Newborn Photo Shoot

I mentioned earlier that a local photographer was coming to our house to do some newborn pictures.  Here are a FEW of our favorites.  It was so much fun, and we LOVE how they turned out.  Thanks Amy, you did an awesome job, and we will treasure these pictures for a lifetime!  They are priceless!!

PHOTOGRAPHY BY [WWW.AMYNIELSON.COM]

Our little buckaroo.

Sweet smile.

Sleepy baby.

The cutest center piece ever!

I love his expression here.

Our first family photo.

"Brody Bear".  The hat is very fitting-- we call him this because he has little fuzzy ears like a bear cub.

Sweet Angel

Our angel napping peacefully on daddy's chest.  (I'm pretty sure Brent was napping too!)  They looked so cozy, and comfy snuggled up together.

We can't kiss him enough!

I'm so blessed to get to be Brody's mom.

Visits From Our Families

Suzanne's parents, who live in Arizona for the winter, left the morning after Brody was born to come home to Idaho to meet their new grandson.  They stayed the week, and helped us get settled in with our new bundle of joy.  It is great to have them home again, and we loved having them here.


Brent's family came over for a visit also (Dad, Diane, Jared, and Janelle).  They live about an hour away, so we're very lucky to have them so close. 
Pictured with Brody is Brent's step-mom, Diane, and Brent's sister, Janelle.


My sister, Melanie, and her family have been over to visit several times.  We only live 20 miles apart, which I love, and we get to spend lots of time with them.  My brother, Steve, also came to meet Brody and stayed the night.  We love each and every one of our family members.  Thanks for the visits!

Brody's First Easter

Looking dashing in his new Easter outfit.  All dressed up an no place to go.

I am always looking for reasons to take a family photo.  Brent is a pretty good sport, even though he rolls his eyes at the suggestion.  We had to capture our first Easter together!

We spent the Easter holiday with my sister and her family.  They came over for dinner (pork roast, potato casserole, salad, and rolls).  We gorged ourselves, and then were entertained by the triplets the rest of the night.

The "Weirlets."  (Short for the Weir triplets!)

After we let dinner settle, we made root beer floats which was a first for the triplets.  Lauren really liked hers, but the other two weren't so sure.

Melanie and Jason.

Of course Brody was a big hit, the center of the attention.  Lauren took a turn holding him, and was very amused by the squeaks, groans, and grunts he makes.  She kept smiling, and giggling at him.

Landon also took a turn, and loved holding his cousin.  He kept asking to hold him again, and again.  However, Nathan wanted no part of it.  He has a fear of babies that none of us can figure out where it came from.  By the end of the night he had warmed up a little, and would at least be in the same room as Brody.

It was a great first Easter with our Brody.  We love you baby!

Today he weighs 8 lbs. 8 oz.  So, at 18 days old he has already gained 1 lb. 2 oz.  He's already growing like a weed!  I want him to stay a tiny, snuggly baby a little bit longer.

Loving Every Minute

We've had Brody home now for 10 days, and we've been soaking up every minute.  This parenthood thing is amazing.  We are so blessed to have this little guy in our lives.

Such a handsome little man!  He's also been a very content, easy baby so far.  Tomorrow, a friend is coming over to do a photo shoot so we can capture the newborn phase.  Can't wait!!

Brody Max Jones

Meet our son

Brody Max Jones

Born March 18, 2010

7 lbs 6 oz

19 inches

Brody joined our family on March 19th through the wonderful gift of adoption.   We are so thrilled, and feel extremely blessed to have him in our lives and in our home.  This is something we have been waiting for, and dreaming of for a very long time, and he's finally here!

We were able to be at the hospital for Brody's delivery, and get to know him from his first hours of life.  We have so much gratitude, and love for his amazing birth parents who loved him enough to make the selfless decision to give him more, by placing him for adoption.  We will be eternally grateful to them for giving us the ultimate gift.

Our new little family.

He's absolutely perfect, and we're head over heels in love with him.

It has been a long, difficult road, and we've been through countless trials to get to this point.  Although our trials will never be forgotten, as they have made an impression on our hearts, we can now say it has been worth it all.

Celebrating 10 YEARS

This week we celebrated our 10th Anniversary!!  Wow, it's hard to believe that magical day was 10 years ago.  How time flies.  It was fun to reflect back on that day together, and reminisce through the years.  It has been an amazing 10 years.

We didn't celebrate the BIG 10 with a dream Hawaiian vacation (for now), or a diamond anniversary band, (or a new roping saddle --per Brent).  We're holding out for something much better.  MUCH, MUCH better. . .

Coming in a few weeks?!

STAY TUNED . . .

Instead we celebrated by taking a short, overnight trip to SLC for a UTAH JAZZ vs. Los Angeles Clippers game (the Jazz won).  We met up with Brent's brother and his wife for dinner, (Rodizio Brazillian Grill - yum!) and the game. 

This was the first pro game we had seen live, and although Brent probably won't admit it, I think he's an addict now! When I first suggested going he said, "Why would we go to the game when we can watch it on TV?"  Such a logical thinker, but come on, it's much more fun to see it live!  Brent is most definitely a country boy, and will avoid "the city" when at all possible.

Thanks for the fun weekend, my Love!

Be My VALENTINE!

Ooohhhh, these smell good! Brent was super thoughtful, and sent roses to me at work. Such a nice surprise. Thanks honey, and Happy Valentine's Day!  I love you very much!!


Last night, we went to a steak house for a candle light dinner with some friends. Steak and king crab really hit the spot. It was a great way to celebrate Valentine's Day.

Christmastime!!!

A yearly tradition. . . Each year since we’ve been married, we have had our picture taken by the Christmas tree (this was our 9th!) It’s fun to look back and see how we’ve changed (or aged-- yikes). With each year that passes, it only gets better!

This Christmas we spent a few days at Suzanne's parent's house. It was great to have the whole family together. For us, Christmas is all about family. It just wouldn't be the same without them. We love Christmas, and what it means. Most importantly, we celebrate the birth of our Savior. Then we mix in a whole lot of fun with family, yummy food, gifts, service, laughter, and togetherness! The Sunday after Christmas, we all went to church, and then came home to snap a quick family picture.

My sister, brother, and I. Much love to them!

"Santa Clause is Coming to Town."

There's a story behind this one. The Santa Clause on Brent's lap is a motion activated Santa that moves his mouth as he sings: "HO HO HO, Merry Christmas! You better watch out, you better not cry. . ." You know, the song, "Santa Clause is Coming to Town." Each year my mom gets this Santa out, and since my sister's triplets first Christmas they have been deathly afraid of it for some reason. This year, two of them got brave, and decided he was a nice Santa. However, N, still wanted nothing to do with him. Notice the shirt over his head! Brent was trying to talk him into not being afraid, obviously to no avail!


He finally decided Santa wasn't that bad, but still wasn't happy about him being so close.

Roping Lessons!

My sister-in-law recently emailed these pictures that were taken while branding calves earlier this year. Brent was giving our nephew roping lessons, and they were using Brent's brother as the roping dummy! I thought they were pretty cute.

Swing it like this.

Got him!

Do it again!!

Boating With the Family.

Summer is nearing the end so we took the opportunity to go boating with our family! We had a great time together, and the weather, and the water couldn't have been more perfect. This is a picture of Suzanne (in the blue) with her sister, and her sister's triplets, on their gigantic tube which was being pulled behind the boat.

Brent, and His Buddy.

A couple of weeks ago, we went to my sister's house for dinner. Our nephew, N, absolutely loves Brent- he is one of his FAVORITE people. They just seem to have a special connection. N has a fascination with hats, and is always wearing some type of hat whether it be a ball cap, a fishing hat, a pirate hat, you name it! When we got there for dinner, N said to Brent, "lets trade hats." So he took his hat off and traded with Brent. I'm not exactly sure what type of hat Brent ended up wearing-I think maybe it was a Peter Pan hat. It sure looks good on him!

A Perfect, Lazy, Rainy, Sunday Afternoon.

Today was the perfect, relaxing Sunday which was something we definitely needed. We started the day off attending church which was uplifting as always, and it something we look forward to each week. It is such a wonderful way to start our week with some spiritual "nourishment." After church we fixed lunch together, and since it was raining outside we took a nap! Oh, how I love Sunday afternoon naps!! Later we went for a walk together, and then picked some fresh produce from our garden for dinner. We visited with a friend, then took a drive up Birch Creek to turn out a couple of our horses to pasture. Today was purely a day of rest, relaxation, and quality time together. A perfect Sunday!

Thanks for making me laugh!!

Brent is one of the funniest people I know. He has a very funny personality, a great sense of humor, and he's ALWAYS making me laugh, sometimes intentionally, and sometimes unintentionally. Here is a perfect example. This happened on a day I wasn't particularly looking forward to, but because of him I couldn't help but start the day with a smile. A few days ago I woke up to Brent whispering in his sleep "I almost ordered a cheese burger and fries." I couldn't help but laugh out loud, which woke him up. I asked him what he was talking about, and he just smiled and said, "be quiet." He is always talking in his sleep, and I'm always curious to know what he was dreaming about (as I'm laughing at him). So I asked him again, and he explained that a friend of ours was trying to feed him dinner. That's all the explanation I got this time. Then there was the time when he was yelling in his sleep at a cougar that was at the elementary school trying to attack him, or the time when he was explaining which cows go in which pens. He has also once given me directions in his sleep on how to build something out of 2x4s, and I remember him saying once, "careful with that gate Johnny." I could keep going, but I'm probably embarrassing him!! He's very entertaining while he's sleeping, and if he forgot to tell me what he had done during the day, I am sometimes privileged to find out while he is sleeping! Thanks for the laughs, honey.

Appy.

This horse is often the center of many jokes because of his spotted hide (he's an Appaloosa, hence the name "Appy"). I actually think he's kind of pretty, and he's good natured, so it doesn't matter that people make fun of him!

Roping in Grace, Idaho.

This weekend we went to Grace, where Brent competed in a team branding, which is one of Brent's all time favorite things! He competed on a couple of teams with his brother, Jared, who is pictured here with Brent. Jared is the youngest in the family, and will be a junior in high school this year.

Brent and Jared.


Okay, I better explain exactly what a team branding is. Basically, there are 4 members on a team, and 4 cattle in the arena. Two of the team members have to rope (while horseback) 2 of the cattle around the head, and back feet. The other two team members brand the cattle, (with paint, or pancake batter-- harmless!) once they've been roped. Then they switch duties, and the two people who "branded" the first two cattle, rope the last 2 cattle, and the other 2 team members brand them. Sounds complicated, but it's really not. It is a timed event, and the team with the fastest time wins a cash prize!! Brent loves this event. . . really, he loves anything that has to do with roping, horses, and cows! He entered this one NINE TIMES!! Brent and J are the two on the ground running in the pic below.

Suzanne with our horse, "Appy" at the team branding.