing firemen with one of his best buddies!

Playing at the Littleton Museum

For the longest time, Ty has been really into the Disney movie, Cars. He has 20-25 of the little characters from the movie that he is constantly lining up or driving around. Lately though, he has all but abandoned his cars for his newest hobby, baseball. It actually makes me inexplicably sad that he and his cars are no longer inseparable. Maybe it's because we spent a small fortune on those cars :), but I think it's because it seems like he is just growing up so fast!

Racing cars down the ramps at the skate park with McKay

He is getting pretty good at hitting the ball, though! When he hits it, he runs a loop around wherever he is (the dining room table inside, the slide outside) as though he were running the bases! And he always slides into his imaginary home plate!

Backyard baseball

Ty is almost always singing. We listen to the primary songbook cd's in our car, and the kid knows the vast majority of the primary songs. Like, ALL the verses, and even the weird songs like The Prophet Said to Plant a Garden and I have a Family Tree. I usually don't mind, except when we are in a crowded grocery store and he is belting it out! Ty often makes up his own songs, or makes up lyrics and puts them to established tunes. The other day we were playing a game called pass the pigs, and Ty started singing "Give said the little pig." Funny guy!

If Ty has a fault, it's that he sometimes thinks he is McKay's mother, and tries to boss him around. But, I have to admit, it is pretty darn funny to hear my words echoed in his little three-year-old voice. I heard this coming from Ty's room the other day: "McKay, please don't get my stuff. No, McKay, that makes me feel sad when you take my things." (Voice escalating) "McKay, brothers should always love one another." (Full shout) "Kindness begins with me, McKay!!"

Sometimes when I am doing laundry, I will look at his clothes and think, "These are so big! Do these actually fit him?" He is so tall! His conversations have become so adult-like lately, too, that sometimes I have to remind myself that the kid is only three years old. For example, during our FHE on Monday night, Adam asked Ty what a prophet does. Ty responded, "Hmm...that's a tough one, Dad."

I had a conversation with him recently that went like this:

Ty: "Mommy, remember how when I am 19 I am going on a mission?"

Me: "Yes, Ty, I do. You are going to be a great missionary."

Ty: "Are you going to cry when I leave?"

Me: "Yes, I will. I will be SO happy that you are doing what Heavenly Father wants you to, but I will miss you SO much!"

Ty: "Do you want to be a missionary then, too, Mom?"

I simply adore this child. He is my snuggler; my sensitive, lovable boy. He is going to do great things with his life. I just know it.

My McKay

A few days ago I left the boys downstairs while I ran upstairs to change the laundry. I was gone maybe five or six minutes, and when I came back down to the kitchen this is what I found:

In 3+ years, has Ty ever colored on the floor, walls, furniture, etc.? Nope. And McKay already has before reaching 17 months. I suppose you could say it was my fault, after all, for allowing him access to the crayons. Actually, I thought the crayons were safe in a drawer with a cabinet lock on it. The little monkey has figured out, though, that even with the locks, the drawers can still open 2-3 inches--just wide enough for a little finger to slip through and get what he is after.

The crayons have since found a new home.

This kid seriously keeps me on my toes. One of his favorite pastimes right now is to steal whatever Ty is playing with when Ty's back is turned and take off squealing and running while Ty melts into a puddle of tears. He is definitely the antagonist the great majority of the time; the one who begins most of the arguments between the Marchant brothers. I know Ty was sometimes a stinker at this age, too, but he had nothing on McKay.

Mac is all boy. He is at his happiest when I turn him loose in the backyard. Without fail, he will find a stick or two and whack the trees or just run around with his treasure.

I LOVE this picture, by the way. It's just SO typical McKay right now.

I am predicting right now that we will make more trips to the ER with this kid than any other kid we might have. We haven't been there yet (knock on wood), but I just have this feeling...

People tell me all the time how well McKay speaks for his age. His verbal skills are really quite impressive. He can say basically whatever he wants to, and has even started stringing words together to create small sentences, such as "Hi, daddy!" (when Adam comes home from work) or "Oh, no! Juice!" (when he drops his sippy cup). In fact, McKay and I had a funny conversation recently. It went like this:

Me: "McKay, did you take Mommy's shoe?"

Mac: "Uh-huh."

Me: "You did? Where did you put it?"

Mac: "Um...hmmm..." (He paused as though he were thinking about it.) Then, "I don't know."

It was several days later that I found the missing shoe in a bathroom cupboard.

He sings, too. He has his own versions of several of the primary songs, with favorites being When We're Helping We're Happy and I Love to See the Temple. His version goes something like this:

"Da da da da da demple. Da da da da da day." He may be missing a few of the words, but he sings surprisingly in tune!

You know, despite all his boyish antics, Mac is really quite lovable. He says "please" and "thank-you" (or just "thanks") completely unprompted almost every time he wants/gets something. He is still 100% a mama's boy, and he still sucks that little thumb of his when he is tired or upset.

I remember feeling great trepidation the weeks leading up to McKay's birth that I would not love my second child quite as much as my first. Ty and I had almost two years together when it was just us, and I reasoned that since I would never have that one-on-one time with any other child, I might silently and secretly always love Ty a little more than my other children.

And then the Lord blessed me with McKay. Oh, my McKay. You are living proof that a mother can love her second child every ounce as much as she loves her firstborn.