Water color painting with Grandpa Scott

Josh, Michelle, and Ben came up for an afternoon water color session with Grandpa Scott.

Ben gets in on the action.

Looking good!

Jazz Game

Grandpa invited us to watch another Jazz game in the Zion's Bank box.

Ben is intent on the game

Emily and Sam with Grandpa

Bruce, Craig, Mary Lee, Michelle, Josh and Ben

New Years 2013 with Provo Cooks

We started the year off with a bang--or was it Wham! into those bowling pins at the Wasatch lanes near Grandpa Scott's house.

The first of several big scores for Michelle.

Mary Lee enjoys the sweet, but unfamiliar taste of success.

Josh hits another strike!

A familiar sight on the score board when Dad was up.

The scoreboard says it all--Josh watch out for Michelle!

Michelle and Josh made sure we were well-stocked with games and goodies for New Year's Eve.

Ben helped deal...

and shuffle

It was a great way to start off 2013!

Fun with Family in Utah and Idaho

Our July began with the blessing of our newest granddaughter, sweet Aubrie Claire Cook.  Camille and Bryan hosted a family gathering afterwards at a nearby park.

L to R: Carol and Bryce; Bryan, Tytan, Camille and Aubrie; Bruce and Mary Lee, July 1, 2012

Craig, Josh, Ben, Michelle, Aubrie, Camille, Bryan and Tytan

Precious Aubrie and her beautiful mom!

Fun with Grandpa!

The next day Bruce and Mary Lee joined his siblings and parents for a reunion in Island Park, Idaho at a cabin owned by David's family.

Back row L to R:  David, Ruth, Max, Darrell, Cathy, Bruce.  Front L to R:  Teresa, Jill, Steve, Laurie, Debbie, Mary Lee

Cathy & Darrell, Bruce & Mary Lee, Jill & Steve, Teresa & David at Upper Mesa Falls, Snake River

We celebrated Craig's 23rd birthday on the 4th of July at Tucano's in Provo.

Craig, Dad, and Tytan at Tucano's

Josh, Michelle and Ben joined us and we took some family pictures afterwards.  Bryan and Camille were in New York looking for an apartment because they will be moving there in early August for Bryan's work at Goldman Sachs.  Grandma and Grandpa Cook got to take care of Brie and we got to take care of Tytan--hurray!

Josh, Ben, Michelle, Craig, Mary Lee, Bruce and Tytan at Riverwoods

We got some great shots of Josh, Michelle and Ben.  It was hard to choose which one to post!

Josh, Michelle and charming Ben

Dad and Tytan had fun looking at the James Christensen fountain.

More fun with Grandpa!

On Saturday, we visited Great-grandmother Faux.

Craig's whirlwind visit

What do our storage unit, La Salsa Mexican food, and the movie "Inception" have in common?!  These are some of Craig's favorite things and he packed them all and more into his visit to Tucson last week...including downing fresh home made rolls.  As he loaded up his plate, he said "I'll start with six."

Craig enjoying the first hot roll with the Toumey's homemade apply butter

Craig was the first of the children to try out Dad's new TV late Saturday night when we brought him home from the airport.  Of course, the test wasn't really complete until we had watched the DVD "Inception" he had brought, about subconscious suggestions and staged dreams within dreams.  That one really got us thinking!  In fact I had to ask him to stop it a couple of times just to make sure I understood what was going on.  We also saw "The Avengers" at Park Mall on Monday night for FHE.  Whew! That was the most action-packed FHE we've had in a long time!

Members of the ward were happy to greet Craig on Sunday at church and in the afternoon we skyped with Nathan and his family.  Cameron and his roommate Jared came over for dinner and we got them to tell us about setting up the new Jimmy John's in northwest Tucson. Sounds like it's doing really well.

Craig visited the storage unit on Monday and this time he actually took more boxes to the storage unit than he brought back!  He thinks he may need to get a bigger book case in his room at school--we love his love of learning and books.

Dad came home from work early on Monday afternoon and we headed out to Colossal Cave in the Rincon Mountains, which none of us had seen before.

After leaving the cave, we saw this cool dude in the parking lot.  We think he might have been a movie star--and he had this really sweet ride.  We're not sure if Truly Nolen is his name or the title of his next movie....help, anyone?

Dad's birthday surprise

Yesterday was a special occasion for Dad--the 34th anniversary of his 26th birthday!  Thanks to Camille's great idea and everyone's participation, it was a very happy birthday celebration.

The lead up began over six weeks ago when Camille's email got the ball rolling.  We all agreed that getting Dad a new TV was a great way to mark this milestone.  Later we added HD and DVR service to complete the package.  Fortunately, the HD/DVR unit arrived on the very day we needed it.  I found a Samsung at Costco that seemed just right, Camille checked it out and approved it, and we bought it--six weeks early.  Kind friends stored it at their house until the big day arrived.

Unbeknowdst to me, Dad's racquetball partner Chris Monson had rescheduled their Tuesday game for Monday, the morning of his birthday.  Realizing there was no time for breakfast in bed, I grabbed the tray and put my gift and card on it.  Following tradition as best I could, I sang Happy Birthday as I carried it into the bedroom, placing it on his lap.  Time was short so he opened the gift later at breakfast.  I gave him a DVD, "Journey of Faith: The New World," following a media theme he didn't yet know about.

We had to wait until he got home from work at about 6 p.m., early, at my request, for his real celebration to begin!

For historical purposes :) here is what the family room looked like with the old TV:

I had loaded up on wrapping paper at the dollar store and voila, two impressively big packages!

Dad arrived home and we patched together several three-way calls to get everyone on the line to wish him Happy Birthday!  I took some videos but they are too large to post. 

Dad loves his new TV--thank you to everyone!

Here's how the new TV looks in its new home.  Looks great, doesn't it!

We're still figuring out how to work everything...that may take a while.

The Best April Fool's Day Ever

 

Although we were eagerly expecting it, we were not sure when we would get that phone call--you know, the one when Bryan would be out of breath, trying to say that he and Camille were headed to the hospital because the baby was coming.  Just like on Christmas Eve, Mary Lee and I had set out our clothes carefully so that we could quickly grab them and take off.  (I was even hoping secretly for something in my stocking.)  But this was more exciting than Christmas.  Unlike toys that tarnish and presents that perish, this new little baby was a long term deal--no trade-ins, no change of size, no worry about batteries.  This was the deal of a lifetime, actually even longer.  A little after 4:00 a.m. Sunday morning the cell phone rang.  As first I thought it was the alarm, but when Mary Lee said, "Hello," listened for a moment and said, "We're coming.  We will be there in just a few minutes."  I knew that the long awaited time had come.  What a great way to start April Fool’s Day.  The adventure was beginning!

Like lightning we dressed and headed for the door (nothing in my stocking but my foot).  We left Cathy and Darrel’s house, hopped into the car and buzzed south on Bangerter Highway toward Camille’s and Bryan’s house on Duncan Meadows Way.  When we arrived, I have to admit that I was a little disappointed:  Bryan and Camille were very calm and under control.  They were already dressed and their clothes were on right side out.  

“I’ll give you a call when things start happening,” Bryan said calmly as he closed the door to the garage. There was no crazy frantic running around, no “we’ll have to get that later,” no “the contractions are only 3 minutes apart,” just happy pleasant, experienced parents headed to the hospital as if this were part of their regular routine.  (Camille and Bryan need to work on their frazzled, frantic, flabbergasted, funny skills.)  Tytan was sleeping soundly.  The night was quiet.  The house was neatly organized.  There was nothing to do but catch a wink until Tytan awoke or “the call” came. 

A couple of hours later, at about a quarter after seven, the phone rang and Bryan made the announcement, “She was born at 7:05 this morning.  Both Camille and baby are doing fine.  She is 20.5 inches long,  (I guess since babies are always lying down they are “long” rather than “tall.”) and weighs 7 pounds 7 ounces. It only took about two contra,tions and was the fastest birth ever.”

“That’s great.” I said. “Have you chosen a name?”

“We are still working on it, but I think we’re close,” he replied with hesitation in his voice.
(I think he was fearful that I would be pushing a name like Brucetta.)

We were so excited.  Tytan was still sleeping, but we were ready to hop into the car and race to the hospital right away.  Wouldn’t you know, Camille and Bryan foresaw that Tytan might need a little something because the baby would be the center of attention, so they had wisely hidden away a special gift to him from his new little sister.  So, when Tytan woke up, we hastily helped him get dressed, grabbed a bite for breakfast and piled into the car heading for the Intermountain Medical Center in Murray.  We had hidden away the package for Tytan as we had been asked to do and we were ready to see his new little sister.

In the hospital room Bryan was all smiles and Camille, although tired, flashed a big smile and a contented nod.  The baby was swaddled in a soft blanket and slept in a small clear plastic baby bed.  She looked tiny and comfortable with the hint of a smile.  (I am sure that she was thrilled to be in this family at this time with such loving parents and big brother.)  Michelle, Josh and Ben were on the way and Nathan, Allison and Avery would be there after conference.  It was a regular celebration.

After one quick glance and a hug from Mom and Dad, Tytan was ready to do something other than sit around admiring the baby.  She didn’t seem to know how to do anything except sleep.  Bryan and Camille then surprised him with a gift from his new little sister--a Thomas Train set.

“Wow, this little sister of mine isn’t so bad after all,” he thought. “She really knows how to choose cool presents.”  And for the next hour Tytan and his Dad set up the track in a number of configurations and played with the railroad cars pushing them around the track, while the TV displayed General Conference in the background.  We did not hear many of the messages that morning, but we were nonetheless grateful for the new addition to the family and that she arrived safely.

“So, have you decided on a name?”  I asked.

“Aubrie Claire Cook,” came the resolute reply. 

As so it is, that Aubrie Claire Cook came into the world on April 1, 2012, proof positive of the miracle of birth.