We're Still Here!!!!!!

I know it seems like we've fallen off of the face of the earth - but we're still here! We've been super busy, as always, but for real this time. We've taken a trip to Idaho to see Aunt Liz get married - yea Liz! - meet Baby Cooper, took a mini -vacation, gotten a pet, and lost teeth. . .
I just love this picture of Cooper - it was surreal to meet him and to spend time with him. He is so adorable. On a side note - we are thrilled that he is home and recuperation and doing better.

Aunt Liz's wedding was so fun - it was great to meet the family she married into and know that she will be well taken care of. You looked beautiful Liz! I love the picture of you two. . .

We loved taking our annual trip to Idaho for the summer. We are so excited that Aunt Liz got married and that we got to be there! While we were there, we were lucky enough to do our favorite Idaho activities. Riding Cooper, Daddy playing golf, and going to Silverwood. Crazy enough, Jax was tall enough to ride the roller coasters this year! He had a blast and was so brave - I had to take his picture. . . Thanks for your help Aunt Liz!

She finally did it. Addie actually lost her first tooth - her bottom one - in Idaho. She let cousin Paige take it out while we were at the temple. This top tooth was SOOO loose and just hanging there for at least a week. Matt and I kept trying to convince her to let us take it out but she wouldn't have it. So what a shock to us when she came to Matt on Father's Day morning before church and shyly told him that her father's day present to him was to let him take her tooth out. . . She was so proud of herself but I think her Dad was the most excited of the two. Sheepishly, the tooth fairy forgot to come that night- so we quickly came up with the reason that the tooth fairy only comes at a certain time each night and if you aren't in bed - she has to wait and come another night. (Addie had a late night that night). So she went to bed as early as she could last night to make sure the Tooth fairy could come - I felt so lame for forgetting! Let's just say I was really tired. . .

We finally took the leap and got our kids a pet. . . A cat which looks oddly like the cat we had in Idaho. . . . which also explains why this cat's name is also Cowboy. One day last week I told Matt that I was feeling bad because I thought our kids would adore having a pet and I knew the only reason we didn't have one was me. I just didn't want to take care of a 4th, I mean 5th with Matt :), child. So, we sat Addie and Jax down and discussed the amount and type of work a cat brings and they agreed to do the work. They LOVE him. That cat gets the most attention of any cat I have ever seen. I've been really proud of Gray because he is so soft with him. I actually think it's been really good for Gray to have this little kitten in our house.

Addie takes care of feeding Cowboy and cleaning the kitty litter in the morning and Jax does it at night. Our kids are doing SOOO good and are in heaven. Cowboy has really taken to Addie and the two of them stick together. He meows for her when he can't find her - it is adorable. All three of them love him, but Addie was really ready for this. Can you see that she made him a "moses basket" Cassie? She carries him through the house - sounds like anyone else we know?

Our summer has finally come! We are never home because we go swimming every day, seriously. In the morning we go to the gym and sometimes soccer camp for Jax and then right after lunch we head to Seven Peaks. I love it - my kids are exhausted at bedtime. It's perfect. Anyway - Hope your summer is going awesome!

Bloody nose on my feet

Not that this has anything to do with anything. But as I was sitting here working on this Gray came running inside upset and said that he had a bloody nose on his feet. . . Who knew that was possible? This would be about 20 minutes after I sent him outside because he was making goldfish cracker mush in the living room by pouring his goldfish crackers into a big pile on the coffee table and then pouring his water cup over them. As if that wasn't enough, then he needed to mush them altogether with his hands - like kneading dough. And as if THAT isn't enough to teach me patience, earlier today I was returning something at Costco and Gray swore he would be good if I let him walk. Guess what happened - he darted into the entrance telling me that I couldn't catch him with a devilish laugh over and over again. I literally had to run and catch him - and when I did he let out a bloody murder scream as if I was beating his butt- boy would I like to. . . . Anyone want to borrow a 2 year old today, or for the next month or so?

Broken - Again. . .

That's right. Jax did it again. Second window in one year. Last time it was a baseball that broke it and this time a golf ball. He actually really did feel awful about it. He said he was trying not to golf at the fence. So what's left really? Of course the window. . . . Matt was great about it and didn't get mad. Just sat him down and talked about actions and consequences and how even though it was an accident - there still needed to be consequences for breaking a window - thus the hiatus from the golf clubs for a while. They're under the house for a while. Thank goodness for other sports!

It's that time of year for us - time to get in the water. My little family LOVES the water. We get passes to 7 peaks in the summer and go every day - seriously. But, being the nervous mom that I am - I have the kids that are old enough take swimming lessons right before summer starts so that they remember what to do in the water. I have come to the conclusion that my kids are fish. They love their lessons even though they are freezing. This picture of Jax is so funny to me because he was having a blast but his face never showed it. He can't wait for his next lesson but when he gets there he looks miserable. Go figure.

This year it's just Addie and Jax in lessons - so while their lesson is happening I take Gray in the water myself. This really just means that he jumps in from the side at any given time and mom had better be ready to catch him. He ALWAYS yells cannonball first so at least I've got a warning. Last time he wore bright neon green goggles on his face and refused to take them off the whole time. He looked hilarious.

Look at that skinny boy - I swear we feed him, really!

She Did It!!!!!!

SHE DID IT!!!!!!

Well, she did it. The infamous dance recital was this past weekend and Addie did it! She was actually really excited and had the time of her life. I now have a better appreciation for the time that Abby spends during this week at the dance hall. We were there on Thursday from 3:30-7:00 for dress rehearsal, Friday from 5:30-9:00 and three different times on Saturday. It was so worth it. Seeing the proud and happy face on Addie this weekend made it all worth it.

Since Addie and I were so busy this weekend Matt took the boys to a ward father-son outing which was supposed to be an overnight camping trip. But, since it was supposed to rain Matt brought the boys home and camped in the backyard. I think Jax had much more fun than Matt did. . . dedicated Dad :). See the picture above? I couldn't get it to move where I wanted it. . . Oops. Matt was really a trooper and took over for me around the house and with the boys this weekend. You rock babe.

Here are some pics from this weekend -

This little girl is Addie's dancing partner, at one point during her dance they do a little part together. Addie loved her. . .

Loving her time with the cousins - of course. . .

It's hard to tell but Addie is the girl on the far right - with attitude.

I have to admit - a little part of me was worried that she would get scared but . . . as you can see, that did not happen. This weekend was a fantastic experience. It was so awesome to see her totally out of her shell and having a blast on that stage. I am always proud of my kids - but to see her completely overcome her fear and to have a blast was a very proud mommy moment for me.

Like the pose? A little too natural for her. :)

Thanks to Uncle Naki for the candy lei - it's been eaten already! - and to Uncle Rex and fam for the flowers. We had so much fun hanging out with you guys this weekend! P.S. - Since we spent so much time there on Saturday, I didn't get any dinner. So the highlight of my night was when my awesome husband showed up with Wendy's, my favorite (the baconator) for me at the end of the last recital. Thanks babe!

So now that recital week is over - our little family now moves on to swimming lessons 3 times a week and tball. AND - since dance was so successful Addie has now decided she wants to try soccer too! Slowly but surely we'll get this girl out of her shell. She is having the time of her life. . .

Till later . . .

K

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JAX!

Jax is finally 4! He has been waiting so long for this day. I have too - he promised me that as soon as he turned 4 I didn't have to help him eat his meals or carry him when his legs are tired- will see if that promise sticks :). He/we had a very busy day for his birthday. On my kids birthdays they get to pick all of the meals, have some type of a family event, something with one friend AND alone time with Mom and Dad.

So this is how it went down. First, after he woke up we IMMEDIATELY had to open presents. . . then cinnamon rolls for breakfast. A couple of hours on the WII with his new MLB game playing with his friend Jackson Arthur. Then, lunch at Chili's with Mom and Dad (which rocked by the way). Then a trip to Jump On It ( a big room full of blow ups and trampolines) with his friend Jarret, finally a nap, and then a softball game at the park with family, including extended and cake and ice cream. He, of course, picked a baseball cake. For you guys who know me you know that I so much prefer to buy something or pay someone to make things for me so we ordered a yummy cake from Costco. Anyway - it was an awesome day. When we asked him what his favorite part of the day was, he just smiled and said "all of it." We feel so lucky to have him, we did, in fact, try for 3 years to get him here. So his birthdays are really special for us. . . . Please look and make sure you see the picture of pregnant Abby at bat - she had an awesome hit too!
P.S. Addie hit the ball! She let Matt pitch to her that night and hit the ball EVERY time to her surprise. I am so proud of her for stepping up to the plate!

Some things I love about the pictures - Jax in all of his NYY glory. The hat, the jersey, the sign, you name it. The boys around the cake - on the Brousseau side there are 15 grandkids and only 4 are girls. . . Jax loves it when the boys all get together and play sports. So to see all of those boys crowded around the cake for him was a special moment for me.

Okay, the next two pictures don't go together but when I was looking for the family one I saw Gray's and couldn't help myself - I had to post it. He is trying to make a mean face. I see that face a lot - right after he says something to me like "you get in here, right now mom!" So fierce Gray. The family picture was at a softball game last week - thought my toes were going to fall off we were so cold. I nice woman brought a tarp and set it up on the end of the bleachers so stop the wind but still - freezing. Naki and Junior showed up wearing shorts - Let's just say it was a night to remember.

Well, an awesome trip from Grandpa & Grandma Davis and Uncle Tim has come and gone. We miss them already. My kids loved showing them their house and the fun things that they like to do. Congrats to Line for choosing to be baptized. That was so much fun to watch and to see the joy on her face - also great to hear Abby's testimony that day. Anyway, here are a couple of pictures from sweet Grandpa who took the time to work with Jax on baseball. They worked on hitting and pitching and cute Dad held onto the little tball bat to hit the ball for Jax. Jax was in heaven. He told me later how cool it was that he has a Grandpa that will play ball with him. . . . Love you Dad.

Craziness. . .

Our house has been crazy busy over the last couple of days - but all with fun stuff! Every year for our anniversary, Matt's parents lovingly take our kids for a couple of days so that we can get away. By some small miracle, we managed to get the hook-up this year and were given a free hotel stay, free dinner and spending money over the last month or so. Since we went to Park City right after we got married, we go there every year. We, the dorks that we are, always go and visit the bed-and-breakfast that we stayed in for our anniversary, which, by the way, is a historic landmark. We usually go golfing, for Matt . . . , but this year Park City is still completely under snow. SOOOO, we made a run for it on Friday and didn't come back to our house until Sunday.

While we were in Park City, we went on one of my MOSTEST favorite scavenger hunts, at the Park City Outlets. For those of you who know me well, you know that I can shop for hours on end and love every minute of it. The challenge is to find what is on your list for a good price and still love it. . . . This weekend I was hunting for clothes for Aunt Lizzie's wedding (Yea!!!!!!!) for my kids. . . I DID IT!!!! I was so proud of myself. I found yellow shirts for the boys for $6 each. Made my day. Now I only have to find something for myself. . . Another trip.

Today, I decided to go running to the park instead of driving to the gym as I am trying to live in a budget and conserve gas. So, I thought that going running was super smart and that my boys would love going to the park for a couple of hours. I forgot, however, that I have two GROWING boys who weigh A LOT more than they did last year. Jackson cannot ride his bike to the park, it's too far and he says, "My legs are TOOOOO tired Mom," bless his little heart. He tried so hard last trip to the park and I ended up pushing him on his bike and pushing Gray in the stroller - never again . . . Anyway, my point to this story is that when we finally made it to the park, with a very tired Mom, the Orem Fire Department was there practicing drive-ups, hooking the hose up fast and spraying water from the hose and the truck. My boys were fascinated. . . . The best part was how awesome those guys were - they noticed shy Jackson hiding behind a trash can but peeking his head out to watch them and invited him to come over to them. He was too shy so I held his hand as we walked over and met them. They made both he and Gray Junior Firefighters which they thought was soo cool. Jax sat there for a good hour watching them and when they noticed how fascinated he was they invited him to get in the firetruck, sit in their seats and even hold the hose while they sprayed water all over the park. He was in heaven!!!!!! He hasn't stopped talking about it since.

Last story - the last couple of nights Gray has gotten really sneaky at bedtime. You put him to bed only to find him somewhere else later. For example, last night Jax, Addie and I were upstairs in my room watching the NYY play and I had put Gray to bed about a half hour earlier. When it was time to put Jax to bed he through a huge fit and was crying SOOO loud. But, as we were walking into his room he literally stopped in midcry, looked at Gray's bed and said, "Mom, where's Gray?". He was NOWHERE to be found. So, I yelled his name downstairs, and for those of you that know his voice, I heard a loud and low, "What?" He was downstairs watching the Celtics basketball game. He totally played it off like he was supposed to be there and what was the big deal? When I told him he had to get back in bed he started fake crying and said, "There's monsters in there!" So I took him to his room and asked him to show me where. . . He looked dumbfounded and all I got was an , "Um . . . . . ." as he looked around the room to try and think of an answer. Nice try Gray.

Anyway - from the house of the craziness to yours - have a good week!

K

Happy Anniversary!

Happy 8th Anniversary!!!!!

I tried to find some pictures to show some different times in our life and this is what I found. . . . I wish I had more, but most of our earlier pictures are from before digital cameras. . . I just liked the really early ones . . . I'll try and add more later.

We have successfully made it through 8 years! Okay, I know to some people that isn't really all that long, but to us it is! This morning we were remembering all of the craziness that has happened to us in the last 8 years and had a good laugh realizing that life is never calm, thank goodness! Some things we remembered were -

A broken big toe

College Basketball

A smashed little toe

Living in a little 800 sq foot apartment with 5 people

8, yes, 8 moves

8 different cars

4 rounds of stitches (okay 2 of those are Addie's)

3 fast labor and deliveries :)

Plenty of speeding tickets on the trip to CDA and back

Burnt alfredo - our favorite meal that Matt makes for us :)

Heart shaped pancakes - made by Matt

LOTS of chocolate chip cookies

LOTS of trips to our infamous, not famous but infamous, outlets in Park City

Today my cute husband brought me lunch, thank goodness I worked out this morning, reminiscent of our wedding day, WENDY'S! Right after we got married and before our reception we were starving so in our Tux and Wedding dress we headed through the drive-thru to grab some lunch. The look on the employee's face was priceless. . . So every year we ty to have Wendy's for lunch. I love that tradition.

We also are lucky enough to have Matt's parents babysit for us every year so that we can get away for a couple of nights. This year, because I rock, I won the NCAA bracket in both the Brousseau and Davis family bracket pools and won dinner AND a movie. Can't wait for this weekend! On a sidenote, I did actually fill out my own bracket this year without Matt's help . . .

I never win anything, so this year as we got further into the tournament I was nervously and anxiously watching the games waiting to see if this was my year, and it was! No pressure for next year. . . .

I just wanted to take a minute to say how much I love my husband and how lucky I am. I married a wonderful man who takes the time to play with his kids, to work hard to provide for his family and who can always make me laugh. I feel incredibly lucky and love him more every day that goes by. Here's to the next 8 years!