Happy Father's Day!

Happy Father's Day Sean!

These are two very lucky little boys to be able to call you dad! Thank you for being such a great example to them!

And of course happy Father's Day to both of our dads:

We love you!

Garden-- 3rd year

I am sure everyone is just dying to know what we planted in our garden this year. Ha! I know I am such a nerd for getting so excited about it, but I can't help it. I find it so gratifying! Before we planted a garden for the first time three years ago, I couldn't keep anything alive. Not even bamboo, which is supposed to be one of the easiest things to grow. The fact that our garden has proven even remotely successful is a major victory in my mind. I walk out to our garden plot pretty much every day. Let's be honest... I don't have a whole lot going on right now besides wiping bums, nursing, etc., so that may account for part of the excitement.

We planted pretty much the same stuff we have the past few years with a couple of exceptions. We have zucchini, tomatoes, tomatillos, bell peppers (green, red, yellow), jalapenos, pumpkin, sunflowers, peas, potatoes (red and gold), beans, green onions, lettuce, and spinach.

New additions:

Artichoke-- I am VERY excited about this

Strawberries (or "Fodder berries" as Jackson calls them):

Something keeps eating them so we need to build a fence or something. If anyone has any tips, send them our way!

I tried a mixed lettuce (left) that I am excited to start eating this week and our spinach (right) actually grew this year after being a no-show last year:

We are quite proud of our homemade trellis for our peas.

I would be really embarrassed if anyone knew how long it took us to construct this.

And finally, judging from the five small zucchini I found on our plant this afternoon, we should have plenty to pass around. The faster it grows, the better-- I am dying to try a recipe for a zucchini cranberry bread with vanilla glaze from my Food Network magazine. Maybe if it turns out I'll post the recipe!

Smiles and stats

Bode had his 2-month appointment today and here are the stats:

Height: 23.5" (72%)

Weight: 13.32 lbs (85%)

Head: 15.5" (35%)

Thatta boy!

It's been fun trying to coax smiles out of him. Hopefully we'll be seeing them more often!

Bode's blessing

Sean blessed our little man this past Sunday! We had several friends and family come support us and we are so thankful to everyone who could come!

The blessing was beautiful and Sean did a great job. Bode was calm throughout and I thought he looked pretty handsome all dressed in white. :) We did have a minor blowout after, but thanks to the onesie, the blessing outfit was saved!

A few proud parent pictures:

Group family shot:

Cute kids all over the place!

Kisses from cousin Emerson:

Thanks again to everyone who came-- especially those of you who had to travel. Bode is lucky to be surrounded by so many people who care about him. We love you Bode!

Bode's birth announcement

The image quality isn't the best since this is a scanned in copy, but I thought these turned out so cute. Whenever I look at it I want to give those big cheeks a kiss! Thanks to my friend Ashley who did a great job taking the pictures! Her site: www.irresistiblephotography.com

The grad!

It was a big weekend for our family with Sean graduating from law school at the University of Utah on Friday!

When I saw him all dressed up in his regalia I had to try really hard to hold it together! I am so proud of him for this huge achievement. I know it wasn't easy, but for those of you who know Sean well, you know he is awesome at keeping things low-stress. Despite working and going to school, he somehow always managed to find time for us too.

Sean's parents flew in all the way from North Carolina for his graduation. We hadn't seen them since Christmas and it was so good to have them there!

My parents also came to support the new grad!

I was worried about how the boys would do during the 2-hour ceremony, but thankfully they were well-behaved. I took Bode out in the hallway near the end and it took quite a few snacks to keep Jackson occupied, but we made it!

Several of the speakers mentioned the bad economy and how many of the graduating class did not have a job lined up (before trying to bolster them up by talking about overcoming the odds, etc.). Sitting there, I kept thinking about how grateful I was that Sean not only has a job, but one he loves. We are really lucky.

It is strange thinking of life without school. Either one or both of us has been in school our entire seven years of marriage (not including summer). I remember when we were first married thinking about how long the road to the end of school seemed, and yet, here we are.

Congrats to you, Sean, for a job well done! We are SO proud of you!

First real haircut!

Jackson got his first real haircut last week! I have cut it several times at home, but I figured it was time to take him to someone who actually knew what they were doing. For a long time I think his curls masked my cutting attempts pretty well, but recently it was getting to the point where his hair was reminding me of an old lady's "poof" mixed with a slight mullet. No bueno. I was really nervous about taking him because I was afraid they would cut too much off-- I love his shaggy curls and am not ready to part with them any time soon!

I took him to Cookie Cutters in American Fork and I'll tell you what, he thought he hit the jackpot. He got to pick his chair (the airplane), pick his DVD (Mickey Mouse), and they gave him a balloon and sucker at the end. I think he would get his hair cut every day now if he had a choice.

Before

During

After

Handsome little devil :)

And just for kicks I'm throwing in a couple of recent pictures of Bode!

Another handsome little guy :)

Love all of my boys (Sean included!)-- and grateful to them for making my Mother's Day so great!