Corn on the Cob

Carson insisted on eating his corn like Daddy so he not only ate it straight off the cob, he finished his and went on to finish Daddy's as well. I don't know where this kid gets his love of vegetables from because it's definitely not from me.

Vacation Days

I posted our vacation pics, but didn't write anything about our trip. It was so great to get away and spend some time together as a family. Carson got so used to having Tim around last week that when he woke up Monday morning he was mad that Daddy was at work. Needless to say we had a blast despite the below 70 degree weather while there. I think Tim and I took the bad Utah weather with us. The week prior to us going it was apparantly 102 degrees. I'm glad we threw a couple jackets in last minute...you know, just in case. We didn't, however, throw in long pants.

We stayed at Tim's sister, Angie's house and got to know her new puppy, Trixie very well. It actually turned from Angie's house, to Trixie's house in Carson's eyes. When we first arrived, we mostly just had some R & R time. We spent some time with Vic for the first couple of days and met up with Deb for the Dodgers game as well. We had all forgotten our jackets that night and about froze. After a Carson meltdown, we left during the 7th inning stretch. It was fun while it lasted. :)

We then spent 2 days at Disneyland/California Adventure and went on about every ride in Fantasyland, plus the kid rides in the rest of the park. The lines weren't bad at all. I think the longest line we stood in was for Peter Pan and that was only 30 minutes. Even Splash Mountain was only 10-15 minutes. Tim's sister, Angie, came with us both days so that was fun to have her there. We were able to trade a few times so we could ride some of the bigger rides that Carson can't quite go on yet. He was tall enough to go on Matterhorn, which shocked me. Ya, not sure he knew what to think of that one. I had forgotten how fast and jerky that one was. I was ready for it to be over long before it was. I just held his head tight against me so it wouldn't flop all around, the poor thing.

I am now currently coping with the post vacation blues, I believe Carson is as well. He's been having meltdown after meltdown this week so I hope we'll survive. Tim is back to the daily grind of work and school. Only, the next 4 weeks are going to be extra brutal, he has class M-Th instead of just Tues. and Thurs. We're already looking forward to the next vacation that we can take, which will most likely be up to Oregon to visit family (and of course our famous, Ensign friend, Ayda). Anyone up for a roadtrip to Oregon this summer? :)

California Vacation

Disneyland

Hi Daddy

Tim was gone a ton this last week and on nights where he was home, Carson was already in bed. This is just a pic of Carson talking with his Daddy on the phone. He has this new thing where he likes to talk on the phone and tell anyone who will listen about his day. Whether it's about his strawberry milk or when he fell off the "tricky" ladder at the park. He loves to tell stories. This next week is finals for Tim, so we have another long week ahead of us. Thankfully he'll get two weeks of school off before summer semester begins. We've actually planned a last minute trip to California for the first week in May. We're so excited to take Carson to Disneyland, a Dodgers game, and of course the beach. It will also be fun to see Aunt Angie, Uncle Jeremy, Uncle Vic, and Great Aunt Deborah as well.

Recipe Tag

I'm always up for some new recipes. Thanks for the tag Hollie. I believe this recipe came from my Grandma and has been a family favorite for years. I still have a hard time calling it a "salad" over a dessert. What salad has cookies in it, seriously? :)


Cookie Cream Salad

1 large instant vanilla pudding
1 cup buttermilk
12 oz. Cool Whip
2 (15 oz.) cans pineapple tidbits
2 (11 oz.) cans mandarin oranges
1 pkg. Fudge striped shortbread cookies

Drain the pineapple and mandarin oranges well. Mix together the pudding and buttermilk and fold in the Cool Whip. Add drained fruits and then fold in the cookies, broken up.

I just realized that I didn't tag anyone. I will now tag anyone who feels like it.

Carson's Been Tagged

(Last summer at Lagoon)

10 Things About Carson:

1. Carson is your typical, energetic boy. He jumps off everything, his picnic table, the couch, his bed, the stairs, our big dirt piles behind our house, the list goes on.

2. Carson is obsessed with the washing machine. He loves laundry day. I think this all came about when we were living with Tim's Mom while our home was being built and her washing machine would stay open for the entire cycle. Ours will stop if the lid is open when it comes to the spin cycle. He'll talk about the agitator, the rinse cycle, the spin cycle, etc.

3. Carson is curious on how things work. ie. washing machine, rides at Lagoon You can just see his little mind really contemplating these marvelous wonders.

4. He loves to read. Every night before we go to bed we read about 5-10 books, more if I let him. He'll keep saying, "One more book or Last book!"

5. He loves to play with kids and will cry whenever someone's over and has to go home.

6. He loves to play with his Daddy. Every morning he asks, "Daddy coming home?" If it's a night where Tim has class and I say he's not coming home tonight, he'll cry. :( I'd get sick of being around me all the time too.

7. He loves the Temple. When we were living with Tim's Mom, we were only a few minutes away from the Bountiful Temple. Carson and I took many walks and drives by the temple during those 5 months.

8. He loves the songs, "I am a Child of God" and " I Love to See the Temple". If he's fussy in the car or at home, those songs seem to make him feel better. Just the other night I was singing "I am a Child of God" to him and he started singing along. It just melted my heart.

9. He's Mr. Independent these days. Whenever I try to help him with something, he'll yell, "Self!"

10. He loves to paint. I let him help me paint our half bath last week and he just loved it. Most of the time though, he'll paint with his little water colors. One of his favorite things to paint is...you guessed it, the washing machine.

Tim and I are so grateful for our little boy and the energy and joy he brings into our home. We look forward to the future kids that we will one day have as well. Carson will now tag Baby Zachary, Jackson & Lexi, and Ayda (Now I know you'll do this tag Nika because it's all about Ayda, right?!).

The Ultimate Cheezer

Carson busted out the mop the other day to "help" me clean the floors. He was being such a helper that he was sitting there, holding down the button to release the floor cleaner and wouldn't let up...lovely. Needless to say, I busted out the camera and this is the smile I got.

Landscaping in Progress

Our landscapers were here this week working on our yard. Carson just sat and watched the tractor for the longest time, he was just mesmerized. He kept saying, "HEY, Mama look at this!" We now have a leveled out backyard, a patio, and the sprinklers just went in today. Whoo hoo! We're so excited to get our yard in for the summer.

Happy Easter!

Easter Eve

Ooo, what do we have here? We can't have a cracked eggshell.
Ta Da! Problem solved.

Now the fun part. Yum!

We got up to go to the Kaysville Easter egg hunt, but showed up a few minutes late and missed all the fun. We still had an eventful day of playing at the park and dying Easter eggs. Carson's so funny when it comes to, say a cracked eggshell or a wrinkled blanket. He's very particular and cannot have either. When he lays on his blankie at night, it has to be laying flat. If it happens to be bunched up or wrinkled in any way, he throws a huge fit. I wonder where he gets it from? :)

Broken Camera

Just a little FYI for anyone who does actually look at our blog, our camera is busted. I guess when you drop it on the garage floor, you'll create a "lens error". I'm looking into a new one at the moment so be patient, I'll get some new photos uploaded soon.

Buddies

Ayda came to play with Carsey the other day. They were just sitting back on the stairs drinking their apple juice. I tried getting a pic with both looking at the camera, but had no such luck. He just loves to play with his little friends.

Blueberry Muffins

Carson loves blueberry muffins. We made some on Valentine's Day and as you can see, he's very pleased with how they turned out. We made "tiny" (what he calls them) muffins. It just made me laugh how he was showcasing the muffin for the picture.

Busted!

A few weeks ago I was looking all over the house for Carson. I ended up finding him in the spare room closet with the door closed with his binkies. He only gets them when it's bedtime, but every once in a while he'll find them and sneak a little bink break. I opened the door and he gave me this little smirk. He knew he had been busted.

I've Been Tagged

Who do I love? Timothy D. Smolka

How long have you been married? 5 1/2 years, time sure flies.

How long did you date? 11 months total, dating plus engagement. I believe we were engaged after about 7 1/2 months of dating.

Who said "I Love You" first? Ooo, that's a toughy. I want to say Tim, but he'd probably say that I did.

Who's taller? Tim

Who can sing better? Definitely Tim. He sings all of the time, whether it's in the shower or to Carson, the boy likes to sing. I can carry a tune, but I can't really sing out very loudly. Remember Jason Knapp's missionary farewell Nika? :) We'll just say that I stick to singing in larger groups if I sing at all.

Who is smarter? Again, that would be Tim. Not that degrees are everything, but he's currently getting his MBA, where I've only gotten my Associates. Good thing real estate school wasn't that difficult. We'll just say I have different kinds of smarts.

Who does the laundry? Yeah, I win this one.

Who pays the bills? That would be me again. Tim helps me if I'm disputing a charge on a bill. He can always get our account reimbursed.

Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? Tim

Who mows the lawn? I do. I grew up doing it, after Vic went on his mission, so I don't mind it. Plus it's an excuse to get outside and get a nice tan. Just turn on the ipod for some nice tunes and off I go.

Who cooks dinner? Me. I get sick of it every once in a while though. Anyone have any new good recipes? Tim does make a mean french toast.

Who drives? Tim does when we're out and about together or on dates, but when it comes to long distance road trips to California, it's all me. I get car sick doing anything in the car. Tim on the other hand, can read, work on his laptop, etc.

Tim is such good husband and dad. He's very affectionate and a blast to be around. He does such a good job providing for our family and we're grateful for all he does.

Now I will tag Susie, Nika, and Carly!

October, November, December 2007

Maui & Oahu Vacation (June/July 2007)

Rewind...

Since I'm so new at this and I'm just starting now, I thought I'd post some pics from our Hawaii trip as well as the holidays from last year, just to have something to look at. So I know everything is a bit out of order, but we're going to go with it. Enjoy!

Helper Boy

Carson watched me paint his bathroom so now he likes to carry around the paint roller and pretend like he's painting. I think he has about three that he'll carry around.

Our Little Climber

Carson is your typical 2 year old boy. He loves to climb onto everything. His latest consists of moving the kitchen barstools around as well as Mommy's excercise step box to help him in this endevour. He's very determined. His latest adventure was into the the spice cabinet. He pulled the lids off of each and every spice so he could sniff them. He has to sniff everything. For those of you who have seen Ratatouville, he reminds me of the main rat who has to sniff everything before he adds it to his dish extravaganza.

Here We Go...

Okay everyone, you finally broke me down, here's the Smolka Family blog. You'll have to bear with me because I'm so new at this, but hopefully I'll get the hang of it. I figure this is a good way to keep long distance family and friends posted on what's been going on. Needless to say, I am officially a blog convert.