Sam & Natalie's Wedding/ my trip

My very handsome Nephew, Bradley
My other very handsome Nephew, Joseph
Me and my Bradley :)
Sam, Natalie, and Bradley
Sam cried. How sweet is that?
Natalie is so beautiful.
Sam, telling me that I didn't get a picture of him. HA!
I love my brother!

Crazy Ben! I love him too!!
Tawnya Bockman Russel. It was so good to see her.
My beautiful sister, Aimee!
CHEESE!! LOL
Love it
Cuteness!!
A sweet little family.
A cute couple.
Another cute couple.
LOVE
Too funny!

I love this picture!

This is SO hilarious!! Joseph can whistle, snap both fingers, and alternate winking each eye... all at the same time!!!

Luke's handstand

Yesterday Luke suddenly yelled at me to look at him and I saw this. I didn't even know that he could do that since neither Heidi or I have taught him. He's only seen me do it in the living room and I guess wanted to try. After leaning against the wall he kicked his feet off so he was facing me but still upside down and doing a headstand without the wall. I was so proud and he obliged me by performing again for the camera. I'm such a proud Dad.

My Replacement

This morning at breakfast it was Luke's turn to say the prayer. And part way through it he got stuck and forgot what to say. I was about to open my mouth to help him when Shelby who was next to him, leaned toward him and in a very sweet voice, whispered in his ear what to say. I got teary eyed. And when it was done, Luke said, "Mom! Shelby did help me. That's cause she's a Mommy. She is a beautiful Mommy!" He turned and said "thank you for helping me, Shelby". And she said, with a cute little smile, "You're welcome Yuke"(she has trouble with her L's). I am so proud of my kiddos. I just love them SOOOO much!!!

My sleeping family.

This afternoon after I woke up we were all hanging out in the living room. Luke got in trouble, went to time out and fell asleep there. Then Heidi fell asleep on the couch and Shelby laid down next to me and fell asleep while I rubbed her back. They've had a busy day feeding the missionaries, going on a walk and to the park. All while I slept. I have a great wife!

Meet Jasper...

About a week and a half ago, we added a new member to our family. His name is Jasper. We just LOVE him. We drove down to Boise to pick him up. And then we headed on down to Elko, Nevada to spend some time with Dixie and Zach(I know I told some of you that i was going to get a picture of Dixie with her baby bump, but I didn't, I'm sorry). We had so much fun!! Here are some pictures of Jasper and the kids. Luke and Shelby are so happy to finally have a dog. Luke has been telling me over and over for the past 2 years that he NEEDS a dog. Both he and Shelby are very good with Jasper. And he is quite patient with them.

Tired pups
Dixie's Moose, Jasper, and his sister, Ella(we brought Ella to Elko. She was sold to a family there).

Jasper was taking a nap, and Luke thought he needed to be read a story. He chose to read "Lady and the Tramp". Quite appropriate.
They had so much fun together, it was so sad that we had to separate them.

I just love his cute little face!! And I am so happy to finally have a dog too!
*JASPER*

Daddy~Daughter~Dates

Yesterday evening, I was driving around Fred Meyer, looking for the redbox machine. There are always lots of shops connected to the outside of Fred Meyer. One of the shops was a baskin robins. I have never been to baskin robins, by the way. Weird huh? Anyway, as I was driving by very slowly, I saw a little girl(maybe 6 or 7), sitting at a table across from her Daddy. They were both having ice cream and the little girl was talking a lot, and the Dad was just smiling and listening to her. It made me tear up a little. That was just so sweet. It reminded me of a time when my family still lived in Denver. I don't remember how old was. Anyway, my Daddy took me to Estes Park for a Daddy~Daughter Date. Estes Park is one of the most beautiful places I've been to. That is of course, based off of my little girl memory. But I remember thinking it was the most beautiful place in the world. We walked around town, did some sight seeing. There was a Dairy Queen, and we went in and had ice cream together. I don't remember now what we had, or what we talked about. But I do remember being so completely happy. I love my Daddy so much. I'm so grateful that he took time to spend with me, and to make me feel special. I love seeing other Dad's doing that. I LOVE seeing the relationship that is forming between Kevin and Shelby. I look forward to them going on Daddy~Daughter~Dates in the years to come. I just love my Dad so much. And I love being a daughter, his daughter.

Sorry, that was a little random, and emotional, but those were all the thoughts and feelings that rushed through me as I watched those two strangers enjoying some Baskin Robins together. And I just had to write them down.

A rare thing...

Kevin is the type of person that does not smile all that often. Not that he is not a happy person. He is. But he very rarely shows a genuine smile. At least outside of our home anyway. The other night, Kevin and I were out on a date, and while we were driving along, I made him laugh and I got this picture. I have very few pictures of Kevin's genuine smile. And I LOVE his smile! Anyway, you may think this is corny or boring, but, I just had to document it. And it is only from the side, unfortunately, but I take what I can get. :)