A Full Day...

I've never tried to blog with three children in my lap, so bear with me if things are a little strange.

We had a really full day today. Candy and I went shopping to get all the supplies for a ward bbq tomorrow. It's a missionary activity organized by the activity committee, so Candy and I took the hit with both our husbands somehow ending up in charge. (Yikes!)

So, we hit up Costco and Wal-Mart and managed to get our supplies for under $200. (Our out-of this world budget) As part of our carnival/bbq we decided to do a Goldfish pool, so the kids could capture the Goldfish and take them home as pets. We bought 100 goldfish at 28 cents a piece, and we were pretty proud of ourselves. They're dropping like flies. We've already flushed 5 and there are a whole bunch more that are not very responsive. The good news is that for 9o days Wal-Mart replaces them, and you only have to bring the receipt. The poor fish man at the store told us that sometimes people freeze them and then bring them back. (Because?)

So, wish those poor little guys luck tonight and tomorrow...

Steve was awesome and watched Tori, Sammy, and Cooper so we could go to the store quickly.

Ah, true love. (Sadly a few minutes before Steven, I sat on the ghetto chair without the bottom legs locked into positon, and it of course collapsed. I know I was experiencing some fantastic karma because I was blessed to have Candy witness the entire thing and remind me all day.

We hung out the rest of the day, with Dexter and Mercer too. It was a fun day, especially because we lathered Cooper up and he had his first fun experience in the water. We had tried previously, but Sammy was in the pool then. We all know that telling a one year old not to splash is about as effective as saying, "Don't look!" to another person. Why do we bother?

Steve was sweet enough to sit in our little pool and hold Cooper. It was pretty funny to see, considering that Steve took up about 2/3rds of the pool. What a great daddy.

Cooper is filling out so well! We are so excited to see some new chubs on him.

Last Video, I Promise!

Okay, so I haven't ever really been a huge Tim McGraw fan, but I was impressed when I saw this video. The story is that he saw a male fan attack a female fan at his concert, and then called for security. When they didn't take care of the problem soon enough, this is what happened.

P.S. I can't believe that he's still singing that song! I remember that song from when we lived in PA a long time ago...

I did it!

I've been trying to figure this out for a while now...I did it!

Wipeout

New favorite show! I haven't laughed this hard in a really long time. I know some of you are wondering, and yes I was wheezing, or firework laughing. It's that good!

Coldplay's Strawberry Swing

Listen

What Shall We Have Next?

Every year we attend an event called Car d'Alene. (Coeur d'Alene, Car d'Alene) So, Car d'Alene is an event where people bring their cars that are at least 25 years old and drive them around downtown to show them off, sell them, and so on. Either way, people are parading around mostly awesome cars that have been beautifully restored. We had a great time checking them out, especially because between Dad and Tim, they could tell Steve and I what they were and how much they were worth, how rare they were, etc...

So, here the boys are. It was so fun and completely relaxing.

Until I saw this...and I started to get a little worried...

Because of this...

And this...

And these...

And another car I can't find a picture of. Recently Steve and I have been reading stories online about people who hoard animals. The people who have hundreds of cats and dogs. I have a feeling that if anyone was ever to clean out my parents garage, they would find a few hundred cars roaming around.

You guys deserve it!

Ah, the blog...

I've developed a new bad habit. When I take picture or experience something that I think I should blog about, I do. In my head. So, I'm trying to break my habit and actually blog today.

We are still adjusting to being home from the hospital. We are so happy to be home. Since we've been home, Cooper has put on about 3 pounds. We are so grateful to see his progress.

It's official. We're ghetto. Candy and I spent last Thursday with the kids, and our fabulous above ground pool. We actually had a really fun day, from which Candy and I both came away very sun-burned. Why can't I tan like I used to?!

We were anxious to get to the cabins and the water, but the day we were there it was a little to chilly to swim. So, we napped and Tim chased bubbles.

Steven had several miracles happen at church today, when all the less actives he's been working with for months decided to show up at church on the exact same day. It was so fun to watch him, so excited to get to everyone that he was flitting around happier and happier.

We are doing very well, and we are excited to experience summer!

Catching Up...

I don't think it's even possible to catch up on what feels like the last month, but here's trying...

Dad's birthday! That's right everybody, Dad turned 60 this year! In this picture you see a very happy man who just received his birthday gift, a special round of golf. However, I think if you asked him, he would tell you that his favorite birthday gift by far was his new Corvette. You deserve it Dad.

Here are a few pictures from our "Summer" cleaning day out at the lake. It was pretty cold, but still a gorgeous day. I love this picture of Aidan! He kept giving me so many goofy faces...

Uncle Tyler

These guys came over from another dock to visit all the kids that were playing down by the water. Every time you went for the stick, so did they. So, it's true bravery you see here, Dexter trying to grab the stick..

Aunt Liz came home a few days early to get everything ready for her wedding...We were lucky enough to get to have her stay with us. This is Lizzie and Cooper's version of waiting up for the Brousseau's arrival.

Whoever thought Bee Movie would captivate this many people at the same time?

Before my wedding Candy took me on a special retreat to get massages together. We thought it would be fun to do something special with Liz before she got married, so we all went and got pedicures together. It was really fun to have Tori along, especially since she picked Shock Orange for her toes. (Candy...there are tons of pictures if you want them)

Here we have from left, Grayson, Jackson, and Jake. I don't think I'm telling any state secrets when I talk about the fact that Jake typically wears his pants up somewhere around his eyebrows with his shirt tucked in. One day Jackson watched very carefully as Jake tucked in his shirt. He proceeded to tuck his basketball shirt into his shorts. I got a quick picture while he enjoyed it, and then watched as he got a unhappy look on his face, and untucked his shirt. (You can see in the picture below, his drawstring up around the BYU logo)

Russell, over sensitized. (Me too bud)

Lizzie's bridal shower...

The Shavers...

We had such a great time being with everyone at the wedding. It was the first time in a long time that all my brothers and sisters were in the same place. It was a relaxing day thanks to the personalities of the bride and groom. Also, on a personal side note, Cooper got to meet his namesake! More about that later...

It takes a while for her to warm up Albert, but once she does, you're in forever...

As I mentioned before,

Princess Annie is here! Is she the cutest thing you've ever seen?

What an amazing couple of weeks. We're happy to be home and getting ready for it to get warm!

That covers most everything. Our washer ended up broken when I got home from the hospital. Awful timing. While all the family was here, there was throwing up, and we came home with a weeks worth of laundry...so think of me this weekend washing bedding, towels and baby blankets!

Okay People...

Things here a little crazy. No, we haven't completely fallen off the map. Last week we enjoyed my youngest sister's wedding. It was so fun to have all our family around for a week. I have lots of fun pictures from the experience, I'll have to post those later.

After the family took off, Baby Annie came! My sister Candy had her baby on Tuesday...yay Annie! She weighed 5 lbs 9 ounces when she was born. She is the most beautiful thing I have ever seen, and I can't wait to see her more!

When everyone was taking off and things started to settle a little more, Steve and I noticed that Cooper didn't quite seem to be himself. He seemed really sluggish and he appeared to have lost some weight. So, Steven took Cooper to the pediatrician, and he immediately ordered tests and blood work. Turns out that Cooper had lost over 1 pound, and had dropped to the 25th percentile of weight for his height.

The following day we went to the radiologist and they conducted some tests for us. They made Cooper drink a bottle of Barium, and then as it went through his digestive system they took x-rays. We soon discovered that the muscle that connected Cooper's stomach and small intestines had gotten so thick and tough that it wasn't allowing food to pass through. Hence, the projectile spit up. So, typically this test takes about 15 minutes for the bottle to go through the digestive system for babies, and for Cooper it took 6 hours. After visiting with our pediatrician, we were sent to Sacred Heart Hospital in Spokane.

The first night we were here they took some blood work and found that Cooper's electrolytes were more then three times off from where they should be. We were told that even though our surgery had been scheduled for then next day, they were now anticipating that we would have to wait almost a week to get Cooper to where he needed to be for his surgery. They think that Cooper's muscle started to close when he was about 3 weeks old, and since has just gotten a little thicker each day of his life, and now it's completely closed.

So, the first morning we were here Steven left to go feed the dogs, and while he was gone the surgeon came and told me that because Cooper's potassium levels were so low, they were worried for his heart. They moved us upstairs to monitor him a bit closer. While we were upstairs the put a "PICC" into Cooper's arm. Which is a very teeny catheter which empties into his heart. To make sure that the catheter was in the correct place they x-rayed Coop. It was in the right place, but they also found that the Barium which he'd had almost 35 hours earlier still sitting in his stomach.

So, the next day we had an ultrasound to confirm the diagnosis, and it did. They found that Cooper's pyloric muscle (the one between stomach and intestine) is over twice and thick and twice as long as it should be.

So, today we are waiting. All of his electrolytes are where they need to be. He's receiving nutrition through his IV, and we are hoping for surgery either on Monday or Tuesday.

The first night we were here, we had a really sick boy.

He's gotten so much better! He now has a lot more color in his face, and he's laughing and talking to us. We are so grateful for miracles and priesthood blessings.