Is the weekend over yet...

I think that is the question Jeremiah kept asking himself all weekend long. Maybe not so much me though, at least at first anyway. Every year over Labor Day weekend the Brooks's go up to the Flemming Family Reunion.  Jeremiah has been going for years to camp with the Brooks and Davis's and this year was no exception. The original plans were for Jer to just take Bode but the day before he decided to take Laine too. I know it isn't all that fun camping with kids but Jer seemed up for it and I was definitely up to a kid free weekend.

Let me tell you Saturday was nice. I cleaned, slept, and shopped. And all day long I kept getting picture texts of how much fun and how dirty my kids were getting. The camping spot is incredibly miserably dusty. The kind of dust that leaves a layer of dirt with every movement. The kind that never fully washes off until you get a shower. And the kind that you are cleaning up for weeks afterwards. 

I got so many cute pictures of this little girl. She was having a blast swimming in the dust.

(thanks for all the pictures Jessica)

One of my personal favorites, sitting on a chair with no pants, blowing bubbles.

I didn't get to many cute Bode pictures. He was way to busy running around with all the kids, playing in the dirt and making forts. Why would you slow down to take a picture when you could be running free?

I did however in one of my brief conversations with him found out they caught a horny-toad. He was pretty proud of it. I remember catching lizards, frogs and tadpoles. Now I don't think I would lay a finger on one now.

A face only a mother could love.

One of the highlights of this camping trip is the horseshoe tournament. Jeremiah has quite a competitive side and loves it. The weekend didn't go as well has Jer hoped, I don't even know how well he did. However he did, he does look good doing it though.

All the dust covered kids.

Then comes the not so fun part of the weekend. The part that makes you wish the weekend was over. It was Sunday afternoon, Jer and Laine were sitting on some benches that were kind of close to the horseshoe pit. Laine was sitting on Jer's lap face to face. Then a girl came over to the horseshoe pit and was going to play. But, well lets just say she wasn't so great at the game, she threw the horseshoe and it flew crazy in the wrong direction and before Jer could even move it hit Laine right in the head. Poor girl. They hopped in the car and were off to the ER to get her checked out and all stitched up.

 Jer called me right before they went into the hospital. I hate those type of calls. Made my heart drop. I was very glad it was Jer there and not me. Only because I would have been a mess, Jeremiah can stay very calm and collected in those type of situations. He called me a few hours later to update me on her. She told everybody her name and that a "hos-shoo hit my head". She had a CT scan to check out the insides and 6 stitches to put her back together. That was rough. Jer said it was really hard to have to see his little daughter all pinned down screaming getting those stitches put in. At one point she told everybody that "Bode did it". After the stitches were in the nurses brought her in a stuffed cow.  thought it was a little tiny one but no, it is huge. She named her cow "Horsey" because a "hos-shoo hit my head". It took 3 long hours to get everything worked out. Then Jer had to drive home from Payson after that long day. It wouldn't have been so bad except.....

The horrible dust had not only settled on every visible surface but in Jeremiah's eye. He had been trying to get the grit out of his eye all day. But it was no use. By the time he was done at the ER with Laine his eye was all red and swollen shut. He said he drove home the whole way with one eye shut because it hurt so bad. I could tell, he called me and I could just hear the stress and strain from the day in his voice. Not a great day for anybody. Well maybe Bode had a great day. He got to stay longer camping and come home with the Davis's that night. Thanks Davis Family.

So this morning Jer got up and his eye was feeling worst. Thankfully there was an urgent care open today and he got seen. They numbed up his eye to relive the strain and then put some dye in it to see what the deal was. Basically the whole rim of where his contact hit the eye was all scratched up. Thankfully it wasn't his cornea but still very painful just the same. He has to wear a patch for 24 hours, use antibiotic drops and wear his glasses for 5 days. If you know Jer you know that he has horrible vision, he is legally blind without his contacts in. So he isn't going to be able to go into work for a few days while his eye heals.

I am glad they came home in one piece, just wish the weekend had gone better. Now we are just trying to get things back to normal. Laine is feeling much better. She keeps telling me her head hurts but it hasn't slowed her down to much. She did take it easy all day and I hope she does tomorrow too. Would hate to bust those stitches open. I am grateful that everybody is under the same roof and that Jer and Laine made it home from Payson. I am also grateful that we have good friends who are willing to help us out when we need it.

We missed dad...

During our vacation in Pinetop Jeremiah had to be a responsible adult, he couldn't a take a whole month off to enjoy the beautiful weather, he had to work. He came up with all of us for the 4th of July and came back a few weeks later. One thing was for sure during the time he was gone, we missed him, a ton. I am so grateful for him and his love for his family. Lucky for us we have the modern conveniences of cell phones and skype so he was never to far away. But nothing can take the place of actually having some with you. Made me very grateful for my husband and gain a ton of respect for those who for one reason or another are forced to be away from their spouse for long periods of time. So when Jeremiah came back up to Pinetop we were all very happy to have him back. The kids could not get enough time with him.

The morning Jer came up, Laine crawled in bed with him and just stared at him and placed her hand on his face. She was so happy to have him back.This isn't a picture of that time, but she did take any extra time she could to crawl in bed with her daddy for some extra snuggle time. This in in my parents trailer. We moved outside to clear up space in the house for everyone. It was actually kind of nice.

Bode was so very happy to have his favorite play companion back. I guess Boo, my mom's dog, was happy to have him back as well. 

Happy Father's day...

“Fatherhood is not a matter of station or wealth,” said President Ezra Taft Benson. “It is a matter of desire, diligence, and determination to see one’s family exalted in the celestial kingdom. If that prize is lost, nothing else really matters”

Happy Father's Day to the Fathers in my life. 

I will be forever grateful to have grown up in a home where my Dad was present and active in my life. 

I love you Dad!

I am also very lucky to have found a man to marry who understands the value of a father in the home.

I love you Jeremiah!

Life never slows down...

Bode has been doing really well these days. His stye's are nearly gone. But I am afraid they are going to leave little scars. He is still a handsome little devil though. He has a ton of energy. Loves to talk, nonstop. But it never fails. I pick him up from preschool and ask him how his day was and he says "I don't really feel like talking right now." We drive home in silence, then walk through the door and her can't stop talking again. We are working hard on counting. He really has a block in the numbers area. He just has a very difficult time remembering the order of the numbers. I am hoping that soon it will just click. But for now we will just be counting everything in sight.

Laine's little personality is really coming out. She is a sweet, stubborn little thing. She is really good at going up and down the stairs. I was worrying she might take a tumble or two before she really got the hang of it, but she is a pro. She loves to tell people "HI" in the stores or wherever we go. She says it all sweet and friendly. Right when anyone goes to reciprocate her sweet HI she gives them a weird look and goes blank. She is very people shy. She is learning where her body parts are. She can find her eye, ear, nose, mouth, elbow and belly. She doesn't have to many words but can jibber-jabber with the best of them. She also looks up to her big brother so much. Anything he does she want to do. Case in point...

Here she is trying to pee in the potty like Bode. I am not actually sure if she knows what she is trying to copy. She goes in there hikes up her shirt and then looks at me like, "I don't really get this?".

Jeremiah started his new work schedule this week. I am very excited to have him home on Sunday's. I can't wait until we all can go to church together. This week Laine has been fighting off a cold and on Friday night she finally succumbed to it. She was up with a fever, nasty cough and a runny nose. So no church for the girls this week. So the boys got a spiffied up and went to church.

I am enjoying getting things back to normal. As much as possible. There are still quite a few odds and ends boxes that need to be taken care of. The laundry room and master bedroom still need to be completely unpacked and clean. Other than that, things are normal. I am just gearing up to start preschool. It has been fun pulling things together and making lesson plans. I have 4 kids, still hoping for 6, but 4 will be fun. I am very grateful for having such a normal life. Some people might think what I do is boring and tedious. And truthfully, being a stay at home mom can be at times. But for the most part I am happy with my life. I still stress over many things, money, house work, body image issues, if I am a good wife, mother, sister, friend. But I have to remind myself that I am blessed and that I can only do so much. (Ok a bit rambly here, sorry)

Alright. Hopefully I can get back to my bloggy self and get back to regular posts.

Don't you wish...

your husband is as awesome as mine?

(Ok maybe you caught a good one too)

I am so very grateful for my husband these days. Not just because he can steam clean my carpets while watching the Suns game, what a good multi tasker. But because he really is a great guy. I am so very thankful that we get to spend time together I thoroughly enjoy his company. Jer is a great friend, provider, husband and father. And I love him : )

Late 20's...

27 years ago this handsome guy was born.

Happy Birthday Jeremiah!!!

You are the best friend, husband and father anyone could ask for.

I love you!

What is wrong with this picture...

If you thought the "wrong" in this picture was the fact that my house is a bit messy {looks like this everyday}, the lamp is missing from the table by the chair {seriously, why is it not there} or that the tv is babysitting my baby {who doesn't do this occasionally} you are all wrong.  It is my little bug. Her new favorite place to watch her morning show is right there, in my coffee table drawer. I however am not a fan of this seating arrangement and am constantly getting her out and closing the drawer.

This has been an eventful week for us. And yes I am aware that it is only Wednesday. I am positive my husband won't want me to share this story but it was part of our lives this week. Sunday we headed over to Mesa for the newest Merrill grand baby blessing. My brother did a great job and it is always fun to be around family. Jer was able to come for the morning before work and then leave in the afternoon to go to work. We left mid afternoon to go home. Around 8:00 that evening Jer called me to tell me he was ok but he was in a car accident at work and was going to the hospital to get x rays and all checked out because he might have broke his arm. I tried, unsuccessfully, to keep my head together on the phone. I admit although I knew he was ok I was pretty freaked out. He didn't want me to come, he said he was fine. I was like if it was me I would have wanted him there and he wouldn't have even listened to me saying I was fine and didn't need him. So I hung up the phone called Lee and she came over to watch the kids. I got to the hospital around 9:30. Thankfully Jer is fine. No broken arm just bruised and sore. He told me he was on the way to back up another officer. He was clearing an intersection with lights and sirens on going about 5mph when someone in a big pickup truck didn't see him and t-boned him on the passenger side going about 55mph. It totalled both cars. We finally got out of the ER around 12:00am, went back to the station to grab his stuff, dropped off prescriptions, got some dinner and went home. I didn't end up going to sleep until like 2:00 am. Thankfully I have good friends (thank Natalie) that watched the kids so we could catch up on sleep. Since then Jer has been sleeping and resting. He is pretty darn sore but good. I am so SO grateful he is ok. No matter what the circumstance's it is hard to see your loved ones hurt. I talked to one of Jer's officer friends on the phone and he asked me how I was doing, then said that wife's always take it harder than the husbands. So true. I love my husband and am very  grateful for his job. I am glad he gets to do something he loves, even if it makes me a nervouse wreck somedays.

Dad in boot...

There are few things that would make Jeremiah make this face.

Hunger

Fatigue

The death of the beloved x-box

Or this...

A boot or as Bode would call it "a boob". Jer was having a lot of pain in his foot. So after x-rays, talking to my bro (who is a podiatrist), going to a doctor and then an MRI we found out that he has 3 bone contusions in his foot. So for the past few weeks he has been gimping along in this boot. He hurt his foot playing basketball. We were worried that if it was torn ligaments then surgery would be necessary. Luckily with the injury he has a few weeks in the boot has done the trick and he can go back to full duty work. We are very happy all around that Jer can ditch the boot and get back to being himself. He is very happy not to be on light duty behind the desk. No more dad in "boob".

It's about time...

My poor oven-mitt has seen better days. When we got married I had one hot-pad. I always thought gee it would be nice to have anther one. I never once thought about buying and new oven-mitt when I would go to the stores. Well it has been nearly 5 years and I have still never bought another oven-mitt. As you can see by the picture below the old hot-pad wasn't really doing its job anymore. I am pretty sure the purpose of the hot-pad is to keep your hand safe when handling hot items. The hole at the top of mine was really not working out to well. So my sweet husband bought me a new oven-mitt for Christmas. He asked me when we were going to bed on Christmas night what my favorite gift was and I said it was my oven-mitt. It was a thoughtful present and exactly what I needed.