Swimming?

I don't know if this is sacrilegious or not but I thought it was so cute that I had to post it. We were in tithing settlement just the other day and in the Bishop's office there are several pictures of Christ. Brigham was talking about all of them and then he got to this one with Christ in the Americas. He said "That's Jesus, he's blessing them that they can go swimming." I guess they do look like they all have towels around them, ready to take a dip. Do you see it?

Have you ever wondered what strep throat looks like?

We know at our house....first Max, then me and next in line was Brigham. I'm sure Cameron is not far behind.

Max has been sick for the last 2 weeks and even though I knew he had more than just the common cold the doctors wouldn't believe it until I came down with strep....hello! Just a note to all of you out there, your kids are never too young to get a sickness. Just like my little niece Mykah was "too young" to have diabetes my little Max was "too young" to get strep throat. So doctors don't know everything and Parents need to be persistent. It was a blessing that I got it because we were finally able to help Max feel better.

Potty Trained!

Ok I know the picture may be disgusting to everyone else...but what can I say, I'm a very proud Mom!

Well it finally happened.....Brigham decided that he no longer wanted to wear diapers. For a couple of months now I've asked him on occasion if he would rather wear his big boy underwear rather than his diaper. He always says no....and not just a "no thanks Mom" it's a "NO NO NO, DON'T WANT TO" scream. So when I asked last Thursday I just assumed the response would be the same. But to my amazement he said YES. I ran with it, we went to the store and bought his own toilet. He probably had 10 accidents that first day because he's never had to control his bladder before. But on day two he had 0 accidents. The days since he has had maybe 2-3 accidents here or there but the kid is a machine. Once he makes his mind up about something he is never going back. He won't even wear a diaper to bed, which I thought might be tragic but he hasn't wet the bed once. The most difficult transition for him is going #2 in the toilet. He held it in for 3 days before he was finally able to go, but when I asked him if he wanted to wear a diaper and go he refused.

One down and one to go! Wahoo!

Confessions

I've been tagged so I guess I'll get this over with. Here are my five things you may not know about me....but they feel more like confessions.

1. I love to sleep. If I allowed myself I could go to bed and 9pm at night and wake up at 9am and still take a nap during the day. It is something I struggle with everyday. I'm just glad my kids wake up at 7:30am everyday cause at least that is manageable, but I still have to drag myself out of bed.

2. I can't stay mad. Sometimes I really try hard to be angry for a long time because I feel that I am right but it doesn't matter, give me a couple of hours and all the feelings of anger and hurt just disappear. (I'm sure Cameron loves this about me)

3. My biggest fear is of phones. I have this huge fear of calling people, it doesn't matter who it is (friends and family is obviously easier). I know it sounds crazy, it doesn't make sense in any way. I have had to get over it because of my church callings and children but it doesn't make it any easier. Cameron always asks after I hang up the phone "see was that really that bad", YES it really was that bad. Every moment before on during the phone call is tense for me.

4. I peed my pants several times during Jr. High (maybe even in High School). Ok to my High School friends this is no shock. I can probably name a time that each of them peed there pants too. I blame it on my awesome friends that never cease to make me laugh to the point where I can't control my bladder. My favorite of all time was delivering 12 days of Christmas to Sister Cloward (seminary teacher). Good Times!

5. I know the entire BYU fight song. This is the most shameful of all my confessions. To my fellow Utah fans I understand if you think less of me now. Brigham's football obsession was fueled by going to the BYU football games with his Dad and the result is him knowing and singing 50 times a day the BYU fight song. I hate to admit it but it gets stuck in my head. The saddest part about this is that I don't even know the entire UTAH fight song.....I guess I need to get on that.

Is being deficient in creativity a real disease?

My church calling is so fun and I love it, but it definitely pushes me to do things I wouldn't normally do. This past Wednesday was YW in Excellence night and I got stuck with doing the decorations. Now for anyone else they probably would have loved assignment because it seems easy enough and could be fun. Not me, I am definitely challenged when it comes to anything that takes creativity and craft. I stressed for weeks over this assignment and tried several projects that failed. I had to ask Cameron why we didn't have glue or tape in our house. He was nice enough to remind me that it's because I NEVER do anything like this. After a lot of trial and error the night turned out great, including the decorations(too bad I didn't take a picture of it to prove it). I am grateful that we are put in callings in life to help us stretch and grow. Whether it is big as having the calling of a Mom or as small as being assigned to do the decorations at my YW in Excellence night.

Happy Halloween!

Here are some pictures from our day yesterday. Brigham had his costume on from the moment he woke up until we pulled it off of him after he fell asleep in the car on our way from Grandparent's. It wasn't really any different than most days though because he manages to talk his mom into putting him into a football jersey everyday. Brigham also insisted that Max's costume remain on him at all times yesterday. Max was a good sport and went around flapping his monkey hands around all night.

I hate Grocery Shopping!

I really do hate grocery shopping. Is that weird? I dread it. Every time I start seeing us getting low on an essential item; like milk I start getting anxious.

Here are some reasons I thought of that may have to do with my hate for grocery shopping:

1. Having to take my two sons with me who will most likely be throwing a tantrum at any moment.
2. Having to search for a cart that has the little car on front so that I don't have to pile food on top of Brigham as he sits in the back.
3. Having to walk by all the yummy food and forcing myself to say no.
4. Giving in to the yummy food and then having to explain to Cameron why I bought those dang sugar cookies with an inch of frosting on the top.
5. Eating the sugar cookies and watching that inch of frosting go right on the side of my thighs.
6. Wanting to buy the good brand because sometimes it really does taste better than the store brand but not being able to justify spending more, even if it is only 3 cents (exception on this is ice cream...it's not worth buying unless its the good stuff, right Darci?)
7. Knowing that with all that I am buying I will have nothing to make dinner with.
8. Going through the checkout feeling guilty because the guy behind me with two items doesn't know I'm about to split my food up into three different orders (Family food, WIC, and YW stuff)
9. Bringing the cart back even though I really don't want to.
10. Bringing the groceries in and putting them away.
11. Getting home and realizing all the things I forgot, despite my list.

Who Knew?

Alright so I promise I'm done with changing my blog layout. I saw everyone else getting all these cute layouts so I've spent some time (way too much time) trying to find the perfect layout. Some were cute but didn't work well, others were cheesy, and the girly layouts Cameron wouldn't tolerate. Who knew I'd make it back around to a simple boring layout and be perfectly content. It's all in the posts.....right?

Go Rebels!

So we spent the last week in St. George watching Anna play volleyball for Dixie State. It was so much fun down there and the weather was perfect. Brigham was in heaven because he was able to wear summer clothes everyday and we had very little conflict (except for the one day it was cooler). The boys loved swimming and running with Mom and Dad to the park. They loved spending time with Grandma Dean too.

It was so great to watch Anna play volleyball. I know I'm prejudice but my sister is amazing. She is a freshman yet she controls her team. She is such a leader in everything she does, it really is fun to see her grow up and really blossom in her personality. I wish I had her competitive edge. We love you Anna and we had so much fun with you this last week!

Max has tubes!

With over 6 ear infections just this summer, we finally convinced my doctor that Max needed tubes. My little man went in yesterday and got tubes in his ears. The surgery (if you can even call it that) took 10 minutes. We hope Max is able to get some relief now.

Some of the highlights of our day:

1. Having to starve a 1 yr. old until after 2pm in the afternoon (no food or drink)

2. Putting Max in a hospital gown with hospital socks (sooo cute!)

3. The nurse trying to explain to us that Max might not be his usual self for the rest of the day. Her words exactly were "This is your baby on drugs."

4. Watching Max try to walk for the first time after after the procedure. (It looked more like "My Baby on Alcohol", and yes we did get it on video)

5. Brigham's excitement about his new socks from the hospital.

6. Brigham praying last night that "the doctor fixed Max's ears"

Disclaimer

Have you ever met these families where the mom looks perfect at all times and her children look perfect as well? Cameron has this Aunt that I have never seen look less than perfect. She had her last baby right after Max and when we went into the hospital to see her her hair was done, makeup on and she had the cutest sweats on. Even her brand new little baby had been changed from hospital attire to a cute new outfit and her hair was done with a bow in place. Her three little boys are the same way, always in the cutest clothes with their hair gelled perfectly. Why am I not this Woman? I have good days where I take the time and get my little family ready but most days I have my hair in a ponytail and sweats on (not cute sweats just a big baggy t-shirt and big baggy pants). My boys, well I really tried with them. I tried to do Brigham's hair so cute every day, but after having to do it ten time before you get in the car and then by the time you get him out it is already a mess, I just gave up. Thanks to my mother-in-law I have been able to dress them cute on most days, until now.


Brigham has now decided that he will be choosing what he wears. I tried to fight it by giving him choices of some cute things but no he will not have it. If I even suggest something it is automatically marked in his little brain as a definite NO. He especially hates long sleeves and long pants. I don't know what I am going to do when it is winter. So if you by chance run into me somewhere and you think my son looks like a little orphan boy, please don't think that we abuse him or don't take care of him. This is my disclaimer that now I am no longer willing to fight the battle with Brigham so what he is wearing is his choice. (Unless someone will tell me the secret of always being able to look perfect while at the same time keeping your boys looking perfect) Turn away or close your eyes if it is too ugly or better yet just do what I do and laugh.

I Failed!

Well it isn't the first time and it sure won't be the last time but Cameron told me I better get on here and admit my failure to everyone. Not even a week into taking Max's bottle away and Brigham's binki away they were back in their mouths. I always thought I was going to be this amazing Mom that would follow through with everything, but I'm finding out very quickly that short term sanity is sometimes much more appealing.

So here is how it started. Max has ear infections probably every other week and I finally convinced our Doctor to have his ears checked out by specialists to see if he needs tubes. I took Max and Brigham in for their well baby checkups and without knowing it Max had another ear infection. So that night I go to put Max to sleep but how can I let him just cry in pain? Cameron and I both came to the conclusion that as soon as we have his ears under control then we can worry about taking the bottle away.

Brigham, there is really no excuse, except for the fact that as soon as he realized that the binki wasn't coming back he would no longer sleep. No naps and no bedtime....nothing. This is the same kid that loves his sleep. Brigham would come to me and tell me it was time to take a nap or go to bed. He usually sleeps 11 hours at night (and probably more if Max didn't wake him up) and 2-3 hour naps during the day. Cameron and I came to the conclusion again that there is no place on a resume that asks when he got rid of his bink, and it comes right out after he falls asleep, so no harm in that right?

Well, I know I am a horrible Mother who can't follow through, but my kids are happy and that is the important thing, right?

My boys are growing up!

Today was a very sad day. It shouldn't have been though, I should be jumping for joy right now feeling very accomplished that I was able to achieve what I have been dreading for months. I took Brigham's binki away tonight and Max's bottle. Brigham only gets his binki when he takes a nap or goes to bed at night and Max only takes a bottle when he goes to bed at night so it was not like they couldn't function without these, but I wondered if they would be able to sleep without them. So I decided they would go "cold turkey" tonight, and guess what they are both sleeping safe and sound in their beds with very little opposition. So will somebody tell me why three hours later I am still feeling like an awful mother for doing this? I think dentists and pediatricians would be patting me on the back but I could care less.

I reasoned with Brigham telling him that we didn't have a binki to sleep with tonight and he looked up at me looking very puppy dogish (yes that's a word) and said "we find bink later Mom?" I told him no and said we had no more binkis for Brigham. He didn't put up a fight even though I could see the disappointment in his eyes. I think him being so good about it, even though he may not understand why, made me want to go back in his room and give it to him.

And then Max, obviously there is no reasoning with him at this age but he has been taking naps without the bottle for a while and I thought I might as well make a night of it and take it away. He cried for about 10 minutes in his crib and then fell asleep. Not bad, considering he usually cries for that long when I put him down for a nap during the day.

I guess what it boils down to is the fact that I can't stand the thought that they may be growing up.

Island Park

We had so much fun this last week in Island Park with family. Mike, Andrea and their to adorable kids are in town from Iowa and we were able to spend a few days with them. We had a great time.

Our little Max turned 1 up there and I think he had a great time with the new toys Grandma Ardene got him. But I have to admit that all the other kids enjoyed them just as much. Thanks to both of Max's Grandmas, we can feel their love so much.

The cabin is quite cozy when you get all of my family together there at one time, and because the family is going to continue to grow in size my parents are building a much larger cabin in Ashton to accommodate everyone. I have mixed feelings about the transition. I have grown up going to our cabin and I love it. There is just something special about it and the memories that we have there are priceless. At the same time when trying to put 5 babies down at night and no where to put them it becomes quite difficult and frustrating. I think I will love the new cabin but will really miss our cabin now. It will be bitter-sweet. The new cabin is scheduled to be done by Thanksgiving so I am assuming that may be the last time we go up to our cabin as an entire

family, how sad.

Semester 1 of PT School Complete

Cameron has completed his first semester of PT school and he did it with flying colors. He did very well in all of his classes and still had time to spare for his family. Cameron has got an incredible gift of being able to balance and prioritize life. Nonetheless we are very excited for these next two weeks he has off. We will be spending a week up in Island Park at my parents cabin.

The River Trip

So since I was 3 years old my family has done an annual trip to the South Fork of the Boise River. It started out with my family and our good friends the Christensens. It has always been my favorite trip of the year. We go up Thursday night and stay in a motel while the boys sleep on the bank of the river and wake up early to load the rafts. This trip has expanded a little over the years and this year we had 38 people. So if you can imagine 8 rafts full of food, sleeping bags, tents, more food and anything else you can imagine. It's quite the production. Anyway the girls bring up breakfast and we eat and then take off. We float the first half of the river on Friday and set up camp that night. On Saturday we float the second half of the river drive back to the beginning and float the first half back to camp. Sunday is a day spent at camp and it has turned into a day of very competitive volleyball tournament followed by a very spiritual sacrament meeting. How the two go hand in hand I'll never know but it is always great. And I know some of you are wondering how we are able to play volleyball in a camp site located on the bank of a river in a canyon..... well it started with my uncle bringing a volleyball one year and over the years we have cleared out a relatively nice court and bring a net. The best part of volleyball is seeing the faces of others as they float by in a raft. It is the last thing the expect to see. On Monday we pack up and float out and it is always too soon. The River Trip has the best food I eat all year. Each meal done in the dutch oven. Cliff diving and a ghetto zip line is also an essential part of the trip. The whitewater is great, the fishing is great and just being with everyone is even better. After 21 years of going on the river trip I never get tired of it. We were able to leave our kids with Cameron's parents this year and we had a blast. I hope we will be able to continue the tradition for 21 more years!

4th of July

The boys had so much fun watching the fireworks and the parade. Papa Gregg and Grandma Cheryl aslo took us to Joseph and the Amazing Technicolored Dreamcoat. It was also a big hit with the boys. We had a really fun 4th!

Lightning McQueen

Brigham had a blast on his birthday! About a week before we would catch him singing "Happy Birday to Bridam". We had a fun water party then had a bbq with family and then of course presents. Between both of his grandma's he is so spoiled. He got a new scooter and a slide but the gifts he loved the most......his 3.50$ Disney Cars characters. Brigham now has a total of 8 different McQueen cars. Does anyone else find this a little troubling? The boy is obsessed. Each McQueen has a different name and as soon as he wakes up he makes sure all of his McQueens are lined up and in place. If he leaves one at Grandma's house it might be the end of the world, especially if it is "new" Mcqueen. You would think with 7 others that he could move on but we don't stop hearing about it being gone until it is back in his hands.

Oh and we are the worst parents in the world and didn't take any pictures of Brigham's birthday. Luckily Grandma Dean did, but of all days to forget the camera!

Summer Fun

I thought I would just update people on the fun we have been having this summer. Cameron has been working hard in PT school and it is paying off. He has scored 94 and above on all of his
tests so far.




Me and the kids have been enjoying the summer at the park and Cherry Hill. I'm so lucky to have two fearless boys who love the water. Brigham's favorite thing to do in the pool is to hold on to the ledge by himself and then let go. He doesn't care whether Mommy or Daddy are watching he just lets go and sinks under water until we realize that he has gone under and we pull him out. As soon as we lift him out of the water he wipes his face and laughs. I think he is too trusting. Max is convinced that he can swim by himself and is always trying to squirm out of our arms. He is impossible to hold on to so we have recently invested in a tube to place him in. He doesn't love it, but he is a good sport about it and that way we aren't exhausted by holding him.





We went to Fountain Green over memorial day weekend where we visited the boys Great Great Grandma Cook and also the grave of our Grandma Garrett who we miss so much. It was so cute because on the way back from Grandma Cook's we were all sitting in the car exhausted and looking forward to getting to the motel. Out of the blue Brigham says "Mom, Grandma Cook loves me." Kids understand so much more than we give them credit for. We also visited Thomas the Train in Heber that weekend and both the boys thought that was so fun.





This last weekend we spent up in Jackson Hole watching Cameron's brother Dallin in some plays going on there. He was great! And it was fun to see him. We were also able to whitewater raft, do the alpine slides and visit Bear World on our way back. For the most part we had a great time but poor Max had Pink Eye and his eyes were glued shut because of all the mucous coming out of them. He is such a good baby though and really didn't hold us back too much.





I think we'll have a lot more fun in the next couple of months. It's Brigham's birthday in a week and Max's in 1 1/2 months. I can't believe my little guys are growing up.

Happy Father's Day to all our Dads and Grandpas!

Grandpa Garett on the Alpine slides! Isn't that cool, he's still full of life!




Our Dear Grandma and Grandpa Garber are such big supporters of us.




Brigham and Max's Papa Gregg, still a boy at heart! He is so fun to play with!



Papa Lonnie, we hope we are just like you when we grow up. You teach us so much!



We love Dad and we are so grateful for everything he does for our family. He keeps us optimistic and excited about each day! The boys couldn't have wished for a better Dad!





Happy Father's Day to all the Dads out there! Hats off to all you do! I think too often we don't give them enough credit. We love you Dad, Papa Lonnie, Papa Gregg, Great Grandpa Garett, Great Grandpa Garber, Great Grandpa Pete and Great Grandpa Bullard! Our kids are so lucky to have so many positive male examples in their lives. Thank you!

I am a MOOCH!

So it is official....I am a mooch! I've always known I had some in me. Dropping by my mom's for some bottled peaches and jam every once in a while, not having any food in our house so we stop by the parents to grab something to eat. Those are little things, right? But yesterday I had a light bulb moment, it was much worse than I thought. My sister Melissa and I were talking about my brother Kenny's birthday celebration and we got so excited because it's a free dinner at the Mandarin. I am fully admitting that I look months in advance for the next occasion that my family will be going out to eat and schedule it in, making sure I don't miss it. Maybe it's because we are so poor right now that we don't get to eat out much. It was so sad to see how giddy Melissa and I were about it being Kenny's birthday so We could eat out. Notice something wrong with that.....we aren't thinking about Kenny we are thinking about ourselves. It gets worse too because when we realized it was Anna's graduation on Friday we got even more excited. TWO free dinners in one week! (Which also means two nights I don't have to cook.) Are we going to Anna's graduation.....of course not, but you can bet we will be there for the dinner after.

Is the fact that I now realize I am a mooch going to change anything? Probably not. I guess that free dinner really makes up for any shame I feel about it. So to my parents I say sorry that I am a mooch, but I am what I am. And tonight I will savor every bite of the most delicious Chinese food and on Friday I will do the same!

Happy Birthday Kenny! And Congratulations Anna! Thank you for providing me with TWO FREE DINNERS!!! Next week Valek's Birthday. Don't let me down bud.

MARTY......ALEX!!!

We went to the Zoo this week and it was quite the adventure. Brigham and Max were both very excited about the animals. It was the first time I've ever been to the Zoo with all of the animals being active and available to see. Brigham's highlight of the trip was the Zebra. He couldn't wait to see Marty. (Zebra disney charachter on "Madagascar") We weren't able to find Alex the lion but the "Happy Feet" animals were a big hit.

"Happy Feet"

SIDE NOTE: I felt like Cameron and I were pretty good about restraining Brigham's TV watching to a minimum, but was quickly put in my place while he tried to relate every animal to some sort of cartoon. Some of the cartoons he mentioned he's never even seen. Oh well, what can you do?

On our way out Brigham saw the train and he was able to squeeze $1.50 out of his Dad to ride the train. Funny how after knowing Cameron for 8 years I can't get him to budge yet would give Brigham $100 just for looking at him the right way.

Anyway we all enjoyed Cameron's week off and it will be hard to let him return to school on Monday.

3 years of Marriage and a Bachelor's Degree!

We just celebrated our three year anniversary. One year used to seem so long yet three years and two kids later I feel like time has flown by. Cameron also graduated on Friday. He graduated with the highest GPA in his department and got a special award. We are all so proud of him! Only a week off of school though and then he starts PT school on May 14Th.

This last week we spent house sitting for my parents. I thought taking care of two young kids was hard but teenagers are much worse. Five teenagers just shouldn't be allowed to live in the same house. Does anyone know how to prevent their kids from ever being teens? I have so much more gratitude towards my parents now that I have my own children.

Max and Brigham are both growing so much every day. Max has mastered the art of pulling himself up to anything and walking around the furniture. He'll be walking any day. Brigham says at least five new words each day. Today Cameron was getting ready for church and Brigham said "Need shirt on Dad." Kids are so fun.

BABE

Brigham has his own language right now and Me and Dad are pretty good at being able to figure out what he is talking about but a couple of weeks ago he had me stumped. He kept calling for "B". Well I don't know what or who "B" is so I kind of ignore it until the other day he called for "B" and right after I yelled for Cameron (who I always call Babe)......light bulb moment Brigham is calling Cameron, Babe. I couldn't stop laughing. I think we underestimate how intelligent kids really are.

Cameron isn't so hot on that name coming from his son. He asked me why I couldn't call him something like Stud more often. I like it though and always ask Brigham where "Babe" is. He points to Cameron every time!