Friday, August 19, 2011

Cupcake Part II -"The Fair"

 We got to the fair grounds Wed afternoon for final weigh in.  We were afraid Cupcake and a few others were too fat to be entered.  We crossed our fingers and he only weighed 303 lbs!  (The max weight was 325)  Olivia and Avery were side-by-side all week.  Adorable.

The girls made posters and hung them up above their pigs.  Aves and Livvy's pig shared a pen.  They were in charge of keeping it clean.  They were assigned stall 31.

This is Cohen telling Jake to make funny faces while I was taking their pictures and you can guess how the next few turned out!  LOL.  OH well.  Jake is Averie's Brother.

Next Day started out washing Cupcake and getting ready for the Pig Judging.  Livvy did AMAZING!  Her pig got chosen for Star Class (meaning it was one of the best pigs). 
 I was a super proud mom.  She was nervous but she did it, no sweat, with a smile on her face.  No doubt the cutest one out there :) (I am not bias)


 Washing Cupcake wasn't my favorite but strict rules told us they had to be really clean.  So we bathed him a bunch.

DOWN TIME:


 Coy was super amazing.  He did so good everyday and finally would fall asleep.  I was really proud how he held up and almost no fits!  Love him!
 This is when FUN hits the fan...fast asleep.
  He was Livvy's biggest fan.

The fair had a bunch of kid games on the down time.  Cohen and Logan did the sack race.  HILARIOUS.  Somehow I missed a pic of that?!?  Ok, so you might not know this about me and to be honest I didn't know it about myself, but I won a hula hoop contest.  Yes.  Me. Who knew??  Livvy is studying to be the next champ.  The games were fun and kept us out of the heat.  Cohen and Logan also attempted the egg toss and well, you know how that ended up.  Egged.


All three days that we were at the fair Cohen was MIA.  There were a bunch of bounce houses and fun things and Cohen and his cousin Logan were side-by-side and gone for hours at a time just playing.  I was litterally shocked.  He might be more cowboy than I think.  He did awesome and got sunburned but was sooo happy.  That made me super happy cause he wasn't whining to go home and I LOOOVED him be outside.



 Livvy climbed and climbed till she made it to the top.
Oh boy.  This boy had fun. 

SALE DAY
Sale day consisted of a lot of tears.  All day Livvy would break down and cry over her pig. It is a good lesson to learn but a very hard one for Olivia.  She has a soft spot in her heart for critters.   But she put herself together for the auction. In this pic she is in the chute, ready to walk into the arena by herself.  

 The pig was sold to Phil Lyman.  (Not a close relative to our Lyman's)  For $3.50 a pound.  She was really excited and happy because I FINALLY agreed to let her get a hermit crab with her money.
 She kept a smile on her face the whole time and she got a lot of praise for her hat! 

Brace yourself.  Sad to say this is what Olivia has looked like for days.  The tears just kept coming. At 10 pm that night, as we were leaving to go home, Averie and Livvy were laying in their pen with the arms around the pigs, sobbing.  It was a sight to see.  Daddy had to pick her up out of the cage and take her home to bed.  So my bitter sweet feeling about this whole thing is: I got to be with Livvy every step of the way.  I did it for her and I love her so much.  So proud. I don't even want to think about having ham for a while because that would make me a little sad, especially Cupcake's ham.  Enjoy Phil!

Cupcake Part I



All things must come to an end.  This one I have mixed feeling for.  Here is a glimpse of our summer with our pig.  (aka Cupcake)

4H had Livvy busy this summer. We had to do 2 hours community service which we spent painting numbers for the animal pens and painting fences at the fairgrounds.

 Addi came to support.  They had a lot of fun painting.
Then once a week for a few weeks she had 4H meeting where she learned the different parts of the pig and painted shirts and other important info with 4H.

 4H ROCKS!

Almost every morning (except when we were up North) we got up anywhere between 6 and 7:30 to walk the pig.  I could not have done it by myself because (frankly) I am scared of the animals. So I owe a HUGE thank you to Candice and Kathryn for going with me so I didn't have to go alone.  Candice was there every morning in case I needed her and that meant a lot.





She then had to take pictures with her pig to send out to potential buyers.  Her letter said:

To Whom It May Concern:

Hi! My name is Olivia Lyman. I am six years
old and just moved to Blanding from Cedar
Hills earlier this year! I was so excited when I
found out I could raise a pig for 4H. I love
animals and being down on my cousin’s farm.
My pig’s name is Cupcake. He is pink with
black spots.

I have loved learning all about pigs. My
cousins and I walk our pigs every morning so they can gain enough muscle. They need plenty of water
on hot days. My uncle helped me pierce his ears one day and put little cupcake earrings in to match
mine. That was the day I found out he was a boy! I guess that is why when I came the next day he had
taken them out himself!

The pigs are super funny together. They like
to be together as we walk them. It is the most
fun trying to get the pigs back in the pen!
They like to stay in the mud.

Even though I love cupcake I have learned the
purpose of raising him for 4H. I would like to
invite you to the following events:

-Judging Show: Thurs Aug 11 at 10 am.

-Buyer’s BBQ for all potential buyers: Saturday, August 13 at 11 am. (Bring this letter and it will get you
into the BBQ)

-Auction: August 13 at 1 pm.

All events will take place at the San Juan County Fairgrounds in Monticello.

Sincerely,

Olivia Lyman

Thursday, August 18, 2011

Livvy loses a tooth!

After the dentist knocked Livvy's tooth loose she was driving us all crazy by not pulling it out.  So....Jeremy tied some floss to her tooth, tied it to the knob and slammed the front door.  Yes, he really did.  Livvy was not going to do it and kept asking how much it was going to hurt.  But he did it without her saying "go" and ...........the tooth came out!  She said it didn't even hurt!  (But then she came over to me and told me it hurt like...and then she punched me.)  Whatever the case, Livvy lost her first tooth!!!


Sunday, August 14, 2011

Just Errands

For a while now I had all my errands up north planned for the end of July.  Coy needed a well check-up and we all had to hit the dentist off so I just happened to plan it around the Nordstrom sale. (What can I say, I am a Nordy girl!)  We were packed full of plans and ready for fun.

Maxon came to the dentist office with me and Cohen.  They sat in the chair and watched shows on the ceiling while the dentist cleaned his teeth.  The dentist even let Maxon pick out a prize from the treasure chest for being so good!

Livvy went to the dentist early that morning because she spent the day with her buddy Halle.  They went swimming and played till I finally got her late that night.  Livvy really misses her friends.

Jeremy ended up heading back to Blanding so he could work (and he took Coy with him).  After the initial feeling of guilt and missing Coy, I had so much fun.  I hung out with with Friends till late every night.





We got to celebrate Taeya and Maxon's birthday.  They both had summer water parties and it was super fun.

Friday, August 5, 2011

Family Campout

It is always fun to be with extended family and friends but on the weekend of the 24th, at the last minute it was just us going camping.  I do have to say it was so much fun.  The kids enjoyed each other and we all had a good time.  We slept in Jeremy's parents' pop up trailer and it worked out great.  Coy loved not being in his crib.  I had fun playing with my camera.









Livvy did not like J climbing the tree. She kept telling him to get down.




Coy enjoying dinner. Can you tell?

Livvy took this picture and did a pretty good job! J hates posing but I made him. 
When we made our fire pit we lifted lots of big rocks that had all kinds of critters under them.  The kids had fun watching the creatures.

When we woke up the next morning we headed off to the Monticello parade.  It was fun and we got lots of candy.

Thursday, August 4, 2011

Livvy running SOLO

Against my gut, (Livvy begging) I let Olivia go with Steph and the Ivins crew out to the Colorado ranch for the week.  From what I heard she was great in the day but nights and mornings were a little rough.  She insisted that she needed to call me at nights and Steph had to find a special magical log that gave her just enough reception to call me.  Overall it was Olivia's favorite place to be.  She hid from me when Tiff and I drove out there to have lunch and pick her up.  This is what she looked like when I arrived.  OH BOY was she a mess. (A happy mess that is!)

The boys came for the day too.  Of course they found the mud, let's just  say some more than others.  It was an eventful ride out with coy losing his breakfast 5 minutes before we hit the destination.  There was also a mishap with the cesar salad dressing too.  We were all a dirty mess but we sure had fun.  Livvy especially.  Thanks Steph for adding one more to the clan!


 Coy was a little nervous of the edge!


Steph also had the chore of buying Livvy a set of boots.  Livvy loved these boots cause they were pink.



Jessie had Livvy ride with her while they were pushing cows.
Apprently there was enough mud to go slip 'n' sliding in.  From what I hear, this photo is the least muddy!

Wednesday, August 3, 2011

Coy is TWO!

Ahhh...Sweet McCoy is two!  It feels like he was just born.


We had a super fun day.   Coy woke up that morning asking for his "5 balloons" that he has said he'd wanted for a week now!.  Every time you would mention the word birthday you could hear Coy shout, "5 Balloons" with his hand showing you the number 5.  We got to open his presents at lunch and Cohen thoroughly enjoyed playing with them.  :)

 The Flower Shop delivered 5 balloons for McCoy but we weren't home so they tied them to the door knob and 3 popped before we got home.  I don't think Coy minded but he did mind a little when Jeremy accidentally let the other 2 fly away!  Good thing Aunt Kristi brought 5 balloons with his birthday present!

 We hit the pool against Coy's wishes and went swimming for a bit and back home to give Coy his birthday nap.  I spent the afternoon making his cake and cake pops.  It took super long but I really was happy with the outcome.  (Thanks to Kathryn for helping me with some so we could be to the party on time!)




We headed up to the Dude Ranch for Coy's favorite meal.  Hot Dogs roasted on the fire.  We fought out the rain and we had a great time while the kids rode horses, Coy is obsessed with being on a 4 wheeler.  It was a fun family night.
 Coy loves Taylor and Baby Palmer.  Whenever we talk about a baby he says, "Baby Ulmer...Cute."


 It seems like one day I was worried he wasn't speaking and now he communicates very well.  He has NO Problem running over to tell me "Coco...hit me....Mean!"

Some facts about McCoy:
He loves Cohen and Livvy and wants to be a part of everything they do.
He needs to eat more and is super skinny.
He knows all the colors except brown and gray.
His favorite Color is Yellow.
He loves hot dogs, top ramen, and Mac & Cheese.  (Of course, nothing healthy.)
He loves meat.  No pasta or bread or anything else for that matter, just meat.
He loves to leave and go to Grandma's house.
If you mention the word 'go' he will run and get his shoes.
He likes bugs and he likes to pick them up even if it is a bee.
He will share but only if you have something he wants.  Not the other way around.
Even when he colors on the coffee table, and I get mad, he stops crying to say, "thank-you mom."
Very polite.
He loves his blanket and binky.
His favorite character is Elmo.

Dear Coy,

AHH!!  You are two and just as sweet as the day you were born. (Minus those temper tantrums you are learning about!)  I have loved to watch you grow and be like your brother and sister.  They love you very much.  My heart just melts when you show us your smile and as you are learning to be ''tough.''  You have such a big heart and love animals just like Olivia.  Be confident in all you do and know with all surety that you are loved.

Love, Mom