WE DID IT!!!

Yep thats right folks! After 3 years of having a binkie, we finally took Madison's away on Saturday! I have been telling myself for what, the past year that she is too old for a binkie, but she was so attached I couldn't do it. Saturday we went to Fashion Place Mall and went to Build-A-Bear. We let Maddie pick out her very own bear,(which by the way she picked a dog..), and told her that we were going to put her binkies inside the dog. I wanted to make it her decision to not have a binkie, so I said if she didn't want to she didn't have too. Well she wanted that dog pretty bad, so she agreed. We went through the whole building-a-bear process, and Madison put her binkie inside the bear with its heart. The girl stitched up the back, and it was gone. Madison was so excited for her new puppy! So we go to the car and her first question is: "Mom, can I have my binkie please?" Break my heart!! I explained that her binkie was inside the dog, so if she wanted her binkie she needed to just hug her puppy instead. Yeah not so much! She cried and cried. I felt horrible! What a bad mom to take her most prized possession away, and give her a dumb stuffed puppy instead. But Chris said I had to stick to my guns, so we kept reminding her that her binkie was in her puppy when she would ask for it. Well that night she cried for an hour and a half before she fell asleep. The next night, an hour, and last night 45 minutes. So it is getting better. Over all she is doing pretty good. She has asked for it a lot less than I expected she would, and the meltdowns are not lasting as long when we say no too. We had to do it. She is a smart enough girl that I think she knew she didn't need it anyways, but it was just a habit. I think I am the one who needed the binkie. It would stop tantrums, and she would go right to sleep with it. Oh well, one more phase we have completed in the many more to come!

Yellowstone

I have been meaning to post about this trip for a week now, but I guess was dreading how long it might take. So sorry for the long post. ;)

We went with my family to Yellowstone for a little "last trip" before Brandon leaves on his mission on the 30th of July. So we drove to Rexburg and stayed there and drove into Yellowstone for 2 days. Then the 3rd day we went to Bear World, which is in Rexburg. We had a blast! Thanks mom and dad for all the fun!

There were lots of wildlife just by the road, so we could pull over and take a peek at everything. These Elk were drinking from the river, and didn't seem to mind us being there.

This bison was just taking a stroll down a bridge and holding up traffic. It was so funny! We were seriously 3-4 feet away from the bison as it passed us on the bridge, and it didn't even stop.

Chris was zoomed out as far as possible on our camera when the bison passed him, so you can tell how close he was...

Madison wanted to "pet" every animal we saw.

These things are HUGE!!!

Brandon took this picture of the one and only bear we saw in Yellowstone. The Forrest Rangers were making everyone move back, because you are "supposed " to stay 100 yards away from the bears. Brandon snuck down and caught this picture just in time. He was probably about 40 yards away from the bear when he took this picture. hehehe

Bear World
In Bear World, we were able to get up close to the bears in our cars. They would pass by as if we were a moving tree. We also went on this tour at Bear World, where we actually got to feed the bears from a huge truck. That was the best!

Grizzly Bear

These pictures are when we were feeding the bears. They would come over to the truck, and motion with their paws for food. It was so fun! Madison loved it!

They even had rides at Bear World. This one was our favorite! It was kinda like a small cheap kid version of the Rocket at Lagoon, only it didn't go up as high, or drop you all at once.

Madison didn't love it as much as the rest of us...

Our "Bear" Family

They even had a petting zoo. Madison got to pet a momma dear and her fawn. It was so cute!

This pig loved her!!! She would pet it and it would lay down on her feet and purr, if pigs can purr...

Madison County

The other fun thing, was that in West Yellowstone, it is Madison County. We thought that was pretty fun to have Madison's name everywhere. She loved it when she would recognize her name on signs.

Eternal Families

I have to take a second and say how grateful I am for eternal families. My sweet friend Cali, who has always been like a little sister to me, and her husband Josh lost their baby this week at almost 40 weeks. (Her due date was June 28th, and the baby died the 25th or 26th.) For reasons unknown at this time, their sweet baby boy Mac did not make it into this world. I have never seen such strength come out of a couple during such a difficult time. They are truly amazing! But it makes me so grateful for eternal families. They will see their baby Mac again someday, and what a wonderful reunion it will be. I just want Cali to know how much I love her, and how proud I am of her. We were just talking the other night, and she looked and felt so miserable, but kept a smile on her face. She is such a sweet girl, and if you could keep her and her family in your prayers, it would be so appreciated. We love you Cali, Josh and Mac!

MADISON...

Madison loves to sing!! She especially loves to sing the Little Mermaid songs, even though she doesn't watch it that often. If we are in the car or if she is just playing by herself, chances are she will be singing. I love to hear her interpretation of the words.

I love it! I especially love how she tries to sing higher than usual, and how she sticks out her tongue at the end! SOOOOO Cute!

Also, Maddie is notorious for giving dirty looks. My family laughs, because they say it looks just like me... Well we got a picture of her giving dirty looks, so you decide who she looks like. (I'm sure its me.. :( )

Maddies room!

So we have kinda had the "re-decorating bug" We have painted our room, the bathroom, and this week we did Maddie's room. It was a lot of fun to try to make it a little more modern. I had to post before and after pictures just to show how talented Chris is. We painted, and then put up beadboard and trim. It turned out exactly how I wanted it to. Thanks Chris!!

BEFORE

AFTER

It really looks so much better in person! Chris did a great job, and Maddie loves it. She walked into her room and said, "Oh my gosh, how beautiful!!" I'm glad she likes it for all the hard work we put into it!

Kids!!

Tonight we went to Costa Vida for dinner with my family. On our way out this man walked past us with a prosthetic leg. Well of course, my inquisitive 3 year old yelled as loud as her little voice possibly could, "Mom, what happened to that guys leg???!!!" So of course in that awkward 2 second moment of silence that feels like 10 minutes, I run every possible answer through my head. So finally I say to her, "Why don't you ask him?" So she did...Luckily he was polite enough to tell her that he had been in a bad motorcycle accident, and that his leg got a really big "owie". She listened with gigantic eyes, and then hopped away saying, "My legs are ok, huh mom." I hope we didn't offend that poor guy, but honestly what is the best way to handle those kinds of situations? I don't want my kids to grow up and look at someone with a disability and stare or point, but at the same time, I don't want them to pry into other peoples personal lives. Any feedback is always helpful!! Thanks!

Temple

Yesterday my little brother Brandon took his endowments out at the Jordan River temple. It was so nice to see him experience something so wonderful. What a blessing it is for us to be able to have our family be in the temple, and also to live in a state where we are blessed with so many temples so close. I think sometimes we take for granted how lucky we are. It was such a beautiful day, and I am so proud of Brandon and his choices! He is a great example to our family. We're going to miss you bud!