Because...

You gotta have blue hair, man. :-)

GO COUGARS!!!

Lake Powell 2012

Last week I turned 29! And right before that fulfilled one of my largest goals. A huge family trip to Lake Powell. I had a most extraordinary time and the trip blew away all my expectations. My most vivid vacation memories come from Lake Powell as a kid and now so do my adult memories.

 I was so proud of everyone in our family for putting up with my crap and actually showing up. I was even more proud when despite so many small issues creeping up, everyone seemed to just focus on the positive. The trip wasn't perfect and we could definitely do much better, but as a first try it was easily my favorite family adventure ever. Also my kids were exposed to the most fun they have probably ever had.

 I have compiled a video and slideshow of the best of the trip. It got a little bloated but had to be chopped up to fit in the 15 minute YouTube slot. Therefore the transitions and such got a little crazy at the end. I am usually more picky, but at 1.2 GB and with a crazy long 45 minute render (even for my computers) I decided this last version was not too shabby. Thank you for coming to Powell with us and I hope you enjoy it.

 My YouTube account has exceeded the free range so you will probably need to close an AD or two. Also, be sure to upgrade the quality if you don't want the slideshow blurry. That is all :-)

 

Lake Powell - 2012 - Bret's Story

Lake Powell is one of the most beautiful and amazing lakes in our nation.  It also holds some good memories from quite a few years ago as we went once or twice with my aunt Patty and her family (and mine) on their houseboat.  I was an adult at the time and the memories were of water skiing, cliff jumping, getting very tan, sleeping on the roof of the houseboat, watching satellites and shooting stars, and the warm waters of Lake Powell. 

Jacob (Wall) had the idea to relive some of the memories and so last year he decided to put together a plan to rent a houseboat and invited many of us to accompany him and his family.  A couple of weeks ago the time finally came to pass for us to go.  It took a lot of preparation and money on his part, and I thank him and Cari for all they did.  The trip, in my mind, was a complete success.

We left Phoenix on Tuesday morning in our van with Hazel added to our usual passengers.  The ride went well as we were in no hurry and we stopped briefly in Flagstaff for gas and treats.  We then met up with Cari and Kathy (Cox) in Page at the McDonalds as we waited for Jacob and my father to have the houseboat ready for us to board in Wahweap Marina.  After a Hot'n Spicy chicken sandwich we drove to the marina and within minutes we had our stuff packed on the boat and were headed out on the lake.  This was a stark contrast to years before when sometimes this phase was long and hot.  The marina made this easy and we were off. 

Tevia, my dad, Tevia, and Malik went in the speed boat while the rest of us took to the houseboat.  Jake and I had decided to go a certain route to Padre Bay, which looked great according to Google Maps and the one map we had.  But apparently those maps were out of date and due to the lower water we had to go the long way.  This was okay as the way through the Narrows was gorgeous; it just took much longer.  I stayed on top of the houseboat for much of the trip adding navigation advice and using the binoculars to see the red rock and other boats.  It took us some time to finally arrive in Padre Bay and we were able to find the other boat (which had gone ahead to scout a spot).  They found a great spot right in front of Gunsight Butte. We beached the houseboat and began the next few days in the shadow of this beautiful landmark.

My memories of the first evening there are of Tevia and I cooking (we usted the BBQ to do chicken, which came out great).  I also was able to go out and remembered how to get up on a wakeboard (it had been years).  But my favorite memory of that first night was all of us sitting on the top of the houseboat that first night and looking at the stars.  I had my laser pointer and my Google Sky app which helped us locate constellations and other objects like the Andromeda galaxy.  It was amazingly beautiful and we saw many satellites and shooting stars as well.  We even saw the international space station go across the sky, which was so bright in this wilderness it was impossible not to think it was some UFO.  I didn't sleep much the first night (rarely do on any camping trip), but the night was cool and the moon bright (after most of us were asleep and after looking at the stars). 

The rest of the trip, my highlights were:

- Wakeboarding several times and learning how to do a 180 and just enjoying the glass that we had several times per day
- Taking a trip into Antelope Point marina to get gas and some other things.  We did this on Thursday (Jacob, Tevia, Enok, and Malik) and we got a nice lime popsicle and a big cup of orange soda. 
- Jumping/Diving off the boat (we didn't ever find a great place to cliff jump so this was our thrill for the week)
- Going on hikes with my boys and rolling rocks into the lake as well as skipping rocks
- Going on a long hike with Tevia
- Driving the speed boat several times for people
- Tubing with Tommy while Jacob drove and realizing how much energy/strength it takes to do this (when going fast)
- Watching the stars every night
- Having Jimmy arrive for the brief day or so he was there

In the end the trip was great.  The weather could not have been better (not too hot, not too cold).  Nobody got hurt or really all that sunburned (only Jimmy and Holly of all of us even got burned at all).  The food and snacks were great.  The boats never broke down. 

On Saturday we packed up and headed out before noon.  The long trip back to the marina went great and my mom and Tevia joined me for much of the trip back on the top of the boat.  Once we docked we were packed in our cars and headed out within an hour or so.  We took Hazel with us again.  We stopped at Sonic for lunch in Page on the way back this time and the drive was great. 

Thank you Jacob for setting all of this up and spending so much of your time on money on some wonderful family memories.  I had a great time.  I'm sure we'll end up there again some time in the next few years. 

My mother

Bernice Margaret Balsom, born 1928.
When she moved into assisted living, she had to get rid of lots of her stuff. She gave me 2 journals. Since I had plenty of time today, I picked them up to read through them. I found them entrancing.
It is funny how little we appreciate our mothers when we are small.
I also noticed how much like her I am.  She was a very grateful person, almost every day she would write one thing she was grateful for, even the smallest things, like that she could still walk, or being able to read.
She loved to learn, and often spoke of the classes she took at the community college when all her friends thought she was too old to go to classes.  She prayed for a soul mate after she was a widow for sometime, and her journals says she was grateful God heard her prayers and that Milan was a  miracle to her in her life.
She had bad days and good days, like us all.  She missed her kids, and grandkids.  She wrote about how she wished she lived by them. She treasured every time she saw me and any of our family.
She loved me. She wrote how wonderful all her children turned out.  What a nice thing to read.  I think we always want to know our mother loves us.
Quote- "I am so happy because I have people who love me".  First page of her journal.
She also mentions God often, and  talks about how she loves to sing in church and pray and how He has always guided her in  her life.

It was a beautiful way to spend some time today.  I am grateful for her.

" A mother is a person who seeing there are only 4 pieces of pie for 5 people, promptly announces she never did care for pie."  I found this quote in her journal.
She really did sacrifice a lot for us kids.

November 9, 1999
"I don't want to die yet.  I love to look at the trees and walk among them. I love to fluff  my pillows on my bed. I love to  make plans to do things.  Life is so full of things to enjoy."

to my children- and  their spouses- I love you all, and always will.  You truly bring me joy.

Alone

I've had the chance to know what it would be like to live as a bachelor before.  But it has been a while since I've been alone for more than a few days.  With Tevia and the boys up in the mountains this last week, I found myself once again in that situation.  Most people who know me know I don't like being alone.  I never have. Whether that is because I was an only child for so long or just a part of my personality, I'm not sure.  But I paid attention to what I did this last week as maybe it would be an indicator of what I would do if I were single (though probably not as this isn't a very scientific experiment or observation).

The first surprising thing is that I actually work more.  This made sense after I thought about it because there was nobody else around to talk to or do something with (remember I work from home).  So when 5 o'clock comes around I'm not as quick to get off the computer.  I also tend not to do my walks/breaks during the morning and tend to look at my emails much more in the evening.  This didn't necessarily make me any more productive, but certainly I can see that a single person could easily devote much more time to a job, especially if they are like me.

Most nights I had something to do: dinner at my brother's, watching the game at my sister's, my church calling, etc.  But on those rare nights where I didn't have something to do, I never could quite figure out what to do.  Nothing sounds that fun to do by myself.  I don't even like eating out by myself.  The default was getting a book and reading more.  I've also done a few chores/jobs around the house, so I guess that is good.

Mostly I just look forward to getting up to play basketball (which I do anyway) or going hiking.  I have done more physical exercises, which of course you would think would help you lose weight, but no, of course not. I look forward to my parents coming into town this week - and then having the wife and kids back on Saturday.

38 Years

A couple of weeks ago at a church activity I was talking with one of the women in our ward whose husband is currently going to Thunderbird.  She knew I had gone to Thunderbird and we talked a little about the school and my internship, etc.  She then asked me when I graduated.  She guessed something like 2009.  I laughed and said 2000.  She thought about it and laughed and said that is impossible.  "Aren't you my age?" she asked.  I asked how old she was.  She said "26".  

Needless to say, she made my night.  I insisted I was soon turning 38 and thought about what I had imagined I would be doing at 38.  To be honest, I probably never imagined what I'd be like at 38, as that is a random age, but certainly I thought about 40.  I can say that I thought I would have done an international assignment, that I'd be too old to play basketball well, and that I'd still have fooled my wife enough to keep her with me.  

Good news is that I have done an assignment, am still married - but I actually can still play basketball.  So things are even better than I imagined.  I also remember when I got my LASIK eye surgery when it was still fairly new that I thought to myself "if it lasts 10  years, I'll be happy, because who needs good eyes after 35?"  Thank goodness it has lasted over 10 years.  

I don't feel all that old.  Whether this be due to good genes (seems the Pylick genes are pretty good), great food (which comes from my wife who does a great job providing not only great tasting food, but good food, too), or all of the preservatives I ate as a kid (yeah Kraft Macaroni and Cheese!), I'm happy I feel good.  I guess I'm also lucky to have most of my hair and very little gray hair (I have found a couple).  

This week we were up on Lakeside and Tevia rented a cabin near Rainbow Lake for my birthday.  It was awesome.  It was an old log cabin probably built at least 60 years ago.  Outside our front door you could see the lake.  We took a boat out on the lake to do some fishing, which wasn't very successful.  It was quite windy and was hard to row the boat.  Afterwards we went out for an early dinner at La Casita followed by a quick trip to Dairy Queen.  We then came back and fished some more and everybody caught at least one fish.  Malik caught 7 and was quite proud of himself.  They were all tiny fish - none were keepers. 

The next morning the boys (Jarek and Malik) went shooting with their uncle and grandpa and I went down to fish again (Enok and Tevia joined me later).  It was a beautiful morning; the first morning of my 39th year.  I didn't want any fanfare this year: no cake, no singing.  But I enjoyed the birthday a lot.  

I have a wonderful family.  A still-gorgeous wife.  I have family living near (for the most part).  I get to play basketball several times a week - and still love it.  And I have a pretty good job that lets me spend time with my family.  Thanks for a great 38 years world!

FAMILY

I just love when the entire family is together, even if it is online!  Thank you all for being patient and willing to participate and make this possible for lonely grandma and grandpa over here.  
Seeing the face of our grandchildren often is precious to me. 
It was the highlight of my day. 

Zizah - Birth Story and Some New Pics

Since I can't play Diablo 3 while eating lunch, I decided to blog instead. :) So here's all the details about Zizah's birth and first few days (in case anyone cares). I won't be offended if you skip straight to the end for some pictures.

At my last OB appointment, I was 3cm dilated and I had already made my decision that if I was at least 3cm, I wanted to schedule an induction. So I'm impatient, so what. The doctor had no problem with me being induced, so we went ahead and scheduled it. At first, we were scheduled for a standby induction, which meant that I just had to wait for the hospital to call me and if they were too busy, it wouldn't be the day we picked anyway. Then they called back and said they'd made an actual appointment, so I was almost certainly guaranteed to go in on Tuesday, which I was grateful for. So we got all of our stuff ready on Monday night and went to bed (sorta) early since I had to call the hospital at 6am to make sure 7am was still the plan. I wanted to wake up a little early so I set an alarm, which I didn't end up needing because I woke up at 4:30 because I was so excited. :) One shower, one phone call, and one quick breakfast later, we had the kids in the car to go to their aunts house and we were off.

We got to the hospital right at 7 and only had to wait about 20 minutes before we were filling out paperwork and getting into the labor and delivery room. After an uneventful IV and a VERY bad blood draw (I look like someone hit me in the arm with a baseball bat), we were starting the pitocin around 8am. By about 8:45, my doctor came in and checked me over and then broke my water. We were better prepared this time, so no one got a shower. (When she broke my water with Speed, she had to change her clothes afterward.)

After an hour of increasingly hard contractions, the nurse (who already knew I wanted an epidural) came in to ask if I was ready for my epidural. I told her I was ok to go a little while longer, but not much. Then she told me that the anesthesiologist had to go do a C-section so it was now or in almost 90 minutes. Yeah, not a hard decision - I had the epidural by 10:30. The epidural was quick and only bad when I had a contraction when he was putting the tube in. But since they were only about 2 minutes apart, it's not like he could avoid doing that. It was by far the best epidural I've ever had. I could still mostly move my legs but I couldn't feel any pain. It was so lovely that I decided to take a nap. :)

Somewhere in there (yeah, I was starting to get loopy so I can't remember the exact order of some things), they had me use what they call the peanut ball, which is this weirdly inflated exercise ball you hold between your legs to spread your hips. It got me from 6cm to 8cm pretty quick, so I guess it worked? Then sometime after my nap, the nurse had me sit straight up (which I hadn't done in my previous labors, so I thought it was weird). About 5 minutes after that I had about 5 CRAZY strong contractions that I could feel like there was no epidural in place at all. Just before we called the nurse in, she came in to check and had me lay back down and then exclaimed "Oh, look - there's the head. Can you not push for a sec while I call the doctor?"

We only waited about 10 minutes for the doctor to show up, and then it was time to push. I pushed through 3 contractions and at 1:40pm, we had a baby!! It was a little weird to have everyone go "It's a girl!" not because I didn't think it would be but because as soon as they said it, it just felt kinda, "Duh - of course it's a girl" like I'd known all along. Which I didn't. I swear.

The afterbirth took a bit longer for some reason, but I didn't feel it so I really didn't care that much. I was just happy that Zizah was here and healthy and the induction had gone so quickly and well. The only other slightly awkward thing about the delivery was that it was apparently a teaching day at our hospital, so we had double the people we would normally have had in the delivery room and half of them were students. So Zizah had some extra witnesses to her birth - go her.

After that, everything was pretty relaxed and easy. We hung out for a while in that room while they cleaned her up and got me ready to move to my postpartum room. Once we moved to the other room, we fell into the normal routine of nurses in and out, feed baby, watch baby sleep and then try to sleep ourselves. She was really quick to sleep and was a really good eater. She's still a good sleeper and a pretty good eater, so I think the first is slightly interfering with the second. :) But we're working on it and nursing is already going really, really well. And hopefully I didn't just jinx myself by saying that.

The family that lives in town came the next day to visit and it was fun to see everyone. Both our older kids were really excited to see baby Zizah and were both really cute about it. I think the nurses really enjoyed all of Hazel's exclamations like "Hi, Baby Zizah. It's me - Hazel. That's your mommy. You came out of her tummy."
Coming home was good. I've had my emotional times (not surprising) but we're doing well and taking it day by day. Zizah is such a good girl. For the most part, she eats and then sleeps for a couple of hours and then wakes up for about 10 minutes and then is ready to repeat. I do have to wake her up to eat sometimes, but it's more for my comfort level than her's. She's a very sweet girl and she's already smiled at me 3 times. Ok, so it was probably gas, but don't rain on my parade. So here's some pictures, since like Jacob said, that's really all anyone cares about. :)

Zizah Marie Wall

(I am posting this for Cari)
7 pounds 11 ounces
19.5 inches
Born May 29th 1:30PM
And the pictures(all anyone cares about)

Speed's Birthday - The Pictures

Here are the pictures from Speed's birthday party. Yes, he really picked chocolate cake. I was surprised how many people were surprised he picked chocolate - it's yummy. Pretty much all of the pictures were from my sister-in-law, which I am so grateful she took. Otherwise, we'd pretty much have a picture of the cake and that's it!

Speed's Birthday - The Videos

I feel bad that it's taken me most of the week to get these up, but hey, life is crazy right now. I think Speed had a pretty good birthday despite the fact that he had to take a nap. He loves his presents and really enjoyed his cake and balloons. It's crazy to realize that he's 2 now. He's such a good, fun boy. Enjoy the videos and I'll get some pictures posted soon. :)

Presents Part 1:

0:00 - 2:05 Oma and Opa
2:05 - 4:50 Grandma and Grandpa
4:50 - 7:25 Kathy and Jimmy
7:25 - 8:15 Hazel
8:15 - 10:11 Bret and Tevia

Presents Part 2:

The Whole Thing - Mom and Dad

Singing and Cake:

Mid-May

Even though I know that time goes quickly, it still amazes me how fast it goes.  I am grateful that I have been able to keep much of my stress with my job in line as I have tried to apply some of the things I read in "Don't Sweat the Small Stuff".  It has worked - though I still have a ways to go.  But enough about work.  May has been a great month. 

This last weekend I took the boys to "Fathers and Sons" up near Prescott.  We go every year and Jacob brought Speed again this year, too.  We were worried about the fire near there - and whether it would be smokey.  But I checked the weather and it seemed good.  And it was.  It was quite cool (in the 40s at night) and there weren't many people there.  But I had a lot of fun.  I think the boys did, too.  I love this new tent Tevia bought last year which fits a lot of people and is so easy to set up and take down.  In the evening they did a short presentation where they showed a video of the Joseph Smith story.  On the way home we asked the boys their favorite part.  I was shocked to hear Enok say that his was watching the Joseph Smith video.  I didn't sleep all that well, but made up for it on Saturday night. 

Saturday we had people over for a BBQ and it was great fun.  I took a day off on Friday to work on the house and get ready for camping.  We have had a lot of great dinners with family members and have enjoyed the summer heat.  Our garden is doing fairly well, though I'm jealous Jacob's sunflowers survived the ravaging of the birds.  Ours did not.  I am looking forward to another three day weekend this week and then summer is here, with weddings, camping trips, and vacations all in store.  I can't wait!

over 100?

I am totally not about numbers, but I was in a conversation with Bret the other night, and as I was talking, just threw out the lots of people have joined the church after I did in what daddy calls, a fresh new line.
I thought I would try to make a guessitmate, just for fun.  (I am not bragging or trying to belittle any true church doctrine here, just curious)
So, 4 kids, 6 grandkids, Jimmy, Michael, Wilda, Jesse, Kathy, Sarah, Rachel, and their 4 kids, Marsha, Karen Custer, Aunt Alicia, = 25.
Probably missing some, but, the reason I blogged it is for help with you boys.  I  know you didn't get in to counting baptisms, but, with all 3 boys baptisms, do you think the total number goes over 100?
Oh, and then I got to thinking in the temple yesterday, those are only the ones on this side of the veil.
I guess that is why dad likes when missionaries find a brand new line to start.  Just happy thinking about it.

For the Record

My predictions of 2012 are looking fantastic. Only one I am nervous about is going to Mexixo. Though, I am now more determined to go, even if its just crossing the border, to ensure I have 100% on my predictions. =)

Mom and Milan = happy

Well, they are settled in to their new little apartment, and from what I hear, they both love it!  Everyone says they see the biggest change in Milan. He is getting the right medication, and so is less sleepy and crabby, and seems to have come alive again. All the people in the place already love mom and Milan.
They have been waking up by 8 just to get the 'free' breakfast'. They used to sleep until 10 or 11 am.
Mom says the place is adorable. She loves not having to worry about the house anymore.
Their laundry is done daily, their meds are watched over, they are eating better, and they have things to do.
I love hearing her voice sound more positive and I am glad she can enjoy her life a bit better now.
Address:
Athenian Assisted Living
Apt 326
12799 Doula Lane
North Royalton, OH, 44133
new phone #, 440-230-9039

She lived in that house since 1972, 40 years.  It will be weird for  me not having 'home' to go to when I go visit.
I am happy that it all worked out so well.

Hazel's Birthday - the pictures

Our Hazel girl is 4. Crazy. Here are some fun pics of the occasion. The really good ones are courtesy of my sister-in-law. :)

(I do have to say that I'm pretty proud of the cake considering that I free handed it in about 45 minutes.)

Speed & Balloons

We might be bad parents but it was just too funny to stop him.

Speed Likes Balloons (Maybe a little TOO much)



Speed Gets His Revenge

Hazel's Birthday - The Videos

Hazel Opening Presents - Super long, so here's the breakdown:
0:00 - 2:10 is setup, Jacob's commentary & Speed's tantrum
2:10 - 5:00 is Grandma & Grandpa Wall
5:00 - 6:50 is Oma & Opa
6:50 - 10:00 is Aunt Kathy & Uncle Jimmy
10:00 - 12:30 is Aunt Tevia & Uncle Bret
12:30 - 13:25 is Daddy
13:25 - 14:38 is Mommy


















 Singing & The Cake (Diego)
  

Trip to London 2012

I traveled to London this week for business.  I have been to London several times now, and for this trip I wasn't really looking forward to going.  The appeal of a new and foreign location no longer apply and in the end would rather have stayed home and worked.  But it was important to go and in the end it was a very productive and useful trip.  But I won't focus on the work aspect, but rather on the other things that happened.

I took the direct flight via British Airways.  I don't usually like the direct flights to Europe/Asia as I like to have time to get out and walk.  But this was the cheapest flight by far, and since I'm a sucker for trying to save my company money (a habit I need to lose) I took it.  The good part of BA is that they usually have a ton of movies to watch.  I always hope to have an empty seat next to me so I can possibly lie down or at least have some extra room.  It looked like I was in luck when right before takeoff a young woman sat next to me.  She said she was supposed to have an aisle seat but somehow things got messed up and so she was told to just find an open seat.  Lucky me.  If she hadn't sat there I would have had two seats between me and the lady at the other end of my aisle.  The young woman was chatty and I am trying lately to be more "friendly" so I spoke with her.  I found out she was currently going to Thunderbird and we talked quite a bit about that.  She eventually mentioned she uses the bathroom regularly and wanted to know if she could have my seat (aisle).  I politely declined.  An hour later after she had gone to the bathroom two or three times, I eventually decided I would.  In the end it was a great decision because now I did have an empty seat next to me and was able to take advantage of that extra room.  I even slept for about 4 hours - something that rarely happens with me.

Upon landing in London it took 2 hours to get through immigration.  I can tell the Olympics are going to be a lot of fun to go to if that keeps up.  I took a cab to the hotel, changed and went into the office.  I had Pret for dinner, one of my fav places to eat in the UK and Hong Kong.  I slept fairly well most of the week.  I worked a lot, so had little time to be a tourist - plus little motivation as I've done most of the touristy things in London.  But the second night after a late night working and a great dinner I decided to go see the Avengers movie.  It was out in London before opening in the USA, so I was able to get in to a 3D showing.  They call the movie "Avengers Assemble" in UK for some reason.  The movie was quite enjoyable and I got to brag to everyone back in the USA that I got to see it first.

The days went quickly.  I worked a lot but managed to have some great dinners.  My last dinner was at a Thai place that I ate at twice.  This is a chain that Tevia had eaten at while in London and had loved it.  I admit it is fantastic.  The meal consisted of pumpkin curry, a side of amazing calamari, a side called panden chicken, and a drink called a grapefruit mojito.  This was a little like a mojito (sans alcohol) made with grapefruit juice, mint leaves, vanilla and chili.  It blew me away how good it was.  I will have to figure out how to make one here.

My last day (Saturday) I woke up early and walked around St. James Park, one of my favorite parks to walk.  The city was empty and it was overcast and cold.  But I loved walking around the pond and watching the ducks and other birds.  It felt peaceful and was a great way to end my trip.  I got back to the airport via the tube as I had plenty of time and thought I'd save my company a ton of money that way.  My flight back was uneventful and not too long.  I got home to be whisked away to a dinner with my siblings which was fun and good.

The trip was good for a few reasons.  I had some good food.  The business aspect went well.  It went quickly.  But most of all I think it gave me a new perspective on my job and life.  This was also inspired by a book I had brought to read on the plane called Don't Sweat the Small Stuff at Work.  Hopefully I can take this advice and new found inspiration to heart and start to be less stressed.  Somewhere along the way life (particularly work) had become so stressful.  But I realize that I have allowed it to.  I need to take back control and enjoy my life.  I know I am a hard worker and very talented.  So in that sense the trip was renewing to me.  The last part of the trip that made me laugh is that they have a show on TV called "Made in Chelsea" which is like that reality show called "The Hills" they had years ago.  On it they had a guy named Hugo who reminded me a lot of Jacob Webb.  So every time I would see him it would make me laugh.  I don't get to see Jacob much these days, so to make up for it I will try to watch Made in Chelsea to get my Webb fix.  Maybe that will get him to move to Phoenix.

It's great to be back in the heat and with the family.

Happy Birthday, Hazel!!

I'll post more pictures and videos in the next couple of days but in the meantime, if someone would like to tell me where the last 4 years went, that'd be great.

 A few hours old

 1 year old

 2 years old

 3 years old

4 years old

P.S. It may have taken us 4 years but at least we've finally tamed that hair!! :-)