The Joys of Dog-Ownership!

So we have a funny story to tell! Last Thursday we decided to go to the park as a family--which was so much fun--and we even took Cougar with us. But Isaac's car seat is in my car, so we decided to fold the other seat down and let Cougar go between the trunk and the back of the seat. Well, Taylor told me that if he starts sniffing really hard, to tell him so he could pull over. Well, I thought he was about to poop, but it was a fake, so I thought, because two seconds later I saw that he was about to poop and before Taylor could believe me and pull over, he pooped. And it was a lot and apparently he felt a lot better after he pooped because he came galloping back to the front--YEP--right through his poop!!! JOYS of DOG OWNERSHIP, right?! It was actually REALLY funny. I kept laughing. Luckily I had some napkins in the car and while I was trying to hold Cougar, Taylor cleaned up the poop.

Once we cleaned it up, well, to the best of our ability for the time, we couldn't put Cougar back in the back or else he would walk through some of the poop again...so....Taylor decided to hold him...and I couldn't resist documenting this funny experience!

SO.......once we finally made it to the park......:-) ......we had such a great time! Isaac swung on his first swing and LOVED it! We had just had dinner, so I was a little worried about letting him swing too long in the event of getting sick, so after a few minutes I tried to take him out and he cried and wanted right back in the seat, so sure enough, we put him back in and he was a happy camper!

We took a lot of pictures at the park, so enjoy!

It was so fun! I am so glad we went and it was SO fun to be there as a family!

September Birthday's!

Alright......I know I am behind, but at least I am still within the right month! This month we have had three birthday's in the family. So here we go....

FIRST....Kim. (Sept. 4) Oh my....where do you even start?? I love Kim. Kim is amazing....and since she posted these pictures on her blog, I know I am safe to post them here! :-)

Kim is the blonde-hair beauty!

Their adorable family. Kim is brilliant, talented, fun and beautiful. Whenever we have a family birthday or party, she bakes an amazing cake (yes, she is the one responsible for all of those!) and it has become such a wonderful tradition for our family. And really, Kim is just a great wife, mother, and sister-in-law....what else could you ask for in a person?!

With each of my sister-in-law's, I share something unique or special with them--whether it be a similar hobby, a point of view, or a similar background, etc.... And with Kim and I....well...I don't even know how to put it into words. We feel the same way about several things--I guess simply put, we are a lot alike...whether it be wanting a 4-star (5-star would be better) luxury hotel, an exotic vacation, or getting our hair done to handling a child spitting up on us, to getting their poop in our finger nails, to keeping a happy home...I am grateful for Kim and the friendship and love we have. I am grateful that I can tell her things and she knows immediately what I am talking about. I love how we can spend a day at the mall or a night at home in pajama's watching TV and still have a great time.

Kim-I love you and love you for the person that you are! I love being around you and am so blessed to be related to you! I admire and respect you and love your little family! Happy Birthday Kim!

SECOND--Cameron. (Sept. 9). Now, Cam has a little secret. You will see in this picture below that he is holding a blue and white Dallas Cowboy's shirt, but DEEP down, he is using it as a cover-up for how much he secretly LOVES BYU. (For those of you who don't know, Cam is an avid Utah fan...blah! And when we told him we named our dog Cougar, he said that he was sorry in advance, but that he just couldn't like our dog. haha).

Cam is fun. When I think about Cam I think about how we can go weeks without seeing each other and when we do see each other it's like picking up from where we ended. I also enjoy the sarcastic, fun humor Cam brings to things--because if you know me, you know I grew up in a similar circumstance! :-) But also, in all sincerity, Cam also knows when to be serious and how to bring the gospel into daily life. I am grateful for the example and role model he is to not only me, but also our family. Cam coaches Braden's football team--a great example of father and son bonding. We sure love you Cam and hope you had a great birthday!

THIRD--Kendra (Sept. 14) She turned TWO!!! I can't even believe she is two--I can't even imagine how her parents feel about her turning TWO!
Kendra holds a very special spot in my heart. When she was born, I stayed with her two other sisters so her mom could be induced, etc. Hence the reason why her life is so special to me...I have been there since the very beginning. We also had a wonderful opportunity to live with Kendra when she was really little--from about the time she was three months to seven months old. And she is one special little girl!

While I feel robbed from not being able to see her and her family everyday from when she was seven months to now two years old, she is still just the sweetest, cutest little thing. I am loving the chances I get to see her and to watch her wonderful, fun personality evolve. I can't wait for both her and Isaac to be big enough to play together! I sure love you Kendra!

NEXT BIRTHDAY: ISAAC'S!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The most amazing girl I know!!!

I have taken over the blog without Val knowing because I wanted to share something that goes to show that I married the greatest girl in the world!! Last night I came down with a stomach flu or food poisoning not sure what it was. Val being the amazing wife that she is knew that I had a paper due in my 9 am class. She had mentioned when she left this morning that she was willing to take it to my class and my reaction was no you don't need to do that. She said ok and I didn't think anything else of it. Later that morning through my sickly eyes I looked at a text that she sent me and she said that she had turned my paper in for me. I thought it was a dream at the time because I was so out of it. Later that morning she called and again told me that she had turned it in. The reason that I am making such a big deal out of it is Val has never been on campus and ISU can be confusing sometimes because of its size and the fact that there is an upper and a lower campus. She went to work and got into my email (because she knew that I had sent it to my work email so I could print it out in the morning) and got it out of my sent folder and took a quick minute and edited it then printed it out and then looked up what building my class was in and then found the room number and HAND delivered it to my professor without me knowing. I love you Val I am grateful for the sacrifices that you make for me and our fam. Val knows that I have been stressing about school because this is my last semester and I will forever be grateful that you pushed me to get school done and will continue to do so as I continue on to my Masters. I love you Val and am grateful everyday that you are my wife!

A Chill Weekend

We had a great chill weekend. I LOVE weekends, because it means two straight days with Isaac and Taylor non-stop! We had no plans which was HEAVENLY! You definitely need those once in a while. It meant, sleep, good food, and a clean house! Saturday morning we literally lounged around until who knows when, but I made homemade waffles and both Taylor and Isaac snarfed them down. We deep cleaned our house which is always a good feeling...and...we put Isaac's bottles away (ok, all but two...)

Then Isaac and I went to the grocery store to get, drum roll please.....WHOLE MILK! Which means, no more formula!!! Wahoo. I have been looking forward to this day. :-) We figured since we give him so many dairy products as it is now, like yogurt, cheese and mac and cheese, and he does well with them, that we might as well give him some whole milk, and he's only 2 weeks away from being a year--so why not? So with the whole milk comes sippy cups, and he has done remarkably well with both! It is so nice!

After the grocery store we went bowling with 3 other couples and their kids. We had 5 kids ranging from 3 months to 4 years. It was a BLAST. I can't even remember the last time we went bowling, so that is probably what made it even more fun. And I would just like to take a BRIEF moment and say that I kicked Taylor's butt in bowling! And you ask why I am so proud of that? Well, because I NEVER break three-digit numbers, and I did both games! So, what does this mean? Taylor gets to make us dinner two nights this week!

After bowling we had brownies and ice cream at our house. Here's some pictures from Saturday.


Chilling in his pajamas. He has this new infatuation with his bouncy chair. He climbs all over it and I think it is the cutest thing ever.
Here we are at the bowling alley...this is dad's new favorite picture of his son...I wonder why!

So, when we were all done bowling, Taylor--for whatever reason--had Isaac laying on his back and then he spun him around in circles while still on his back...Isaac thought it was THE FUNNIEST (yes, I know that is not a word) thing in the whole world! I know these pictures don't quite capture the essence of what they were doing, but the last time I tried to get a video from my camera onto the computer, it didn't work, so I didn't even try.



Taylor absolutely loves being able to play with his son like this.

We had a great Sunday today. They called a new Relief Society presidency in our ward, so they spoke. It was SUCH a good sacrament meeting. One of the counselors spoke on magnifying our callings--and I am sure we have all heard talks on this subject before--but hers just hit home with me! It was so good...and then the other counselor talked about relying on the Lord through your calling, and it too was so good! I was definitely spiritually fed.

And of course, five minutes before the end of church...Isaac had a nice blow out. I started to smell a dirty diaper, so I went to check, and sure enough, I stuck my finger right in it. YUM.

I was preparing a delicious dinner tonight...perhaps it is because I thought about it so much...but it definitely did not turn out as yummy as I intended it to be. I made a crock-pot roast, mashed potatoes, gravy and corn. I forgot the bread, and it just wasn't as good as it smelt all day...so disappointing...but yet, such a reminder of how life is...right? You think it will be one way and it turns out different than you expected. Oh well....I am determined to try again.

All in all, it was a GREAT weekend. And, Cougar has not had a single accident in more than a week now--another plus.

And, random side note, am I the only one who does NOT like the movie Cast Away??? (Taylor LOVES it).

Eleven Months (One more to go!)

Only one more month of these monthly pictures! I am in a state of disbelief that a year has almost gone by. I am just so happy being a mom. Isaac brings so much joy into our lives and our home. I love him dearly!

In keeping with tradition: here he is at 10 months

And here he is at 11 months.

(No idea what caused the spot on the couch...has something to do with the flash).
So there's our "no longer baby" ....but rather, little boy! I just can't believe how fast he has grown up.

Our First 911 Call

We had our first run-in with "911 Emergency" tonight. Isaac called them.

Yep, in case you need me to say that again, Isaac called 911 tonight. He was playing with the phone and of all numbers and of all patterns, dialed 9-1-1. All of a sudden we hear "911, what is your emergency?" And Taylor said--in a sense of urgency voice--"He dialed 911!" (Imagine how that sounds on their end!!) I don't know what I was thinking--perhaps that we didn't have an emergency, or, you only call 911 when something bad is happening and you need help, or it is only in the movies that you hear that voice on the other end--either way, I quickly hang up. (This proves to be a problem).

About 30 seconds later the phone rings. Taylor picks it up and it was 911. Since it was a hang-up 911 call, they had to dispatch the police. Had I not hung the phone up, we could have explained what happened and it wouldn't have caused the police to have been dispatched. OH WELL. So, about 10 minutes later, a lovely police officer showed up at our house. Taylor opened the door before he was even up the stairs. (I asked why he was waiting at the door and in that same sense of urgency tone, said "Because a police officer is about to come to our house!")

We told him what happened and since "it appeared we were alright" went on his way. But really, what a great story, huh?! I couldn't possibly pass up the opportunity to snap a quick picture.


Note to self: Don't hang up next time your child accidentally calls 911.

Week with MOM!!!!

So my mom FINALLY came out to visit us! Ever since Isaac was born, she has visited us every month. With the crazy summer we had, we still managed to see each other every month, but it wasn't her usual trip to our house for a week...until now! The last time she came out just by herself (for some reason my dad doesn't think he can just take a week off of work! just kidding dad, we missed you!) was in March. So we were very excited to have her come visit!

She flew into Pocatello on Thursday night. She baby-sat Isaac on Friday while we were at work, and that night we went to the Idaho State Fair in Blackfoot. I don't know what was up with Isaac but he was almost scared of all the animals! He would turn around just snuggle on my mom's shoulder when we tried to get him to pet something. Who knows, I am pretty sure he was tired. But we went to the fair Friday night and met up with some friends from Colorado. Unfortunately Taylor couldn't come with us because he had class...but I missed him a lot.

This picture is proof that Isaac was NOT excited about all the animals.


Then on Saturday, my mom and I ran errands while Taylor had a church meeting, and that night we met my grandparents for dinner in Pocatello. Here's Isaac clapping my mom's hands.

Sunday was church and then a relaxing afternoon until we went up to Blackfoot for dinner. It was then that Isaac took his first steps!

My mom baby-sat again on Monday while we were working and then she made us a YUMMY dinner! It was soooo good! Tuesday she baby-sat again and took Isaac up to Blackfoot for lunch and then we met up with my aunt and uncle for dinner in Pocatello that night. And then she left us today. :-( We (ok, me especially) already miss her. It is so fun to have her come!

While she was here, she....

-Taught Isaac to crawl down the stairs backwards
-Fed him way too much food that I would never feed him (aka French Fries!...Skim Milk...M&Ms!!!)
-Taught him to put his finger over his mouth as if to say "Shhhh!"
-Make a cough noise on demand

We love you Mom, thank you for coming and spending so much time with us!! It was so comforting knowing that you were taking care of Isaac during the day. Can't wait to see you again next month! :-)

ISAAC IS WALKING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

At 11 months and 1 day, a.k.a. Grandparent's Day, Isaac took his first steps!!!!! That's right, I meant STEPS. I am SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO excited and happy for him! We took some pictures but they don't do it justice, so I will have to get a video up in the next few days.

Isaac has been pretty steady at standing and has been walking around the furniture and when holding onto our hands for quite some time-- so we keep enticing him to walk on his own. Tonight we went to my grandparent's house for dinner and Taylor kept practicing with him and he just started doing it!

When I first saw him take some steps I just screamed in excitement! I can't even describe the feeling I had as I saw him take those steps....excitement, happiness, unbelief, etc! It is just so neat to watch him learn new things, ah, I am just so proud of him! And yes, I am excited for him to be walking -- despite what everyone tells me is ahead now!

Random Tidbits of Info

There have been a lot of things going on around our house lately that I want to remember.

-First, I took last Friday off because our daycare was closed and it was a wonderful day! It was so nice to stay home with Isaac when no one was sick--we just played all day and I LOVED it!

-I already mentioned that we got our dog on Saturday. So far, so good. Taylor has primarily been taking care of Cougar (that was the understanding before we even got him). We have had a few accidents but all of them have been in the kennel. Cougar likes to wake up and yip-yap his head off at 2 AM and 7 AM. I have officially become the neighbor that I hate! Taylor taught Cougar to go up the stairs which is pretty cool. And Isaac is SO cute with Cougar. He will crawl over to the door to look out at Cougar, and when he sees Cougar his eyes get all wide and he points and says "da-da!" It is adorable.

-Taylor was released as the secretary in Elder's Quorum and was called as the 2nd Counselor in the Elder's Quorum Presidency.

-We were going to go to the zoo on Monday because I thought Isaac would LOVE it, but the cold weather and wind ruined our plans!

-The company I work for was bought by another company. So, I was previously "First Horizon Home Loans" and now I am "MetLife Home Loans." It's been "business as usual" but quite the experience. I mean, how often do you go through a transition like this with a huge company to a huge company? I think often about how the Human Resource department had to make sure this would be as smooth as possible and all that that entails...

-Isaac gives me hugs and it is the best feeling in the whole world! He wraps his little arms around my neck so tight that I just instantly melt...motherhood is the best.

-I contribute this next tidbit to the fact that I got to spend four straight days with my little man....I went to drop Isaac off at daycare on Tuesday and he cried for the first time when I handed him over to the lady. It BROKE my heart! He cried again this morning when I dropped him off, but not until he saw me leaving.

-Oh and one of my most exciting pieces of tidbits: I WENT BACK TO DANCE!!!! I am so so so so so happy about this! A girl I work with teaches at her sister's dance studio. Somehow it came up that there is a college hip-hop class...so I said what the heck, I'll give it a try. It has been 3.5 years since I have danced--that is the longest amount of time I have gone without dancing in my ENTIRE life! Isaac went with me because Taylor had class and he did awesome. And, the class was AWESOME. I am so glad I went. I am trying not to get too carried away with the amount of classes I take because there are so many! So we'll see, but I am definitely happy to be back in the old grind! Taylor has been so encouraging and supportive of my desire to dance again. He's the best.

-And the next best piece of news: My Mom is coming tomorrow and is staying with us for a whole week!!!!! Yea!

I did the unthinkable for me!

I CUT my hair. Not just cut, CHOPPED it. Ok, well perhaps this is all relative. Because to me, it is SHORT! I just reached a point where I needed and wanted a change. In the past I always tell hairdressers that I want a change without changing the length--and, that never really happens, so I finally told myself to just cut it. It's just hair right?? So, I made an appointment and did it! I was a little apprehensive after I first cut it thinking it was a lot shorter than I wanted, but I actually think it's longer than I give it credit. But, it's all part of the adjustment period I guess. So, here are the before pictures ( for some reason I look almost florescent!)

(Side note: I saw this next picture after I had cut my hair, and maybe it's just me but it seems like the lights hit my hair just right and makes it look so good that I practically had "cut remorse" from cutting it! It's ok now...I'm over it. :-) )

And, the AFTER:
See, that's a lot of hair I cut off!!

This one is for Papa!

We recently got Isaac some tennis shoes and he is so stinkin cute in them! And, my dad keeps wanting to see pictures, so, here you go dad!

The black ones...
And the other pair..."Look Papa, I can walk in them...with my dad's help of course!"
(Plus his cute jacket!)


"So Papa, those are my cute shoes. I am sure by the time I see you again, they will be too small for me! But, I sure love ya!"

And, on a side note...he keeps closing his eyes randomly now--and especially when I take his picture, it's pretty random, pretty funny, and pretty darn cute!