Happy Birthday Parker!

Parker Scott Organ

Our baby, Parker, just turned one! He was born on August 6th,2008 early in the morning. He has been a happy baby since we brought him home from the hospital. He has grown up so fast and continues to make us smile everyday. He has become very independent but is also still a mama's boy.(which I love!)

Parker is such a boy! He climbs on everything, gets into everything, makes noise with everything and throws a fit if he doesn't get what he wants. He even started to pout his lips out when he complains. I can't help but smile. I usually can distract him though with something else pretty fast. Parker started to walk about a week before his birthday and hasn't slowed down since. He is so proud of himself when he is walking or running. He puts his arms up and just laughs nonstop.

Parker is such a happy, active, and loving little boy and we are so grateful to have him in our family! Happy Birthday Parker! You are going to be such a good big brother!

P.S. That's right! I'm pregnant! Tanner found out that we are expecting another little bundle of joy in early April. I wasn't going to put it on our blog yet, but now that Tanner knows I'm sure our whole ward knows and our whole neighborhood and maybe even a few strangers! haha.

Birthday Fun!

My little boy is 7 years old and I don't know where all the time went! Tanner had a whole week of birthday celebrations! He definitely felt very special. On Sunday before his birthday we made the long trek to north Scottsdale to my parents house. It was a last minute get together but everyone made it and my parents were so sweet and got Tanner a cake and made his favorite food, barbecue ribs. They were so yummy, my dad is an amazing griller!(is that a word?) Anyways, I forgot my camera that day but we had lots of fun and it was great to spend time with my whole family. I wish we all lived closer. Tanner got lots of fun stuff and had a blast,(probably a little too much fun for a Sunday X-), but it was special for him too.) On Memorial Day we spent time with Jared's family and celebrated Tanner's and Abby's birthdays. Lots of swimming and lots of food. Amber and Jeff are always so generous to let all the kids run wild at their house and use the pool. I made a scooby-doo cake for Tanner and he loved it. I actually bought the pan last year, but I was pregnant and lazy, so I decided to finally use it this year. My mom always made us special cakes every year and I always loved them. So even though it took forever to frost it, it makes it worth it to see how excited Tanner was. Jared works nights now so he missed the day at my parents, but he got to spend a little bit of time at Amber and Jeff's house with us and partake of all the food. So on to the pictures.

Jared was about to leave and I had to get at least one pic of him! He likes picture so it worked out.

My little Parker is just a little attached to me, so I was thrilled when he finally let me put him down to play. Of course he got his clothes soaked, but he loved the water.

Parker, Aiden, and Shay played so good together in this little pool. Aren't they cute!


At least I got one pic of Tanner swimming. It was super hot, so I hung out inside. I know I should have gone swimming too but those kids are wild and I'm a baby and don't like to be splashed.

Isn't the cake cool! Seriously, I was exhausted after I finished, it took a long time.

Here's the birthday boy and girl! Tanner looks kinda silly but it's the only one I have with both kids while we sang Happy Birthday!

Last Saturday, Jared,Parker and I took Tanner out for his birthday. First we went to Freestone Park and used the batting cages. Tanner loved it! I was pretty impressed by Tanner. We went in the "slow" pitch cage and it was still 38 miles per hour! He did pretty good and took lots of turns. Parker's not quite big enough yet, but he hung out with me and cheered on the boys!

He looks so professional in the flip flops huh!

Jared helped just on Tanner's first turn. They are just adorable in those big helmets.

And well the helmet didn't like me but Jared insisted on capturing this on camera. I took one turn and it was way hard. The pitching machine was crazy! I think I hit like 3 out of the 10. Oh well, guess I'll stick to being a mom.

I can't believe how big Tanner is. It makes me feel so old. He is such a sweetie.

Break time! It was really hot that afternoon. We were really sweaty and Tanner and Parker's cheeks were so rosy from the heat. I slathered them both with lots 'o sunblock.

After the batting cages,Tanner wanted to go check out all the skateboarders. There is a huge skate park right by the batting cages. They were pretty good but we didn't stay long. Those little boys needed their mouths washed out with soap. My goodness, they were too little to even know those works! That's why no pictures. That adventure lasted a whole 2 minutes. So we headed over to feed the ducks. It was so pretty seeing all the water, and those ducks sure are hungry. I wasn't sure if Tanner would enjoy this as much as he did. We had to convince him it was time to go because well we were starving.

Parker just observed again. He is such a good baby.

Wave to the camera! Seriously Jared took a million pictures. Not sure what I'm doing. I look my grandma with my hand on my back like that! Tanner wanted a cheese quesadilla for dinner so of course we had to go to Gecko Grill since we were so close! Jared and I love Gecko Grill, so we were pretty excited. Tanner of course changed his mind once he saw the kids menu. He got a rib basket and ate everything! That boy sure does love ribs!

Yay, Tanner actually smiled. Usually they look pretty fake. Seriously, why do kids forget how to smile normal for the camera. Tanner is 7 years old. I need to remember to stop and enjoy this time while he is still little. Tanner is a great helper, has a very loving personality and I'm so grateful Heavenly Father sent him into my life. Happy Birthday Buddy!

No eggs, No Problem!

Aren't they so sweet! Tanner really is so good with Parker. He wants to do everything with him. He was reading to him and Sunday Morning last week while I tried to finish getting ready. Such a sweetie pie!

Parker sure loves our dog. He is quite fascinated at him when he looks out he window.

Jared took Tanner to the father's and son's campout this last friday. Tanner was so excited to be able to go again this year. He even got to play hooky from school and leave that morning. They went with Jared's dad and two of his brothers. They have so much fun together. I love Jared's family. They are all so awesome and Tanner loves having lots of cousins. I love that we all get together every month too. It's so nice to live close by each other.

Ha ha. Jared caught Tanner picking his nose.

Here is a few pics of Parker. We played by ourselves while Jared and Tanner were gone. Parker is everywhere! He loves to stand by this window because he can see our dog Dollar. Yes Dollar is an outside dog. He likes it. Let's move on. Parker has also been walking with this cute lion toy that Amber gave us. It sings and makes noises and he loves it. He has gotten pretty good with it. I just love all his smiles he has for me.

So this is the no eggs part of the post.

So I wanted to make cookies, because well I make cookies every week. I like to say it's for Jared and Tanner, but really I have a wicked sweet tooth that takes over my whole being. Anyways, I didn't realize I was out of eggs! And it was sunday so going to the store was out of the question. I ended up making some premade cookie dough that I bought from some kid for a fundraiser. I have to say I had higher expectations for my money. Premade just does not compare. Oh well, the boys ate them and I sent the rest to school with Tanner. So today I was remembering that I saw a recipe that didn't use eggs on I blog I frequent. Then I realized I didn't have any sweetened condensed milk, but wait I can make my own! I also have like 6 boxes of Graham crackers for no reason other than I heart Costco and like to buy mass quantities of different things. I knew they would come in handy for something. Now what to do with the other 5 and a half boxes.......So anyways i whipped some sweetened condensed milk up in my trusty blender and the cookies were fabulous. Very chewy and had lots of texture. I never put coconut in cookies but I liked it in these. I know I don't usually post recipes but these were very unique and easy. I love trying new cookie recipes.

Chocolate Chip Treasure Cookies

From http://www.mykitchencafe.blogspot.com/

1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs

1/2 cup flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 14 oz. can sweetened condensed milk(I made my own)

1/2 cup butter, room temperature

1 1/3 cups coconut

2 cups (1 package) semisweet chocolate chips
1 cup walnuts, chopped

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a small bowl, mix graham cracker crumbs, flour and baking powder. In a large bowl, beat sweetened condensed milk and butter until smooth. Add graham cracker crumb mixture; mix well. Stir in coconut, chocolate chips and walnuts. Drop by rounded tablespoons onto ungreased cookie sheets. (I used a silpat.) Bake 9-10 minutes or until lightly browned. (I baked mine about 12 minutes and they were perfect.)

Quick Update

I know it has been almost a month since my last post and really I guess I just have been lazy about it. So what's new? Ummm......Jared started a new job about a month ago and is really enjoying it. He is working 12 hour shifts which makes for a long day away but more days off. I am happy he is enjoying himself. I think all the medical terminology that he learned in school is really helping and it is really interesting him too. I am still working on Fridays while Jared stays home with the babies. He is so great to help so much. I have the cutest little girl 4 days week, and since Jared doesn't work Fridays, it worked out that I could. Jared watches Parker and Felicity! Jared has his hands full for sure. I've been working fridays now for maybe 2 months and Parker will still not take a bottle for Jared! he is so stubborn, I've had to drive home on my lunchbreaks just to feed him! Parker is nine months old tomorrow and very much attached to me. (which I love) He is babbling,crawling,walking along furniture and keeping us busy. He loves to be held and bounced! Quite the workout by the way! He also loves the stroller, so I try to take him out in the mornings before it is too hot. I have to say that it is quite strange going back to work. I know it's only 1 day a week but still weird. I always enjoyed my job before but I love being able to stay at home. It is so fulfilling. I never thought I would enjoy not working so much. I am so grateful for the chance to be at home with Tanner and Parker. The pic above is of Parker, Felicity, and Lacy. My sister and I get together every week with the kids. I love that we live so close to each other. It's so cool to see how big the babies are getting. I can't believe they will both be one soon! They are so cute just playing together too!

This is from last week when Jared got home from work. he is always so excited to see Parker smile and crawl right over to him as soon as he walks in the door. Parker is such a cuddle bug too. It seems like he's hugging us when we hold him. I love it!

On Jared's day off we played some basketball with Tanner while Parker watched. It was so hot, but we had fun with Tanner. Tanner loves basketball. He is always telling us that he needs to practice so he doesn't lose his skills. He is such a good boy. I can't believe he will be 7 next month. I'm getting teary eyed just thinking about it. Ok sorry I'm better now but seriously it goes by so fast. Tanner is doing so well in school too. I'm so proud of him. He loves to read books and always does so good on his reading races. I've been feeling bad about not blogging more about Tanner. He saw my last post and it was all about Parker. He said he needed some pics on here too. I completely agreed so I told him he has to let me take more pics of him so I can post them. He is always on the go at home and I'm usually inside with the babies. Tanner is such a joy in our lives and we are so grateful for him.

I love our self portraits. I have so many of Tanner and I from before Jared and I got married. It was always just Tanner and me. We always had lots of fun but I know Tanner loves Jared so much and he loves being a big brother. He loves to help with Parker, most of the time too much help.

My 3 handsome boys! I am so blessed to have these guys in my life!

Parker!

Parker loves to eat! He lunges for whatever I'm eating, so I shared my pear with him. He loved it and cried if I tried to take it back. Soo cute!
After church we took some pics of him crawling after us. Here he comes....

This is him falling forward from sitting up to start crawling. Funny pic huh!

He just loves to crawl after us. He giggles and smiles the whole time. Unless we walk away, then he is very sad. He is definately a momma's boy. But he lights up when Jared gets home too! Jared is so good with him too. I started working on Friday mornings and Jared is so great with Parker I don't worry about a thing.

We feel so blessed to have such a happy baby!!

Pictures!

So i realize i'm not the best at keeping up with posting.

Jared and I went to Cory's signing/publication party last friday for our date night. It was at Rockin R ranch. It was fun even though we both started yawning by 8:30. We must be getting old, it's hard to stay up late. Oh there was free appetizers and desserts too! I was pretty full from our dinner that night, but it's hard to say no to free cheesecake!(or any kind of free dessert)

I love this cowboy soo much! Jared is going to school right now and only has class in the afternoon. It has been so fun having him home so much.

My 3 boys! They light up my life and I am so grateful to be a wife and a mother.

These biter biscuits are so messy but Parker loves them!

Parker is getting big so fast! He is already over 7 months old! He is such a good happy baby and such a joy to have in our family! He is getting pretty good at sitting up and crawling. If I walk away he starts to follow me now. I'll have to snap some pics of him doing those things so you can all see. It is so cute and I just love being able to stay home with him. I hope we can have lots of babies just like him!