Sitting up Front

This morning Oliver was having a rough time at church. We hadn't even been there two minutes before he got upset over something or other and called me "stupid" a whole bunch of times. Before the meeting began, I wrestled him out of the bench and we walked up to the front of the chapel where Daddy was sitting. I explained the situation expecting Daddy to have a quick chat with him about behaving, but instead he patted the chair next to him and said, "Well, Oliver... It looks like you get to sit next to me for Sacrament today." I hid my smile and walked back to our bench with a small sense of relief. I don't think I would have survived the meeting otherwise. 

When we got home after church I related the events to someone and Oliver said, "It wasn't really much of a punishment, Mom. I actually enjoyed sitting by Dad up front." Oiy! Either way, it had done the trick and his mood had vastly improved while he sang hymns and sat next to his Dad.

This afternoon I went for a quick garden walk to unwind from the mornings events. I was filled with gratitude for all of my many blessings. The garden is growing beautifully, the garlic is strong and tall, and I was even able to harvest one more helping of asparagus for dinner tonight. We are so blessed to live where we do. 

Sunset Rescue

 Tonight while Mr. Stannix and I were out grocery shopping we got a call from Camilla and Joe letting us know that the boys got stuck while out dirt biking. It was getting pretty late, so we quickly finished up our shopping trip and headed home to rescue them.

We got to take Daddy's side by side for a ride to the trails behind our house. Joe called us on the Walkie and met up with us at the hall to show us where to go to find Hyrum and Oliver. There's a whole bunch of trails back there and he knew the best way.

We arrived to the back tire of the 230 stuck hard in a black hole of muskeg. They tried hard to free it themselves and had even retrieved a piece of plywood from somewhere to try and get it unstuck, but it's a pretty heavy bike! Daddy made his way around the big black hole to the other side so that we could winch the bike out.

It only took a few little tugs and Hyrum giving it some gas for the bike to pop out of the sink hole. They were so relieved! 

As we drove home, golden hour was upon us and the rays of the setting sun flitted between the leaves. We followed Oliver most of the way home while Cooper waved excitedly at him through the window.

We made it home just in time to enjoy the last few rays of sun before it disappeared for the night.

Daddy watered the new plants while Cooper played in his pajamas, and then we tucked in all of the littles! What an exciting night!

Sleepy Time

When Cooper falls asleep he likes to either rub his belly, or stick his hand in my shirt. He has done this since he was a wee babe and it always makes me smile. Please stop growing up!

 

His Brother's Arms

Today Joe mowed the back field and asked if Cooper could ride along. I'd peek out every now and then to make sure all was well. 

When I noticed him driving really slow, I went out to see what was up. 

I found Cooper fast asleep on his lap! Joe would have kept mowing with him if he could have, but I was certain his arm was falling asleep beneath his weight and knew Cooper would sleep better in his crib. 

He transitioned so easy, I decided to leave the headphones on for extra noise protection. He ended up having quite a long nap!

So grateful for loving older brothers!

 

His Favorite Place

Cooper's very favorite place to be is on the mower these days! It gives me stress free mowing and some quality time with him! Sometimes Lily will come and sit on the front as well. Happy mowing season!

 

Summer Storms

Gramma was the lucky one to get Cooper cuddles today. He fell asleep during the first block of church propped on Gramma's shoulder. He was a tired guy!

In the afternoon we had a Summer storm blow in and I was enjoying watching it.

The contrast of storm clouds with the lush green was beautiful!

 

Another Tournament

This weekend took us to another basketball tournament! We enjoyed cheering on our favorite big sister and Cooper especially loved running around the court during half time.

 

Divide and Conquer

This morning Mr. Stannix made sure to water all of our new plants! For the first few weeks it's super important that we keep them well watered so that the roots develop properly.

His little side kick followed him around and loved patting the step so that Daddy would come and sit beside him. It was the cutest!

Up at the garden, Lily was helping Gramma pick asparagus! We are getting basketfuls a day and it's pretty yummy!

Then It was off to Calgary for Camilla, the big boys, Cooper & I for a basketball tournament.

And off to Camrose for Daddy, Fin & Oliver for an intense soccer tournament.

Sunshine

This little boy keeps my on my toes all day!!

But I wouldn't have it any other way!!

 

Multitasking

The day began early like always! I got all of the kids off to school and even managed a picture of my big girl before she left for track and field.

Cooper and I went for a morning walk and I loved watching him wander around in his overalls!

I was trying to fix the underground dog fence (that hasn't been dug underground yet) because I think it got split by one of the big machines that were here moving dirt. The sight of this boy in his farmer overalls just cracked me up all morning long!

The landscaping is officially complete and we are able to park out front again. I'm super excited to finally have stairs to our front door and a lovely patio to enjoy!

After dinner I took Joe to town to ref a soccer game, dropped the other kids at the church for activities, unloaded bikes and then turned on my Relief Society zoon training. With my mic muted, we drove to a park where I watched them play on the slide and pushed a few of them on the swings while listening and taking notes. 

We ended up leaving the park just as the meeting was wrapping up and made it to the stinky outhouse at the soccer field just in time to avoid a bathroom emergency for one of the littles.  

We picked up Joe from reffing and then made our way to the church to grab the other boys from their biking activity. 

When we got home, Grampa and Daddy were chatting at the canoe trailer, so we joined them and watched the sun sink down to the trees. I was so tired after the kids went to bed that I went to the freezer for my tiny tub of ice cream and ended up leaving my phone on the freezer shelf. It took me a while to find it and I laughed at myself when I did. This mamma needs some sleep!!