Brett's Graduation

On May 7, 2010 Brett graduated from the UofU College of Science with a Major in Math and Minor in business!!! WOHOOOOO BRETT!!! I am so proud of you!!! Way to go!!! He does still need to take his Math GRE test because it is not offered until October, unfortunately, so he'll have to keep studying for that until he can finally take it!

We only found out the details of graduation and that he could graduate on Tuesday and graduation was on Friday, so it was stressfull getting him there- but we made it! I went early with Brett and took pictures and saved seats. My parents (THANK GOODNESS) took Weston with them later so he was able to see Brett walk and everything but I wasn't trying to keep him occupied the whole entire time! It was cute, when the graduates were seated and he saw his dad he kept calling for Daddy and pointing to him because he wanted to go sit by Daddy. Below is a little clip of when he walked. Excuse the bouncing around like crazy, but Weston was trying to steal the camera from me so it was hard to hold it steady!

My baby

Today Weston let me hold him and rock him in the big stuffed chair in his room as he drifted off to sleep. It's so difficult for him to sit still for a moment, so the occasion is rare and much loved by his Mommy that he 1) lets me hold or cuddle him for a length of time 2) he would fall asleep in my arms! For a minute my toddler could be my little baby again. =) He's just growing SO FAST!! He felt so big in my arms, I wondered how much longer until he'll be bigger than me.

Day with Dad

Today is Mother's Day and I'm at work. Not really the best way to say, "I love you Mom," or "Thanks for being the mother to my child." So we tried to celebrate yesterday. My mom decided she would take all the mothers of her grandchildren out to see the movie Babies and I got to take care of Weston, so we went to the zoo with his cousins.
To be honest, we weren't gone long. It was only about four hours. At the zoo, we rode the train and looked at the elephants before we decided to go to the bird show. After riding the merry-go-round, we still had enough time to walk through, what my nephew Zeke would refer to as, the Reptile Building (I think that is what it's called even though it has a myriad of other animals).
The show was cool. One of the birds of prey got confused and stopped responding to their commands. It perched itself in two different trees before they were finally able to coax it down and back into the safety of its cage.
After the show, we went to the playground where Weston and another boy were throwing dirt and woodchips at eachother. He really was able to maintain a fairly clean appearance, even through snacks and drinks, for most of the day, until this point. I brushed the dirt and woodchips out of his hair as we were leaving.
If you've been to the zoo recently (like in the past five years or more) you would notice that there is a huge marble (or granite or other rock material) ball that is supported by a pressurized flow of water. Kids love to touch it and push it and basically play in the water around it. We didn't make it out the gate before Weston insisted on joining the other kids in their fun. He loves bigger kids. But he doesn't always fit in because he is either too small or in his own little world. Well, he got knocked down and dirty water soaked into the white of his shirt and splashed about every where else.
Weston has a little snack cup that I gave him when we got in the car. He immediately pulled out a cookie and started chomping on it. When we got to my mom's house, the partially chewed-up cookie was resting on his chest as he slept peacefully in his car seat. I hate to wake him up, he is just such an adorable sleeper.
We left Weston at my parent's house and ran to Costco. I love their smoothies and so does Weston. He couldn't devoure it fast enough so he took the lid off and started chugging (giving him the lovely moustache).
The picture above is what he looked like in the end. Be advised, Nicky, dressed him that morning in a brand new t-shirt that was purchased for the summer. Now, after soaking and scrubbing, the shirt looks second hand, thanks to Weston's day with Dad.

Happy Mother's Day

By Brett

"For This Child I Prayed"

Hope everybody had a Happy Mother's Day!

Now to this appropriate-for-Mother's-Day-picture by Elspeth Young called "For this Child I Prayed." It depicts Hannah of the bible, with her son Samuel. I love this piece! It brought tears to my eyes when I first saw it and read the title, because the story of Hannah and her son Samuel is so near and dear to my heart.

Look at the picture. See how comfortable Hannah is and how fulfilled she feels in her nurturing and attentive role as Mother? Can you tell how grateful she is; How she treasures the tiny moments? (I know just how she feels!)
This joyful reality depicted in the painting, however, did not just happen- it was carved from a season of deep grief when Hannah could not conceive a child, until her pleadings to the Lord were at last fulfilled- in His wise timing.
Looking at this picture, I'd bet she'd say it was worth it. Worth the wait, the grief, the pain, the long suffering, the struggle to get from impatience to trust, to hope, to greater faith and the amazing lessons learned.
Like Hannah, God also granted the desires of my heart, and gave me a son, thanks to the miracle of adoption! And he is unquestionably worth every little heartbreak that seemed so great at the time.
I hope everyone can take a moment to reflect upon the tiny moments in life with gratitude no matter what stage you yourself are at right now, and realize it too is a miracle. Bytheway, to our Moms, Grandmas, and Weston's birth Mom & Grandma: We love you and are incredibly grateful to you! Thank You & Happy Mother's Day!

Front Room Camp Out

Weston got really sick this week. He has RSV and was having a terrible week with difficulty breathing and a few visits to the Dr.'s office. Thankfully, however, his oxygen levels were just enough to keep him out of the hospital. Anyways, this weekend, we were pretty bored and stuck at home. Brett, being the fun Dad that he is, pulled out the tent and set it up in our living room. I ordered chinese takeout and we watched the movie we rented "Cloudy w/ a Chance of MeatBalls" from our tent door. We had a sleepover in our tent.

Weston's doing much better now but it will take a while for his lungs to heal. He may even have the athsma like symptoms for this winter season as well as next winter season, and so we are instructed to keep him away from nursery for the next couple months. Too bad because we were visiting another ward and I took him for the first time last week and he loved it. (So did I because I actually got to go to my classes and listen!)

Back to being a protective parent and keeping him away from crowds because the Dr said even a little cold could make him really sick again.

Last Week's Trip to The Zoo

Weston loves geese! He's always hollaring to the ones that hang out around our place.

He was pretty scared, so his cousin helped him down the slide.

Oscar's Baptism

Oscar got baptised recently. So did Chris. We are so happy for them and proud of the decisions they have made. My favorite thing about the gospel of Jesus Christ is how it enhances joy and happiness in my life. It helps the trials that life throws me literally feel more bearable. It focuses on and helps strengthen family relationships to create amazing love and peace at home. I'm so happy you'll be able to experience this as well.

If you want to know more about our beliefs visit www.mormon.org or www.lds.org.Weston being a singer again.

Sarah & Oscar's Wedding

I made these wedding invitations. Aren't they cute?

If only Brett didn't close his eyes!

Beautiful Bride. I love her shoes, too!

Big Doors, Little Boy

"Can I be your best man, Oscar?"

Brett's little sister Sarah got married last month. It was a beautiful wedding.

Congratulations Sarah & Oscar!

Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day this year was really fun! We invited a couple of couples over to our house that have kids about the same age as Weston. We had Fettuccini Alfredo, breadsticks, salad and had a Marie Calendar's Razzleberry Pie for dessert. It was so great! I'd never made fettuccini or alfredo sauce so I was a little nervous, but I thought it turned out really nummy! The kids had fun playing together also.
Us having a little get together was my idea and I had an ulterior motive that went along with my philosophy: If you don't have motivation to clean, have a party!
I had no motivation to clean and Brett still had a couple of cabinets that needed to be painted, so we decided to have a party. First of all because it would be really fun, but the other benefit is it got us to clean our house (except for our bedroom which with it now being March, is still on my list). And silly me, I forgot to take any pictures at our get together.

Here's pictures of the chocolate covered strawberries I made, and My ValentineS on the way to church.

Singer/Conductor

I'm a den mother for cub scouts and Weston always comes with me. He loves the boys and to run around like a crazy kid in the church- which is pretty exhausting for me. One day he stood up on this chair so he could reach the music leading podium thingy (whatever that's called) and started singing/screaming loudly and saving his hands around. It totally surprised me because he's never done that before but he must remember about singing and music leaders from church. It was really cute and made everybody laugh. I think it's so cute when he picks up the hymn books at church and sings. He loves instruments too. I'm thinkin' he's going to be musically inclined! Bytheway, that shoe that's missing on his foot, he lost that day and is still missing!