Pizza Angel

Out of the mouth of Cooper

The following is the phone conversation Cooper had with Jeff while he was at work.

Cooper: Um Dad...(pause)...I hate to tell you this...(long pause)...we bought new diapers for Shiloh.

Jeff: (laughing) OK

Cooper: Dad, there is something else...(long pause)...Mom wants to kill you.

Jeff: What?

I then took the phone to explain that the last part was not true!

I don't know where he comes up with these things!

Dance Lessons

Learn how to dance with lessons from Bob the Builder.


If I have to watch this ever again, blood would shoot from my eyes.

Sleeping

Every night, before Jeff and I go to bed, we check on each of the kids.

This is typically how we find Mason, wrapped up in his covers.

This is not typically how we find Cooper, but it was pretty cute!

At it again

I found another set of pictures on the camera when I upload what I thought were a few pictures Jeff took last night, 78 pictures uploaded. Here are a few of the boys masterpieces. Who needs a professional photographer when you have Mason and Cooper?

Here is how I imagine the photo shoot going.
Mason: OK Cooper, I'll take a picture of you and Shiloh. Just lift her up a bit. Good...good...just a little more...now she looks uncomfortable so I'll hurry and take the picture....

now you take one of me with Shiloh, after I pick her up and carry her to the couch. Yeah yeah I know, Mom has told me several times not to pick her up and carry her, but hey, she'll never find out will she?....

Good job Cooper! Now come sit on the couch with us and I'll take one of all three of us.
Shiloh: Where is Mom when I need her?

And here is one Cooper took of himself.

The Dance of the Cucumber

Shhh don't tell Mom!

As I was uploading some pictures, I found these, and others on the camera as well.

Up close and personal with Cooper.

Mason playing with Shiloh.

Mason trying to get all three of them in one shot.

Mason holding Shiloh.

She doesn't look too happy in this one...MOM HELP!

Shiloh (and Cooper)

The other day Shiloh was looking pretty cute to me. She was performing her newest trick, sitting up. I got out the camera, took a few pictures of her, and then Cooper joined in the picture taking event.

As you can tell from the look on Shiloh's face, she wasn't very fond of the idea. Or maybe it was that Cooper was grabbing onto her sweater REALLY tight. On another note, can you see the resemblance between these two? All I hear is, "Shiloh sure looks like Cooper doesn't she?" or "That put a new meaning to mini Cooper".

So she still didn't warm up to the idea. Couldn't be the fact that now he had her around the neck could it? Oh, and me? Where was I when he was choking her? Taking the picture of course. Way to busy trying to get a good one that I didn't notice where his hand were.
Her face in both these pictures cracks me up. Seriously, when I uploaded them from my camera and saw them for the first time I laughed out loud. Is that mean?

Okay, all better now. Cooper went away

Father's Day 2011

The kids did a great job keeping the secret about what they got me (minus the email I got from Amazon.com about one of my presents, because Crystyne couldn't change the email.) Anyway, I would have been fine with nothing, but I love everything I received.

Are you sensing a theme?

My new flag and below a new Gonzaga shirt.

I then had the privilege of speaking in Sacrament meeting at church. I was the final speaker and I talked about Teaching in the home as a father. Here were two of my favorite parts of the talk.

The story of First Parent, by Bill Cosby

Whenever your kids are out of control, you can take comfort from the thought that even God's omnipotence did not extend to his kids.

After creating Heaven and Earth, God created Adam and Eve. And the first thing He said to them was: "Don't."

"Don't what?", Adam replied.

"Don't eat the forbidden fruit."

"Forbidden fruit? Really? Where is it?"

"It's over there," said God, wondering why He hadn't stopped after making the elephants.

A few minutes later God saw the kids having an apple break and He was angry.

"Didn't I tell you not to eat that fruit?" the First Parent asked.

"Uh huh," Adam replied.

"Then why did you?"

"I dunno," Adam answered.

God's punishment was that Adam and Eve should have children of their own.

Thus the pattern was set and it has never changed. But there is reassurance in this story.

If you have persistently and lovingly tried to give them wisdom and they haven't taken it, don't be hard on yourself.

If God had trouble handling children, what makes you think it would be a piece of cake for you?

The second one is this poem by C.C. Miller called "The Echo".

’Twas a sheep not a lamb

That strayed away in the parable Jesus told,

A grown-up sheep that strayed away

From the ninety and nine in the fold.

And why for the sheep should we seek

And earnestly hope and pray?

Because there is danger when sheep go wrong:

They lead the lambs astray.

Lambs will follow the sheep, you know,

Wherever the sheep may stray.

When sheep go wrong,

It won’t take long till the lambs are as wrong as they.

And so with the sheep we earnestly plead

For the sake of the lambs today,

For when the sheep are lost

What a terrible cost

The lambs will have to pay.

Today I am thankful for a father who raised me well, who taught me honor and virtue, trust and believing in myself. For two grandfathers who's influence helped to shape me as a person. And a Heavenly Father who loves me dearly and has given me the opportunity to experience what these great men have experienced in raising their children. I only hope to be half the man that they are.

7 Months!

This little girl is now 7 months old. She continues to be a joy to us and her big brothers. She still loves to suck on the first three fingers on her right hand. She tries to get all five in her mouth, but soon realizes her mouth is too small. Shiloh loves to be play and sleep on her tummy. She rolls onto her tummy when laid down on the floor, and just stays there In fact, I have only seen her roll from her tummy to her back once. She is getting used to eating baby food, she only eats about 1 oz at eat feeding. When she is done eating, she yells. This is such a difference from the smiles I get when she is done nursing. Shiloh just started sitting up by her self a few days ago. She doesn't have any teeth yet, but has been drooling like crazy and has had some really cranky days. Maybe there will be some teeth in her near future.

Where Have All the Staplers Gone?

Primary Activity

Yesterday Mason and Cooper had a primary activity. They went to the temple, which is in the valley. Jeff took them while I stayed home so Shiloh could take her nap. Jeff and the boys were suppose to have a picnic in the park, right behind the temple, after their activity was over with the rest of the primary children, but it was raining so hard, they decided to head back home. Normally I would have opted to go to the activity with them, instead of staying home doing laundry. This time though, I think I got the better deal.

Waiting at the park for their activity to begin.

Where's Mason?
With the rest of the primary children who attended the activity.

Cooper did not want to be in the picture.

Patriotic Concert

Wednesday night Mason, and the rest of the kindergarteners, had a patriotic concert. They were all so cute! While we were there, I got kinda sad realizing my little boy is growing up. Next year he will be in school all day and I will not get to spend as much time with him as I would like. Mason did really well. They quite a few numbers and had hand motions that went with a few. Mason was over dramatic with his motions. It was really funny. Here are a few videos of the songs they sang.

Violent Songs

Sometimes I feel like JD on scrubs (ironically those are my initials). I have a tendency to be over imaginative and my brain sometimes thinks of strange things. Today I was standing at the nurses station whistling the tune "Pop goes the weasel" and I thought, man kids songs are kind of violent. Think about it.

POP! Goes the weasel - Are we shooting him? did he step on an IED? did he spontaneously combust? And why does the monkey hate him so much?

London bridges falling down - I am surprised more kids are afraid to go on bridges.

Ring around the Rosie - Let's just sing a song about the Bubonic plague and the cremation of the bodies (Ashes, Ashes) we all fall down.

Who came up with these songs anyway?

Laughter

Sunday Dress

So how do you know your kids are listening at church? Here is how.

Brother Beasley at the pulpit: This Saturday is the primary temple trip, be sure to wear Sunday dress and pack a sack lunch for yourself.

Mason to Crystyne: Mom, boys don't wear dresses, I don't want to wear a dress to the temple.

Crystyne: You don't have to wear a dress, he just means to wear the same clothes you would wear on Sunday.

And all this time, I thought he wasn't listening.

The Water Buffalo Song

Racetrack

Last night the boys went to the racetrack. A friend of ours scored some free tickets. At first just Jeff and Mason were going. I was going to take Cooper on a date. Then when Jared came to get Jeff and Mason he asked if Cooper wanted to go too. Cooper was very quick to ditch me to hang out with the boys.

Mason with his bbf Brennen.

Sportin' the ear plugs.

Overall, they said it was fun.

Graduation

Last night Cooper had preschool graduation. He went to preschool on Wednesdays only this year because he is so young. Next year we have decided to keep him home due to his severe allergies to nuts and animals. I would really love to send him to preschool for the social aspects of it, but being able to control the environment, and what he eats, thus keeping him healthy and alive is more important to us.

Cooper with his preschool teacher, Miss Jolinda