My Baby Butterfly

So, I will be 16 weeks along tomorrow. It is weird how quickly the time is passing. Josh keeps asking to see the baby and telling everyone he has a baby in his belly. Don't believe him, he doesn't. :) Caleb, as with pretty much everything, seems totally oblivious and care free of any change coming soon. He does not like it when I cry (I fully blame the hormones, however it is normal for me). He will try to pull the tears off my face, literally pull them off like string. He gets very upset that they don't come off so easy. :) Also, I felt the baby moving for sure for the first time this week. Now "she" moves all the time. I love the little movements, it makes me so happy. At mutual on Wednesday, everyone was swimming and she was kicking up a storm. It was like she wanted to get out and swim too so I think she will be a little swimmer. I have also decided to call her "fluttergibbet" since she feels like a little butterfly right now. This is my favorite part of pregnancy, for the most part no longer sick, still not huge and finally feel the baby moving around. Tyson is so sweet and lets me jabber on about every kick and all the things I think about. He is the best husband a girl could ever dream of. The Lord has given me so much, I am so thankful.

La Trip to Texas

Okay, so these pictures are a little backwards, but you understand...

These are the infamous laptops. So many people coming together who are still in school/work/I don't know what, there were a lot of laptops. Kind of funny. After a visit to the River Walk, we found this really neat little plaza area with water spouts. I don't know if kids were allowed to play in it, but we started a whole slew of kids playing in it. :) Being a kid is so cool.

We went to Sea World, which I was afraid would be insane, but it ended up being awesome. We had plenty to do and the kids never seemed bored. They do however HATE roller coasters. I took them on this little one and they both were in tears after the first 10 seconds. All the other kids on the ride were trying to help them feel better, but to no avail. Josh was okay with the carousel, but Caleb, no way. So maybe, someday when they are older they will learn to love them. I for one was sad I couldn't go. But as Hannah said, it is my fault I got pregnant. :)

Watching the coolest show ever with a beluga whale and dolphins. Note Caleb's hair mixed with sunscreen, very cool. Sorry, I totally cut off Tyson's face.

On the boat on the River Walk. I think that might have been the highlight of the trip for me. The boys were happy and Tyson and I loved it too.

The Alamo.

My crazy handsome guy at the River Walk.

It was really nice to go to the temple with Mom and Dad Cooper and Cassie. Thank you Katie, Josh and Zach for watching the boys. It was really nice to not have to drive 3 1/2 hours to get to the temple. (Note in the pic you can see the tiny/not so tiny baby bump)

While Tyson was in San Diego presenting at a conference, we all went to North Padre Island. The beach was so neat! The seagulls were super friendly which the boys loved. Well, they actually weren't friendly until you had food, which Dad Cooper discovered and would put food on our heads and then suddenly we would be attacked by a swooping gull. That turkey of a father in law I have. :)

Caleb chased the gulls around for a good 15 minutes. He LOVED them and really wanted to hold one I think. I am so thankful they weren't too interested in him. :)

Josh got pretty close to this really pretty crane (at least I think that is what it is).

Gotta love these boys. I did love that Josh refused to take off his pajamas that morning.

Hannah took Josh surfing at this cool statue Mom Cooper found.

I think this was Josh's favorite part of the trip. At the hotel we stayed at in North Padre, there was this closet that Josh claimed as his office. He had the unplugged phone, pen and paper and his blanket. He was set. Caleb loved to try and get in, but it was closed to visitors most of the time. :)

Caleb sporting this random green hat and climbing up and down the stairs, his favorite activity of the trip. His least favorite thing: falling down the stairs. I was about to say drinking some of Mom Cooper's stop pain medicine, but he did like that. It took away any teething pain. :) That was my first experience calling poison control, luckily Mom Cooper did it for me.

Waiting at the airport to go to Grandma and Grandpa's. The boys did really well waiting and traveling, for which I am still very thankful.

Uncle Zach took this picture I think right after Josh pulled the filing cabinet on himself, right before we left for the ER. This picture is super cute.

The ER trip was the only unpleasant part of the trip and sadly it happened right before we left so I didn't give very good goodbyes. Josh got three stitches on his lip and I had to hold him down while they did it. It was a really good experience for me, to be brave and ask questions when I didn't have Tyson there to help me. (he stayed to pack and take care of Caleb) Mom Cooper and Zach were there which was awesome, but only one person could go back with Josh to get the stitches. Josh now says he wants the stitches back in, I think that he enjoyed the attention way too much. :)

It was a great trip and I am so glad we got to go. It was busy and wonderful and I wish I had taken more pictures!

The crazy family I married into...

For the last week and a half we were all in Texas visiting Tyson's family. Everyone was able to come (thanks to Mom and Dad Cooper's serious generosity). It was a TON of fun. Here are the family pictures Zach took. Tyson, just like Josh I think, only likes pictures when he doesn't have to be serious. So he had way too much fun. :)

I almost always laugh when Tyson kisses me. He thinks that is weird, but I love that he makes me laugh even when he isn't trying to.

Josh LOVES this picture because he is squeezing Grandpa and he loves his funny face.

The brothers.

The sisters and Mom Cooper.

Big Josh and Katie, I think this picture is so cute.

The sisters.

As you will be able to see, the little boys were either hamming it up, really cranky, or wouldn't look at the camera.

The whole family!

It was so much fun being with everyone! I will post more pictures when I don't have little fingers around to pull on the camera cord. I just miss my family more than ever now, so hopefully I will get to see them soon!

Mom Moments

Some people ask me "what do you do all day?" I used to ask stay at home mom's the same question. I mean, how do you keep yourself busy all day long? How hard can watching kids be? And even if you know how hard it can be, you still wonder how to keep from getting bored. I rarely feel bored now. But sometimes I reflect as I clean up the toys for the hundredth time or as I wash out Josh's underwear because he still doesn't grasp complete toilet training, or just when I sit down to relax and someone starts crying or wants something, I think "What am I doing? I feel like I am running in circles going nowhere and I am dragging my family around with me. Are my kids even progressing?"

Then there are moments where I see a glimmer of my purpose here on earth. Josh says something profound or sounds out a word he sees. Caleb shares or gives me a kiss and snuggle. And those smiles, those precious moments make up for all the difficult ones. I wanted to post these pictures because they are some of these moments to me. How can you not be happy with your life when you see these smiles?

Yes, we couldn't find him anywhere and then we found him in the closet, sleeping, sitting up. :)

They posed like this by themselves. I love Zuri's face.

So maybe the life of a mom is somewhat monotonous, but it sure is crazy and the most rewarding responsibility I ever had.

From the Mouth of my Babes

Josh's Current Favorite Phrases:
"Why?"
"How bout no."
"I'm not quite sure."
"Get a gun, shoot him, turn into a ghost and come back and go BOO!" (yes, completely terrifying, I have no idea where that came from)
"Me get baptized in the blue water."
"(whispered) I am a child (shout) of GOD! (back to whisper) lead me, guide a me, walk aside a me (repeat at least 10 times)"
"Where my Daddy go?" (this is only when he gets in trouble and thinks Tyson would save him if he were here)
"(In a very high pitched/girly voice) Me love my bunk bed."

Caleb's Current Words:
"cacker" (cracker/anything edible)
"mi" (milk)
"je-se" (Jesus)
"ches" (cheese)
"Dadda, Dadda, Dadda!" (Daddy, and always said with great enthusiasm)
"Mama! Mama!" (Mama, and always said in a whiny voice)

Happy Day

Happy Valentine's (Yester)day! I hope it was wonderful for everyone. I love holidays, they are always full of surprises and I think that is why I love them so much. Tyson somehow stole the car yesterday afternoon, went to the store, got stuff for bologna sandwiches, went to his office and made them (and cut them into heart shapes) and cut brownies into hearts too. Then he picked me and the kids up and we went to this baseball field where five years ago yesterday we had our first kiss. (Tyson made bologna sanwiches for us then too, that is why he made them this time). It was the cutest thing ever. He always says he isn't creative, but he totally is. I am so thankful that five years ago I was probably sitting in Spanish class, not paying attention, and dreaming about the kiss I had the night before. How little I knew that five years from then I would be married to that guy, in our cute little brick house, watching our two little boys play with blocks and feeling sick with the next one (hopefully a girl, but boys are great too) in my belly. What a happy day. :)

Things I Love

-subway sandwiches with crunchy banana peppers
-cozy warm blankets
-baby snuggles
-when Josh says "Mama, me miss you SO much"
-Tyson's green eyes
-country songs
-sunshine in the morning
-the soft thumping of a baby's heartbeat in an ultrasound
-the wailing of a train in the distance
-warm soup
-the smooth rhythm of folding laundry
-the way Tyson says "I love you"
-surprise donut trips
-pretty much any kind of donut, anytime :)
-Caleb's shrug smiles
-the sound of little kids snoring
-mail, especially handwritten letters
-family around me, especially since my family is so generous with their time
-chocolate of any kind
-holidays
-calls with my Mama
-hearing my phone buzz and seeing "Tyson love" on the screen
-daffodils and tulip leaves popping out of the dirt
-chilly autumn days
-naps
-the sound of typing
-the feel of a pen in my hand
-the clarity that comes when I read the scriptures
-Tyson walking towards the door
-hugs
-dinner with friends
-Ben and Jerry's ice cream
-dates
-the sound of laughter, especially from children or from people I love
-the feel of laughing so much my cheeks hurt
-meeting new people
-my family
-my God
-my life