Cooper is transforming into a 4 year old!

When asked for the school year book what you want to be when you grow up and you say...

Optimus Prime

or when what you want for your birthday is a real Optimus Prime to ride in

or when you bathe everyday with your Transformers,

there is NO doubt what kind of party you would want!!

We were trying to wait for Grandpa to get back from China, but next weekend Jordan and Amber are moving, so we through Cooper a little family party last night. All that was important to him was to have family there and have an Optimus balloon, so in Cooper's eyes I think we were successful!

Lots of pizza, lots of cupcakes, and lots of family make for a very good birthday!

365- Week 8

02/19/11

Happy 1st Birthday Lucy!!

Aubrey and Lucy with Aunt Katie.

02/20/11Aubers just hanging out, looking like she wants to go somewhere.

02/21/11

Yes, this is the only picture I have for the day. Nick got his own room today and Cooper's sleeping buddy was gone, so Chloe offered for him to sleep with her. And I love that the baby has her won pillow too.

02/22/11Nick was student of the week so we got to decorate this poster for him.

Favorite food: Chili mac

Favorite color(s): white, black, and red

Favorite book: Diary of a Wimpy Kid

I want to be a... soldier when I grow up!

And I thought it was cute that when he listed his friends he put his family on there.

I love that boy!!!

02/23/11Ever since Alex started preschool when he was 3 years old he has needed his afternoon "TV time". Last year was kind of rough with school in the afternoon. But he and now Cooper too just relax pretty much every afternoon with a movie. Lately it has been Power Rangers, but for months straight it was Transformers pretty much everyday.

02/24/11
Again yes, this is the only picture I have for this day! Aubrey was having a hard time falling asleep for her morning nap, so when she finally fell asleep this is what I found.

02/25/11
In Aubrey's 8 month post I said she wasn't going anywhere, but that changed a little faster than I thought it would. I left her in the middle of the rug and when I came back a couple minutes later she was scooting herself backwards on the wood floors. And once she was on the wood floors she just kept sliding backwards. It was pretty cute because you could tell she was getting frustrated because she didn't know how to go forward where the toys were or how to even stop.

7 stiches

Saturday afternoon we were leaving Lucy's birthday party when Chloe accidentally slammed her fingers in the door. It was just a couple of weeks ago that I was saying that we have never had to get any of our kids stitched up!!

Chris was at home with a sick Cooper and I didn't handle the incident as well as I thought I could, so I am so thankful for Jeremy coming to the rescue. He calmed Chloe down, cleaned her up and sent us on our way to the quick care to get her stitched up. Chris met us there and stayed with her while I took Cooper. The picture seriously doesn't do it justice it looked way worse and she got the other sides too of her 3 middle fingers. I asked her if I could take a picture of her stitches, but she really freaked out the first time we had to change her bandage. She was crying saying that they were ugly and just wanted us to hurry and put the bandage on. She was too cute, a little dramatic, but still cute!!

It was her right hand too, so she has gotten an easy week at school, her teacher has been really great to her. And Monday we go to get her stitches out. It has been a long week for Chloe though. She can't do a lot of things by herself without her right hand, so I have been showering her, dressing her and even doing her homework=) It is a good thing I love this girl!!

Puppy LOVE

We don't have a dog and I am not sure if we ever will, but I am glad that my mom does so that my kids can play with him at her house. All of my kids are kind of like me in the fact that everything scares them. Just until recently Cooper would climb me like a tree in 2 seconds if he heard an animal coming (and man he can hear them coming!!). All of my kids have gotten way better being around all of my brother's dogs, but Nick loves them now and so does Aubrey. Max is pretty much always on a leash when kids are over at my mom's, but Aubrey loves to watch him. The other day I put her on the floor with him and she just loved it. Max wasn't nearly as interested in her as she was him, but it was cute to see her light up when she would touch his face. And if she could crawl I am sure she would be following him around.

{8 months}

Another month gone! I wish we could slow down just a little bit. I really love this baby age!!
As of today little Miss Aubrey is still toothless which is fine by me and still not going anywhere, which is a-okay too! I know that both of these things are going to be changing very soon though.

365- Week 7

Remembering to take a picture everyday is harder than you think! Life gets busy and not so cute and I forget. So here is another mostly Aubee week!!

02/12/11Playing peek-a-boo after her bath.

02/13/11 Cooper LOVES chocolate! He was licking the bowl clean after we made our heart shaped brownies.

02/14/11
My cute girls on Valentine's Day!

02/15/11

Another tubby picture.

No picture for 02/16/11

02/17/11

Last night after dinner the kids had alot of energy. They were playing ball and running back and forth sliding on the floor. This time Alex slid so far he ran into the wall. Funny kids! I guess they like the fact that the downstairs is empty.

02/18/11
I like the fact that Cooper doesn't have school on Fridays. By the end of the week he is very much in need of a break from school and I am very much in need of a break from taking him to school=) He played in the bath this morning forever. I love how great kids are when they have the one on one time they need and I love our Friday mornings!!

Valentine's Day

Happy Valentine's Day!!
I loved having Sunday afternoon to bake goodies for the kids classes and help the kids sign all their cards for their friends. Chris snoozed on the couch and Aubrey napped while the rest of us made hearts out of everything! We made heart sugar cookies, heart brownies and pink and red M&M cookies and covered Chloe's box with hearts.
Monday we got dressed in our Valentine's red and sent the kids to school with all their treats. After we picked up Alex and Cooper from school we met Chris for lunch at Chipotle and then hurried back to the school for Chloe's readers theatre. She did "Which Shoes Do You Choose" and she had such character, she is such a cute girl!

For dinner we got Outback to go and had a picnic upstairs and watched Ramona &Beezus together.

Nothing spectacular, but we were together with the ones we LOVE.

Thank you Grandma

I got a little card in the mail from my grandma with this poem in it. I find it so true as I was in the hospital with both my grandpa and Chris' as they passed away.

God saw he was getting tired a cure was not to be,

So He put His arms around him and whispered "Come with Me".

With tearful eyes we watched him suffer, and saw him fade away,

although we loved him dearly, we could not make him stay.

A golden heart stopped beating, hard working hands to rest.

God broke our hearts to prove to us, He only takes the best.

Getting BIG!

7 months later!

Why do they have to get big so fast!??

365- Week 6

02/05/11

Chris with his mom and grandma at the funeral luncheon.

02/06/11

Chris got his new TV for downstairs so that meant Superbowl Party at our house. Here is the girls hanging out while the guys were watching the game.

02/07/11
These boys play so good together in the afternoons while Nick and Chloe are at school. I love watching them together.

02/08/11
Aubrey in her swing.

02/09/11
Nick helping Chris did yet again. After we had an injury Chris pulled the trampoline out if the ground and had to make the hole bigger to put in a retaining wall.

02/10/11Bath time and ready for bed.

02/11/11
Red, white, and pink day at school. Most mornings Chloe has a rough go, but Friday she was so happy I couldn't help but capture some of her smiles!

Grandpa Bud

Grandpa Bud passed away a week ago yesterday. Chris and I were able to go up to St. George and be with him in his last couple hours of life. Chris was so close to his grandpa that it was extremely hard on him. Poor Nick took it hard too.
This last weekend was his funeral.

This is his brother Hughie and his wife Geraldine. They came from Alabama to be here for the funeral. Hughie gave the eulogy at the funeral and did a wonderful job. He talked about Bud being a worker, a talker and a giver. I know that Chris is a worker just like his grandpa, and that his grandpa was very proud of him for being such a hard worker. Chris really enjoyed listening to him because he reminds him so much of his grandpa. Chris told his great-uncle that he was going to have to start calling him on a regular basis so he could hear "grandpa" talk.

All of the great grand kids were supposed to sing "I am a Child of God" but Nick and Chloe were crying so hard that they couldn't sing. My heart just broke watching them try to be strong and just couldn't.

Chris was able to be one of the pallbearers with his uncles Dave and Tom, his cousins JD and Dave, and his brother -in -law Robert.

He served in the Air Force for 4 years, so he was able to have a Veterans Memorial graveside ceremony. I know that Granny was very grateful to receive that flag.

We lost another great man. He too will be missed.

365- Week 5

This last week was probably the fastest, but at the same time the longest week of my life!
So much for trying to keep the pictures even. I didn't even take a single picture on a couple of the days. Hopefully this week will be better!

01/29/11

In St. George at our friends, the Holt's house. They so kindly watched Aubrey while Chris and I were at the hospital with his grandpa. When we came to pick her up she was out cold, swaddled like a tiny baby. It was so sweet!

01/30/11

Cooper and Grandpa

Sunday night dinner at my mom and dad's house.
Roast, it was delicious!

No picture for 01/31/11

02/01/11Makaylin. Mavrik brought down the Indiana Jones hat and decided that his little sister wanted to wear it. She left it on for a long time.

No picture for 02/02/11

02/03/11Nick had his first den meeting for Cub Scouts. Moving, Christmas, and a crazy January kind of set back Nick starting scouts, but he finally got to go. He was so excited and nervous. He wanted me to take him in. I liked that he wanted me to. He had a great time and I am actually really excited for all the things that scouting has to offer.

02/04/11

Aubrey already loves the phone!!