I Love This Picture...and A Proposal

Thanks to my beautiful little photographer Kami I now have this precious picture of my son and I.

Love it!
just ignore my greasy bangs...

A Proposal:

Today Cooper asked me to marry him.
"Mommy, you ma-wee me?"
of course I said yes.
You just don't say no to a question like that.
He gave me a ring and everything.

Little boys are so hopelessly adorable. I don't know what it is about them that turns a mommy to mush, but heaven help me. Boys are such little charmers; my boys, in particular, are huge flirts. And when my boys turn on the charm I am a goner, it's over for me.
The love of a mother for a son and a son for a mother is so strange... I can't even put it into words. They are different then little girls, they tug on different heartstrings.
Despite all the messes, mayhem, and extra testosterone (meaning "rough-housing") I would gladly take as many as the Lord will send me.
while we are talking about proposals I must add this story:

While riding in the car the other day the topic turned to marriage. Kami was very concerned as to who she would marry when she got older. I told her that she would marry the boy that she loved the most in the whole entire world. After some intense thought she came to the conclusion that when she was big she was going to marry Cooper because she loved him "the most, the most."
Of course, she was troubled about who Landon would marry if she married Cooper. Until she came to the conclusion that I would just have to have another baby so that Landon could get married. Smart plan.

As you can imagine, she wasn't too pleased when Cooper asked me to marry him.
"Well who's going to marry me now?
I told her she could have daddy. As far as husbands go, they don't get better than Daddy.

When You've Got It...

Flaunt it!

and boy do my baby's "got it". So ridiculously cute it is upsurd.

This post is for my brother Jeron in particular. He is currently serving a mission in Chicago and he gets to check our blog on a weekly basis. He says I am his favorite sister because nobody else in my family updates their blog. hmm... I feel some chastisement coming on.
I have received a special request for an abundance of pictures featuring exceptionally good looking people. I, of course, am complying.
Love you Jeron, hope you, and other people, enjoy this picture smorgasbord...

of intense cuteness.

Cooper's facial expressions in these first three pictures kill me!

It's a wonder I can't get a decent picture of all three of my children together. When I asked Cooper to smile he did this.

Landon with his headband. Sweatin' to the oldies.

Kami wanted a headband pic as well.
Whenever Landon wants to go outside, he will go get me his coat, or his shoes.
(When he wants a drink, he brings me a cup.)
Enjoying a little bit of sun right before all the rain hit (for the last 3 weeks...)
Brandon "enjoying" the sunshine.
Landon makes the funniest faces.
Kami "heart-attacked" Cooper with little heart stickers, he seems none to pleased about it.
Always my ham for the camera.
Landon's favorite little perch. Anytime I try to do dishes I get this instead. It makes me nervous because the last thing I need is a broken dishwasher. That would definitely be no beuno.

Steadmans

Once upon a time I invited all of my family to a really fun place called Steadman's.
... then my family stood me up, and I was forced to invite some renegade friends to share in the merriment. I guess their company was okay... okay really,

We Had a Blast!
So, dear family, here are the pictures of all the fun you missed out on. Maybe next time you will decide to be my friends. Because sometimes, I really am a cool girl.

Landon trying to get in the action of the volleyball game. Kami going down the zipline (the little daredevil) Me and my boys going down the slide. It was suppose to be just Cooper and I, but as you can see, Landon just couldn't say no to the action. Cooper Jay in the tube at the bottom of the slide. I think he might have had a good time. Cooper pushing Landon in the swing. He would push and then hang on as they swung back and forth and Landon would just laugh and laugh. Siblings are the best! My boys at the top of the hill.

"Holy Monsoon, Batman!"

(That's what my friend had written on her facebook status and I thought it was hilarious.)

so... it's been pretty wet here lately.

Brandon's poor little beets are having a rough go this year. First they froze, numerous times (as in there was not 1 farmer who didn't have to replant.), then there was the hail, and now the poor little guys are getting flooded to death by monsoons.

Okay, not really, the rain isn't going to hurt them, unless of course, this happens.

I'll have Brandon "narrate" these photos when he gets home.

Poor little beeties...

sob.

Today my son threw a ball in the house. It was a small rubber ball, no bigger than a golf ball. Apparently my son has good aim and a strong arm, or extremely bad aim, and terrible luck. Because this little ball hit smack in the middle of my husband's pride and joy, 47" flat screen, LCD television....

and shattered it.

Have you ever in your life felt so incredibly terrible that your stomach hurts? Literally just aches with terribleness? I feel like throwing up. (and no, faithful followers, I am not pregnant. Thanks for the assumptions though.) I've just spent the last 30 minutes bawling my eyes out, and now I am doing the next logical thing... blogging about it.

Holy crap I feel awful.

It was a complete accident and Cooper has no idea what all the fuss is about. He breaks things all the time, 3 other things today in fact. But he's never broken anything this expensive. This "little" TV happens to be the most expensive thing we own. It cost more than our new fridge, more than our couch, more than our bed, more than all the furniture in my house COMBINED!
(It's not that it was uber expensive, we just don't own anything that cost more than $200...)
The money is a hard thing because I know we can't replace it. But the hardest thing is knowing how much my husband loved it... and I can't fix it, and I can't make it better... it's the worst.
I know it's just a tv, but I feel so awful.
(I should be happy. I didn't like the tv, it threw off my design plan for the family room...)
I'm sorry if this is rambling, I'm bawling so hard I can't think straight.

I'm sorry hunny.
so. sorry.

here is a picture of the carnage:

I should blog...

Do you know how some weeks are just busy. Jam packed full of things you should blog about. WOW
we've had one of those weeks. and guess what, my brain and my typing fingers seem to be having a hard time relaying messages to each other.
So, for all my die hard fans, I promise to update soon, but until then, enjoy this teaser of things to come:

• Boise
• My Drivers License
• My son the cage fighter
• Princess Festival
• My mom's ugly room
• My Best Friend's Wedding
• Random Pictures of complete Awesomeness.

Now that you are thoroughly pumped for the future I will leave you with this fun sentiment.
I have a really disgusting bruise the size of a dime on the inside of my "bicep" (HA like I actually have a bicep) Not sure where it came from but I have been teasing Brandon that he did it to me. Apparently I shouldn't have teased in front of the kids because late last week, while in a very public restaurant, my daughter told my aunt

"Guess what Aunt Jodee? My daddy hits my mommy."
Wow, nothing quiets a room like that statement.

AAAAkward.

My husband does not hit me, and I no longer tease him in front of my daughter....

I am grateful the Lord made me a mother.

• I am grateful I get to wake up each morning to little eyes peeking above my mattress.
• I am grateful I get to listen to the babblings of a baby.
• I am grateful that although it is difficult to watch my children grown up it is also amazingly beautiful to witness the little people they are becoming.
• I am grateful for dirty knees, muddy socks, and squeals of delight from the backyard.
• I am grateful I am my little boy's champion.
• I am grateful I get to laugh at cartoons and sing silly theme songs
• I am grateful I get to kiss the booboo's, hug the sorrows, and wipe the tears.
• I am grateful I get to witness the spark of recognition in my daughter's eyes as she tries to write, count, or tell time.
• I am grateful for the littlest pet shops and pirate guys.
• I am grateful for the cups and the koolaid.
• I am grateful for my children's laughter.
• I am grateful for the "hi bud"s
• I am grateful for primary songs
• I am grateful for the sweetness that is my children singing.
• I am grateful for the oddity and the odor that is little boys.
• I am grateful for the wonder and the courage that is little boys.
• I am grateful for the "go big or go home", spin around, jump up and down and punch your fists in the air....that is little boys.
• I am grateful for the tendernace that is little girls.
• I am grateful for the dancing and spinning and twirling that is little girls.
• I am grateful for the mothering that is little girls.
• I am grateful for the "oh mommy, you look so beautiful!" that is little girls.
• I am grateful for the superman capes and princess shoes.
• I am grateful for the "mommy look I'm so fast!"
• I am grateful for dinosaur roars.
• I am grateful for the precious moments spent individually with my children.
• I am grateful that right now my entire life is about picking up messes, washing faces, listening to stories, and disney channel.
• I am grateful that it's hard.
• I am grateful it's not about me.
• I am grateful for my children's patience and forgiveness.

• I am grateful for the feeling that I get everytime I think about how much I love my children. The feeling that my heart is literally going to explode. I never felt that until I was a mother.

I am grateful the Lord made me a mother.