Happy Halloween

We had a super fun Halloween weekend with the family.  We went to my parent's house with my sister and her family. 

Such a cute little jack-o-lantern baby!

My dad put together a "Halloween Land" for the kids. He was careful not to call it a "haunted house" because he knew that would freak out my sister's triplets.  When we first got to their house he met us at the door with a bowl of "pig's eyeballs."  (eye gumballs).  Nate, Landy, and Lauren wouldn't have anything to do with eating a pig's eyeball, even after we told them it was really gum, and after watching each one of us harmlessly pop one into our mouths.  They're hilarious!

Then we went into the kitchen where my dad made magic witch's brew drinks.  We each got to choose the color of our drink.  My sister and I were his assistants.  We held up a blanket so the kids couldn't see my dad adding food coloring to the Sprite.  He let out his secret at the end.

Jason and Nate showing their witch's brew.

Brody, of course, didn't understand what was going on, but could sense the excitement and was all hyped- up! 

Then, my dad had set up a little haunted house upstairs in the master bathroom/ bedroom.  When the kids asked what the sign said above the door, his reply was, "Welcome little children!"  Nate was still scared to enter, and his poor little legs were literally trembling.  After he went through it the first time, he was okay with it, and went through about 20 more times! 

BOO!!

Lauren, Landon, and Nate were completely worn out after the fun weekend.

And so was the littlest one.

Cutest monkey ever.  We chose a monkey costume for Brody this year.  After all, he probably thinks monkey is his name, as we often call him "monkey."

Being a monkey isn't all it's cracked up to be.  He was done with the monkey business. 

My Boy

Did I mention how much I LOVE this boy?

When I'm trying to get Brody to sleep, singing to him usually does the trick.  He loves it, and snuggles right in and goes to sleep.  I ran out of new songs to sing, and got tired of singing the same ones over and over again, so I made one up just for Brody.  It's super corny, but Brody loves it (and he even still loves me after having to hear me sing)!  It goes to the tune of  "You Are My Sunshine."  (Still working on a 2nd verse).

You are my Brody,

My only Brody

You make me Happy each and every day

You'll always know dear how much I love you

I'm so glad that you are my boy.

How ridiculous is THAT!?

Weekend With Grandma and Grandpa

A few weeks ago, we went to visit Grandma, and Grandpa for the weekend.  They will be leaving for Arizona for the winter soon, so we decided to go and spend some time with them.

Grandma was telling Brody secrets!  Every time my mom would whisper in his ear, this cute smile would spread across his face!

Playing peak-a-boo with Grandpa.  Can you see the anticipation on Brody's face?

The weather was perfect, so we went out in the yard to enjoy it.  Brody was laying down in the grass playing, and when I went to pick him up I felt something wet, and slimy under his arm.  I thought, "How did spit-up get under there?"  So I looked, and lo and behold it was a disgusting earthworm hanging out of his armpit!  It surprised me, and I screamed (just a little).  Grandma rescued Brody from the earthworm, and pulled it out of his shirt.  Ew yuck!

While we did clean-up in the kitchen, Brody entertained himself in . . . the laundry basket!  He's such a good, easy-going, HAPPY baby.

6 Month Photo Shoot

A few weeks ago, a photographer friend (Amy) came over to our house to take some pics of our Brody.  They turned out super cute.

Take a peak.

Baby Buckaroo.  This is one of my favorites. 

What a handsome lil' cowboy!

This one should make your day, or at least make you smile.

Love those baby blues.

Daddy's hat. Oh, and those chubby cheeks--I could just nibble on him.

Such a sweet babe.  We love him sooooo much!!

Photography by AMY NIELSON

Daddy n Me

Best pals!  They are so cute together.  This morning Brody was rolling around the living room floor, so Brent got down on the floor and was rolling around with him.  They ended up face-to-face, and let me tell ya, they are two peas in a pod!  It's so fun watching them play together.  I think Brody has his daddy wrapped around his little finger.

Father and Son Football Day

One of Brent's favorite pastimes is watching football.  He and Brody were spending some guy, quality time together watching the game.  How cute is that!

Someone got tuckered out, and snoozed through most of the game.  It's okay, Brody, that's how mom watches football too!

Growing up!

Now that Brody is 6 months old, I wanted to (again) do the car seat comparison to compare how big he was at 1 day, 3 months, and now 6 months.  As you can see, he completely fills out his car seat at 6 months, versus the little tiny one day old baby.  I can't believe how fast he's grown. 

1 day old 

3 months

6 months

Here are a few more favorite pictures of our handsome little man.  (I have a lot of catching up to do on our blog.  We were without internet service for a couple of months at home. . . so planning to slowly catch up!)

Brody at 4 months.

5 months old!!

If you can't tell, I love this little news boy cap on him.  It's now too small, and I've been looking for a new one in a bigger size, but  haven't had any luck- darn.  I found this little 1920's looking outfit, and I couldn't resist buying it.  I love it on him, but his daddy thinks otherwise!  He says, "That's not a cowboy hat!"

Yes, he does have a cowboy hat as well, and I'll be posting some pictures soon.  We had a photo shoot yesterday, and we did get some shots of "Cowboy Brody."

I love smooching this charming baby boy!

Those sparkling baby blues. . . ahhhhh.

6 Months Old!

Brody is now six months old, and he is such a delight!! He is a very HAPPY, easy-going baby, and a good sleeper.  He has been sleeping through the night since he was about 6 weeks old!  I know, we're spoiled.  We better knock on wood though, because teething, I'm sure, is just around the corner.  I've heard that it can sometimes rearrange the sleeping pattern.  We'll keep our fingers crossed.  

He is sitting up, and rolling over now, and would desperately like to crawl.  He's not quite strong enough yet, but I'm sure it's not far away. 

Lately, he has a chronic fake cough, and fake laugh.  It's so funny, and super cute.  He's fake coughing in this picture!!  Bad cough!!!

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY!!!!!

It was a great Father's Day for Brent!  His first as a DAD.  He's been waiting for this day for such a long time.  I must say he fills the role very well, and is a GREAT dad to Brody.  We get comments from observers watching Brent with Brody all of the time about how they love watching them together.  Last week in church, I had sharing time to present, so Brent was in charge of Brody.  A number of people told me how impressed they were that he was so good with Brody, and so involved.  One person said, you can tell how much he LOVES that little boy just by watching him.  It's true, he loves that little boy with all he has.  It will be fun to watch them together through the years.  He already has a horse picked out for Brody with big plans to take his little cowboy along with him to work.  I'm so thankful for Brent, and I love him for the dad and husband that he is.  Also, thank you to my Dad, and to Brent's dad for the examples they set.  We love you!!  Happy Father's Day!

Here's Daddy and Brody with Brody's horse, "Cowboy."

How You've Grown!!

On the 18th of June, Brody was 3 months old.  Time goes so fast, and he's growing so big.  My sister-in-law, Jessie, had this idea of the car seat comparison on her blog to see the difference in size at 1 day, and 3 months (thanks Jessie).  It's crazy how much he's filled out the car seat in just 3 months!  You're growing up so fast!

Brody at one day old, and 3 months.

3 BIG DAYS: Adoption finalization, Sealing, and Brody's Blessing

         On Monday, May 17, 2010 we had our court hearing, and our adoption became FINAL!!!

We took a photo op with the judge, our caseworker, and our attorney, to document the joyous event!

Our family came to the hearing to support us.  My parents, Brent's mom, and sister, our nephew, and my sister, and brother-in-law were there.  We have such an awesome, supportive family.  Thanks for being there for the occasion.

Saturday, May 29, 2010 was the most special day of all.  We were able to take Brody to the Twin Falls temple to have him SEALED to us.  We are now a forever family.  The day was amazing.  Our hearts were so full of love, and it was a very emotional day.  It was a day we had been dreaming of for a very long time.  We felt pure joy, and happiness as we had our baby sealed to us for eternity, with our close

friends, and family there.

Thank you to our loving supportive family, once again.  We're so happy you were there to experience this day with us.

Our eternal family.

The day was extremely cold, and windy so we really weren't able to get many pictures.  I was disappointed, but I was glad we were at least able to get a few.

Brody was blessed Sunday, May 30, 2010, the day after the sealing.  It was a special weekend, and a BIG one (also Memorial Day weekend, so the family was able to visit the cemetery while they were here to decorate the graves of Brent's mom, and his 2 brothers). 

The white blanket we wrapped around Brody in the temple for his sealing, and also for the blessing was one my Grandma Stephens made.  It was neat to have a part of her there with us.  She made one for each grandchild, and wanted to make sure we all had one before she died. She was a very talented, special person, and we MISS her deeply.  

Brent was super nervous to give Brody his blessing in sacrament meeting.  He worried about it for weeks, and was so nauseated the day of.  Despite all of that, he did GREAT.  He gave the perfect blessing, and everyone wondered what he was so nervous for.  He's an amazing dad.  I love watching him with Brody.  It makes me love him that much more. 

"Whoo hoo!! We did it!"  We feel the same, Brody!