Weekend for Luke!

Elder Chandler with Cade & Carson. It's crazy to think that in the next picture with these 3 together, the boys will be 2...running around and talking. We went to Twin Falls this weekend for Luke. He spoke in church on Sunday and reports for his mission in D.C. in one week. It was such a fun weekend with the fam. The weather was beautiful and Luke had tons of support from friends and extended family. It was fun to see and visit with everyone. Aaron was able to fly in from Virginia which was awesome. Unfortunately, Nan and Dillon weren't able to fly with him which was a total bummer. They were SO missed. We are grateful that they let Aaron come for the weekend. We are so excited for Luke. We are going to miss him like crazy but we know he's going to be such an awesome missionary.

Aaron always did this when Dillon was a baby. Cade didn't do so hot. He just kept collapsing his little legs. Carson, on the other hand, did pretty good. He kept his fingers in his mouth and kept on talking away. It was pretty darn cute.

We decided it was time for an updated family photo. We were just heading out the door to church. Luckily we got one picture with both the boys looking at the camera...that doesn't happen too often! Mom has Cade and Dad has Carson.
Luke, Lauren, and Cade. This was after the big yummy lunch.

The cute parents-to-be!
Shane took some cute pictures of the boys right when they woke up in the morning. They are always so happy and cuddly right when they wake up...then they remember that they're hungry!!!


Me and Aaron. He was feeding Carson. He'll have a new little boy really soon. He's an awesome Dad and is cute with our boys. I think it made him anxious and excited to have a new baby in his family.
Lins feeding Cade. Doesn't she look like a natural???

We sang as a family in Sacrament Meeting. This is always something that I have loved. Music has always been a big part of our family and we've sung together as a family from the time I was little. I wish we could do it more. This is Dad and Aaron during our little practice!

This picture turned out a little blury but I still like it. They were hangin' out while we practiced our song...too cute.

Lauren and I had the chance to go to a Celtic Woman concert. It was way fun. The concert was super awesome and it was fun to get out and have a little girly time with Lauren. She is always a lot of fun. Thanks for letting me go Shane! He had a fun night at home with the boys...such a good Daddy.

Prego Lindsay! She is starting to get a little belly and is looking SO cute! She is 18 weeks along and will find out what she is having in 2 weeks. We only have boy grandbabies so far...it would be fun to have a little girl!

Tucker Birthday Weekend

Mommy and Baby Carson. Two weekends ago we celebrated Grandpa Tucker's birthday. We had a fun weekend with Shane's family. I'm really lame though...I didn't even get a picture of the Birthday Boy. Sorry Tommy. This is the fam at Louie's eating a yummy lunch.

Grandma Tucker with her little Carson Man! She has a lot of little grandbabies to tend to and she does a great job.
These are the Tucker November babies. Look how big they are!!! Chase is super cute. We love that we always have a preview of what is right around the corner for the twins...with Chase being just 3 weeks older than our boys.


Cade with his Auntie Katie! She's just an awesome aunt. All the Tucker cousins LOVE her! Way to go Katie.

Our Cute Boys

Getting ready for the first attempt at rice ceral. They had no idea what they were in for. They are still hating it. Hopefully it gets better soon. I can't help but to think that they look way too small for their highchairs.

What the heck are you trying to feed me???

This little boy is loving his thumb these days. I'm constantly trying to get it out of his mouth and somehow it just keeps making its way back.

Carson also loves his fingers but it's not one in particular. He loves them ALL and tries to get them all into his mouth at the same time. Funny boy!

A new movie

This weekend was full of a lot of "firsts" for Carson & Cade. As first time parents, how can we not document all these little milestones!?! Shane is our camera man and had fun making a little movie with some of the highlights. We thought it would be a nice change from the usual pictures that are posted. The movie shows the recent experiences with jonny jump up and solid foods. Enjoy.

Just Some Thoughts

I’ve had so many thoughts running through my mind that past couple of weeks. I’ve finally decided to get them off my chest. Just a warning…it’s a little long! Our blog is mostly a picture storybook. It’s not like me to post a lot of my inner thoughts but these have been nagging me for weeks…it’s time to get them out! Here it goes.

The one downside to blogging, I think, is not being able to respond instantly to comments. I always wish I could start up instant conversations after giving and receiving comments. I seem to get a lot of comments that go something like this. “You seem to have things under control…great job!” Or, “You make having twins look so easy.” Gosh, thanks! I appreciate the positive words and encouragement. This is the problem, I am rarely feeling like I have everything under control or that I’ve got a handle on everything. I often feel the exact opposite...feeling overwhelmed, stressed and completely exhausted. I always try to capture the happy, fun times with the camera and I rarely post when I’m not in a good mood. So, sure…it would appear that we have entered the parenting world and are passing with flying colors. I wish it were true. I hate feeling like there is a “right” way of parenting. I find myself questioning everything I do as a mother multiple times a day, worried that my kids won’t turn out right due to my choices. For example, the other day Cade & Carson decided they both wanted to have a hard day (I swear they are SO in sync with each other). So, we start our day and they both decide they don’t want to nap. I end up with two crying babies both needing me to console them. How am I supposed to do that? I end up calling Shane…”What do I do?” He’s thinking the same thing as me, “Sorry, but I really don’t know.” I take one at a time and calm them down, but by this time they are both screaming and have been for quite some time. Its heart breaking and it happens more than I would like. Or how about when I’m nursing one and the other needs my attention as well. I wish sometimes that I could give them both my complete, undivided attention but it rarely happens. I wish that I could hold and comfort my baby every time he needs it but that doesn’t always happen either. I end up worrying about the ways my boys could be affected by all of this. In reality, I know that they get the love they need and that I don’t need to worry. I just can’t help it sometimes. My mom can attest to my endless worries. I call her so frequently with worries, questions or when I need to get my frustrations out. I often get off the phone and realize that I didn’t even ask her how she is doing (sorry Mom) but I get all consumed by my role as a mother. I’m sure many of you can relate.

So, here’s what I’ve decided. Motherhood was not meant to be easy. It is not the same for everyone and there is no “right” way of doing it. I know that it has been the most challenging thing for me thus far in my life and I’m thinking that there isn’t going to be anything to top it! Despite the hard days and challenges, it is truly the best thing in the whole world and there isn’t anything I would rather be. This journey of motherhood is refining. It brings us an increased capacity to love. It makes us want to be better. It helps us to become more selfless and humble. It gives us a greater appreciation for other people and especially for our own parents. It brings challenges we thought we wouldn’t be able to rise above. I believe that we are blessed to handle what we are given but that doesn’t mean that it won’t be difficult. It requires work and effort on our part. We MUST rise to the occasion and give it everything we have. We will hopefully find that our limits and capacities reach far beyond what we once thought. In the end, motherhood brings us to be more like Christ. I have to remember that even though I have bad days and feel, at times, that I am not able to meet my daily challenges, that I am going through a refining process. If I put my trust in Him, He will help me care for my twins. I CAN do this, but only with His help and the help from others…mostly from my wonderful husband!!!

I just feel grateful to be a Mom. What a blessing in my life. It’s hard…dang hard, but I know that the blessings and good times will far out-weigh the challenges and frustrations. I take it one day at a time. In fact, I just barely mastered the art of nursing both babies at the same time. It only took me 4 MONTHS, but I did it! What a rewarding experience. If I do everything I possibly can to be a good mother, I know that I will be able to rise to the occasion and meet the challenges that are ahead. Am I doing it gracefully? Hardly! One day at a time…that’s my plan.

So, to cap off my thoughts, here are a few pictures of my sweet boys. This is us during our “happy” and “under control” moments, of course! Enjoy!

Look at this child's face. Do we have a cat? Nope. He seems to get into scratching wars with his hands and fingers. Does is get any worse than this? I can't seem to stop it. I am trimming his nails constantly but he still gets himself almost everyday. He scratches when he's mad, while he sleeps, when he's tired, and when he nurses. It's a little out of control and drives me crazy. You'll find this little boy with socks on his hands quite often. When will he grow out of it? Any tips or advice on this one?

Happy Baby Carson!

Carson loves his little saucer. He's just barely big enough for it. Cade isn't quite there yet. I put a blanket in with him so that he wasn't so wobbly. He still is kind of a bobble head, but he's getting better! I can tell that this is going to be a good little toy!

Cade absolutely loves being on his tummy, which is weird. Most babies don't seem to like it. I get some good smiles and cute faces from him while he plays on his tummy. Here are a few of them.

YIKES!!!
How sweet is that smile?!

Just hanging out...about to roll over!

One Day...Two Posts!

Like father, like son...in more ways than one! Daddy just chillin' with his little clone. They are both glued to the TV...surprise, surprise!

Daddy with his little clone getting ready to take a little snooze. Again, like father, like son!!!

This was after church. It is always super hot in our building and by the end of our meetings the boys are always roasting. So, they just got to cool down and hang out in their little onsies for awhile. They always look so cute in their undies!!!

We got both of them smiling! It is getting easier to hold them both at the same time since they can support themselves a little better.

Three happy boys! This was taken right when the twins got up in the morning. They are always so happy in the mornings. Cade kept covering his face and wouldn't keep his fingers out of his mouth. This one turned out pretty darn cute!

I love this one because Cade & Carson are holding hands...how cute is that?! They actually do this all of the time. They've even tried to suck on each other's hands...so fun!

Fun Weekend

This weekend I got to go to my friend Christy's baby shower. She is having a little boy and is 6 weeks away from delivery. We had such a good time. Shane had to work so I took the babes with me...lots of arms to hold them! They did so well...happy boys! After the shower, Shane came home and we loaded up the boys again for Kyle Schnoor's birthday party! We had a great time...lots of friends to visit with. I took our camera and unfortunately forgot to take pictures. I wanted to get pictures of the boys with Brayden (Amanda's little boy) and also some of Cara's cute prego tummy...didn't happen. Thanks to the Schnoors for putting on such great parties. We had super yummy food. It was a good time. It ended up being a long day for Carson & Cade but they did really well...again, happy boys! Here are a few pictures I took at the Baby Shower.

The shower went into their nap time just a little...Cori put Cade right to sleep which is not an easy thing! He sleeps best in his bed and doesn't fall asleep very well otherwise.
Me and the Mother-To-Be!

If you know Carson, you know that he loves attention and gets excited to be with people. He's a social boy and highly enjoyed the girl pary!
Christy...so cute!
Kelly with Carson. Kelly is one of my visiting teachers and has been for about 4 years...she's great!

Getting Caught Up!

I've posted more than normal this week, but I needed to get all caught up with my pictures. Granted, I take quite a few but I just can't help it! This should bring me current...at least for a few more days! Bundled for their walk. I found a couple little hats that actually fit this time!

Cade looks so sad in this picture. He actually was being a pretty happy boy. I put little socks on their hands to keep them warm.
The boys got cute little Winnie the Pooh outfits from Grandma Lori for Easter and I just happened to have a little Pooh hat that is adorable. Carson was so cute, I had to take some pictures!