July

Mason, Luella, Sammie, Livvy, Corb, Duncan, and Jadesy



Gotta LOVE those little kisses!



Look at those smiles....I wonder if they are related??!!



Happy 4th of July!

This year we all headed up to Bear Lake for the 4th of July! It was a HOOT! Beautiful sunshine and Whit was nice enough to go on a 10 mile run with me. It was awesome! The Lake is always soooo pretty. They say Bear Lake is the Caribbean of the Utah/Idaho. And it really is! A bit colder than the Caribbean, but just as pretty! Jim and Joanne are always so generous and we are so blessed to be able to go up to such a beautiful place and spend time together as a family! Thanks guys!



Happy Birthday little boy! I can't believe that my little monkey turned 5 this month! 5!!! He's officially a kindergartner in a month or two. I can't believe how fast he's grown. He is such a good little boy. Very sweet...most of the time! And this boy has a set of ears that can hear every tiny detail you are saying....especially the times when the details you are saying should NOT be heard by little ears!



This year for his birthday we decided to take Corb to Boondocks. He LOVED it! He felt so grown up! He got to go on the go karts and was in HEAVEN! He wasn't quite tall enough to go on his own...maybe next year.





He LOVES riding his bike! This year for his birthday we got him a scooter. He's almost got the hang of it.



Corb is the busiest kid ever! As soon as he wakes up he heads STRAIGHT for the misc junk drawer...and (NO we don't have Seven of them Natalie Service :) ) He's constantly making me "special" things. He's made me paper rings, and crowns and even bracelets! He loves to say..."Mom...I made something for ya!" Or..."I'll show ya!" So cute! He's so creative! More than anything he just loves to help do anything. As long as he's part of "whatever" he's happy because he's helping. He's always me official "taster" for dinner. I know that if I get the "Corbin" seal of approval....it's going to be a winner every time!



I've never seen a little boy more in love with his dad than this one! He LOVES Coby! In fact Coby is RIGHT all of the time! (Not terribly off...but still sucks for me since I'm mostly wrong) Here's a recent conversation:
(Background - we were all in the Highlander have a "discussion"...please note there was not fighting, arguing or such...just talking)

Corbin: Daddy's right!
Mom: WHAT?
Daddy: (SMIRKY grin!)
Mom: Corbin, who's smarter: Mom or Dad?
Corb: Daddy
Daddy: (Smirky grin)
Mom: (GLARE)
Mom: Corb, who's smarter: Mom or Pup?
Corb: DADDY!
Daddy: (GIANT SMILE!)
Mom: (Death glare!)

He does say some funny things! One time we were in the car and he said, "Mom....I wish I had a wiener the size of a house". I looked at Coby who mumbled something under his breath....ladies you can imagine! And I asked Corb why he would desire such a thing. He says, "So I could pee on other people's houses and put fires' out." Logical! In the words of Elaine Bennis from Seinfeld..."I don't know how you walk around with those things." AMEN to that!



Here's Corb with his hero of heros....his dad!



Here's two little boys that adore each other! Jaden is absolutely head over heels for Corbin and it shows....for the most part...except when Corbin is annoying him to death! Corb is so great about helping out with Jaden it's been great! He's always eager to get me diaper and occasionally is willing to even take them out. He has such a pleasant demeanor for the most part and is for the better part is a joy to be around. He's constantly helping Jaden crawl up the stairs and when I put Jades to bed always has to kiss him and say, "Night little bugg-a-roo."! Soooo cute! I've noticed that if I play with him during the day, he's so much sweeter. And as a result we fight a LOT less! I remember a few weeks ago, Corbin left a chewed piece of gum on the leather ottoman in the living room. Guess who found it....OF COURSE it was JADEN! And got it EVERYWHERE!! Well, to say that I was mad was an understatement. I yelled at Corbin. But instead of getting mad right back, he calmly said...."Don't be mad mom, we'll get it out." And to his sweet response I said, rather rudely I might add, "HOW....HOW WILL WE GET IT OUT?!!" He then said again rather sweetly, "With a little bit of olive oil...it will come right out...you'll see. I'll get it for you. And I promise I'll never leave my gum out again...I'll put it right in the trash...so mom...please don't be upset." Well, how could I be after that little speech??!! And on a side note...he was right...olive oil DOES take out gum! :) Who would have thought!!



We've always called Corbin our little Monkey....I guess we had a slight inkling that he truly was in fact PART monkey! I had a YW activity where we went rock climbing. Corbin was STOKED to get to go. He couldn't wait to start climbing. I have to admit that I didn't think he'd do so well so quickly...but he
"ROCK"ED the house! (Get it!!!) Hahahaha!



That's my FEARLESS little monkey!! He's growing up so fast...I'm not sure I like it!



This is one of my favorite shots of Coby doing what he loves best! Hummm-a-naaaaaa Hummm-a-naaaaa..... YUMMO! He's pretty hot!



There's my sweetheart. I'm guessing he's posing so Corb could take the picture.



And have I mentioned that this guy could DANCE?!! I LOVE when he takes me dancing. Once a week we plan a date for each other. This particular date we decided to take dance lessons. We learned the TANGO! It was a such a treat! He is so confident and completely takes control....it's the GREATEST feeling. He "owns" the room! :) hahahaha! Move over Fred (Astaire)....here's COBY!



MY greatest joys in life is my boys...and I mean ALL my boys! More specifically I love how Coby loves our boys. He's ALWAYS playing with them....no wonder Corbin is head over heels for him! Now Jaden is starting just follow Coby around and scream his head off if Coby walks away from him. He bangs on the back door like Jackie when Coby's leaves and I bet it's almost bitter sweet for Coby. But I'm sure it melts his heart each time.



Here's Coby blowing out his candles for the big 32!! He and Corb shared a cake. Notice I didn't make it....so it looks AWESOME! I pride myself on being a fairly good cook...but I won't lie, I SO look forward to buying Costco cakes. SO yummy...SO bad for you! Happy Birthday baby! I have SO much more to say regarding Coby...but I'll save it for our anniversary (which was AWESOME by the way) post!




Happy birthday to those amazing people! Mom and Dad...aka Nana and Poochie! They nearly share the same birthdays. His is the 23rd and hers is the 24th.

I couldn't have asked for better parents. I love them both so much. They are both my heros and I feel so blessed to have such good relationships with both of them and have them live so close. I've always been some what of a daddy's girl. If you look closely to my pinky finger...you will see him wrapped around it tightly! I remember a time when I had just moved to Utah. I had just gotten a new job. A job I probably wasn't as qualified as I let on to be. I remember my boss was leaving and asked me to do a bunch of different things...things I had no idea how to do (i.e. faxing and spreadsheets...) I remember that he left and I thought...okay..."now what would my dad do...would he cry...probably not....what would he do?...He'd figure it out..." and that's just what I did! It wasn't perfect and there was a lot of trial and error...but I got done the things I was asked to do because I was trying to be like my dad. My dad is probably one of the most hard working people I know. He never does a half job, he gives a 150% every single time. I sure do love my dad!



And then there's my mom! To friends and neighbors alike I'm known as SPOILED. My mom is here probably 3 days or more per week. She takes my kids every Friday so we can have a little Tiff and Coby time. She's very sweet and so thoughtful. She has such a tender little heart. She's been through a lot in her lifetime and has a heart of solid gold. I LOVE to play little tricks on her all the time. A trait I'm sure drive many a people NUTS!! After 30 something years...I think she's ON to me! She's constantly thinking of others even when they don't deserve it. She's also a hard worker. She DEFINITELY doesn't do a half a** job either. She's a talker....hmmm...I wonder where I get it?!! There isn't a stain she can't get out. Which is nice since I have a couple little boys and one big one that could care less about the things they spill on their clothing!! I love that she loves to cook and find new recipes like me. She's constantly reading or giving me new recipes that she thinks I'll like and I love that we can talk "cook" together! :) So fun! There is so much more that I could say, but this post is already pretty long! In a nutshell, I love ya mom and dad! Happy Birthday!!!