Brody 5 1/2 weeks

Big Brothers and Brody

The boys checking out Brody. Preston could care less about what Brody is doing, where he is at, or if he is still part of the family. Preston was more concerned that he had all matching body parts and was indeed a "BOY"!

Connor on the other hand is very concerned and gives him kisses throughout the day. He always asks me, "where Brody at?" If he cries he says, "Brody hungee?" They think he is hilarious when he toots or has a mass explosion! He is growing so fast and is a very sweet little man!

Gratitude

"Gratitude is of the very essence of worship. … When you walk with gratitude, you do not walk with arrogance and conceit and egotism, you walk with a spirit of thanksgiving that is becoming to you and will bless your lives”. Sincerely giving thanks not only helps us recognize our blessings, it also unlocks the doors of heaven and helps us feel God’s love”


Gordan B Hinckley

Pure Sweetness

Our Family of 5 is complete

Brody William joined our family at 1:02pm, November 2, 2009.

He weighs 10lbs 6oz and is 21 inches long!

Birthday boys

Things I want to remember about Preston at 4:


DOB: 9/24/05

1. His smile, it makes me smile...dimples and all...he is a happy boy!

2. That he loves to say his prayers and get exactly 5 kisses everynight at bedtime.

3. That he is always aware of Connor and can't stand it when Connor is asleep and not up playing with him. As much as they can fight, they LOVE each other!

4. He loves planes, trains, diggers, trucks, blimps, bombers, etc., He can name them all and is so smart. He loves to read or rather have us read to him...all his books are very well loved and worn.

5. I love that he wants to be a "big boy" and dresses himself, and wants to try things on his own and be independent. Some days I love his independence, other days, well it can be a struggle. ;)

6. He is my thinker, he likes to negotiate everything...I think sometimes am I really having this conversation with a 4 yr old.

7. He loves visiting his grandparents, he loves playing in the garden and picking veggies, I love that he eats carrots fresh from the garden, and I love finding his diggers in the rows. He loves getting rides on Grandpa's tractor, watering the plants, helping work on the scouts or harleys.

8. His favorites are orange cream soda, chocolate pudding, glow worm candies, waffles, peanut butter and jelly, mac and cheese, chocolate milk shakes, eggs, bacon, bananas, tangelos, cheese pizza, grilled cheese, steak and all kinds of berries!

9. I love his imagination and how he involves Connor in everything. He often tells Connor that he is his best friend...I hope that never changes! :)

10. He thinks all animals and bugs are "beautiful creatures", Connor tries to stomp them to death while Preston is trying to save them. They often take their flashlights out in the yard at night to look for slugs. They hold their flashlights to their bums and say their "lightning bugs."

11. Most of all I love that he tells Jim and I that we are his best friends too...I know this will change...but its pretty special now!

Things I want to remember about Connor at 2:

DOB: 10/6/2007

1. He has the best sense of humor, he always does something silly and then says "Connor funny"!

2. He is a pleaser, whether he is trying to help me with chores or playing with his brother, he tries so hard to make everyone happy and has the biggest smile.

3. He loves Preston! We will give Connor a treat and he will take it straight to Preston to share. He always asks "Where brother at?", and always is thinking of what will make him happy. If Connor has a toy that Preston wants he will say, "Here brother" and promptly hand it to him.

4. He is so smart! He has been potty training all summer and is doing awesome! He has a great vocabulary and is a talker! His favorite movies are Harry Potter, Jurassic Park, and The Polar Express.

5. I love his fine blond hair, it is still so soft and smells so sweet!

6. He is a tough little guy! He will have a good wipe out in the back yard and not let it stop him from having fun and keeping up. Often he will come in with a new scratch, bump, or bruise and will never have said a word about it. His feelings are more hurt with rejection from Preston.

7. He loves to play make believe, he and Preston come up with the best stories together. They love pretending their wizards and cast spells at each other...pretty funny! They also like to pretend their prairie dogs and get in my laundry baskets to watch movies.

8. I love his one dimple on his right cheek when he smiles!

9. He potty trained before his 2 yr birthday!

10. He just started sharing a bedroom with Preston and is in his own "big boy bed".

11. He is a great eater, his favorites are noodles, hot dogs, bananas, tangelos, rasberries, blueberries, strawberries, grapes, french fries, chips, and anything he can dip!

12. Connor is a mama's boy all the way, he loves to cuddle, give kisses, and tells all of us "lub you"!

Preston and Connor are night and day different not just because Preston has brown hair with green eyes and olive skinned and Connor is blond hair with blue eyes and very fair, but its their personalities. They are so much fun...I love all their differences and feel so blessed and grateful that they are mine!

Breech...what?

I know you all are probably sick of reading about my pregnancy...but its always on my mind and I can't wait to hold this little guy! So I have 4 1/2 weeks left till "D" day, I am extremely uncomfortable and very ready to have this baby! Yesterday was my 34 week doc ck. I lay down as she measure the bump, we listen to his heart beat, and then she feels my stomach to get an idea of his location...yeah...only to find out that his little head is under my ribs and his feet are kicking my bladder! I began the exam expressing my concerns and requesting another ultrasound because of the discomfort and pressure I was feeling, now I know why. I know I am having a "C" and it doesn't really matter what position he is in, including his height or weight, but for some reason I was so disappointed. My other boys were head down and stayed head down, this little guy is a wiggle worm and is very active; which would explain how he got himself in this situation, I am just hoping he will flip again and get back with his head down soon.

33 weeks and counting

Well I can't believe that I am finally at the end of Summer, back in May when we were moving and packing I thought, "ok if I can just make it to September" Jim starts Chiropractic school in 2 weeks and I only have 6 1/2 weeks to go. I am so excited! Even though this is our 3rd, I still forget how huge and uncomfortable life becomes near the end. At my appointment this week I measured 35 wks, so she felt the baby, and quickly commented that I was ALL baby, no wiggle room...she then asked me how big my biggest was...I said 9' 8" and she said well I think this ones going to be at least 9 lbs. Then quickly told me she was glad we had a c-section planned or she would be worried. That is the reason I have "C's", BIG BABIES! I feel like I am all baby, he is a very active little guy! He is scheduled to make his debut November 2nd at 12:30, I am hoping he will come on October 30th...that way Jim can have a few days with me at the hospital--otherwise he has school from 7:30-5 everyday and we will need babysitters all day for 4 days and that is going to require some juggling! The boys are both excited to see their new brother and keep asking me if he is still growing and when he is coming. It's pretty cute! Preston laughs and laughs when he feels the baby kick his hands. I can't believe that this will be our last baby and we will start the next stage of life--we are so excited!!!

Smell me

Kevin has been staying with us while my mom is in Florida this week. His suitcase is in a corner of our living room. Connor runs up to Jim and I while we are relaxing on the couch, lifts his shirt up and says "smell me." He had gotten into Kevins suitcase and had rubbed Kevins deordorant all over his stomach. He was pretty proud of himself, smelled pretty fragrant...and we had a good laugh! Connor has a great sense of humor, he often tells us "ha ha connor funny, brother funny, daddy funny, ha ha!"

New Zoo Exhibit

We got a Zoo mailer that the new Serengeti exhibit at the Oregon Zoo was having its grand opening this weekend and that Zoo Members had a free previewing today. They were featuring Lions, Cheetahs, Wild Dogs, and Zoo Member gifts. We didn't have anything planned and thought it sounded like a great plan. This will probably be our last visit to the Zoo this season before Jim starts school and the baby comes. It was opened from 9-4, so we thought we would try to get there by 9:30 and out by noon, before school was out and the masses arrived. Boy were we wrong!
I was so proud of us we were right on schedule, as we rounded the corner towards the Zoo off ramp we about died! The line to just get off the freeway to the Zoo was backed up about 1/2 mile on the freeway. We kept thinking there is no way this is for the exhibit, its a Members only day...yeah it was all for the zoo. There was no parking in the main lot by the time we were able to circle. We dropped Kevin off to stand in the ridiculously long line that wrapped along the fence and half way down the parking lot, we tried once to find something the Jim dropped me and the boys off at the entrance so we didn't have to walk from the overflow lot.
Once we got inside it wasn't terrible...we didn't rush to the new exhibit since we figured that was most peoples plan. The new exhibit was fun, we saw the lions, cheetahs, and dogs, they had other great climbing features and fun tunnels to run around in...they gave out bags featuring the predators. We had a great time, the boys were awesome and listened perfectly! We ended our day with the train ride...and no melt downs...and that is saying something!

The bald eagle was perched right about the trout, salmon, steelhead, and sturgeon exhibit, he was beautiful.

Sharing a peek at the Otter sleeping...

Peeking at the Otter sleeping, I love the Otters!

Eating Dippin' Dots...starting to get hot...90 degrees today!

This is Connor telling daddy he was tired and it was time for nite nite. I love being married to this guy- he is pretty awesome!!

His half smile.

Preston wanted to leave already, he was pretty serious about it.

Can you tell I am tired?! I think Kevin had a great time...he was a huge help, extra hands are always a great thing!

Connor loved watching the tracks, he kept saying "tracks mommy, tracks!"

Connor kept telling me it was like the Polar Express! We will have to come back for the Zoo Lights--he will love that!

Preston was so tired...usually they eat lunch and nap on the train...today they ate their lunch but no naps!

On the train Connor decided he needed to look cool, the sun was just too bright!

At the Forestry Center across from the Zoo there is an awesome 1909 original forestry train. The boys always beg to go see it but we are usually so exhausted that don't want to trek across the parking lot to climb on the train...today was such a great day we thought why not?! They LOVED every minute of it.

As you have probably noticed there is not one picture of the new exhibit! It was so crazy busy and we were more concerned with keeping our eyes on the boys that we didn't take a picture...I can't even believe it! Ah, well there is always next time!

Our day in Tillamook

We had a blast the last trip to the beach, it was just for the day--but it was a perfect day! We started at the Tillamook Air Museum...we couldn't even think of stopping anywhere else until we saw the planes--the boys LOVE planes!
The Tillamook Air Museum was awesome, here are some pics of the cafe and gift shop...the boys wanted planes hanging from their ceiling too!
The classic "Corsair", one of Preston's favorites.

Connor really enjoyed the ranch dressing...


Sean and the boys talking about the bombers


One of the last Corsairs in existence...
Connor was just tall enough...reach!

The boys were very interested in the sweeper that cleaned the hanger floor

This plane was really cool, it was in the Rexburg Air Show last year, for a small fee the boys were able to climb all over the plane...it was the highlight of the day!


A great view of the hanger it was HUGE...Connor looks tiny...it was built as a blimp hanger and has all wood construction.
After the Air Museum we went to Oceanside to play, it was a perfect day and so warm!





My baby bump, at 7 months!
Grandma Jann, Uncle Sean, Uncle Kevin, Me, Preston and Connor
Sean and Me

Me and my baby!
I love this pic.
Jim showing the boys his skills


We played until Preston said he was ready to get ice cream...it was time to visit the Tillamook Cheese Factory!Connors "moo" face

They liked watching the cheese be made or just liked hanging off every railing in the whole cheese factory.
Jim was showing Preston how its done...busting out his moves...we had a great time!
It was supposed to be over 100 degrees in Portland which was perfect weather at the coast, it was about 75 with a light breeze. It had been at least 8 years since we had gone to the beach with my brothers and mom, we all had a great time and wished it lasted longer. Next year we are planning on renting a house for a few days--I can't wait!