The Cook Family Reunion Results

This past weekend we had our family reunion for Jason's side that we do every other year with his parents and siblings and their kids. His sister and her husband, Holly and Scott were in charge of planning the 3 day event. On Friday morning we did an activity like Trading Spaces. Each group was given $20 to work with. Everyone was divided up and assigned to another family's house to do whatever they wanted to do with it. We could do some redecorating, cleaning, making a treat, etc. There were a total of 44 people (several being small children) and 6 homes involved. Jason's sister, brother and brother-in-law were the adults that came to our house. We were to leave a list of suggestions which they could do if they wanted but were not required to. Jason's sister, Shelly has heard me mention more than once that I would love to have a red front door. So on their way to our house, they stopped by Home Depot and bought red paint and painted the door. (They also did a great job organizing/cleaning our office and hanging our pictures that I have been dreading to find places for since we moved in four months ago.!) When we all met up again at Jason's parents house, they were a little nervous about how we would feel about their little project. All they would tell us was that they "took a risk" with something that we'd have to wait and see when we got home. I will admit I was a bit nervous, since none of the other groups were too worried about their decisions. We kept trying to guess what they did, but they wouldn't tell us. About 2 minutes before we got home, I figured it out. I was really hoping I was right and that we would drive up to the house with a red door. And we did!! Yeah! I'm pretty sure most of the family knew before us what they did, but it was a fun surprise. The whole activity was a lot of fun.

On Saturday morning we met at Canyon Glen Park and hiked up to Bridal Veil Falls. There and back was about 2 miles, so it was quite an adventure for a 2 year old that doesn't think he needs a stroller. He did ride in it on and off, but it was still a good workout for us all. Even Maggie. We decided to take her with since the whole planned day was to be outside. The kids all wanted to take turns to walk her and carry her, so we hardly even saw her during that time. After the hike and lunch... she got her first taste of ham and now her treats have no effect... but she was so exhausted, she fell asleep under a big stroller and a little niece puller her our by her legs and she didn't even stir, just stayed completely knocked out.
Speaking of knocked out... Sam was pretty exhausted too. It was about 2:00 or so when we left the park and it didn't take him long to get comfy and go to sleep. I'm surprised he even had the energy to get his arm above his shoulder like that. But it makes for a cute picture!

Friday afternoon we had games and boys/girls hour and some seminar/classes. Then on Sunday we had a nice dinner and scriptural activity. The whole weekend was really great, Scott and Holly did an excellent job planning the whole thing... I think they should be in charge every time...

Sandbox for Sammy

Yet another yard project... only this one was a bit quicker and a lot more fun.
A few days ago, we finally got around to putting the sandbox together. Since it only involved cutting and nailing a couple of boards together, it wasn't too bad. Sam watched with a little bit of confusion since he didn't really know the joys of sand... yet.
He was a little hesitant to give it a chance, but as soon as we brought out a few trucks he hopped right in and started vrooming away. He especially had fun with Jason there playing with him. Daddy built up a nice big mound for his trucks and then of course showed him how to knock it down.
He had so much fun playing that he didn't even care that we were in and out of the house for a while. He usually doesn't like to be left outside alone, but now I can watch him from the dining room and still get the kitchen clean while he's outside making a mess! Win-win!
This was his Building-the-sandbox battle wound. He was watching from above the retaining wall and tripped over the curvy curbing separating the grass from the flower bed.

Well, Sam is very happy to have a sandbox. So far we don't have too much sand on the lawn, but I know that won't last long. It's just really fun to see him out there having so much fun, especially now that we got him a few more sand toys. He'd probably play out there all day if he could. Nap time sure is the pits!

Sammy's first sno cone

A few days ago, Jason decided it was time to introduce Sam to the wonderful world of sno cones. There's a little Sno Shack on Main in Springville, so we went for a little family time. On the way Sam kept asking where we were going (which he does frequently and repeatedly) and we kept telling him we were going to get a sno cone. Of course he didn't know what they were, so we described them in words he knows and loves. We said we were getting "stwawbewwy n ice" for him. He was pretty excited since he loves both strawberries and ice. He was in heaven. It was fun to watch him so happy.

It's A Girl!!

So for lack of a better present for Jason's birthday, I gave him this stuffed dog with a coupon attached. Yes, it says 'Redeemable for one puppy* *restrictions may apply.' He's been wanting a dog since before we even moved in, yet he promised me he would give it some time before he would start bothering me about it. Well, he lied, apparently, since for the last who knows how long he has been looking for puppies for sale, and researching breeds, and taking quizzes to pick the right type of dog for you, and then sending all this stuff to my email. (Sounds like bothering to me.) Anyway, I decided that was getting old, I guess I succumbed to peer pressure or something, because a couple of nights ago, this cute little Christmas dog turned into this:

Yes, a real dog. Jasons' sister's neighbors' dogs (how's that for crazy connections?) had puppies 8 weeks ago. (Which I just realized was exactly my birthday, so now I have to share my birthday with something way more fun than me.) We went and looked at them a couple of times but were undecided if a Jack Russel and Blue Heeler mix was really what we wanted. Since we saw them the first time, Jason became obsessed with Jack Russels and was quite convinced that's the type of dog we should have. I wasn't convinced, but I was more open to it last Sunday when we played with their puppies for a second time. They were all so patient and tolerant of Sam constantly picking them up and bringing them back to the group if ever they strayed off. The one we picked was one of the 2 more mellow ones, but she is still playful when she's not too tired, so she really is a lot of fun.

Jason and I talked about names on the way home and the first name he thought of was Maggie. He talked about a few others, like Milly, Annie, Daisy, and Penny, but Jason really liked Maggie still, and I do too. And that stuck with Sam pretty quick too. Well, 'Magmi' is what stuck with Sam, but that's close enough. So now we have our little Maggie. (I wish Jason was that easy to discuss baby names with, we don't agree as well on names for our fetus.)

Ok, so I do like her. She really is a sweetheart. She is always underfoot, so she has almost gotten stepped on a couple of times already. She loves to cuddle, especially with Jason. I think she has a crush on him...

She has cute little ears and big brown eyes. So far, the only negative... dog breath. Yuck. We'll have to work on that.

We went to get her after looking at another puppy in Orem on Tuesday night. We called the owners and asked if it was ok to come get her right then. They agreed, but since it was getting late, Sam fell asleep in the car by the time we got to Highland, so he had no clue we came home with a puppy that night.

We thought it would be funny to let the puppy walk into his room first when he woke up in the morning. We recorded it because we knew his expression would be priceless. He had this surprised, excited look on his face, it was so cute. Since yesterday morning when he saw her, he always needs to know where she is, and will often pick her up and bring her where he wants to be if she doesn't follow quick enough. This morning the watched cartoons together, he was laying on his back and she was laying across his stomach. We just know they'll be best friends.

In case you were confused by the title, "it's a girl" was referring to Maggie, not our baby. Sorry to disappoint anyone who may have thought we gave in and found out the gender. We still don't know, and our doctor doesn't even know, so don't feel bad... no one on earth knows the gender of the baby yet... we'll all find out in a few more months.

It finally pays off!

Jason is checking to make sure all the sprinklers are working properly before we fill in the trenches. He didn't even care that he was getting drenched, it felt so good to get wet in our own lawn! (And he was quite sweaty...)

One overjoyed (and thirsty) man!

The sod was delivered Friday morning, but we still had a little bit of leveling to do.

Sam is such a good worker... in his mind.

On Saturday, Jason's brother Jared came to help along with a couple of guys from the ward. We had laid a little bit the night before with the help of a very nice neighbor and his friend, so we had a good start on Saturday morning. We sure appreciated all the help, those rolls are quite heavy, though they did somewhat rest nicely on my belly, but still too heavy for me to do too many.

Sod. Beautiful sod. We have an instant lawn!!

And a relieved father and a confused looking son. He was much happier than it shows. He kept getting in the guys' way because he was so excited to have grass!

Nothing like a yummy PBJ after a long morning's work. His face was a lot dirtier than the picture shows.

All the pain and suffering (physically and financially) has finally looked a little more worth it! We are so excited that we finally have something better than dirt to look at and walk on. However, we are not excited to get the water bill, since sod has to be watered quite a bit... Hopefully we can keep it all alive so we don't have to go through any of that again! Yeah! We have grass!

Happy Birthday Jason!

For Jason's birthday, we had a nice, quiet Sunday evening at home. His parents came for dinner and we had some cake and ice cream. Nothing too spectacular, sorry honey. Happy birthday though! I love you!

What? More yard work?

After a futile attempt to dig our own trenches, we succumbed to the pressure... and the cost... of renting a trencher for a few hours. After knowing the strenuous and painful labor to dig, this machine almost made Jason bored... it was so much easier!! Jason almost didn't know what to do with himself!
No, it definitely was still a lot of work, but so much better than digging with shovels, we don't regret the trencher since we finally feel like we are making some progress on our poor yard. Poor Jason is just exhausted every night though. I'm so proud of him!

Precious moments

Sam gets so excited when daddy comes home from work, especially if Jason isn't too tired to wrestle around with him. I love watching them play together, it reminds me how truly blessed I am to have such a wonderful little family.

The mystery of the missing chocolate cake

A couple of days ago, I was outside working on the yard all morning. I thought Sam was upstairs
'playing tommy' or maybe watching TV. Well, I think he was most of the time... until he came down to the kitchen and decided he was hungry... Some neighbors brought us some chocolate cake the night before, and it was sitting on the counter, waiting for mommy to have some dessert after lunch. When I came inside, I found a chair pushed up to the counter, and a very suspicious looking scene and decided to do a little detective work to figure out... who... had... been... there....

I discovered chocolate crumbs on the floor, making a nice little trail.
I investigated further to find the saran wrap that once covered the victim.
The trail led me to find what remained of the helpless chocolate cake, and with more crumbs around too. Hmmm, who could it have been?
WHOA! I think we found the culprit... and feeling no guilt about it at all. In fact I think he was actually quite proud of himself.

Sammy turns the big 2!

During the afternoon of Sammy's birthday (Friday, May 23) Jason's parents stopped by and brought him a little cake and a present. He loved to blow out his 2 candles... so we relit them about 3 or 4 times. He also enjoyed running his finger along the top of the cake to taste the frosting. Thanks Grandma and Grandpa!
Later that evening with my parents, who had come down earlier that day, we had a little party for Sam. My sister, Leesa, and he family came as well. This awesome Cars night light was petty exciting for Sam since he loves his 'cahs' and Lightning McQueen. He got this from Uncle Dan and Aunt Leesa. From Emmalynn and Cassadee he got 2 different Lightning cars.
This is one of the gifts we gave him. He is obsessed with Cars and Thomas the Train, so we gave him another engine, since poor Thomas was having a hard time pulling all the cars himself.
He was so funny when he would open his presents. He would say a big "WOW" everytime. It was so cute. This is more Thomas stuff from mommy and daddy. He also got a few bottles of bubbles, and a big bag of mega blox and a pillow and blanket set with Lightning McQueen on them. (He's more willing now to take his nap, as long as he has his new blanket with him...yeah!) Aunt Ronda came down the week before and took the lucky-almost-birthday boy shopping! He picked out some train cars (which Thomas had been solely responsible to pull all three at all times...) and some dinosaurs and other animals, which he still sleeps with at night, even though they are hard and not so cozy, and some bubble bath that came in a Cars container. He loves all of his presents so much! The night of his birthday he was up 2 1/2 hours late playing like crazy with all his new toys. It's been a week, and he still wants to sleep with some of them sometimes. Oh well. He's such a lucky boy to have so many wonderful relatives to spoil him. We had a lot of fun that day, he definitely liked his 2nd birthday a lot more than his first!

Shhh, our angel is sleeping...

I put a Thomas show on for Sam so I could shower and he was busy playing with his choo-choos, but when I got out of the shower, this is what I found. He sure is sweet when he's asleep! He slept there for almost two hours... holding onto his choo-choos the whole time.
Sundays are rough on Sam. We have church from 1-4 so if he doesn't get a nap in before church he comes home completely exhausted. Right after we got home he curled up on his daddy and fell right to sleep. Jason enjoyed the tender moment... until the drool, the sweat, and the tingling in his arms were too much. Then this was the next sweet picture....
He didn't even stir when Jason relocated him to the couch. Noise in the kitchen making dinner didn't wake him either. I wish I could sleep that deep.

After many hours of tearing up the 'grass' aka weeds that our lawn had to offer, we had a big dirt pit for a yard. Jason, with a little help from my dad, built this retaining wall in the craziest part of our yard. Soon, we should have a little sand box that goes into the corner of it. Jason is very proud of his wall. I'm glad he had so much fun with it...

We borrowed a bobcat from our good bishop who owns a construction company and has all sorts of fun machines.
This was an interesting project since our yard is multi-leveled. I thought Jason was going to kill himself a few times. But he did great operating it. Here he is covering up the lovely masses of cement we couldn't figure out how to dispose of legally. I guess we'll have an additional little 'hill' of sorts back there.
We let Sam come out and watch. Since I knew he would get insanely dirty we let him come out in his PJs, which he loves to wear. They say ROAR!
Sammy loves to 'feed' the ponies. It actually only consists of him yanking a few bits of weeds out and throwing it at them through the fence... which usually just blows away before they get to it.

Here is an awesome view of our lawn 'ornaments' which were so nicely left for us.
Yet another beautiful landscape... this is a behind shot of the area that Jason dug out and built a wall around.
The tough rough bobcatting man. I think he felt pretty masculine...

The project went well... until Jason drove over the box that covers the valves for the sprinklers, which were just fixed a few days before. He broke a PVC pipe and water started to gush out of the ground. Other than that, and the possibility that we cut our neighbor's phone line... and maybe a few other cables and wires that were supposed to be deeper than they were... it was a success! Good job Jason! Now let's get real grass or something besides dirt...