Fireworks

We ended the 4th of July like this..
We waited for the fireworks while the boys played football. We had full tummies, perfect weather, good company, and happy hearts. I like when time slows down for one evening and we have no time restrictions and no big plans.

For not taking their usual naps, Cooper and Sophie were little angels. I have to say this was one of my favorite holidays in a long time..

Cooper successfully wore himself out enough to lay down and watch the fireworks to end a lovely day..Happy late fourth.

Small town parade

They just don't do parades like this very many places anymore. What a way to start off Shawn's first 4th of July in Idaho, and Cooper's first 4th all together. This is one of my very favorite holidays, so I was determined for Cooper to enjoy it. He looked like a classic little mini Uncle Tom, and I took a million pictures all day long because I couldn't stand not to with his chubby legs smashed into these skinny jeans. I was thrilled to give Shawn just a little glimpse into the spirit of a town that he has mostly just heard exaggerated stories about. It really is a pretty great place, I love the small town feel, and I realized how much I have missed it. Shawn is catching on-Idaho is a pretty great place to escape and go home to.

Cooper has such a funny relationship with his little cousin Dylan. They both just seem so amazed by each other. They both seem like they think the other is actually pretty cool. Surprisingly, they have even looked straight at each other and just smiled like they know they will have some great memories together someday. Cooper waited patiently while Dylan got out of his car seat, and then he couldn't stop staring at him.

Everybody loves grandma. The past few times we have been home he has became very attached!

Easily the best part of any holiday is the fact that everything in life stops for the day, and we just get to spend an entire day with just our little fam..

And of course the reason behind the holiday. Cooper will always be very well aware that he has an Uncle in the army who is a pretty big deal. He will always know that this soldier is our favorite brother, and is working hard making our family and country proud. Grateful for all the other soldiers who spend time away from family. Thank goodness there are people like them who can do that job so well. We miss Josh and his cute wife and kids EVERY time we are together!

A face to remember

Shawn splurged our first year of marriage to buy me an over the top, overly complicated amazing camera. He passed out as a result of giving plasma too many times to get this camera in my hands. I love it. Time just goes so quickly I haven't taken the time to learn how to properly use it. When Coop's bday rolled around I decided we might as well try our hand at photographing him ourselves, I had what I wanted in mind. It was a team effort, my goal was to make it not stressful, and I failed. But we did our best, and we got a few pictures that will forever remind us of the way our handsome little boy's face looked during the week of his first birthday. That's all we really wanted. Here are some of the favs! Beware of the picture overload!

Last night I was gathering up clothes for my cute little nephew to be. They were Cooper's old clothes and I can't wait for them to be used again. I was surprised how much I loved every single item. I had promised myself I would never forget how cute Cooper looked in each and every individual one. To my horror, I pulled out some shoes and said to myself, I forgot he ever had these! I started to cry, and Shawn put his arm around me and laughed. This is why I drug him through the stressful wind storm to capture pictures of Cooper before his birthday. It's not so I can throw them on my blog or fb like Shawn loves to jokingly suggest (although showing off a cute boy is always a nice side bonus). I insisted on taking these, because I don't ever want to forget these two little bottom teeth, that appear with only an extra big smile. The little blonde curls at the base of his neck, and the big sparkly brown curious eyes. We have to remember forever the chubby hands and his massively thick feet that can hardly be smashed in a shoe. All I really want is to remember every single detail just exactly the way it has been.

I love this face, and it won't look this way for long, I swear it actually changes everyday. It's a face to remember...he is one special boy. What a blessing to spend a whole year learning how to be his parents and enjoying his company.

Summer Days

Phone picture [crappy quality] and way too long upload from our few and far between stay at home days of the summer..

Cooper got a new car for his bday! I don't know what's been more fun, watching him use it, or going to pick it up with Shawn and seeing how excited all three of us were pushing it out to the parking lot to take it home. He knows how to get attention when he wants it-which is not hard-he pushes it up and down our driveway waving and shouting to everyone who walks by. Our goal is to capture it on video it's so entertaining to watch-he truly believes everyone cares about it, and needs to see it-which they do! He pushes this thing all over the house, it has definitely saved me when I need him entertained for a minute!

Cooper is a lover of food. He probably gets that from both sides of Allen. I promise I'm not starving him but he seriously dug in my bag for this strawberry and was determined to eat it, after almost a whole PB and J and then some..don't worry I put them in his chubby hands and let him go to town right after this picture.

Shayna and Dean have been our most frequent little seven peaks buddies. We sure love them. Cooper loves other kids! He likes them too much and always wants to touch their faces and their hair and get maybe too up close and personal-Dean is such a little trooper and just let's Cooper explore!

Someone has learned to say "DAD" and it's the most hilarious thing. He has said Mama for a while and it took us a long time to be able to tell if he actually knew what it meant. There is no doubt he knows what DAD means. It's so funny because he yells is with such urgency, usually when he is messing around with stuff and wants Shawn to join him. We get snow shacks after work with Dad about 3 times a week and they are so completely delicous..delicious meaning comparable to Bahama Bucks which is a big statement.

Little chat before bed, these two love eachother

First baseball game, Mr. Curious the whole night..

jogging stroller therapy. Shawn usually pushes him, and I just try to get myself and baby #2 up the hills and around the park. It is the most quiet and peaceful that Coop can possibly be while being awake. It is so refreshing this time of year for all of us, to enjoy a short run (or jog, or walk) at Sugarhouse park. Ironically we usually follow it up with a bed time snack in front of the tv..
Look at this content little face..and chubby little hands and legs.

This is what Cooper does about 17-18 hours of the day! The other 6-7 he is absolutely CRAZY every single second and he cracks me up. He lets me know clearly when he is tired and his mood usually flips a 180, then he wakes up ready to go crazy again. What a sweet lil boy.

We just had his one year check up and shots, ironically it coordinated with my six month check up for our girly girl..who would have thought! Cooper has never cried much with shots and seriously the second we walk out the door he never acts like he cares or thinks twice about it again. He definitely didn't get that pain tolerance from me, and it's pretty darn likely our girl will not be the same way!

We had to wait for the doctor for about an hour, so for the first 30 minutes Cooper was all over the place, after he had explored every corner he was not happy to be waiting around in a tiny little room staring at the same four walls. I enjoyed that he was forced to actually give in and sit on my lap for a few to read books.
He currently likes to open every single cupboard and try to fit into the teeny tiniest places he can. He loves talking to himself in the mirror, and touching things that he shouldn't, with a look that follows like, "oh am I not supposed to touch that? oops." Cutest face ever.

He is a busy, happy, darling, growing boy- 70% in weight and 95% in height..he easily keeps us entertained and time is going so fast we can't even believe that we will have another one in about 14 weeks! The three of us are big fans of water and sunshine..life is finally slowing down and we are taking advantage of enjoying every last second before we are stuck inside for the winter. My work has reminded me over and over, that life is short. I am so grateful for everyday that I get to spend with these two fun friends of mine who just so happen to be my own little fam. There is nothing better then being the Mom- good thing, since there is a whole lot of Mommyness coming up in the semi-near future.

Quite the lady..

I have taken a long hiatus from blogging. Okay, long is a relative term. To me, over a month is long! I like to come here and write about all the happenings in our life, since Cooper's scrapbook is far from finished and my journal looks like it has been thrown in a garbage truck and recovered from dragging it around over the years. Blogs are a wonderful thing!
We have been so busy!!! Summer really is just one of the best times of the year, along with the holidays and fall and parts of spring :) I have lots to catch up on.

FIRST and foremost..On July 3rd we went to my sweet great grandma's funeral. She passed away in Ashton in a rest home. I regret the fact that I didn't know her better. However, everything I remember about her is 100% good. I remember feeling the same regret at my other great grandma's funeral a few years before, and also at Shawn's nana's funeral. I do remember birthday cards in the mail every year up until well into my teens. If anybody else knows how hard it is to actually get a letter to the mailbox..that's quite the accomplishment for all of her grandkids and great grandkids! We listened to stories about her and heard people reflect on how wonderful her life was for the afternoon. I realized that I met her just at the very tail end of a fulfilling life. Look how cute she was!

I sort of wish I had known my great grandma when she was my age making her friends laugh, or that I had been around when she packed my grandpa up for an afternoon outing, just the same way I pack up my Coop. I was not lucky enough to see her house as a young mom, but I heard it was perfectly kept-I didn't taste her breakfast, but I heard it was delicious. I learned that she taught my grandma how to sew, and keep a garden, and keep a cozy house. My grandma taught my mom these things, and my mom has (tried) to teach my sisters and I. Apparently I can thank her for having sore knees from weeding my two rows of the garden, or until a spider was seen and then we all quit. As I was cleaning my bathroom last week, in the specific order my mom taught me, I wondered if my grandma does it the same way, and if it all came from my great grandma-and I was grateful for the family that she started that I eventually was lucky to become a part of.

I know blogs didn't exist back then, but I wished she had kept one. I wish I could read about her day to day life, and about my Grandpa when he was as young and crazy as Cooper. I learned from what she did leave behind that she loved her family, and being the keeper of her own little home, and that was what made her life complete. That is something that I have taken note of the women in my family for. My grandma, my mom, my aunts, and my older sister are all mom's who take such pride in their job. I am grateful that she started us off with a good example of motherhood to follow. Apparently she was quite the lady.

For the past month my mind has been telling me to sit down and blog about the little details we have going on, if only so that someday Cooper's kids will read it and see just a tiny bit about what their great great great grandmother was like. Then they will laugh as they keep reading about how excited Cooper got when he realized he was actually walking on his own with no help, how he was too tired to dig into his cake on his birthday, and how he loved the parade, the sirens, and the fireworks on his first 4th of July. I also need to blog about the cradle I found at a garage sale for Coop's little sister that with a little TLC is going to be very darling. I need to blog about Shawn's final internship and the fact that last night was the first Sunday evening in our whole marriage that we didn't think about preparations for a week of school starting the next morning..and it felt wonderful!

Life is good, there is no better place to document that then right here in this little corner of the web that is ours, and that we are more then happy to share with the people we love. Happy Summer..more updates soon!