more belly pics

I know these pictures almost look as if I am the same size but each week I am gaining pounds galore so I know either the belly is growing or my backside. Tate informed me on Sunday that I was getting really wide these days- I was able to go to church just feeling super about myself. I guess stressing honesty with the kids can come back to bite you in the WIDE butt!

hard life lessons

As an update, tonight we were able to replace Sparkle with a beautiful female bird named Tweets. Chad even bought some bird toys for the cage which seemed to just make everything better instantly for the kiddos. Liv still gets a quiver lip when Ms. Sparkle is mentioned but I believe her heart is on the mend for sure.

baby is getting big!

I have been amazed at just how big my belly is able to get! I am already 5 pounds bigger than I was when I delivered the other two. I keep thinking that if I seriously have three more months of growing I will just explode! Are not our bodies simply amazing? At night I am up to sleeping with four pillows and Chad must have finally gotten sick of rolling into fluff all night instead of his beautiful wife because he recently ordered a pillow that supposedly will eliminate all of the chaos I have going on in the bed. I am eagerly awaiting the ups trucks sound each day. Livia and Tate are growing so fast these days. ALL of taters pants have turned into high waters and even Livia seems to be eating constantly and has horrible leg aches at night. I have the baby's room in the early stages of readiness and Tate is going to be getting a new Batman room next week. He is so very excited. I am moving him into my craft room because let's face it- I truly do not have space in my life for crafting at the moment. A season for everything- right? I keep getting so excited for this little guy to be born. I love the thought of having another Chad Rhoton baby with big blue eyes and dimples. I keep having dreams of this little chubby baby hand with the little knuckle dimples pressing on my cheeks. I know the sleepless nights which Chad and I have been free of the past 5 years are about to return and I am trying to prep myself that I will soon have to leave my selfish ways again. For me that is why having a baby is so very special. I feel like it is an opportunity for me to be a better person. We really are working hand in hand with Heavenly Father when we are given the blessing of raising a child. I was thinking last night of all the mommies on my street with little newborns. It was 2 in the morning and I was settling back into my pillow nest and I thought about Divia and Lauralee and how they were probably rocking a baby in their arms at that very moment. I am excited to join them. (please remind me of this sweet thought when it really becomes my reality) Babies, babies, babies. It is all that consumes my thoughts these days. I am trying to download a clip of Tate and Livia when they were much smaller and more controllable!

IT'S A BOY!!!!

more pictures...

sleeping on the boat
Avery doing her morning yoga
Taylor marie our sweet!
Tate can drive the boat with his feet!
Livia sporting her new boots from walmart. Lady GaGa in the making!
Eating hotdogs....
EEEWWWWWW!!!
Dad holding Liv's Fish- What a whopper.
They were on a roll!

fishing at Roosevelt Lake

Chad took the kids and the boat to Roosevelt this weekend for some camping and fishing. I was left behind due to not feeling so well. As excited as I was to have a weekend to myself (moms rarely get that) I was so sad when they drove away. The whole weekend I missed them so much it hurt. I kept calling Chad and luckily he had service so I was able to listen to them have all of their fun. I was surprised to find out that Livia has decided she will NOT touch fish anymore! That's right our little girl who used to kiss a fish dead on the lips and squeeze them until their eyes popped out has now decided she can't possibly touch such a slimy thing. Shocking. I guess she would just catch them and then make her dad do the dirty work. These are some pictures sent to me on my phone so they are not the best. I will post more after I download the camera's pictures. I love that it is like 3 in the afternoon and Livia is just chillin' on the lake in her nightgown. It is always a party with Chad in charge.

the bugs

These kiddos have gotten so good on their ripsticks! I was so hesitant when they asked for them at Christmas after seeing some kids at NAU riding them but they have been persistent and now they can go just about anywhere! Poor Livia ended up eating it pretty bad that day. It happened only seconds after I stopped recording- yuck!

the pinchers were out!

We had the best Green party on Thursday! I even painted our nails green........and made a green fruit pizza! We had peanut butter and honey sandwiches on homemade green bread and ate grapes and drank green goddess juice. It was terribly windy at the park but we still had such a great time.

Pecker and Sparkle......

The kiddos and I recently bought some Zebra Finches. I had a million of these guys growing up so I knew they would be a pet I could handle. The kids were just ecstatic and couldn't wait to get them home. They were so cute in the backseat on the drive home with their little boxes containing birds on their laps. Tate decided to name his little guy "pecker" I nearly wrecked I was laughing so hard. He is so Innocent and does not have a clue what he has named his little bird. Livia chose Sparkle so it is settled- Pecker and Sparkle are now officially Rhotons! We got them home safely but as I was trying to transport them into their cage, I couldn't get a hold of them and they got loose in the house! It was terrible because Livia started crying and Tate was screaming so the birds were all discombobulated and flying into the windows and the ceiling fan. They finally settled in the highest window in the living room with vaulted ceilings. I was throwing tennis balls up into the window hoping they would fly down and I could catch them but it all seemed pretty hopeless. I called my dad and he told me to use Chad's fishing net and put it on a long stick or broom. Livia helped me with this. We tried to catch them again and still had no luck. Tate decided that we needed to say a prayer that we would be able to catch them so we all folded our arms. I tried not to laugh but my son's sweet little prayer about his "little Pecker' and sweet sparkle just about did me in. He did the right thing however because the minute after we said amen, both birds flew down to the ground and I actually caught them! It really was quite a miracle. We have enjoyed our little birdies and love to watch them while we eat our breakfast in the morning. We are hoping for little eggs very soon! If anyone needs a bird I am sure we will have one to spare before too long.......

{downtown}

the ever growing belly.....

I am getting a bit obsessed with this pregnancy! We find out Monday morning what we are having!!!!! I have been taking a picture every few weeks to track my progress. I have already gained more with this baby than I did with my entire pregnancies with Tate and Livy! I just want to eat ALL of the time and I can't get enough pineapple, pickles and sauerkraut........weird huh.

Bearizona!

I did not know what quite to expect when taking the kids to Bearizona yesterday. I was pleasantly surprised to come upon a small little version of Yellowstone! I will have to download some pictures of the animals- they came so close to the car that at times it was a little freaky. We saw buffalo, mountain goats, doll sheep, arctic wolves and of course BEARS! they were everywhere and not shy at all. They would come right up to the car and sniff around. The highlight of the day was the walking part of the park because we were able to see some baby cubs up close. They were so sweet and tiny. Livia was disturbed that they were not with their mommies. The park worker explained that they actually bottle feed the cubs because since the female and male bears live together it just is not safe for the cubs to be with their mothers. Livy still didn't quite get it so the worker then had to explain that the daddy bears will kill the cubs if given a chance. This about did Livs in....... she could not believe that the bears could do such a thing! It really is crazy when you see these big cuddly looking bears that they are capable of being so vicious! the kids had a blast and Chad was so jealous he did not get to come with us. We will definitely be going back again. It is all the kids can talk about today.

muddy horn hunting.....

Chad and I took the kiddos down by the Grand Canyon this past weekend for a little hiking and horn hunting. This is one of the kids favorite things to do with their dad especially, because they get to sell the horns to the horn guy and make some money. We had a big case of counting our chickens before they had hatched on the ride there. Tate wanted to spend his horn money on a new wii game and Livia wanted to purchase some "fin friends" with hers. It is pretty early in the year still for finding horns but if you are lucky enough then they are usually the big daddy horns. We kept a positive attitude that we would be the victors of the day however, the thick yucky mud threatened to ruin our plans. We had brought the 4 wheeler thinking that some of us would hike while the other two could cover more ground on the 4 wheeler. after suctioning Livia's shoes off in the mud and squishing around walking for a couple of miles we decided our best bet was just using the 4 wheeler. The question was how were all of us going to fit? Chad solved the problem by strapping a couple of Grandpa Sorensen's milk crates on the front of the quad. We stuffed them with coats and a blanket and made perfect little cubbies for Livy and Taters. Since they were on tight and we were only going around 8 miles per hour we felt safe. We ended up getting covered from head to toe in mud and had the time of our lives. Sadly no horns were spotted but our little family enjoyed piling on the quad so much we hardly could care. Chad of course was a little frustrated having to put up with a pregnant wife and two kiddos with short legs (that guy can hike for hours on end and not become winded) one of my main goals for the day was getting the famous wings in Tusayan. We had to strip the kids of their shoes and socks and roll up there jeans to hold in all of the mud and Chad and I were covered but I could not even imagine coming all of that way and not partaking of one of my favorite restaurants! We ended up getting the wings and turning the poor little restaurant into a mud mess. The wings were worth the embarrassment. I think all of the European tourists thought we were the definition of American rednecks. We got home super late and tired as can be with smiles on our faces from a fun day. Maybe we will find some horns yet............I need some extra money so I am motivated this year!