Brevin's Seven

Brevin turned 7 on October 30th 2009. His request this year was a surfing party. I questioned his choice of surfing in October, but he insisted. Brevin's choice for his birthday dinner was Red Lobster-which went along perfectly with the theme. One of the highlights of Brevin's day was that his Aunt Sissy flew in from Vegas and surprised him. Kelser chose a cowboy hat for Brevin's gift...

Brevin's favorite part of his birthday every year is his pinata...

I was pretty excited about Brevin's birthday cake. I've been addicted to "Ace of Cakes" lately and went out on a limb and bought some fondant to make a little surfboard since I was unable to find one. Just for fun I started playing around with it and ended up making a little surfer to match. I just couldn't stop myself and ended up busting out my stash of coconut marshmallows to make a little sand castle and I was just getting ready to start making beach towels when Bryson stopped me :) Brevin loved the cake so stinking much! the night before I let him watch me put on the "sand" and "sea shells" and he kept covering his eyes and saying "I can't believe how good it looks!!" Bryson always questions my going all out on everything, but when Brevin woke up and saw his cake completed he said, "You are the best Mom ever!" I told Bryson--that's why do it.

So for the cupcakes heading to the first grade...Brevin went through this fun cupcake book and chose, of all things, corn on the cob cupcakes. I tried to persuade him to do something more Halloweeny and finally convinced him to go with the owls. But I started feeling guilty and told him he could have whatever he wanted, and he excitedly said, "I want the corn on the cob ones!" So I agreed, and I'm so glad! The boys had a riot making them. I bought a couple pounds of various yellow jelly beans, some yellow starbursts for the "butter" and some white and black sprinkles for the "salt & pepper". I thought they turned out so fun.

So about my boy...

• Brevin is a really, really good boy. He does what he is asked, he's such a good helper.
• He is super smart. Yep, I'm going to brag about him for a minute. When Brevin was tested the first week of school on his reading level, he tested at a 5th grade 3rd month level...not too shabby for a first grader :) His teacher was too cute when she came outside and met me to tell me.
• Brevin is an awesome big brother. Kelser and Beck look forward to him coming home so much every day.
• Brevin is a great athlete. He loves football, baseball, and basketball. He plays with a quiet confidence just like his daddy.
• He loves loves loves to do any kind of artsy, crafty activities. He has already made a Thanksgiving turkey for each member of our family who will be at dinner. I don't even want to think about how many trees we've gone through at this house.
• Brevin LOVES to play games. One of his favorites is "guess the animal" game (a car favorite). Brevin loves stumping us and choosing animals like baby harp seal, sloths, preying manits' etc. Lindsey always laughs that she can never figure out his animals.
• Brevin loves to be with his family. A couple cute little guys have asked him to play after school, and he just isn't interested. I asked him what he thought and he said he'd rather just be with us. One mom came up to me at the school and asked me why I hadn't let Brevin come over. I tried the honesty approach and explained that when Brevin gets home we just want to be together. She looked at me like I was an alien.
• I love my Brevin so stinking much!

Kesler turns 4!

Kesler turned 4 on September 21st. He requested a shark party so we sent out shark invitations and made shark shirts for all three of my fellas. I usually go all out on their cakes, but this one was a little weak. I had all sorts of ambitious ideas, but on a trip to the store the day before the party I ran across a little box set of sea animals that just screamed "This would be so easy!"...it was easy, but certainly not my finest work.


We have a tradition where the boys get to choose wherever they want to eat for dinner, and then cake, ice cream, and presents back at the house. Kesler chose Sizzler and everyone joined us for dinner. He was most excited to get another farm set courtesy of his Aunt Ro...shocking.

So...some things about Kesler...Kesler is a major mama's boy. He is always telling me that he loves me. Bryson giggles every time he does because it's so often. He wants nothing more than to be just like his big brother, and to be the best big brother to his little one. He has always been so full of life and still is. Kesler's little voice can be heard around the world at ALL times. It never stops. Aunt Sissy always makes comments that she can hear his voice non-stop when she and I are talking on the phone.

Some of Kesler's favorite things...

• Playing sports with his dad! He got his dad's quickness and can juke all of us. One football incident and one basketball were the culprits of both of Brevin's missing front teeth!
• Talking to Beck in the most high-pitched voice you've ever heard. I often wonder if the windows might shatter
• Snuggling with his mom. He is always begging me to wrap up around him and read, do puzzles, or play games.
• Playing farm, of course. He has more animals than I care to admit. My kitchen table is usually plastered with all sorts of farm and rodeo paraphernalia.
• Drawing pictures...holy cow. His "art set" is well used. I can't even tell you how many pieces of white paper this household goes through every day!
• His gray tooth. Yep, you heard right. He whacked his tooth on the trampoline bars last year and it turned his tooth gray. Recently it started turning back to white. He was so disappointed and said, "I like having a gray tooth...it makes the others look so white!"
• Kesler loves to go to Malad to spend time with my family. He loves being around the animals and playing with his cousins. He has a special spot in his heart for his Aunt Sissy!
  
  
  
  
  

  I sure do love this little guy! He just makes me smile. He is such a good boy! I have probably overcompensated making sure this boy doesn't get the shaft as some second children do. It's not easy being middle child, so I do my best to make sure he is treated just as well as the other two. Both of the others require a lot of attention and he is so good to just do his own thing, but i try my best to be aware of that and spend as much time with him as possible. I love him to death!!

Little Buckaroos

I have been wanting to post this forever, but I wanted to post some video files with the photos because the pictures just don't do the scenario justice. I borrowed a video camera that night, though, and don't have the video files yet, so I guess the pics will have to do...

Okay so we all know how much my kids love the farm, rodeo, animals etc. So last year at the Malad Rodeo we teased that Kesler should ride a sheep. He thought this was the best idea ever, and prayed, literally, every single prayer for an entire year "Please bless that Sissy and Nate can watch me ride a sheep." So the Malad Rodeo rolled around again. We talked it over and Kesler was bound and determined to ride one. Brevin was bound and determined not to. So I called my sis-in-law and got it all figured out. Well, the morning of the rodeo Brevin decided that he too wanted to ride. I didn't believe him for a second, but after some persistence I made another phone call and got them both signed up. I laughed so hard when we got the program and saw my two little Buckaroos names on the program...oh so funny. On the way there Kesler told me, "Mom, I'm going to open a can of Whoop-Tail on that sheep tonight!"

So how did it go? Well Grandpa Thayne took Kelser and Bryson said there was no hesitation at all. He got on and rode really well. Made it quite a ways, and did his best to fight back the tears when he fell off. Brevin, on the other hand, fell off instantly after he came out of the shoot. I got one quick picture of him. I asked Bryson what happened and he told me that it was absolute madness. A man just told Bryson to jump down with Brevin and tie the rope on the sheep. Well Bryson's disinterest in scouts was evident, he had no idea how to tie the rope on. So he did his best, but it didn't hold at all and Brevin fell almost before he was out of the shoot. It was so fun. I loved every second of it. The only part of the prayer that wasn't answered was Sissy and Nate weren't able to be there :( I asked them both if they would want to do it again...Kesler was and absolute yes, and Brevin a definite no.

Bryson the 1/2 marathon man

Okay better late than never, right? I wanted to post a few photos of Bryson running in the Pocatello Marathon. He took first place in his age group. It was awesome.

Ode to Beck

Okay, I have a million things to say about my little guy who just turned 4-months-old (I know can you believe he's already 4 months??), and I never sit down to do it. So I'm going to take a minute and talk about my Beck.

I cannot even begin to explain how much I love this little person. I have never really loved the newborn stage; however, with this fella I have appreciated it much more. I don't know if it's something that comes with age, or if it's just because things have been so hard lately, but he is something that amidst the trials and tribulations brings me joy. Really, I can't believe how many times I have just cried and told him how grateful I am for him. He came exactly when he was supposed to. Had he come earlier I wouldn't have needed him quite as much and had he come later it would have been too late. Perfect timing for this perfect baby.

Beck literally lights up a room with those big blue eyes, chubby cheeks, and huge smile. Now I know it will be hard to believe, but everywhere we go we get comments on his hmmm..., let's say plus sized figure. Yes, I know, he's huge!! and I love to kiss every inch of his rolly polly, cellulite covered, creviced body. I often get asked if my other boys were chubby like him, and although Beck certainly takes the cake. The other two weren't too far behind, and you see what happened to them. So I'm not too worried that I have a future Biggest Loser contestant on my hands.

So...some stats...at Beck's 2 month appointment he weighed in at a meager 16 lbs 4 oz. He was off the charts in all areas-height, weight, and head. My doctor came in and was looking everything over. His first comment was (with laughter) Are you going for some sort of record??

We recently went back for our 4-month appointment and Beck had climbed the scales to reach 19 lbs 4 oz. this put him at 88th percentile for height, 96th for head, and a good 1/2 inch off the charts for weight. So what does he eat? Milkshakes on the left, and heavy whipping cream on the right. What size does he wear? 6-12 months. I occasionally try to squeeze him into some 3-6 favorites, but the pants look like leggings and the shorts look like hot pants.

We bought Beck a Bumbo chair, and I was so excited when I got home I ripped it out of the box, stuck it on the countertop, and tried to put Beck in. There was just one problem...he didn't fit. His thighs are so round! Bryson laughed hysterically for a good couple minutes and eventually he worked his way in. He's already outgrown his carseat, swing and bouncer chair. Bryson told me we needed to get him a bigger tub and I told him they don't come in sizes!

Some of my favorite comments are..."Mom why does he have 3 chins?" (Kesler) "He doesn't have a neck." (Brevin) "Where are his knees?" (Everyone) We recently got a tape measure out, and just out of curiosity measured all three of their calves and thighs...they were all within an inch of one another.

Holy cow! Beck loves his big brothers so much. They can get him to smile and laugh like no one else. It's been interesting since Brevin has been in school how much Beck misses him. As soon as Brevin gets in the car Beck is all smiles and giggles, and before long we are all smiling and giggling. Brevin loves it and plays with him for a good hour every afternoon. A few days ago they were playing when Brevin sneezed. Beck thought that it was the most hilarious thing ever and starting laughing his little tail off. So Brevin faked sneezed for a good 20 minutes following.

Beck has recently discovered his own mouth. He is often found chewing on his tongue, sticking it out, or sucking on his lower lip. Brevin and Kesler call him "Chapstick" when he does this because he looks like his applying lip balm.

Oh man, I love him. I just can't get enough!! I am so thankful for my chuga luga. He makes me so happy.

Thank Heaven for Little Boys

Holy cow I am sooo behind!! again! Picture mania lately leaves me little time to post on my own blog. I always feel guilty (which I know I totally shouldn't) posting on this blog when I am 6 behind, yep 6, on my pictures. But there are a few things I just need to get written down so I don't forget! I am appreciative for insomnia...which gives me a little time to do this.

Meet David and Goliath. This is my little brother's little boy, Hudson, next to his big sister's big boy, Beck. Hilarious huh? They are 2 months apart in age and 2 years apart in size. If we're talking Snickers I told them that I guess we know how to make the king sized version and they the bite size. The legs...oh, the legs ha ha.

My mom with her grandsons and her black eye :)

Marbled paper. This was way fun. You put shaving cream in a pan. Then drip some food coloring randomly. Take a toothpick and swirl, pull, push the color spots around. Then get a piece of card stock and push it on lightly. Finally grab a squeegee and swipe all the excess off. I let both of the boys give it a go and they LOVED it. The papers actually turned out pretty stinking cool, but Beck woke up mid project so the final product was never documented.

Unbeknownst to me, Kesler had been chewing on the food coloring bottle.

Best buddies. This summer we spent a lot of time with the Williams family. Jax and Brevin were on the same T-Ball team, football team, and their mom taught the boys swimming lessons. It was so fun to get to know them. Our paths have crossed often, but after spending so much time together this summer we are convinced that we were destined to be friends! We have so much fun whenever we are with them, and can't wait for them to finish their house so they'll only be a few steps away!

With this crazy little thing I call my life, I am so so so lucky for my boys. They keep me going. Beck has brought such a strong sense of love to our home. I know he came just when he was supposed to. I am in awe every day of how much Brevin and Kesler love their baby brother.

I asked Brevin if he would want to have another baby at our house (totally hypothetically of course) and he had the sweetest response. He crinkled his little face up and said "No, way!" I was actually really surprised given how much he loves Beck so I asked him why, and his response was this..."I don't want to see you go through that again, Mom." I was a little taken back and asked "Go through what?" he said, "You were always puking, and sick, and hurting. Remember that day when you came to get me from school and you needed to puke and didn't know where to go? So you grabbed that cup in the car and puked in it? I don't ever want you to have to go through that again." He really is such a good boy. I couldn't believe that at 6 years old that had bothered him so much. I just love him.