our 1st MONSTER JAM:

 brad and kathy got us tickets for MONSTER JAM WORLD FINALS!! maddex has had a serious obsession with monster trucks since he was about 15 months old. so grandma knew he would LOVE this... how cool. maddex was in heaven. he loves "big trucks"- he was constantly entertained. our seats were awesome... thanks to tanners uncle leroy who had a great hook-up. we went with a group about 30. we all tailgated before in the parking lot- and it was so much fun. we had a great time at our first MONSTER JAM... whoo... every time i say it i just want to scream it.. and be kind of (trashy). we were livin' it up- that is our kind of fun. 

p.s. the camera crew came over and taped us for a while.. we were so excited. we came home and tivo'd it for the day it was supposed to be on. we were watching it the other night- well we werent really watching it- it was on while we were doing things around the house... i looked up and there i was on the tv... i just started screaming... lol.

this picture cracks me up. maddex sure does love his grandpa brad...

oh and that hat brad- takes you to a whole new level... ;)

for like weeks after... maddex would out of nowhere say- big truck, wheel, crash.  in that order- and then go back to playing. i think almost every truck lost a wheel at some point in the night.

i can't wait until next years  MONSTER JAM WORLD FINALS!!

a parent's dream...

childs' play. we found this place by our house- and we love it. as soon as we walked in and saw the basketball court- we knew it was going to be a hit! our first visit lasted 3 hours. it is a great place for maddex to start learning how to play with other kids and it has a really nice "parents area" - with couches, a food bar, wi/fi, plasmas, and mac computers. i mean come-on.. this is a parents dream. :) i mean, why didn't i think of this. it is great for a place like lv, where it gets too hot to play outside. it is super safe and keeps kids busy forever. they have a ton of classes to offer... oh and did i mention... an adorable kids hair salon, toy boutique and photo studio? if you haven't been there- you really need to check it out. we bought maddex a membership and have been there everyday since. he really loves it. 

maddex loves this bear... it is bigger than life.

this is pretty awesome... i don't know how it's done but it is a "movement wall" 

maddex always goes down slides on his stomach, we have to flip him over and force him down on his butt.i know, cruel.

our valentines:

happy valentine's day.. late. maddex had his first "valentine's party" at cherubs (a bunch of us girls with little kids get together on thursdays and hold a music/singing time for the kids. so fun.) maddex was pumped up to give his valentines... momma made some especially for him- they had his favorite on them.. trains and trucks. he loved them. grandma kathy got maddex the adorable shirt he had on... and yes- it is true. i made the cupcakes for the party- they were very yummy- atleast it looks like m. enjoyed them. oh i love valentines... i love being loved and love showing people that i love them.

maddex and i made some homemade cards and sent off to grandmas and grandpas. delivered some cupcakes to grandma anna and grandpa grant. we had heart pancakes and enjoyed a fun dinner with justin and michelle where other than- sammys.. my favorite. we had a fun night. thanks guys. hope everyone had a LOVELY valentines.

m's valentines

this picture cracks me up. 

maddex favorite part is having a parade with bells

maddex has a hard time with "giving", like most kids...  but he did really well with his valentines

maddex's hair has a mind of it's own... we couldn't get that one piece down all day. ha

clean up, clean up...

maddex is such a good listener. now that he is old enough to realize a few things- we've started crackin' down.. ha/ha. when maddex is at home, he is simply a destroyer... and all day long- i would clean up toys. so we made a rule that before he takes his nap- he has to help clean up all the toys. after a few days of this new rule- he is starting to get the hang of it.

p.s. don't you just wanna squeeze him grammy hemmer?

the bus.

maddex is obsessed with buses. when we were home in pa.. we took him to see the buses @ pappy glens house. he loved them. he was so excited to see them. everyday since... whenever he sees the video camera... he says, "bus, bus" until you show him the video of the buses... so here it is- for everyone to see. 

*i must add... bus #12 in the video was the very bus i rode.. 

K-10th :)

the new do:

is where it all happened. it was time to get the first official haircut. i was nervous... i spent days researching the best salons in las vegas, and everytime i'd ask someone- they'd say- "oh, take him to cool cuts, or snips.n.clips..." i thought to myself- no way. i tried to fight it. i talked myself out of it several times...  and when it all came down to it- i gave in. - i knew maddex would love it and it would be fun for him.. despite their haircutting skills. as soon as we walked in- he went nuts. he loved playing with their brio train set. then it was off to the haircut. he had the option between a car or a train, and suprised me by his pick... he chose the train. i though for sure he'd pick the car. we picked elmo for our dvd. i was nervous... i couldn't stop biting my nails. i loved nothing more than his long shaggy hair... but i knew it was time for a trim. i was fun... until she got out the clippers. as soon as those things fired up... i about died. i wanted to cry... it was then that i said, "what am i doing"..... this is not a trim... this is a cut. 

i put a smile... but wanted to cry. i strapped him in his seat... and started home. i kept turning around to look at it... hoping it would be longer in a few seconds. it took some getting used to.. and a lot of fixing.. and believe me- i am not a hair cutter, but i could have done better than this chick. never again. he will never again get his hair cut... you think i'm kidding... i'm so not.

friday night fun:

music in the park. we met up with "samalise" on friday night for some music in the park. it was so nice to just lay out a blanket... and enjoy what was going on around us. we didn't know the music but it didn't even matter- we love doing things outside and it is nice to feel like you are part of a fun community. these are the types of things i miss from back home. the boys played at the park right beside us and we just relaxed. 

momma's boy.

maddex loves to lay on me like this... 

throwing rocks... always throwing rocks!

maddex got his very first glow-stick...

and one for peter.

oh, and icee's too. (their faces cracked me up)

what a fun night!