:: big boy haircut ::

 OH MY GOODNESS. Why is he big?!?

I actually had a REALLY hard time doing this.

You all may think "it doesn't look that different", oh but it does. 

And I cut one pretty big pile of BABY hairs off my baby.

Hmmm. Not QUITE sure how I feel about it.

But how handsome is he now??? WAY.

 Handsome boy Cohen with a big boy haircut!!

Good job being brave buddy.

It only tickled him a little, and didn't hurt at all.

That's my boy.

There will be MANY more cuts by Mommy in the future.

:: popsicle boy ::

This little one LOVES popsicles.

Now that he's a BIG BOY and is MR. INDEPENDENT I gave him his own popsicle to hold and eat. {yes, in the house on the carpet} He loved it. He knew that he was being big like Mommy cause she had one in her hand as well.

What a fun way to kept COOL on a HOT day.

 I love eating popsicles with my boy.

:: three girls and a boy ::

{mermaid princesses, Ariel and Merliah - aka Maya & Aliyah}

For the last couple of days I have had the PRIVILEGE of tending a few angels... Maya(5), Aliyah(3) & Tehya(1). These three girls are the role-models of my future daughters. They are not only GORGEOUS on the outside, but the inside also. They are so sweet, I just had a blast with them. They opened my eyes to see that it IS possible to have four kids....
well for at least 6 hours. {wink}

 {little miss Tehya on the left}

 Co absolutely LOVED their playroom.

It's a huge family room downstairs filled with a slide, swings that hang from the ceiling, animals, dress-ups, shelves of books, a coloring table, games, puzzles and even a little kitchen. It's a little kid's world down there. He was in heaven.

:: brock's 25th birthday ::

{old picture, but one of my favs. Oh baby, he's handsome!}

My man is 25.

I have now known Brock for 8 years, 

and he is more studly than ever.

He is the man of my dreams.

He makes me laugh when I need to most.

I get butterflies when I see his car pull up at home.

I love him with all that I am.

Happy 25th Birthday Sweetheart.

I YOU LOVE.

While Brock was getting ready for the day and he thought I was sleeping, I snuck to the kitchen and made his favorite breakfast - fruit and cream with sugar on top, and toast. Easy for me!

It was just a "normal day", as Brock would say. He went to work, then school.

I picked him up from school and had a surprise evening for him.

First, Olive Garden for dinner.

While we were at dinner, little did he know, our friends were showing up at our house for dessert. They were so sneaky! I was proud.

Skor Cake and ice cream....Brock's favorite. 

For those of you who haven't tried it, you're missing out.

It is a chocolate cake, with holes poked in it with sweetened condensed milk and caramel drizzled in those holes, topped with whip cream and crumbled Skor bar. Rich, but to die for!

For those who didn't want a sugar over-load from the cake I made brownies as well.

{those who attended the party}

Thanks everyone for coming and hiding so well!

It was a perfect way to end a great 25th Birthday.

:: monkey see monkey do ::

My little monkey.

In Co's room I have a picture wall where I have simply taped pictures in an odd shape. I am not sure when he actually saw me put them up. Yesterday I walked into his room where he was playing and he found an old picture of Brock and I that stays in his toy box, and he was trying to make it stick to the wall. Hilarious.

I smiled so big.

 He cracks me up, and keeps me on track at all times, reminding me how important my actions are to him. Yikes. Pressure.

 + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + 

We went out for ice cream last night.

Oh, how Cohen loves ice cream! He MUST have his OWN spoon to DIP in our cups.

{I love this picture. Neither boy knew I was taking it.}

  {He takes a bite then says Mmmmmm! Every bite.}

:: slide all by myself ::

 Dear Cohen,

I love you so much Buddy, but will you please stop growing up?

At least slow down for a bit. You are turning into a big boy right in front of my eyes. I love watching you learn, and your sense of humor is just as big as mine. Your smile melts my heart to pieces. Your laugh makes me feel warm and fuzzy inside.

Today you climbed the stairs, scooted to the slide, and went down all by yourself. The picture above is right after you came down and your face expression says it all. You felt just like a big boy. I was so proud of you! Then you kept wanting to do it over and over again....climbing right back up the slide rather than using the stairs. 

You are making so many animal sounds - monkey, chicken, dog, cow and elephant. We're working on the cat sound. 

Thank you for being so patient with me everyday as I learn how to be a mommy. I think we're a pretty good team. I love watching you wrestle with Daddy. He loves you Bud. He works SO hard for our little family. Thank you for being brave and wanting to try new things and progress each day. You make all my days good.

I love YOU Co.

 

:: a day I've been looking forward to ::

 Yay! Life is good. Why? Because now

I can see my child's face while driving, I can easily hand him snacks and toys, 

and it's like he's in a new world seeing so many cool new things.

He is loving car rides even more than before!

As you can see by his face, he's a little shocked.

I love this new seat, and so does Co. 
{p.s. These pics make him look WAY bigger than he is} 

{My little boy in his big car seat}

:: a LABOR DAY weekend to remember ::

My wonderful parents came to stay with us for the long holiday weekend.

They are the greatest. One of my favorite things about this cute couple is they know how to laugh. And they keep everyone around them laughing too. I think is it very important to always laugh.

Of course we had SO much fun. We had a Jimmy John's picnic. YUM. My sweet mom bought JJ's bread on her way up to Provo so we could make our own, and see if we could make them as good. And we did. So the secret is out -- Jimmy John's is definitely good for their bread.

 Saturday my mom and I and Co went on a killer shopping spree. {well needed}

I have not been shopping in I don't know how long. It made me giddy-happy, almost like I didn't remember how to shop.

We found some rockin' deals and had SUCH a fun girls' day out.

While we shopped, Brock and my dad went to the BYU football game. Go Cougs! The boys had a blast, but I think I had a little more fun.

On Sunday, we made our way out to Tooele, where my sweet Grammy lives. It was her birthday on Monday, so we went out to celebrate a day early.

Dad made his famous BBQ RIBS {TO-DIE-FOR} along with baked sweet potatoes topped with brown sugar and melted mallows. {like dessert}

For dessert we had Turtle Brownies, my personal favorite.

We chatted, relaxed, and of course....swung on the tire swing.

  Co loved being pushed high.

We would all laugh when he would try and talk while getting his breath taken away.

My cute little Grammy turned 87 yesterday.

She has out-lived all her friends, and many family members.

She is as healthy as a horse, still runs around and plays with her grand/great-grand kids, and goes dancing twice a week.

I hope I age as well as she has. I have said this before, but she is one pretty woman.

What is her secret???

{Grammy and her baby, my daddy}

Grammy lives on 20 acres of land, with a farm behind her house. We had fun exploring in Grandpa's old shed with "treasures".

{the baby goats sounded like real babies}

Grammy's house is always so peaceful. So peaceful that Cohen even held still for more than a minute. Wow. 

We all sat outside for hours and hours chatting.

{A moment I don't want to forget. Rocking with my Sweetie.}

And that was a weekend never to forget.

Thanks Mom & Dad.

We love you.

:: getting BIG ::

My little baby is a big boy.

It's such a bittersweet thing.

I absolutely LOVE him walking, almost running.

He keeps me smiling, even when he doesn't want to obey.

I love his jabber. It's like he has his own language--that or he's catching on to our Asian neighbors next door. {wink}

What a stud muffin.

We play in his room daily. It's one of my favorite parts of the day.

I can see his imagination going wild.

The things he thinks of amaze me.

  One minute, he's playing trucks and tractors...

the next he sneaks up behind me and is in his swimming pool.

Full of energy and loves life.

And that makes me happy.