Cooper & Co. Established 2003

2011-11-23T17:29:00.002-07:00

We had a long cold winter this year, so as soon as it warmed up a little bit we headed outside to play. This was the end of March and we still had a lot of snow in front of our house.

It looks like Brielle is an old pro at walking, but don't let her fool you......she didn't start walking for 3 more months :) (Also these were her first pig tails!)

Brielle's First Birthday

2011-11-23T09:12:00.003-07:00

Wow it is almost Christmas again and this little girl is almost 2! I have recently been reminded again the importance of keeping a journal and this blog is part of that for me so here I am again giving it a try. Here is Brielle's Birthday!

We started out the special day by taste testing our frosting! She loved it.
She even shared with Ashton!
Then we got all dressed in her special birthday outfit. I had a lot of fun making this for her! Everything except the skirt, we bought that. Brielle's cake face isn't quite as intense as Dallen's, but once she finally dug into her cake she got pretty messy :)

We try to get our kids balloons for their birthday, but we didn't know that Brielle would be terrified. When we brought the balloon out she started screaming in terror. You will be happy to know she is no longer afraid of balloons.

And here is a shot of her first cake. I have loved using the sillouette that I got for Christmas to make stencils for cake. I think it turned out beautiful! Hey I'm no cake decorator okay ;)

~Christmas 2010~

2011-05-03T09:56:00.004-06:00

We were dreaming of a white Christmas...well we had one in Bluebell. This is Jeff's car totally buried the week of Christmas, but when we got to Panguitch there was no snow!

Even without the "White Christmas" Santa came to the Cooper house!

Brielle was so Happy and Fun for here FiRsT Christmas.

When you have Christmas with a big family you have to make sure everyone is ready so we had the kids wrangled down stairs for quite a while.....the anticipation was killing them ;)

My perfect little Autobots :)

Brielle got her first babydoll. It was love at first sight! She kept giving her kisses!

Dallen had to take a break from all the excitement to have some breakfast....he was the only one.

This picture makes me happy!

We had a wonderful visit with Grandma Shirley! But not long after this we stopped at the house before going to Grandma Cooper's house and I fell into a hole,

literally all the way up to my thigh. I was on the couch the rest of the time we were there with a swollen knee and a few scratches. Luckily there were no serious injuries, just some

pain and me feeling stupid for falling in a hole :)

On the way home the boys enjoyed some of their presents. Don't they look so grown up?

Clyde G. Killian: October 14, 1920- December 9, 2010

2011-04-28T08:38:00.009-06:00

After a really hard few years and an extremely hard few months my Great Grandfather passed away on December 9, 2010. He was an amazing person. I am so grateful that I was able to visit him often in his last days and sorely regret not visiting him as much in the last 5 years. He always had great things to say about his family. He thought the best thing he ever did was start this family. He was very proud of all of us. He told me that dying was much harder than living, but he was so excited to see his "Honey". He was a true example of selfless service as he took care of her. I loved seeing them together.
It was so nice to have the whole family there to celebrate his life.

My Dad did a wonderful grave dedication and the Military honors are always so moving. I know he was there with all of us and will be looking after us the rest of our lives, looking forward to being with us again.

This was a difficult time for the kids (despite the smiles on their faces). Jeff and I had to explain death to them and Ashton is still worried about getting old. They always brought a smile to Grandpa's face...even when he was in horrible pain.

Here are my parents grandkids!
This is almost the whole Iorg family! My brother Tyson was not able to come due to work. It is bittersweet that we were able to get this picture. I am so glad we have it, but sad about the circumstances that led to it.

Sometimes Meeting Santa Is Hard

2011-03-21T10:57:00.002-06:00

This was Brielle's First Christmas and she got to meet Santa a couple of times.....it went the same way everytime! The poor girl was not impressed with me for handing her over to a big stranger in a crazy costume!

Ashton was an old pro! He had an understanding with Santa :) On a side note you can see the start of Dallens story in this picture as well. Notice his stance.....

He really needed to go to the bathroom, but didn't want to miss out on his chance to talk to Santa.
Luckily we made it!!

These guys were so fun and excited during the Christmas Season.

For My Friends and Family who Are Not On Facebook ;)

2011-01-19T10:00:00.005-07:00

I got behind...but really who hasn't!!! A lot happened during Fall of 2010! Beginning with my oldest baby going to Preschool. He was so excited to start school and he still loves it and looks forward to going. If he had his way he would go everyday....next year buddy! Is anyone suprised he wore a red shirt his first day of school :)

We went to the homecoming parade! They threw so much candy at this thing...it was awesome. This float was special because it is the 8th grade float and that is Adrianna right there in the front. I also helped coach the junior high volleyball team this year so a lot of the girls were on the float!

They had kids running up and down passing out popsicles too. The boys had a blast.

Brielle thought the icecream sandwich was a little cold though.

We played at the park while it was still warm. We wish we could go outside and play right about now, but it is sooooooo cold out there....and this lovely park is covered in snow :)

We had a Superhero Halloween! I wanted a theme for the family so the only way to go with the boys was superheroes so Baby girl had to be super too! We had Dallen as Ironman....his favorite!

I felt very safe with these two protecting me.

Brielle was the cutest WonderWoman I have ever seen!

Ashton as Batman with an action pose! They were so funny!

We went to the Bluebell corn Maze and it was fun as usual! The kids really loved it this year! Well that is once Dallen got done looking over his shoulder ;) He didn't know what could come out of that corn...(there was a slight breeze so the corn kept rustling)

Oh Ya....We went there ;)

2010-12-06T16:31:00.005-07:00

3 months isn't really that long ago is it? We really had the best vacation! It was just as magical as I had imagined it! Ashton already asks when we are going to go again. This was in the Lobby of the Hotel. Seriously so cute. The whole place! They played old cartoons and all the kids loved it.

We got an early start on Halloween. They put out the decorations the week we were there!

This was at the World of Color show. It was amazing!

We had to wait about 15 minutes to see Turtle Talk with Crush....so to pass the time Ashton carried Dallen around :) This show was so funny! Crush even talked to Brielle. He interpretted her scream! It was the really high pitched one....if you've heard it you know what I am talking about.

I love the Halloween Decorations!

Baby B wasn't sure what to think about Goofy!

This was the view from our hotel room. We heard the show for a couple nights before we saw it up close and personal. The room and the view were so magical. I couldn't have asked for anything better. The Mickey Mouse Carousel was Dallen's favorite ride, and it was perfect that we could see it from our room.

Continued

2010-12-06T16:02:00.006-07:00

The kids favorite ride was Astro Blasters or as Ashton calls it "Buzzes Blasters"

One of my favorite rides is the Jungle Cruise. There is just something about lame jokes that I just love!

Ashton was so proud that he went on Splash Mountain with Daddy!

The kids were really so good and patient even when they had to wait for someone else to go on a ride.

This was minutes after we got back to our room....he wore his clothes to bed that night.

"THE" Picture with Mickey. The boys ran right up to him to give a hug like they had known him their whole lives....Oh wait they have ;)

They were posing just like Goofy.

Outside our beautiful hotel in San Diego!

Outside our room in San Diego!

They love, loved the rides!

We saw an awesome show!

The boys loved seeing all the animals at Sea World!

They got to see the ocean for the first time! It made Dallen a little nervous. When we got home and I did the laundry there was a bunch of little sea shells in the bottom of the washer. Ashton had been collecting them on his own ;)

I was trying to take a pic with Baby B and she went in for the kiss....so sweet!

I think they were just happy to be out of the car.

7 Months

2010-08-30T16:41:00.004-06:00

Wow...Brielle is 7 months old!!! Time really flies! Here are a few stats and facts on the baby girl.

This is how she comforts herself. No binkies for this girl...she won't keep them in her mouth. So you will see her like this if she is upset or bored in any way :)

She is getting to be very curious. Always reaching for anything she can get her hands on.

Why let mommy take pictures when she can watch her bros...she loves to watch her brothers play. They are very entertaining!

They both still love her to death. Again I couldn't get a pic with Dallen because that boy just won't hold still for two seconds.

She is a very good eater. Her favorite is peaches, but she still spits up all the time. Her Dr. calls her a happy spitter :) I guess thats better than a mad spitter :) Either way we always smell like baby spit up!

(Sorry for the graphic picture!)

Oh she finally held still long enough for me to do this!!! I was pretty excited about it. I've been wanting to braid her mohawk for quite some time ;)

She is pretty happy most of the time and she can sit up all by herself for the past month.

She has two teeth and her favorite sound to make is the motor sound with her tongue :)

At her 6 month checkup she weighed in at 16 lb 1oz. Her length was 25 1/2 inches and she is perfectly healthy and we are so grateful for that!

~The Toothfairy Comes Tonight~

2010-08-16T21:08:00.002-06:00

A few days after his birthday Grandma Nicole saw that Ashton had a loose tooth. He had known about it for a while, but didn't tell anyone because he was trying to put it back in :) I guess he thought he was going to be in trouble. This is what it looked like an hour before his dad got home today! This is what it looked like 5 seconds after his dad got home today!
I took a billion pictures of Ashton because he wouldn't hold still so of course the other little ones wanted pictures too. Ashton and Brielle are going to have the exact opposite amount of teeth...but you can't get a picture of hers without her tongue or fingers covering them up :)

Dallen was trying to get in every picture, but of course when I try to get a pic of him he won't hold still for 2 seconds! But when he does its a good one!

And then I tried to get all 3! Gotta love em'!!!

hE's FiVe

2010-08-12T08:32:00.004-06:00

I wouldn't believe that Jeff and I had a 5 year old if he wasn't right in front of my face ;). Seriously though 5 just seems soooo old. He is going to be in preschool this year....I can't even comprehend the fact that we could have put him in kindergarten this year. Anyway moving on :)

I asked Ashton what kind of cake he wanted for his birthday. Most kids would say chocolate or vanilla maybe....but I was prepared for something else. He has asked for a basketball cake every year since he was 2! This year he said he wanted an Optimus Prime cake. He meant it too! He wanted the cake to look like Optimus...who does he think I am.....we don't have an ace of cakes out here! So I did the best that I could being the amateur that I am. This is what I came up with. I'm not gonna lie...He was a little disappointed, but after I explained to him the Ace of Cakes thing he understood and was happy. (I was proud of myself)

He was very specific about what he wanted for his birthday this year. My mom and I looked all over the store for Battle Strikers....I didn't even know what they were. He loved all of his presents.

When we went to cut the cake Ashton said he wanted the autobot part. So I was telling Jeff that Ashton wanted part of the face thing. Ashton quickly corrected me and said no the whole thing! It was his birthday afterall :) He didn't end up eating that whole piece.....he gave his all though.

I had to throw this one in. I have a pic like this of Dallen at every birthday party he has ever been to.

Here are the other guests at the party....well the cute ones anyway ;)

Play in the Pool Lessons

2010-08-09T15:33:00.003-06:00

This year Ashton took "Play in the pool lessons" the second week of July. Don't get me wrong I'm cool with the little ones playing in the pool, but when I saw all the stuff they were supposed to be doing to pass off the preschool level....I was left wondering when they taught all that stuff because I didn't see it once. He loved it though. Dallen unfortunately wasn't old enough :(

He was a good little rule follower! He never got into the pool with out his teachers permission.

He is the one on the end turning his head back so his face wouldn't get wet.

He would not dunk his head. He informed his teacher that he would do it when he was 5. In his defense he kept to his word. We went swimming last week and he dunked his head 4 times :) He is a silly kid!

Our Favorite Fireworks Tradition

2010-08-09T15:13:00.004-06:00

For the past couple of years Jeff has set off fireworks in front of our house. I love doing it! We just buy the packs you can get from Walmart and the boys love them just the same as the big ones. We sit on our little trampoline and get out some lawn chairs if more people come. It's just a good time!
The boys get really excited about it. (The little sweetie was already in bed and she stayed asleep the whole time.)

We let Ashton do a sparkler this year. Dallen wouldn't go near the things :)

Cowboys....and girl

2010-07-02T10:06:00.003-06:00

Father's Day weekend we moved my Dad's cows onto the Mountain.

Ashton absolutely loves riding horses. Looks like we have a cowboy on our hands.

(he takes this puppy everywhere)

Dallen not so much. I didn't think that we would get him on a horse but......

Uncle Casey talked him into it. You can see his little hand holding on for dear life on the right side.

And he kept riding. He did a great job.

Brielle was happy in the truck until....

She became a cowgirl! ;)

Funny story about the cowboy boots! Ashton needed some new ones so Grandma Nicole took him boot shopping. As soon as he saw those blue boots he wouldn't even try on other ones. Believe me we tried! My mom and I are not huge fans but he fell in love :). So she got him the ones he wanted. Dallen on the other hand would not look at any boots, but when we got home and Ashton had boots on and Daddy had boots on he had to wear some too. Luckily we still had Ashton's old ones from Grandma Kathleen and Grandpa Jimmy.

I Don't Know If I Like This :P

2010-06-28T09:32:00.003-06:00

A few weeks ago Brielle got her first taste of solidish food. (rice cereal mixed with water and gerber apple juice) Here's how it went.

I think it went "OK" ;) She loves it now. Her favorite is pears!

I'll Hold Her

2010-06-20T18:48:00.002-06:00

I want to hold her mom! Well maybe not.......

Well okay, I want to hold her.......

I changed my mind I don't want to hold her......

I love my baby sister! Although she doesn't know what to think about me ;)

Tough little Man

2010-06-17T08:28:00.003-06:00

Yesterday we were at the park and Ashton fell on the stairs, splitting is eyebrow pretty bad. After some encouragement from my mother and a few others I took him to the ER. This was our first stitches. He had to be sedated and that was maybe the worst part for me :). I caught glimpses of what was going on, but I couldn't watch. I just held his hands (adrianna had his feet). He got 6 stitches on the inside and 7 on the outside. Whenever he sees it he just says "oh" :) he is more concerned about the shot he had to get to be sedated.

This morning I asked him how he was doing and if he wanted to see his owie. He looked and then he said, " Don't worry mom, I'm not sad." What a tough little man.

Who had a BiRtHdAy?

2010-06-02T21:06:00.004-06:00

It was Dallen 2 or 3 weeks ago :)! He turned 3...can you believe that! I have a picture just like this one when he turned 1. He had a great birthday...for a kid who for weeks leading up to his birthday said he didn't want one. Ya...I don't know what was going on with that.

Toy Story and Transformers....what more could a kid ask for? Well it turns out a lot more. He got some great gifts this year that he loves from all of his family.

And of course the Dallen cake face. He looks like this every time he eats cake. He hasn't changed his technique since he was a year old :)

Maybe we "ARE" on T.V.

2010-06-02T12:40:00.002-06:00

This is the conversation I just had with my "4" year old. Very deep!

Ashton: Maybe the Monsters are watching us on t.v. on their planet.
Me: (confused) Where did you see this honey?
Ashton: Nowhere I just thought it.
Me: Oh...(I have to tell him monsters aren't real and we are not on a television show ect...)
Ashton: Yeah, maybe at the movies; their's are just longer.
Me: (chuckling a little thinking about our whole lives being a movie and that he came up with that...oh yah I need to tell him that monsters aren't real and we are not....oh well he has already moved on)

Genetic?....I think so!

2010-05-02T18:09:00.003-06:00

Well May 2nd has come again. It has been 6 years since my Grandmother died in a tragic car accident. She had a great impact on my life. She was a great example of acceptance. She worked hard and raised 6 beautiful daughters (on her own). She had a way of making everyone feel special. I was the 4th of many grandchildren and I know she loved all of us. She is the reason that Zion National Park and Springdale Utah hold such a special place in my heart. Now she has greatgrandchildren, 4 of which are mine and I know that even though they never met her they share some of her loves. My boys could collect rocks all day and I know they would have loved fishing with their great grandma. Although she would have had to teach them not to throw the rocks when you are fishing. For pictures of my grandma and a little more of her story go here.

Now enjoy some pictures of my kids enjoying one of their favorite things. Throwing rocks into the lake.

The Greatest Place on Earth

2010-04-14T16:30:00.004-06:00

For Easter/My Birthday we went to the most beautiful place on Earth. We went to Zion National Park. I love it there! I have ever since I was a little kid. Jeff suprised me with a weekend getaway. We stayed at the Desert Pearl Inn. It is a gorgeous place to stay. The boys slept on a couch bed. I pulled it out and then went about my business doing something else...when I turned around Dallen had made his own little bed out of the couch cushion. It was so cute! He was very proud of himself.
The view from our private balcony. It would be amazing if I could have a glass of chocolate milk and a doughnut every morning on a balcony with this view and the sound of a river rushing by.

The boys waiting for the shuttle.

There's nothing like playing outside after a long cold winter.

She was such a trooper, but all this moving around tuckered her out.

These pics were taken on my fav hike. "Weeping Rock" The boys are actually looking out toward a beautiful view, but I could not get them to turn there backs to the edge of that cliff. (I guess they have a little grandma Kathleen in them.) They stuck to the inside of the cove :)

~Blessed~

2010-03-29T08:06:00.002-06:00

I cannot believe that Brielle is 2 months old today. Time just flies! Yesterday she was blessed by her Daddy. It was a beautiful blessing. She was quiet and awake the whole time. The spirit I felt yesterday was so strong. We had a blast with all the family and friends that were able to come out this weekend. (And we missed all those that couldn't make it)

Here she is in her gorgeous dress. I absolutely loved it. My mom picked it up from a little shop called "you will be blessed". The woman makes amazing dresses.

I had mentioned to Jeff that I wanted to get her a bracelet to go with her dress and he informed me that he already had plans for that.....what good Daddy. Don't you think he did a good job! He is already wrapped around her little finger, just like he should be.

~Busy 6 weeks~

2010-03-18T08:45:00.003-06:00

We have had a busy 6 weeks. I was pretty sick when I was pregnant and I got car sick every time I got in the car so we didn't go anywhere from the beginning of November until after Brielle was born. I feel like we have been going ever since :). This was our first trip. Brielle's first Hotel stay at 2 weeks, the day after Valentine's Day. She did so good and the boys loved it. They are pretty used to staying in hotels. Ashton was actually asking if we could go to a Hotel. It was a much needed getaway for all of us.
The next weekend we headed down to Panguitch. The boys got a new toy for our long drives, a DVD Player. I thought Dallen was too cute sleeping with his big headphones :). Brielle did great driving as well. All of our kids have been good travelers, but as you can tell we like to start them young. We had a great time in Panguitch. Ashton and Dallen got a lot of their energy out with grandma and grandpa. And Brielle got to meet some more of her family.

The boys still love Brielle, sometimes a little too much ;) I believe this picture says it all.

We captured her first smiles. This pic was taken on St. Patty's Day morning. She is always super smiley during the morning and then not so much the rest of the day. Not that she cries the rest of the day, she mostly just sleeps.
Here are the cuties on St. Patrick's day. I made sure everyone was wearing green.

And last but not least green eggs. The boys thought it was pretty cool.

Happy Valentine's Day

2010-02-14T09:27:00.004-07:00

I love my kiddos so much. They really are the greatest! The boys have put up with so much the last couple of months :) They have been real troopers. They are always helping me out. (Well okay they aren't always so willing, but we take what we can get.) We are all so happy to have our family all here together! And then there is Jeff. I wouldn't be able to function without him. I wish I had a pic of the two of us, but we are sleep deprived and not worthy of pics at the moment :) Now here are some faces that can always put a smile on my face!

I took the picture of Ashton at the hospital when Dallen was born, and the picture of Dallen is at the hospital when Brielle was born. Two handsome proud big brothers :)

I love how you can see the love on their faces. They are too precious. They love their little sister and I think she is always going to have them on her side.

I couldn't resist another picture of Brielle :) I realized she had something on her head in all of the other pictures so I had to show you her crazy hair.

Who can Resist a New Baby!

2010-02-11T08:50:00.003-07:00

Here we are going back to the hospital on Monday to get a quick checkup. The silly girl likes to sleep all the time and she lost some weight so we had to fatten her up a little :). The next day we went back and she was fine.

This is our little "Sleeping Beauty". We went to vernal to pick up a few things and she didn't even know she left the house. She was asleep the whole time. Don't worry she ate she just didn't wake up.

And here is the typical Mommy photo shoot that all babies have to endure. All of these pics were picked from at least 10 each of these days. We have been having so much fun with Brielle. The boys just love her. They don't know why she just sleeps all the time, but they are going to love it when she starts to respond to them.

1~29~10....The Story of Brielle

2010-02-07T10:09:00.006-07:00

We arrived at the hospital around 7:30AM on Friday January 29, 2010. I realized I didn't have any pictures of my pregnant belly so we took a quick shot.
Our last hug as parents of 2. We were both very excited and only a little nervous. The docter came and broke my water around 8:30 or 9:00 I'm not sure. The contractions started to be fairly regular right away. By the time they started the pitocin I was already in labor. About 10:15 the contractions started to get pretty bad and I was ready for an epidural. The anesthesiologist was in surgery so they told me I would have to wait until he was done. I was starting to get nervous because everything was happening so fast. Direct quote from me, "I think the contractions are too close together." The nurse kinda just laughed that one off. Luckily a half an hour later a different anesthesiologist came in. He was on his way home when he heard about me so he came back to save the day :). The epidural was in and done around 11:00AM. Around 11:20 I started pushing. It was literally 3 contractions and there she was. The best delivery ever. She was born at 11:29AM.

After 4 hours at the hospital there she was with her proud Daddy.

And her happy, tired, relieved, proud Mommy.
She weighed 7lbs 11oz and was 20 inches long. We named her Brielle Coleen Cooper. Her middle name is very special because she is named after both of her awesome Grandma's. Ni"cole" and Kath"leen". In case you are wondering about how to pronounce it "Bree-Elle" and "Coe-Leen".

When Ashton first saw her he said, "She's so Beautiful". He absolutely loves her. He is going to be a great big brother.

Dallen was so excited to hold her. He loves his baby sister so much. He gets so concerned whenever she cries. He is also going to be a great big brother.

This is how the boys entertained themselves later on that night at the hospital. Don't worry we didn't make them stay there all day. This was their second time back. Oh and no one was hurt :).

P.S. I just wanted to give a shout out to my nurses and docter. They were all so great and took such good care of us. Thank You!

Things I'm Excited About :)

2010-01-20T14:16:00.002-07:00

~These adorable baby beenies that I recently learned how to make.

(Thanks Merralee)

~These beautiful blankies.
(Afghan made by me, Purple Patch Quilt with silky lining
made by my mommy.)

~Little "pink" clothes and tiny tiny socks.

~Two super excited big brothers.

~And last but not least.....

I am super excited that my little family of 4 is soon to be a

Family of 5.

My (Super) Heroes

2010-01-11T08:22:00.002-07:00

I am so lucky to have a house full of super heroes. They run around like this at least once a day.

Daddy was showing them how Super Heros are supposed to pose.

Did I forget Christmas?

2010-01-08T17:06:00.002-07:00

Wow, I totally forgot to post Christmas pictures. Must be the pregnant brain :). We spent Christmas Eve over at Grandma Nicole and Grandpa Scott's. We had an awesome Chinese dinner. Santa came to our house that night and everyone came over to watch the boys on Christmas morning. After that we went back to Grandma and Grandpa's for breakfast. The sick little man cut some of our plans out, but all in all it was a great Christmas. Dallen got really sick on Christmas Eve so he was dragging a little bit, but he was just as excited as Ashton was he just couldn't show it.

Ashton's list to Santa changed just days before Christmas, but luckily Santa got the revisions and was able to bring him one of the new items. They love their Light Sabers.

And please excuse my bad photography, but it was really bad lighting and they were so bouncy :).

Here is the second Christmas. Grandpa Jimmy and Grandma Kathleen weren't able to come out, but Aunt Mandy brought their gifts, so this is for you guys.

The boys loved their gifts. They have slept with their new blankets every night.

I do love Primary

2010-01-05T09:53:00.002-07:00

I have been in Primary and the nursery for the last 4 years off and on, but mostly on :). It really is a lot of fun and I love all the kids that I get to work with. The class I had this last year was special because it was the second time I had been their teacher, I was also their nursery leader. I told them not to be suprised if I ended up being their teacher again in the future. Anyway I just got released and it is the perfect time for a break.

I wanted to share the Christmas present I gave to my primary class for a couple reasons:

1-I wanted to show that even a challenged crafter like myself can make something super cute and functional. Basically if I can do it you can too :)
2- So I could tell my awesome helpers thank you. I couldn't have done it without my mom, she helped me with the pattern and I don't have a sewing machine so that would have been hard, and Sel helped with the pins for a while. It would have taken me days without help.
3-I get a ton of ideas by looking at blogs and these "Crayon Cozies" make a great gift for the little ones, and it makes it easy to carry crayons anywhere you might need them. So if anyone is looking for a gift idea here you go :)

Merry Christmas Everyone!!

2009-12-24T08:33:00.000-07:00

Oh Christmas Tree

2009-12-16T08:22:00.002-07:00

The first weekend of December we headed up on the mountain to find our perfect tree. And its a good thing we went when we did. It started to snow a little while we were up there, but by the next day about a foot of snow had come down at our house, so I can only imagine what it was like on the mountain. Jeff and I hardly ever get pictures together so Adrianna was there and she took our picture in front of the lucky tree that got to come home to our house. (and yes that is my belly sticking out because I cannot zip up my coat)

Ashton thinks he is so big. He is always wanting to help do everything. He helps me bring in firewood, and we got a little kid snow shovel this year. He would stay outside forever shoveling snow if I would let him. So of course he had to help daddy pull the tree up to the car.

And here are my two little men. They love being outdoors and doing things like this. I hope that we can keep up this tradition for many years to come.

Santa Clause is Coming to Town

2009-12-04T08:44:00.006-07:00

Yesterday the boys were finally able to have a real holiday tradition come true this year. We didn't get to go trick-or-treating. We had Thanksgiving all by ourselves. And...we won't be able to go to see the lights at Temple Square in SLC this year. Thankfully last night we had our ward Christmas Party and Santa was there.

You can tell that they both were a little stand offish, but there was no crying or screaming. Dallen had a wonderful conversation with Santa and even smiled for me.

I think Ashton told Santa everything he wanted and even added some that mommy had never heard before. On the ride home we explained that Santa doesn't bring you everything on your list :)

They picked people to act out the 12 days of Christmas. It was really cute and the kids really enjoyed it. Dallen was part of the Ladies Dancing, Ashton was a Pyper Piping, I was a Lord A Leaping, and Daddy didn't get his picture but he was a bird of some kind. He didn't get his picture because he was in the front, which is unfortunate because he had a beak on his head.

The Primary performed "Picture a Christmas". It was so cute. You would have thought that Ashton had a solo the way he positioned himself right up front and center. He was so cute, he wouldn't hold still and he only sang part of the time. I was so busy watching Ashton and taking pictures that I didn't even notice Dallen run on stage. He went in front of all the kids so he could stand by his brother. He even tried to sing along with everybody. Needless to say they were a hit.

The priesthood did "Silent Night". It was so pretty. And of course I had a hard time holding on to Dallen. He felt like he needed to join the men. The Relief Society and Young Women did numbers too, but I told him those ones were for "grils".

We had a lot of fun.

~Thankful Tree~

2009-11-22T08:42:00.002-07:00

Last week for FHE we made a Thankful Tree. It was so much fun and reminded us of all the things that we are thankful for. We let the boys tell us the things they were thankful for on their own. Here are some of Ashton's: Wii Games, Red Shorts, Grandparents. Some of Dallen's were: Jesus, Pizza, and Cake. They were so cute and we weren't suprised at all by what they said. Today I am thankful for 6 years with my eternal companion Jeff. This year's anniversary is a far cry from last years, but I am thankful for it all the same. Dallen has been sick all week, and he has graciously shared that with Ashton and Daddy, who are now sick. (So not even an anniversary date :(, maybe next year.)
Year 6 has brought us a wonderful Christmas filled with the Savior and a love for a close family. Kidney Stones that stayed with me for almost 3 weeks and allowed for us to be thankful for family once again taking care of us. It brought us our last pregnancy and a great suprise that she is a little girl. It brought us a 2nd birthday and a 4th birthday of our wonderfully rambunctious little boys. The 6th year has definitely been one to remember, and I can't wait for the next one.

Awww....It's a Baby

2009-11-16T20:24:00.003-07:00

Today Jeff had the day off so we had wonderful Aunt Sel show us what the baby looks like in 3D. The boys absolutely loved it. They sat on Daddy's lap the whole time totally interested in everything that was going on. She also made sure little baby girl had all her parts. As far as she could see everything was happy and healthy. Yeah!!!

She wasn't totally cooperative, but we did get some decent shots. Here is a little profile.

Here she is peeking through some gunk :). She looks a little squished.

This is her precious litte feet resting together.

(Thanks again Aunt Sel for squeezing us in today. Love Ya!)

Halloween 2009

2009-11-04T12:30:00.002-07:00

This year I decided to get the flu the week of Halloween so instead of going to State Volleyball to cheer on Aunt Jamie, or going trick-or-treating, we decided to stay home and keep our germs to ourselves. Luckily the boys didn't mind. We let them wear their costumes and they trick-or-treated to Jeff and I. He had a bowl and I had a bowl. They even knocked on the doors. And of course we had a photo shoot. Here is Optimus Prime (From Transformers for those of you that don't know.) He has been wearing this costume everyday since Halloween. He absolutely loves anything about Optimus Prime and Transformers.

And here is the cutest dragon ever. He was supposed to be Bumblebee from the Transformers movie, but unfortunately we never found one small enough for him. He loved being a dragon though. Luckily my mom had this costume. It was first worn by Uncle Casey and then I think AD and Ashton when he was 1.

It was so hard to get a pic that wasn't blurry, but here they are showing how tuff and scary they are.

These two have so much fun together. I am so happy they have eachother and that they are such good friends. They didn't even realize they were missing out on anything.

Who doesn't like to win stuff?

2009-10-31T13:37:00.002-06:00

There is an awesome giveaway going on at my sis-in-laws crafty blog, Miss MacMurdy's. You can click the button on my side bar to enter for yourself. Here is what they are giving away:

Here's the deal:
Leave a comment, become a follower and announce this giveaway on your blog and you can have up to 3 entires in the contest.
What you can win:
The first name drawn will win a FREE custom designed Christmas/Holiday card. That's right- you get a design that will be all your own. Send me the pics and information, let me know your style and colors of choice and I will work with you to create the perfect card for you!
The second prize is for a FREE design from my etsy shop. You pick it, send me the images and information and it is yours to print where and how you wish!
The third prize is for 50% off any design from my etsy shop.
GOOD LUCK!!!
(Please note that these prizes are for design ONLY. You will be responsible for printing and distributing your cards.)

It's just that easy and you won't be disappointed!

Family Portraits

2009-10-20T08:38:00.003-06:00

Ashton came running in to show me his latest picture and when I first looked at it I noticed there was something a little different. He is always drawing pictures of our family, but this is the first one that included his baby sister, (Awwww). I immediately said, "Don't erase it, I have to take a picture." I think he was proud that I wanted a picture of his drawing. He is such a sweetheart. Just this morning he saw one of the jammies that we already have for the baby and he said, "Aww, mommy I'm so excited to see the baby." This is a fun and easy Halloween craft that you can do with any age. We did this for FHE. All you do is trace everyone's foot, cut it out and then decorate to your hearts desire. It was a little hard to trace the little ones feet, they thought we were trying to tickle them. It took two of us to work on Dallen's. Jeff decorated his all on his own, I think he did a great job. The boys both got to pick everything on theirs as well. Ashton was very specific. He wanted a scary mouth and a tie like Daddy wears. I think they turned out way cute and the boys love them.

"I looked out the Window and What Did I See"

2009-10-12T21:03:00.002-06:00

Well it wasn't popcorn....It was something better. "Uncle Ronnie", came home from serving his mission for a little over 2 years. Most of these little cuties were babies, or not even born yet (Kinsey). Ashton and Livi were the only ones old enough to remember him, but you wouldn't have known that. All of these kiddos were excited to see him. Aunt Mandy even made everyone these cute matching outfits. They were the best looking kids around. :)

And there he is stepping off the plane. We were all so excited to see him. Uncle Ronnie was in every one of Ashton's prayers from the day he left to....well...he still is. There were lots of hugs and some happy tears shed. It was a great weekend and we are so glad to have him home safe and sound.

They are Soooo Big Now

2009-10-10T09:33:00.002-06:00

This was a big moment for me as a mom. We went down to St. George to pick up Jeff's little brother Ronnie from his mission. We stayed one night in a hotel and up until this trip we have had a portable crib in the room with us. This time we decided to let the boys share the bed. This is the first time that they have ever shared a bed and they were so cute. I was worried about it, but it turned out great. They snuggled up to eachother the whole night and no one ever woke up. It really brought a tear to my eye.

~Happy Birthday Mom~

2009-10-08T08:29:00.002-06:00

Happy Birthday Mom and Grandma! What would we do without you? You are always there for us when we need you and the boys absolutely love ya. You're the best! We hope that you have a great birthday.

It's A.....

2009-09-23T12:48:00.003-06:00

GIRL!!!!

Many of you probably already know, but for those of you who don't, we are expecting our third little baby. I am 20 weeks along. When we first told Ashton and Dallen we were having another baby it took them a while to get it. We told them we were getting a new baby, so Ashton thought we were getting rid of Dallen. He did not like that. Once he finally got the concept we asked Ashton if he wanted a Girl baby, or a Boy baby. At first he went back and forth, but after a couple weeks all he wanted was a brother baby. So when we found out the baby was a girl we knew we would want to capture his reaction. It's all in the facial expressions. Enjoy!!!

2009-09-11T08:49:00.002-06:00

A few weeks ago we decided to go golfing as a family with the Parsons'. It was kind of a stormy day, but it turned out all right. The kids had a blast so what more can you ask for.

These two were the actual golfers. Well Jeff is kinda new to the whole thing, but he likes it.

All the kids ended up in Mandy and Kalen's cart. That was fine with Jeff and I. Although they were pretty crowded.

I love this picture. We kept trying to get all the kids to look and smile at the camera. Dallen and Kinsey weren't having it and Ashton just kept smiling bigger and bigger.
Most of the holes ended like this. All the kids running around while the boys were trying to finish up.
Ashton loves golfing and they give him this little club in the clubhouse. He was always asking when it was his turn.

And not to be left out Dallen had to get in a couple of puts. They were all so cute and it is always good to get outside and do something different.

Check This Out

2009-08-27T09:01:00.002-06:00

I have some super talented sis-in-laws. They have started a crafting blog that I think is great. If you like to be inspired by others crafting and get great ideas you should check them out. They also have Etsy shops where you can purchase the things they are working on.

These are some dolls, I mean Action Figures that Sally sent Ashton for his birthday. They are super cute and the boys love them. She also makes princesses and does custom families or whatever you would want....(I think).

My other sis Mandy does the cutest invitations and announcements you will ever see. If you have a party, wedding, or announcement coming up you should definitely check her out. She does a great job and has reasonable prices.

So here are the sites you need to go to:
The Blog: http://missmacmurdy.blogspot.com/
Sally's Etsy Shop: http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=7435702
Mandy's Etsy Shop: http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=7450543

You are Never Alone

2009-08-23T09:57:00.002-06:00

I was really moved by this video today. I felt like I should post it for someone who may not have seen it otherwise.

I want everyone to know that they are never alone. I know that there are always going to be hills and valleys, we can't prevent them. We can surround ourselves with good people that we know will always be there to cheer us on. I hope that I can be the kind of person that is a good "cheerleader". So to everyone, keep going, you are doing great, I know you can do it, and if you ever need a helping hand let me know.

Who is Watching These Kids Anyway

2009-08-17T13:06:00.003-06:00

Apparently it is not me. First I heard rustling in the silverware drawer so I yell into the kitchen that they better stay out of that drawer. Still I heard no voices. So I figured I better go see what is going on. I see them pouring this...... into their cups.

Ashton needed a spoon for his.

Dallen just drank his powder right out of the cup. You can't really tell in this picture, but he has a chocolate powder mustache.

Suprisingly the mess was minimal. Crazy kids. Guess thats what I get for not putting lunch away fast enough.

Quick Camping Trip

2009-08-13T08:45:00.003-06:00

We went up to Wolf Creek Camp Ground on Friday July 31st in the afternoon and left Saturday morning around 9:30. Jeff didn't even get to the campground until after 10:00 on Friday night because he had to work. Even though it was a very short camping trip I am so glad we went. The boys had a blast and we got to spend some time with my Aunt Rene and most of her family and my Aunt Debra and most of her family.

This was Dallen's very first camping trip and it didn't take him long to start doing this....
Which turned into this..... And later this.....

The boys were so happy when my cousins showed up. They are my cousins, but my boys will probably claim them as their's. Ashton and Riley especially had a great time. They were fighting ghosts with these sticks running all over the place.
We ended with a nice breakfast. They must have been hungry because they actually sat still for a few minutes to eat.

He's My Man and I'll Brag if I Want to.......

2009-08-06T16:55:00.006-06:00

Ha Ha...., but really it is Jeff Birthday today and I wanted to share his talent with all of you. I really think he is the greatest. Ashton, Dallen and I (along with many others) can listen to Jeff sing all day. But today he has to listen to us sing, "Happy Birthday".

Today is Jeff's birthday and as many of you know when you become an adult your birthday's just aren't the same. Toys turn into electronics and motorized things, hey I guess that one isn't bad, is it Jeff ;). You have to work all day, and your mom isn't there to pamper you. Instead you have a 4 year old that remembers your birthday all year and the first thing he wants to do when he wakes up is call you to wish you a happy birthday. And a 2 year old that talks a little but one of the best things he said today was happy birthday. (It really was one of the cutest things.) Oh and you have a wife to pamper you instead, (Yeah Right, is what he is thinking, but hey I will try.) I guess being an adult isn't so bad after all.

We love you Jeff. You are the best Daddy and Husband. I know a lot of other people think you are the best Son, Brother, Son-in-Law, Grandson, ect.

Happy Birthday!!!

Ashton is 4!!!

2009-08-06T09:30:00.001-06:00

Ashton's birthday started on Saturday because Granpa Jimmy and Grandma Kathleen were out for UBIC, but unfortunately couldn't stay for his birthday and weren't going to see him on his birthday so he got some presents on Saturday night. When he woke up on Sunday he said, "Mom can I open my presents?" I of course said no honey you have to wait until this afternoon when we have cake. Then he said, "No mom my presents from last night." He was so cute. He was excited for primary because they were going to sing to him. Sunday morning I made his cake. Those spoons were full of frosting. It is kindof a tradition around here.
I should have had my camera on action shots because all my pics were blurry. There is just to much excitement when it comes to birthdays, the same thing happened with most of Dallen's pics.

This is the only present that Ashton asked for. It is called "Helmet Heroes" and he loves it. He was really spoiled this year. He loves everything that he got. Thanks everyone for helping to make a happy 4 year old.

And how could we have a birthday with out a cake face from Dallen. Gotta love him!

Longhorn Days 2009

2009-07-31T10:17:00.003-06:00

This year on Thursday they did "Art in the Park" for the kids. They made a really cute mural with all the kids hand prints. Here are Ashton and Dallens. AD's are the big green ones. The main problem with "Art in the Park" is the in the park part. The boys were more interested in playing. So we did.

Then we went to the parade on Saturday morning. They really like the parade. They throw lots of candy and popsicles. The only thing they don't like is getting wet, which they unfortunately they do because their daddy is so popular :). I didn't get any pics of that due to protecting the camera. In this pic they can finally see the parade coming.

Ashton is so patriotic. He insisted on bringing his flag and he didn't put it down the whole time. When he was eating his popsicle he would pick up the candy with the flag still in his hand.

On Saturday night we headed to the park again for the barbeque, concert and fireworks. I left the camera in the car so again no pictures, but it was so fun. The food was excellent. During the fireworks Dallen was in awe....we were so close. Ashton said that all of those fireworks were for him and nobody tried to tell him otherwise.

Thanks Longhorn Days Commitee, you did a great job!

Early Learners

2009-07-28T18:44:00.002-06:00

To keep a woman (mommy) happy, just do nice things for her, give her presents for no reason, and compliment her. My baby boys are learning early thanks to their daddy who is a great example of how to treat a lady. This is a bleeding heart bush that is in the front yard. The boys are always picking the flowers and giving them to me. Ashton was even a little offended when I left them outside, so I had to bring them in and line them up on the counter.

My boys are such sweethearts.

Swimming Lessons

2009-07-22T08:11:00.002-06:00

Dallen and I did the mommy and me class. He loved playing with the toys and just messing around in the water, but when I made him back float, or dunk under the water he hated it. Learning the swimming skills was difficult for him. Except for: swimming for a toy and jumping into the pool.

On the first day Ashton wanted to get out early and he told me he didn't want to get his eyes wet. On the second day I couldn't get him out of the pool. He wanted to stay. By the end he was a professional, he loved it.

~FuTuRe TrAcK sTaRs~

2009-07-10T09:36:00.003-06:00

During the Balloon Festival weekend they had a 5k. We were keeping Jamie company at a water station behind the hospital. Ashton kept watching everyone run by and he wanted to run....so finally Grandpa Jimmy said okay Ashton lets run to the end of the race. I don't think Grandpa thought that Ashton would actually run the whole way. He ran all the way to the High School and then ran 2 laps around the track without stopping. We think that is close to a mile and a half. The crazy kid had his flip flops on too. Next year we will be putting his tennis shoes on. When I finally met them at the High School he talked me into a lap as well. Then the little ones decided to take a lap with Grandpa; Cooper, Dallen, Grandpa and Kinsey. They all ran the whole lap.

Come on guys your almost there.

I missed Cooper's close up....he was just too fast and I wasn't ready for him. Here is Kinsey crossing the finish line.

And here is little Dallen. I think they were all a little burned out after their morning exercise.

Bloooons!!!!

2009-07-08T14:31:00.003-06:00

The last weekend in June is a great time in Panguitch, Utah. They have a Balloon Festival. It is so much fun, and the kids love it. This is the night glow. I waited forever to get this picture. They need to do a count down or something to when they are going to light the balloons. It happens just randomly, you really have to get lucky. The atmosphere is amazing.

Ashton was hoping for an all red balloon, red is his fav color, but they only had balloons with some red.

Dallen loved the balloons. Everywhere he looked there they were. When we were driving all we heard was "mommy, mommy, daddy, daddy, see, bloooons." He was so cute and Ashton loved it too. We really had a great time.

It's Finally Hot Enough For This.....

2009-06-25T08:11:00.003-06:00

A fun afternoon jumping on a wet trampoline with their Daddy!!! They had a Blast. They got soaking wet and stayed up a little past their bed time. It was definitely worth it.

(And yeah, we finally have grass in our front yard.)

What does "Hairyish" taste like?

2009-05-29T13:01:00.003-06:00

Ashton's new must have before bed is a drink of water. Last week I had left his cup in his room and it still had a little bit of water in it, I thought that he would drink the rest of it that night because he likes to wander. Then of course I forgot about it and a few days later he drank it while we were getting ready for Family Prayer. He came over drinking his water and he said, "Hmmm...that tastes hairyish." Jeff and I just looked at eachother and laughed. This kid says the funniest things. (I'm sure the water had that dusty taste it gets if it's left out.)
This picture was taken at Dallen's B-day party. This is the signature growl.....and yes that is frosting on his head :).

2009-05-27T11:44:00.004-06:00

On Dallen's Birthday we had a little get together with all of our family that lives around here. Ashton insisted that Dallen wanted a football cake so.... That's what he got.

Can you tell how much he loves cake :)

He did use a fork a little bit, but I think he thinks that you use your hands for birthday cake.

All the b-day presents were a hit....with all the kids.

It is a good sign when your kids still play with the toys a couple weeks after their birthday. He had a good time.

But of course the best present was also the cheapest. You can't go wrong with balloons. I couldn't even get him to hold still for 3 seconds to get a pic that wasn't blurry....I guess I should have changed it to action mode.

For the last month whenever Dallen has seen a cake he would sing the "Happy Birthday" Song. All we could get this time was. "Birthday to you fwooo (Blowing out the candle noise)" He was so excited about his cake.

My Baby is 2 ToDaY!!!

2009-05-14T09:37:00.002-06:00

Today is my baby's 2nd birthday. I have to say he is one of the cutest little boys ever. He is always suprising me with what he knows. I didn't know he could count and then a couple days ago I was counting some cards and he just started counting along with me, so I stopped counting and he kept on going. I made brownies a couple weeks ago and he started singing Happy Birthday. Last month he decided he needed to go to the bathroom on the toilet and now he tells me all the time when he has poopy pants and a lot of times before he goes. (I told him I won't be ready until the summer, but it seems like it might be easy.) He talks all the time now and it came on pretty fast. I don't know if it is the same for every family, but it seems like with Ashton I was always teaching him things and trying to get him to do whatever it was. With Dallen I still teach him things, but don't take as much time getting him to do them. He is doing everything on his own. He is very social and outgoing, but he is not a show off like his big brother was. He doesn't have to have all the attention. He is a sweet heart, but don't be fooled by his small size...he can take care of himself.

Happy Birthday Dallen!

We Love You!!

"Daddy's a Genious"

2009-05-10T20:06:00.004-06:00

This morning, like most moms, I got breakfast in bed. Jeff walked in with my breakfast tray and both of my awesome little boys. I just melted when i saw this...

Here is my conversation with Ashton after I got a kiss from Dallen:

Ashton: Happy Mother's Day Mom, I love you.

Mom: Thank you so much....did you see what Daddy did to my pancakes?

Ashton: Yeah, one has a W and an E and a U...

Mom: Yeah, it says "We love you!"

Ashton: Wow, Daddy's a Genious!!!

(I never knew I married a pancake artist...I love you Jeff!)

~Great Woman~

2009-05-02T08:21:00.004-06:00

These are pictures of my Grandma Dyann. She was a great woman. Everything didn't always go her way, but she always had a good attitude, for her grandchildren at least. She loved her family, her dogs, fishing, being outdoors, and Springdale Utah/Zions National Park. 5 years ago today she died due to complications from a car accident. A young man of 17 was driving too fast on a curvey road. She was only 62 years old. We all miss her all the time. Grandma and I at Moon Lake.
Grandma Fishing.

Grandma and my mom.

Grandma was the first person in my family I introduced Jeff too. We went up to Sprindale to visit her and they shook hands and chatted for a while. Then she kind of pulled me to the side, put her arm around me and whispered in my ear, "I like him, he is perfect for you." She was right. A little more than 4 months, the end of March, after Jeff and I were married she was in the car accident. I was also in my last year at DSC. I was taking an English class and my last writing assignment was a poem. We could choose what we wrote and there was nothing else on my mind at the time and it was still really hard to write, but this is what came out:

She lies in wonder on her bed.

The hospital is where she lays her head.

Not being awake or aware,

All the little eyes keeping their stare.

Many worry and many cry,

All hoping at least she'll try.

But then there's hope as she blinks her eyes,

That maybe she hears you , and she tries.

You tell her of love, hope and prayers,

Knowing that at least her family cares.

Then she awakes, but the words can't come out,

Her eyes open a little and her lips show a pout.

She fights so hard, it shows in her face,

Moving everything she can except for her brace.

Surgery after Surgery she proves her strength,

She is determined to stay in it for the length.

She's very strong and has a good heart,

One thing is for sure we don't want to part.

For us every little thing counts,

We just want the doctors to remove our doubts.

I want my family to know how much I love them and I know we will see her again one day. She was a great woman and she is finally being taken care of.

(Sorry for the tears, but I know they would have been there anyway, Love you Mom.)

What is He Looking at?

2009-04-30T08:26:00.002-06:00

Hmmm...I wonder what he could be looking at with such content.

Whatever it is he must love it.
Oh he does love it....It's basketball.

Fun Activity

2009-04-29T08:56:00.002-06:00

I am one of the leaders of Activity Day girls ages 8-10. We try to teach them and have a little fun every now and then. We made these little pictures with them and I think they turned out really cute and the girls loved doing them. Each girl got to design their own "Modest" outfit for their girl. It was fun to see all their different personalities come out in the doll that they created. We added the quote at the end and ribbon to hang them from. Our Recognition Night this month is based on this activity. We are giving these back to the girls, with the quote and ribbon, as a little gift and we are going to have the girls and their moms design another modest outfit out of newspaper and toilet paper. It should be a lot of fun. I just love the quote I found to put at the bottom, and I hope that all the girls remember this because I know it is true for them, and me, and all other daughters of our Heavenly Father:

You are creatures of divinity; you are daughters of the Almighty.

Limitless is your potential. Magnificent is your future.

-Gordon B. Hinckley

Easter 2009

2009-04-21T20:15:00.003-06:00

On Easter Sunday we had a wonderful Stake Conference, went to my moms for a yummy lunch, and then had an Easter Egg hunt outside (Yeah, the weather was finally kind of nice). It was a fun day with our family.Casey and Selanie
Parsons Family

Mom and Dad Cooper Family
Iorg Family Dallen
Ashton
I love this picture. These kids had a good time and there were a ton of eggs for just 3 kids. We are glad that Kinsey got to come up and hunt eggs with the boys.

~New Cure For Hiccups~

2009-04-15T16:43:00.002-06:00

Attention all moms this really works, and I couldn't say it on my blog if it wasn't true :).

About 10 minutes ago my 3 1/2 year old son came to me and said, "Mom I have the hiccups."

So I said, "I bet if you pick up all your toys they will go away."

Off he went to pick up his toys. He came to me a couple of times saying his hiccups weren't gone and I told him it was because he hadn't picked up ALL the toys yet. Well he picked up every single toy and his hiccups are gone.

The results don't lie.

(: From Sin City to Surrounded by Saints :)

2009-04-15T09:33:00.003-06:00

Jeff and I headed down to Panguitch on March 26th to suprise Gaylen for his 30th birthday. On Friday morning the 27th we drove to St. George and met them at the mall. He had no idea we were coming. Becky set up the whole thing and this was his other suprise.

The Richard Petty Experience. She got a pass for Jeff too. I guess she didn't think she would enjoy it as much. I love the "costumes" that they had to wear. They got to do 3 laps around the track with a professional driver. They said it was awesome and nothing like they expected it would be.

Here is the gang at the track. If your wondering why there isn't more pictures or why they aren't very good...I forgot my camera. These were taken with a disposable with no flash. Awesome I know. So I didn't get any pictures of anything else, but this is the main reason we came so I guess it is okay.

For my birthday Jeff got us tickets to go to Conference. We went to the morning session on Saturday April 4th. It was so amazing to be there. The spirit was so strong and the messages were great. It was a powerful experience to see all of the people walking toward the conference center and then when everyone was seated the volume of people that were there to witness the spirit of conference.
I had to take this picture because this is what happened to my hair after we looked outside. It was snowing, so a ponytail was really my best option. :) And there are no pictures in the conference center because on the ticket they asked you not to bring camera's, and in my old age I am a rule follower. Let me just tell you that almost everyone had a camera in the room. No one took pictures during the session, but before and after there were flashes everywhere.

After this we went shopping and to eat at my favorite spot in Park City. I have a really embarrassing picture from that....I might post it later....maybe.

What Happens when You have Birthday Cake at 9:00pm....

2009-04-06T14:42:00.002-06:00

It starts out like this...

But it ends like this....

We didn't get home from my birthday excursion until 9:00pm, but decided to have birthday cake anyway. We got this reaction because my boys are usually in bed at 8:00pm so it was way past their bedtime.

So I was in the Bathroom.....

2009-03-19T20:06:00.004-06:00

when I heard an awesome joke from this one...Ashton: Knock..knock (knocking on the bathroom door).

Me: Who's there?

Ashton: Its me...Ashton.

Me: Ashton who?

Ashton: Ashton the Monster! (Insert Growl here)

He sure is right about that. :)

I thought it was pretty funny.

Guess who needs Glasses....

2009-03-10T09:53:00.002-06:00

Its Jeff. He came home with his eye looking like this. It was really kindof freaky. Last Thursday he got his eye dislocated playing basketball. (Yeah thats right I said dislocated, who does that.) He told me he was leaning down to scoop up the ball at the same time another player swatted up at the ball and slammed it right into his eye. He went in to the eye doctor on Friday to get it checked out and got an eye exam too considering he hasn't had one since he was a child. The doctor thinks that the glasses will help with his constant headaches, imagine that.

Dallen's Room....Finally!!

2009-03-03T15:52:00.002-07:00

Dallen's room has been mostly done for a very long time. We were just waiting to put up these... Thanks again Aunt Mandy, they are so cute and perfect in his room.

All the shelves including book shelf are from Grandma and Grandpa. I love these shelves. I need to get another bookshelf, (its a little bit packed).

This I was scared of. I almost didn't dare do it myself. If I can give some advice....don't be scared. Just do whatever it is that you want to do. Imperfection is cute....sometimes :).

Thanks mom for helping me hang up most of this stuff. Thanks Jeff for helping me finish.

What would I do without all the awesome people in my life.

Nothing Says Love Like Swords???

2009-02-23T09:40:00.004-07:00

This is the joys of having two boys. Who needs hearts, and pink things; we got the boys nerf swords for Valentines Day. I know it is pretty awesome. They Love them. The only problem with them play fighting all the time is that other kids don't play the same way as they do. I think we are really in for it with these two CrAzY Boys.

~My Valentines~

2009-02-13T08:44:00.005-07:00

For this Valentines Day I wanted to take a minute to tell all of my Valentines how much I love them and why I love them so much. I am a pretty lucky girl. Why I love Jeff:
He is my best friend. He is willing to do anything for me at anytime. He never says no when I ask him for a back rub almost everynight. (It started when I was pregnant with Ashton and now I am addicted.) He takes care of all the manly stuff around the house. He even cleans up all the really gross stuff for me. He goes to work even if he is sick so he can take care of us. He has a great sense of humor. I love to hear him sing. He always makes me feel special, and pretty, and loved. We can talk about anything. He is a great Daddy. He has special things that he does with the boys everyday, they love it. He is outgoing and makes and keeps friends so easily. He is a great example. Everyone always teases that I am the reason we have cute kids, but they look just like their handsome Daddy. I couldn't have asked for anyone better to spend eternity with and I am so happy that I was worthy to have him for myself. I love You Jeff with all my heart and I always will.

Why I love Ashton:

Where to start with this little man. He makes me laugh everyday. He is a sweetheart. He is a handsome dude. He will always randomly say, "Mommy, I like you." or "I love you." He has awesome Kungfu moves. He loves his little brother. When they are playing and Dallen will go off another way Ashton will say, "Dallen I'm over here." When they play fight Ashton is always gentle with Dallen, even though he knows he could knock him down in a second and sometimes he even lets Dallen knock him down. He has a great imagination. He can melt you with his smile. He loves to say the prayer, (he hardly lets someone else do and when we do he says his own anyway.) He is outgoing and social just like his Daddy. He calls everyone his friend. One day after nursery he had a bruise on his face and when I asked him what happened he said that one of the kids had thrown a car at him and then he told me he was his friend. He is a good snuggler. I love you Ashton.

Why I love Dallen:

This kid is so funny. He too makes me laugh everyday. He gets so excited about everything. When we play Mario Kart he loves to be King Boo, (what kid loves scary looking ghosts). When I win he says, "You did it." He is growing and learning so fast. He is so independant. He has been feeding himself since before he could walk. (He didn't walk until 15 months, so don't be too surprised.) He loves to run around after his brother. Please was one of his first words and he still says please whenever he wants something. He is a very handsome little man. He loves to give me tackle hugs. (He will spread his arms out and then run full spead towards me and hug me. In a couple years they are going to take me out with those hugs.) He plays like he is the same size as Ashton. He has the best mischevious looks. He gives lots of kisses before bed. He loves being tickled. He is a good friend to his big brother and wants to be just like him.

I feel like I am the luckiest girl in the world to have these three handsome guys taking care of me everyday. I hope that this Valentines Day everyone can let the ones they love know they love them. It is so important to feel the love of others. I want all of my Iorg family and Cooper family (That includes extended family: grandparents, aunts/uncles, cousins, nieces/nephews) that I love you all so much. I really have been blessed in this life.

(PS: This is my 100th post since June 2007. What a great way to spend a 100th post.)

The Cure For Cabin Fever...

2009-02-09T09:46:00.003-07:00

...put a trampoline in your house. G & G Iorg got the boys a small trampoline for the boys for Christmas. It is about 2ft tall and the pad is 6ft. Our spare bedroom is empty except for a bed right now so we put the bed up and replaced it with a trampoline. (All Daddy's idea) They were so surprised. They hadn't even realized they had a trampoline because it was just in a big box.

This is what happens when you try to get a picture of kids jumping in a small space. You can't get one.

They will jump for hours. They love it so much.

I can't say that it is really a cure because actually it kindof makes me want spring to come faster, because everyone knows trampolines belong outside.

Thank you Daddy for putting up the trampoline, it is so much fun. And thank you grandma and grandpa this is an awesome gift.

Matchy...Matchy

2009-02-06T13:55:00.002-07:00

Us girls at the Cooper Household always have a ton of fun. Here are two pictures where I just happened to match the person in the pic with me. Come to think of it Aunt Mandy had more to do with this than anyone else. Thanks Mand, Love you. So Livi thought that it was pretty awesome that we have the same kind of hair. (Long and Brunette) She kept putting my hair on her dolls and comparing it to hers. It was really cute. So Aunt Mandy asked her if I should get pigtails like hers. Of course she thought this was a great idea so we did it and it just ballooned from there. I am actually wearing Kinsey's Tutu so we can match. I look really ugly in this picture, but I still love it because it is such a good memory. Love ya Livi.

This is one of my Fav pictures. I'm getting all choked up. Again Mandy supplied the hair, but we both had grey sweaters on so it worked out perfect. I just want to tell Katie that I think she is such a strong woman. She is a great mommy, and a good example. I think she quite possibly could make it through anything. And she is gorgeous. I love you Katie.

And not to leave any of the other girls out, I love you Sally. I love you Jamie. I love you Kinsey. And I love you Kathleen, thanks for raising such fun girls. (Don't worry I love the boys too.)

Updates on my Health

2009-02-04T09:13:00.003-07:00

Well I figured I may as well do a quick post about my kidney stone because it consumed about a month of my life.

It started out a few days before Saturday the 17th of January. I was feeling kindof sick and a little crampy..(sorry too much info)...Saturday I was really not feeling well then that night woke up with the worst pain I have had in my life. It can be compaired to childbirth except that it doesn't come in and out, it is constant. I went into the ER that night.

I went misdiagnosed for 4 days. I had an ultrasound, x-ray and finally a CT-scan. On a side note I found out I am allergic to iodine during my CT-scan. They started putting it in for contrast and my arm started hurting and then swelling up. I had a very small amount in me. If they had put the whole thing I could have well, it would have been bad. Needless to say I was very stressed and bawling. So they had the radiologist read my scan right away, I think because I was so sad. He saw immediately that I had a large kidney stone that was stuck.

The urologist that comes to Roosevelt wasn't going to be in for a week so I had to go to Salt Lake to see someone. When I got there he confirmed the kidney stone and said that I had to have Lithotripsy. (They basically break up the kidney stone in to very small peices with sound waves. When they tell you about it they compare it to being punched in the kidney 2000 times, fun huh.) The kicker was I had been taking Ibuprofen 600's 4 times a day as well as another medication, because they didn't know what was wrong with me and because of that I had to wait a whole week before I could have my surgery. I cried again. Jeff was home with me that whole week and took care of me. He really was awesome. And we had meals brought to us through the whole thing too. Everyone was so great.

That next week I was home alone because Jeff had to go back to work, imagine that. So I was home I couldn't do anything because I was sick and with the medication I was taking for pain I couldn't even drive, I was stuck at home. I couldn't even take care of my kids. My awesome mom came every morning to get them. Then on Thursday of that week a miracle happened. The pain was gone. I had about 4 days of nothing. The kidney stone was still there it just found a comfy spot and gave me a break. It is probably due to all the people that kept praying for me, I am so thankful.

The boys stayed at Aunt Mandy and Uncle Kalen's house both times we had to go to Salt Lake for appointments. She even made me an awesome present from my boys.

Monday morning I had my surgery and everything went great. I was a little nervous, but everyone was so nice and it was over so fast. You actually lay on a table that has a rubbery spot in the midsection and that is where they put the water they use to conduct the shock that blasts your kidney stone. They did a really good job because my kidney stone has been coming out mostly as sand. Yeah, awesome. It was rough driving home that day, (I had to stop on the road. I was a bit car sick, if you know what I mean.) Then I got one more day off to rest, thanks again mom. Now I finally feel normal again.

I want to Thank everyone so much for the service that they gave to us. I also want to thank everyone for the well wishes. I know that I am very lucky to have so many people who care. Love you all.

Christmas Morning

2009-01-16T09:43:00.003-07:00

The First look.

The Joy of Opening Presents

Dallen got a T-ball toy.

Ashton got knocked out by his Santa Toy.

The Disaster after Christmas Morning is over.

Everyone that knows Ashton will appreciate why Santa got him this toy and why he loves it so much, well just watch.

Christmas Eve

2009-01-12T09:18:00.002-07:00

On Christmas Eve the Bulkley family has a Christmas party. We had yummy food and there were tons of little ones to play with eachother.

Ashton and Livi finally got to play. They really are good friends. It is so cute to see them together. They shared a bed in Grandma and Grandpa's room, (pretty good for 3 year olds), but they would stay up and talk and play.

At the party they always have a talent show. Ashton and Livi sang "I am a Child of God". They did an awesome job. And of course Ashton wanted to stay in the spotlight and sing every single song he knows.

Grandma Kathleen always gets everyone new Jammies to wear for Christmas. We were trying to get all the kids to sit down for a picture, and Dallen took off running.
Finally we got everyone sat down for the pic. They all look so cute in there matching PJ's. We had a blast on Christmas Eve. After we got the kids put to bed the adults embarassed themselves playing Catch Phrase. We love getting together with Family.

The Nutcracker

2009-01-09T09:15:00.002-07:00

This year my mom and Two of her sisters decided that we should go out to the Nutcracker just the girls. We ate at The Cheesecake Factory, yummy. We had fun visiting and eating great food. Then we were off to Ballet West. We got our tickets kindof late and we were up at the top of the theatre. Next year we plan on getting better seats. Despite the seats the ballet and the theatre were still beautiful. It was amazing.
Here are the Iorg Girls. Unfortunately my mom's head is hiding behind mine.

Here is Rene and her daughter-in-law Lindsay.

This is my Aunt Deb, the little one Sammy, and Miquela,(Sorry I know I probably spelled her name wrong). Sammy was so cute. She had the biggest grin on her face from the time they arrived at The Cheesecake Factory, until the end of the ballet. She was very excited and it made it that much more fun for the rest of us.

Christmas Traditions!

2008-12-19T08:29:00.002-07:00

I absolutely love this time of year. I love the spirit that comes with Christmas and I want our family to have traditions that bring us closer together and help us remember the true meaning of Christmas...The Birth of Christ. Going to see the lights on Temple Square is one of my favorite traditions. The lights are so beautiful.

The boys always get so excited to see all the colors. This is the fifth picture I took of them. I could not get them to look at me at the same time.

The temple is always amazing, but put it together with the spirit of Christmas and being framed with Christmas lights, it is awesome to see. During Christmas time Temple Square is filled with all kinds of people with different beliefs even, but no one can deny the beauty of the Temple during Christmas. (or any time)

Here is our Christmas tree this year. Jeff seems never to be satisfied, but I think it is beautiful.

Ashton loved getting the tree. I don't think he knew quite what we were doing, but he loved "play hiking". He wanted to keep going and going......

and going and going. And he didn't want anyone to help him. He could do it by himself.

Dallen wanted to do everything himself, but we wouldn't let him too much because he was so slow. :)...It may have had something to do with how bundled up he was.

We are so excited for Christmas and a couple of new Traditions we are going to start.

Everybody needs a Vacation

2008-12-13T10:13:00.003-07:00

For our 5th Anniversary we decided that we should go on a vacation just the two of us. We love theme parks and I love warm weather so we decided to go to Universal Orlando and Island of Adventure. (We couldn't bring ourselves to go to Disney without the boys.) We had a blast. I recommend all parents taking a vacation without your kiddos. You will miss them like crazy, but the freedom is nice. Oh and usually grandparents love their grandkids so they don't mind watching them. (Thanks Grandma Kathleen.) If we look a little tired it is because our flight didn't get in until 11:45 pm. This was at our condo and we still had 4 days to go.

We ate at a restaurant called "Bubba Gump's Shrimp". It was very yummy. There were signs and pictures all over the restaurant eluding to the fact that it is based on the movie "Forrest Gump", but it still took me until after I ordered "Jenny's Favorite Smoothie" before I got it. :) Being a Jennie I should have realized right off the bat. Nobody heard more lines from that movie than someone named Jennie.

On Saturday, our actual anniversary, we went to the Orlando Temple. I am so glad we went. It is nice to remember that LDS people and Temples are the same all over the world. The temple and the grounds were beautiful like always and everyone was so helpful and nice. It was a good experience.

After the temple we headed off to the beach even though Saturday was the coldest day we were there, only 65. It was still fun to go and the water wasn't cold. We were able to see the sunset there, and I got my shorts soaked. It was beautiful and, you know, it was the beach, but I still wish we could have gone swimming. Oh well, maybe next time.

I have a ton of pictures of the parks, but I decided on this one because it was our favorite ride. The is the Jurassic Park River Adventure. Everything was so pretty and so fun. I know it will be a long time again before Jeff and I get an alone vacation, so we will treasure these memories. It made me excited to take the kids in a few years.

5 Whole Years

2008-12-01T14:04:00.005-07:00

Five years ago I married the love of my life Jeff Cooper. The past five years have brought us two of the cutest most amazing little boys. We have lived in one apartment, and two houses. Even though I loved St. George, we couldn't be happier where we are today. There have been ups and downs, but mostly ups. We work well together. I love him. This was the happiest day of our lives. (At the time)

We were married in the Manti LDS Temple on November 22, 2003, (the coldest day ever). You can't tell by looking at us but......
...you can tell by looking at these two Newly Wed love birds, that it was really cold. (Sally I couldn't resist this picture. I think it is so cute.)

Here are the troops that braved that cold winter day. Really it was all my fault. I didn't want to wait until Spring to get married and I said if I was getting married in the winter I wanted there to be snow on the ground. Well I got my wish and then some. I love the snow in the pictures though.

If you look closely you can tell how long 5 years really is. Jamie is standing next to me almost a foot shorter than me, she is now almost a foot taller than me. All of those handsome young men in the front

I love this picture because Jeff looks like such a baby. When Jeff and I were dating, (before I knew he could sing), I had mentioned that a man singing to his wife on there wedding day was the most romantic thing. Well my wish came true. I love it when Jeff sings to me. And yes he does sing to me all the time and will for...well...forever.

I think that this picture is typical of our marriage. Me laughing and having a good time, and Jeff with a scheming look on his face. Ha Ha. Really though we have a good time and we try not to fight as much as possible. I love Jeff so much and I always will. (Oh and he loves me too.)

High School Tag

2008-11-26T17:40:00.002-07:00

1. DID YOU DATE SOMEONE FROM YOUR SCHOOL? I don't know if I would actually call it dating, but kindof I guess a couple of guys.
2. WHAT KIND OF CAR DID YOU DRIVE? I rode the bus and drove my moms awesome Explorer
3. DID YOU PASS YOUR DRIVERS LICENSE TEST ON THE FIRST TRY? Of Course
4. WERE YOU A PARTY ANIMAL? No, despite what some might have thought.
5. WERE YOU CONSIDERED A FLIRT? I don't think so. I was never really the chasing type and I was kind of oblivious to flirting.
6. WERE YOU IN BAND, ORCHESTRA OR CHOIR? Not in High School, but I was in the Band in Jr. High.
7. WERE YOU A NERD? I think I was a little of everything. I was in academic clubs, and got an academic scholarship, I was a cheerleader (don't judge), played sports and was friends with a lot of different people.
8. WERE YOU ON ANY VARSITY TEAMS? Yes, Volleyball, Softball
9. DID YOU EVER GET SUSPENDED OR EXPELLED? No, My teachers and Principal loved me.
10. CAN YOU STILL SING THE FIGHT SONG? I really should be able to, but I don't think I could get the whole thing.
11. WHO WERE YOUR FAVORITE TEACHERS? Mrs. Oman, Mr. Allred, Mr. Barnum.
12. WHERE DID YOU SIT FOR LUNCH? In the Commons Area. I wasted my money at the grocery store instead of using the cafeteria.
13. WHAT IS YOUR SCHOOLS FULL NAME? Altamont High School
14. WHAT IS YOUR SCHOOLS MASCOT AND COLORS? Longhorn, Red and Blue
15. DID YOU GO TO HOMECOMING? WITH WHO? Our Homecoming wasn't a formal dance, so I didn't go with anyone, or I didn't go.
16. IF YOU COULD GO BACK AND DO IT AGAIN, WOULD YOU? There might be a few things I would change, but no I wouldn't want to do it again.
17. WHAT DO YOU REMEMBER MOST ABOUT GRADUATION? I remember everything a little bit, but nothing really stands out.
18. WHERE DID YOU GO ON SENIOR SKIP DAY? Senior Sluff we went to Sandwash and then home, and Senior trip we went to Lagoon and a Bee's game because they wouldn't let us go on a river trip.
19. HAVE YOU GAINED SOME WEIGHT SINCE THEN? Who hasn't, no really I want to see them.
20. WHO WAS YOUR PROM DATE? Cuyler when I was a Junior and Niles when I was a senior. The Senior one is a fun story.
21 ARE YOU PLANNING ON GOING TO YOUR 10 YEAR REUNION? We probably won't have one. We didn't have a 5 year, I don't think the class president likes us.
22. DID YOU HAVE A JOB IN HIGH SCHOOL? Nope, just whatever chores my parents could get me to do. I was pretty busy in High School with extracurriculars.

I tag: Katie, Mandy, Sally, Mallory, Deidra, Tara

Happy Veteran's Day

2008-11-11T19:42:00.005-07:00

In Altamont today they dedicated the new Upper Country Veteran's Memorial. In the bricks of the Memorial are carved the names of living and passed on Veteran's that served from the Altamont area. Glen Hershal Iorg happens to be my Great Grandfather. The program was filled with lots of emotion. Jeff sang the National Anthem, which was perfect of course. (I love to hear him sing.) There were speaches from numerous people all of which brought a tear to my eye. The children from the elementary school sang the songs that represent each division of the armed forces, while also raising the flag for each division. The announcer had every person that had served in the corresponding division (ie: Army, Navy, National Gaurd, Marines) stand up while their song was performed. It was so awesome to see those that had served our country.

At the beginning of the program they had a Black Hawk, and an Apache helicopter fly over the crowd. It was pretty cool. If you don't believe me look at these faces...

These boys were mesmorized by the helicopters. It was just as fun to watch them as it was to see the helicopters.

Adrianna was in the Elementary school choir so we met her after the program.

Ashton thought the helicopters were the coolest thing and he loved talking to the soldiers. The pilots of the helicopters were so nice. They let the kids pretend to drive. The reason we were able to get these Helicopters here is Tammy Mitchell, so thank you Tammy. She is from Altamont but stationed in Idaho right now. She is also a distant cousin of mine.

Dallen was a little bit nervous when he was close to the helicopters. In this pic Daddy was a little bit too close.

Here is our family on Veteran's Day. Of course Jeff and I are the only ones smiling and Dallen had to keep his eye on the helicopter to make sure it wouldn't fly off.

We are so proud of the Veteran's that have served from our families. Great Grandpa Killian who served in the Navy. Great Grandpa Iorg who served in the Army. Jeff's Grandpa Bulkley who also served in the Navy. These men made today even more emotional especially with the passing of Grandpa Bulkley 2 years ago. It is an honor to remember him on this day. Thank you to all that have served our country honorably.

State Volleyball vs. Halloween

2008-11-10T12:52:00.003-07:00

Well I'm sorry to inform everyone that State Volleyball won. Since our ward party was on Halloween and we were going to be at State Volleyball and I didn't want to fight with costumes at the games and my kiddos are still too little to be mad at me....I didn't do costumes. I know, I know, how could I. Oh well, I did get them some cute Halloween shirts and we had a great time watching Aunt Jamie play volleyball.

One of Ashton's new favorite movies is Monsters Inc. This is his monster growl. The only one he ever really scares is Cooper, everyone else just growls back.

For Halloween dinner we ate at Mimi's Cafe. It was so awesome for the kids. First thing they bring you some snacks, which is great. Then they have a kids menu with all the fav's. Then they bring a desert which is called worms in the mud. Dallen dug right in.

As you can see he thoroughly enjoyed himself. I figured since it was Halloween and he didn't go trick-or-treating this was a good compromise.

Ashton watching the game with the best seat in the house, Grandma's lap.

Dallen was so good during the games he got his own seat and he loved cheering for the girls.

Aunt Jamie and her team ended up taking second in State. They did an awesome job. I think they have a #1 fan, but I'm not sure. I have a feeling we will be spending at least a couple more Halloween's at State Volleyball.

Fall Fun

2008-11-05T11:49:00.005-07:00

Jeff finally had a Saturday off when we didn't have to go anywhere so I made him take us to the Corn Maize in Bluebell. I really wanted to take the kids in the daylight so they knew what we were doing and the day actually turned out beautiful. Daddy is looking so excited to be here. No he really had fun. Dallen was a little stinker and kept trying to climb up the slide by himself. It is not really for babies.

Ashton thought it was a blast. He probably went down that slide 20 times. I ended up taking Dallen down it a few times and those pipes are not forgiving. Hmmm...I wonder why Daddy wouldn't go down the slide :)

Oh, best buddies. They are so cute with eachother when they aren't fighting.

The terrain was a little rough for Dallen, but he thought it was fun. Ashton was the leader most of the way.

We had to keep telling Ashton and Cooper to stay back by us. Can you imagine losing your kid in a corn maize. Not cool.

This was a little shed filled with corn. Ashton wanted to stay in there forever. I found corn in my washer for a few days after this.

I took this pic right before my camera battery died. We told Ashton to sit down and Jeff hurried and stuck Dallen there and this was the best we could do.

Here they are on the bridge. You can see the whole maize from up there. It really is a fun little activity.

This was a scary with my little Dallen. Ashton found the bridge all on his own.

We ended up having to carry Dallen because he was just too slow. I don't think he minded though.

We wandered around the maize for about the first 15 minutes and then decided to let Ashton lead. He was so funny and matter-of-fact about the whole thing. Sometimes he knew just where he wanted to go and other times he would have to think about it for a second. He led us out of the maize in about 40 minutes. This is pretty good considering some people were lost for hours.

It was a really fun activity for the whole family.

Silly Daddy...

2008-10-27T10:01:00.002-06:00

Ashton went with his Daddy and Grandparents to sell calves last week. They were gone all morning and they had taken the fourwheeler. This is what Ashton looked like when he came in. I laughed so hard. He looked just like his Daddy.

Silly Dallen...

2008-10-17T20:21:00.003-06:00

Ashton got this cute little "Cars" themes chair for his birthday from his uncle Tyson and Amanda. Although Ashton likes the chair, Dallen loves it. They were watching cartoons one morning and Dallen kept sinking further and further into the chair. I had to take a picture because, well look, you'll see why.

He was so silly. He knows just how to pose when his Mamma has the camera. Love you, you cute little thing.

Ashton's Room

2008-10-11T09:40:00.004-06:00

I thought I should do a post of the decorations from Ashton's room because I got some of the ideas from looking at other peoples blogs. I asked my mom to come over and help me this week because I was ready to get it all done and Jeff has more important "honey do's" than this. So thank you mom (what would I do without you) and here are the pictures.

The basketball hoop is a staple in his room so I thought we should do the shelves around them. The frames with scrapbook paper in them are an idea that I got from a blog, (someday they will be hanging on another wall, but I didn't have the brackets you put on the back to hang them up.) The hooks are from Ikea and the baseball and basketball bags are from Easter last year. They were at Walmart for $1. They are perfect to hold his little cars.
The cute little plaques are a fun story. When Mandy was staying with me in April we decided to make them one night. Little did we know it would take until around 1:00am. There was a lot of bonding. And most of the artsy work was done by her of course. It was a fun night though. (I didn't get to sleep in like she did.) So thank you Sally for teaching Mandy and thank you Jill for teaching Sally.

There are still a few more things to do for Ashton's room and Dallen's is almost done. I will put up pictures when it is.

My Little Cowboys (and some big ones too)...

2008-10-01T08:32:00.007-06:00

Grandma asked Ashton if he was going to be a cowboy when he grew up. He said, "No, I'm already a cowboy." I think he was right. I was really surprised, besides the cowboy gear he was a really good rider.
We don't have wranglers and boots for Dallen yet so we let him borrow Ashton's hat. He looks pretty cute in the hat, but he wouldn't leave it on for long.
Dallen did not like the cowboy thing. Maybe next year. Unless he's like his mommy.
Ashton would have stayed on the horse all day if we would let him.
Daddy showed him how to steer the horse and he rode with the reins for almost 30 minutes. He was so cute he would pull up on the reins when socks would get close to the cows and he would say, "Woah sockys" He was so funny.

Daddy even galloped a little with him on and he loved it, except he lost his shoe. We were behind them in the truck and we saw him look back so I thought he was getting scared, but really he just wanted us to pick up his boot.
This is Ashton riding with his uncle Casey. I think Ashton will be happy next time he gets to ride. I'm sure he will be a good helper when he gets older. Dallen probably will too.

He Did What?

2008-09-16T21:17:00.004-06:00

This post is going to be all about my silly little Ashton. Today I was trying to get Ashton to take a nap because he was laying on the ground and just acting tired. I had put him back in bed twice when I heard the door open and Ashton yelled "Mommy, Mommy" in a panicked voice. I went back there ready to get mad at him and put him back in bed, but then he said, "I have a break ball in my nose." (Translation: I pulled a pretty good sized piece of a nerf ball off and put it in my nose.) He told me it hurt right away and I wasn't sure what I should do. So of course I looked it up online. They had a couple of suggestions on how to get it out but none of them worked so we packed up and headed to the clinic. It took the doctor about 10 minutes and three people holding him down to get it out. It was way worse than shots. He was so terrified. He kept yelling for Daddy and then sometimes Mommy. It was torture for all of us, but its over now and I think he is cured from ever doing that again. Unfortunately I didn't take any pictures of this silly event, but I do have two recent silly things that I did catch on camera:

Ashton has been getting himself dressed under supervision for a while now, but a couple of days ago I brought his clothes out and set them by him. I went in the other room for a couple of minutes and this is what I came back to. He didn't realize why I was laughing until I asked him where his hellicopter was. Then He laughed with me.

One of his new favorite movies is Toy Story. Just before he jumps he says, "To Infinity and Beyond". When he did this the first time I laughed of course and then I made him do it again so I could take a video and then I told him not to do it again. Mom's are so confusing.

"We are not food Mamma..."

2008-09-10T18:24:00.005-06:00

Dallen has been sick for a couple days. (Runny nose, rosy cheeks, a little cough.) I wanted to check inside his mouth to see if he was teething. I stood in front of him did the whole say "Ahhhhhh". He started to put his finger up to put it in my mouth so I snipped at his finger. He thought that this was hillarious so we were doing that for a minute and of course Ashton wanted in on the action. So we were all laughing and playing and all of a sudden Ashton stopped and he said, "We are not food Mamma,...we are kids." I thought it was so funny and laughed even harder. This was Dallen's first attempt at corn-on-the-cob. He loved it. He has always liked corn but he thought on the cob was super fun to eat.
You can't really tell in this picture, but Ashton is just scooping the frosting off of his brownie. He has been notorious for this lately. The last couple of months when he eats a cupcake he will lick the frosting off of the top and then ask for a new one saying that he is done.
This food adventure was thanks to my dad having to work during the Cattlemen Association barbeque. We went with my mom as her date. The boys had a lot of fun because the food was so good, (melt in your mouth steak), and it was at the park so there was lots of playing. Thanks Mom, and Dad.

Swiss Days

2008-09-05T09:56:00.003-06:00

Over Labor Day weekend we went to Swiss Days celebration in Midway. (Not recommended for husbands and children.) There were so many people there. It is basically a craft/decoration fair. I have never seen so many booths in my life. There were so many cute things. Jeff, Ashton and Dallen didn't have that much fun though. It was hot and crowded and they didn't care much about the things we were looking at. To make them happy after we were done we drove up to Park City for some Cold Stone. This picture was taken in the line for the shuttle. We took the pic to show AD that she isn't almost as tall as me. The poor girl just wants to make it over 5 ft. Everyone pray for her. (AD you know I'm just teasing you, calm down)

Quirks...

2008-09-05T09:28:00.005-06:00

Tagged by Marci

The Rules:
Link the Person who Tagged you.
Mention rules on your blog.
Tell about 6 quirks of yours.
Tag 6 fellow bloggers to do the same.
Leave a comment to let them know.

NuMbeR 1. I like to avoid awkward small talk. If I see someone I know and I really don't have anything to say I will try and avoid them. That sounds awfull, but I'm not trying to be rude I just don't know what to say.

nUmbEr 2. I hate calling someone to substitute my primary class. I guess I just don't like asking someone else to do my job. What makes it worse is that someone in my life (Jeff), doesn't like to make plans. He just decides he wants to go somewhere on the weekend and then I'm supposed to find someone on Friday. Hate it! Sometimes if he wants to do that I tell him he has to find me a sub.

NumBEr 3. I forget names really easily, (and sometimes faces). I really hate this because sometimes its hard to remember all of my cousins. (But I love them all, I'm just a lot older and wasn't around to remember. I am getting better.) A couple of weeks ago I couldn't remember a boy that was in my class, yeah known him since I was 6. He approached me in the grocery store and could tell that I didn't know who he was (see number 1). I remembered eventually, but in my defense he did look a little different.

NUmBeR 4. Jeff might say that I don't listen, but I just think I am distracted. I usually have to hear things a few times before I remember them. Especially since I have become a mommy. The boys are always the first thing on my mind so if they are around when you tell me something don't expect me to remember it.

nuMBeR 5. I am in love with junk food. It is an addiction really. I can't buy chips or anything like that very often because I have been known to eat a whole bag by myself in one day. I have to control it or I would weigh 300 pounds and nobody wants to see that.

NuMbEr 6. Sometimes when I run on the treadmill I find myself counting steps. I really try and control this because it can drive you insane. Think of counting every step for 30 minutes. I haven't been that bad because I really try and have other things to focus on.

I tag Sally, Katie, Mandy, Adrianna, Mallory, and Tara

"Finding Strength Within"

2008-08-25T10:26:00.004-06:00

Last night I went to a wonderful, spiritual fireside put on for the women in the Bluebell Ward. It was truely amazing the strength shown by the women who shared their stories. It was very emotional and there was a box of tissues passed around. The purpose of the fireside was to show us that our burdens can be made light if we put our faith in the Lord. I truely believe that we did agree with the terms of our lifes before we entered this world and we are not given any trials that we cannot handle.

This quote was passed out by one of the speakers and I just love it.

"Lord, Help me to remember that nothing

is going to happen to me today, that

you and I can't handle."

Cake Fight!!

2008-08-14T09:15:00.004-06:00

We decided to have Ashton eat the cake with no hands and he just didn't quite get it. I decided to show him knowing full well what kind of consequences I might face. This is almost how the cake fight started. I pulled away right in time. Despite Jeff's efforts I did not get a face full of cake.
But Ashton did. He was the first to go in. He thought it was hillarious. (what a mean dad, ha ha)
Jeff being the good sport that he is let Ashton put his face into the cake, with a little help from Aunt Mandy.
This is Ashton's after face. He doesn't seem to mind.
Just when we thought the cake fight was over Jeff brought a handful over for Mandy's face.

Where would we be without the after pictures. You would think this would be the end, but wait there is no way this would be the end.
Out of no where Mandy grabbed me and started rubbing her cake filled face all over mine.
I found cake in my hair, behind my ears, in my ears and all over my face. I'd say Mandy and I are close, but we have never been that close before.
Just when we were starting to clean up Jeff and Mandy conspired against Katie and got her in the face with what was left of the cake. She seems to enjoy it though.
This is what was left of the cake. Jeremy and Kalen were watching kids in the living room and just missed out on this craziness. (We wouldn't want to get cake in the carpet) It was a huge mess, but it was really funny. There was cake everywhere.

Big Birthday's Take 2

2008-08-10T17:31:00.003-06:00

We had the first parties in Panguitch. We didn't want our families in the Basin to be left out so we had some parties here too. This is the cake for Ashton that Aunt Katie, and Aunt Mandy made. They missed the Panguitch party and they had a really great idea for a cake so we said sure why not. In a post to come I will show you an after picture of this cake, you don't want to miss it.
This is Cooper and Ashton. They enjoyed the birthday cake.
Mandy and Katie also had a great idea for Jeff's cake. Jeff is always saying how he wants a BOSE, so they got him one for his birthday. I thought it was a perfect cake. Caution: Do not hook up a BOSE cake to your TV.
We were able to put 30 candles on this cake. It was awesome. I don't know if Jeff thought it was awesome, but the rest of us did.

Dallen had two pieces of cake. He enjoyed it so much I had to give him two. He totally cleaned his plate.

Big Birthday's

2008-08-10T17:10:00.005-06:00

We had two big birthdays in the last week, and 4 parties. As you can imagine we have lots of pictures. Ashton turned 3 on the 2nd and Jeff turned, get ready for it, 30 on the 6th. We had a lot of fun and a lot of cake. I did a basketball cake with the help of Grandma Kathleen, she cooked I decorated. Ashton still loves to play basketball so I thought it would be perfect.
He got some new boots from grandma and grandpa cooper.
Jeff's friend Gaylen and his family came over to the park for Ashton's party. We were supposed to go swimming, but the weather didn't cooperate. I don't think the kids really minded that much they loved playing around at the park.
This is left to right: Berkley, Allie, and Ashton. Those are Gaylen and Becky's kids. We try and get together with them whenever we can.
Here is Jeff at his surprise party. For all of our efforts, (mine and his mom's), it didn't work out so well. The food was awesome thanks to Jeff's parents. Unfortunately, no one besides Gaylen and Becky were able to come. (By the way they are awesome.) Last minute cancellations seemed to be a trend. Oh and I lost the three candle so all he had was a "0". Thank you Aunt Kay and Uncle Tom for the use of your house, beautiful as always. Thanks to Mom and Dad Cooper, I couldn't have done it without you. As for me, it's the thought that counts isn't it?

What's in the Box?

2008-08-06T09:13:00.003-06:00

For Ashton's birthday we decided it was time to get a puppy. I found a family that had lab puppies that would be ready right in time for Ashton's birthday on the 2nd so it was perfect. About a week before on the 26th we got a call saying the puppies were starting to wander and we could come and pick him up that day if we wanted to. We tried to get Ashton to name him, but it just didn't work out so Mommy decided that McQueen would be what Ashton would want since "Cars" is still his favorite movie. Ashton is still so excited about his puppy and we play with him everyday about 3 or 4 times. We love our new puppy and it was the perfect b-day gift for our 3 year old big guy.

Dallen Can Walk!!!!!! Finally

2008-07-31T20:55:00.002-06:00

Dallen just hasn't been that interested in walking. Ashton was 13 months when he started really walking, but he had been taking steps since he was 10 months. Dallen really didn't start even thinking about it until a few weeks ago. I didn't walk until I was 15 months and I kept telling him he needed to at least beat me. He only did that by 2 weeks. He is looking a little ragged because we went swimming earlier today, but I think that helped because he was standing and jumping in the water and having a blast. At first he took about 3 steps to his daddy and then he wouldn't do it again so we bribed him with a cookie which is what is all over his face. Then we had to get a sucker to get him to walk some more so we could get some proof. We are so proud of him. My babies are growing up.

Longhorn Days

2008-07-31T20:31:00.005-06:00

This is the whole group at the Parade in Altamont. Ashton thought it was great. He would be happy if people were always throwing candy at him.
Ashton is such a little patriotic man. He had to have this flag when we were shopping the day before this and so we got it. This is when the Veterans were walking by with the flag. Isn't he adorable.
The kids got a little bored while waiting for the parade to come back the other direction, (Yes they turn around and come back.) So grandpa pulled Cooper, Ashton, and Dallen in the wagon.
These girls were prepared for when the little league float came back by.
They really didn't want to get wet.

This was Dallen during the auction before the fireworks. He found a good way to entertain himself. He is so funny.

Cancer Free Partee!

2008-07-23T14:10:00.002-06:00

My awesome mom has been Cancer Free for 5 years now. What better way to celebrate than to have a wet and wild party at the park. A lot of friends and family were able to come and we are so grateful for that. I know that this party meant a lot to my mom. We had a blast. We played kickball with kiddie pools for bases and a slip and slide for home plate. Then we played water balloon dodge ball. And after that it was just a water and shaving cream fight. Everyone that attended got wet. Most of us were soaked. It was so much fun and the best part was that we got to celebrate with a wonderful brave woman that fought off that aweful thing called cancer. Your amazing mom. We love you!