Favorite Everett Moments

- Instead of asking someone how old they are, Everett says, "What's your number?"

- When someone asks Everett what his name is, He quickly says "Everett Ryan Butters." Adorable!

- The other day at church I was talking to some friends and Everett was just outside the glass doors. Mid conversation, my friend says, "uh I think Everett's going to the bathroom." Sure enough, Everett was peeing on the flower right outside the church doors.

- Everett loves to sing and dance. His favorite songs are Mine and Mean by Taylor Swift and Human by the Killers. We'll put the music videos on the TV and he'll sing and dance the whole song with his guitar and microphone. He sometimes has Ryan play the drums for him. It's amazing how talented he already is.

I love this boy and I love watching him grow and learn.

3 Year Old Stats
-Height: 40.3 inches (96%)
-Weight: 36 lbs (86%)

He's still my big boy!

Birthday Celebration

Everett turned 3 on February 28th. Everett was very excited about his big day for months before and I don't think he was disappointed. He had icing for breakfast and some toast, but mainly icing. Then we met up with some friends at Legoland. Everett played hard and had a great time all morning. My favorite is watching him sing in the microphones on the karaoke machine.


Everett had to wait all day to eat his cake and open presents. He asked about a thousand times when daddy would be home so we could have our party. It is so fun to see the excitement in his eyes. Once daddy came home we had Everett's favorite dinner (chicken nuggets and fries), then sang happy birthday, ate his fire engine cake, and opened presents. It was such a fun family party.

About to dig his fingers into the the wheels. Go right ahead buddy!

Happy Birthday my little angel.

Sherman - 3 Months

Sherman is now 3 months old. I thought time flew with Everett, but with Sherman time seems to be disappearing. How has it been 3 months?

The best word to describe Sherman is sweet. He is the happiest the little guy. He smiles all the time and all it takes is a smile from mom, dad, or brother and this little guy starts laughing. Everett is already this little guys best friend. Sherman will laugh and smile at EVERYTHING Everett does and Everett LOVES this. Sherman is very ticklish and loves attention. However, he doesn't mind kicking alone on the floor either.

Other fun Sherman facts:
-He is turning into quite the talker. I love to hear his little sounds and gargles.
-He spits up a lot and laundry seems to have tripled since he arrived.
-He still wakes up about once a night. Occasionally he sleeps through the night and occassionally he'll wake every 2 hours (yawn!).
-He loves to be swaddled, hates the binkie, loves his fist.

4 Month Stats:
weight: 17lbs 3oz (84%)
Height: 25 inches (46%)
Head: 43.8 cm (83%)

We're so grateful he's here and love having his presence in our family.

Gingerbread decorating

Christmas Traditions

This is the first year that we haven't traveled for Christmas. Although we missed family, we had a great time together with our little family. This was a really fun year for Everett. The magic of Christmas was truly alive for him in our home. He had a blast decorating cookies and ginger bread houses and loved watching all of the classic Christmas shows. His favorites are The Polar Express, The Santa Clause, and A Christmas Story. It's really fun to experience Christmas through a child's eye again. I love my boys and all the joy they bring to my life.

Here are my boys after the we put up the tree and decorations. Everett enjoyed hours of fun with the train.

Ginger bread houses are always a hit. Each day Everett would steal some candy from his house, by the time Christmas came around the house was nearly candy-free.

Good times making cookies for santa.

The finished product

Thanksgiving

We've spend several Thanksgivings at Ryan's brother's home in Nebraska and this year we were able to host in our new home. We missed Roger's smoked brisket, but somehow we still managed to fill up our tummies.

Thanksgiving is one of my favorite relaxing holidays, but this one was one of the best. Roger and Michelle's kids entertained Everett the whole time and I was able to enjoy some great adult conversations and fun movies. Thanks so much for driving 10 hours to be us Roger and Michelle.

Michelle brought a fun Christmas craft for the kids. Everett loved hanging out with the big kids. Big shout out to Amber and Rebecca for being the best babysitters.

After the feast, Ryan gave me our annual Swavorski star ornament. I love this tradition and I love that our Christmas Tree is starting to be full of stars. Can't wait for all the years to come!

Here's our Thanksgiving spread and cute Christopher!

Everett's Creativity

Everett is a very bright young man and very creative. The other day he didn't want to get in the shower and when I asked him why he said that he didn't want his eyes to get wet. I said ok - not worth the battle today! A few minutes later he comes in and says that he is ready to take a shower now.

Problem Solved!

2 Months

Sherman is growing bigger each day. At his two month checkup he measured 13lbs (81%) and 22.8 inches (46%). He's near doubled his birth weight in just two months -way to go buddy! Sherman is the sweetest baby. He loves to be cuddled, but when big brother calls and I must set him down, the swing is a close second for his favorite place. Sherman is a really happy baby. He's rarely fussy and can almost always be calmed by a bottle, diaper change, or snuggle. Ryan, Everett and I have enjoyed getting to know this little man better and love the angelic presence he brings to our home.

Just last night he slept through the night for the 1st time - halleluiah! I doubt this will be a consistent every night thing, but I'll take what I can get.

A quick trip to Utah

Ryan has been in China for the last 10 days and I decided to take the boys to Utah for part of it. Traveling was interesting, but it was worth it! Sherman was able to meet his Grandma Norma and Grandpa James (Who he is named after) for the first time.

Here's my sweet grandpa with the boys!

Grandma Norma and Sherman. Grandma is the baby whisperer. Sherman loved snuggling up with her.

Sweet Annaliese loved playing with Everett!

The trip was short, but I'm so glad I could come. Thanks for hosting me Mom and Dad and thank you for all your help. Especially for taking Sherman two nights in a row. I can't believe the difference that two FULL nights of sleep makes.

Everett and Pumpkin

This picture makes me laugh so hard. Thank you for letting your mom take this picture Ev. I love you.

Sherman and Everett photos

Butters boy #2: Sherman James Butters

Dear family and friends,

Taryn and I are pleased to announce the birth of our second boy: Sherman James Butters.  Our first son Everett will be assuming the role of big brother effective immediately.

Facts and figures:

Date of arrival: September 9, 2011 @ 8:18pm
Weight: 7.25 lbs. (3289 grams)
Height: 21 inches (53.34 cm)
Skills: Eating, crying, looking cute, and exceptional sense of urgency (when hungry)
Development areas: Sleeping

Origin of name: Taryn and I hoped to give this baby a name with rich heritage and undeniable "manliness".  Sherman James is named after his paternal grandfather and maternal great-grandfather, two men of exceptional character, integrity, and nearly 160 years (and counting) of selfless dedication to their families and community. To our surprise, it is also ridiculously cute to hear Everett say "baby Sherman".

Although it took quite a while to get him here, there were no significant complications; both mother and baby are healthy and doing well. 

We thank you for all your well wishes and support.

Warm regards,

The Butters