Our Life in Black & White

That's right, I have new photos from the camera. This time I experimented with the "MONOCHROMATIC" setting. I gotta say that Brandon's getting a little tired of my camera. I told him to get over it. He's a cowboy hunk and everybody loves looking at pictures of cowboy hunks.

What'd I tell you? HUNK!

Uh-huh. He's mine. Hands off! I'm stingy that way. 

New Camera!

So I bought a new camera--a Cannon Rebel T2i--today! Holy cow, it takes some AMAZING photos! I could hardly wait to get home and test it out. Brykn wore out pretty quick from all the picture taking, but Harlee kept saying "CHEESE!" all afternoon!

Here's some of the photos I took today. I'm still learning the ins and outs, but check out the photos so far...

This is the face of HOMEWORK!!!!

Just 10 Things You Should Know…

(Brykn, self photo...with my camera...when I wasn't looking)

Every day when we say goodnight, I ask my angels if they know how much their mom loves them. Brykn, now a mighty five-year-old, rolls his eyes and says, “Just a little bit.” I snuggle him tight and say, “WRONG! I love you more than anything in the whole wide world.” Harlee, on the other hand, still hasn’t caught on to the game and usually says, “Nigh, Nigh, My lub ew.”

Well, tonight I’m changing it up a bit, Brykn. I’m going to tell you 10 things you should absolutely know…

Brykn...

10. I love the way you come snuggle with me on the couch on Saturday morning. You have no idea how much I miss cuddling you. You’ve gotten so big and I’m not even sure where the time has gone! Thanks for taking a minute to remind me how much I love your hugs when you’ve just gotten out of bed!

9. I love the fact that you are always on the go! I had a neighbor once tell me that the thing she misses the most about having her children be small is the noise. I thought she was crazy…and, well, there are still sometimes I think she is. But, I love the fact that you are an active little guy who is always up for an adventure.

8. I love making music with you! I love dancing and singing while you rock out on the guitar—even if we do look completely crazy!

7. I love taking you to the bus every morning. Despite how hectic our mornings are, the very best part of my day is when I get to kiss you as the bus pulls up, tell you to have a great day, and pat your but as you run for the bus steps. Thanks for kissing me—in public! (I know that’s not going to last long.)

6. I love watching you become a cowboy superstar! I can’t believe how brave you are and how good of a little cowboy/horse trainer you are becoming. You remind me of another Burnett cowboy when you ride horse!

5. I love that you are such an amazing brother. You help Harlee, you stick up for her, and you love her. You have no idea how proud that makes me!

4. I love seeing the projects you bring home from kindergarten and the pride in your eyes as you show them to me. It’s amazing to me how much you have learned in just a few months. You’re getting to be a fantastic reader!

3. I love reading to you every night. I love how it takes you 15 minutes to choose 2 books to read. I love how you beg me to read it again…and I do. I love that this is special time for just the two of us.

2. I love that you have a soft side. You are a thoughtful, kind person who cares about others. You are always willing to share, you treat others nicely, and you truly care about other people’s feelings.

1. And, of course, I love that you are mine. And, because I am lucky enough to be your mom, I get to tell you that I LOVE YOU MORE THAN ANYTHING IN THE WHOLE WIDE WORLD! 

You're a Grand Old Flag!

"Tribute to America!" Yup, that was the flavor of the night and was it ever spectacular! The entire West Weber Elementary School dressed in Red T-Shirts and paid tribute to the land of the free and the home of the brave! The first school program West Weber has had in 10 years, this was truly a night to remember!

I don't know if I've ever felt a more proud moment as when that curtain opened and he was on the front row singing like a super star. I've always thought it was crazy when people would cry with pride...but that night the smile on my face was the size of Texas and I had tears in my eyes. Partially because I seriously can't believe he's this big! And, secondly, because I am just so stinking proud of him.

I'll never forget that he was the only kid with his shirt tucked in! And that belt buckle--it shined like a neon beacon!

Brykn's class sang "You're a Grand Old Flag" and I'm telling you what, there has never been a musical rendition more practiced than that one! Harlee even caught on to the words. I might be partial, but the kindergartner's number was the best one of the whole night!

Two BIG Projects!

In the last 2 weeks Brykn has had some BIG kindergarten projects. First, his name was drawn from the "kindergarten bucket" to bring "Honey the Bear" home! Does it get more exciting?! The project: bring the bear home, do something fun with him, and then write about it (in our VERY BEST handwriting) in the class journal. There were only three other kids who got to write in teh journal before Brykn--OMG! Brykn was so excited that I thought he was going to explode! What did he write, you ask...well, here it is!

"We went to the store and got a drink. Then we ate dinner. We played trucks and watched Rocky III. We read and went to bed."

Now, I'm not positive, but I THINK "Honey the Bear" probably only got to watch Rocky III at our house...

Can you believe what good handwriting Brykn has? Really good, Buddy! Great Job!!!

Our second project was the "100's Day Art Project." Our assignment? To find a collection of 100 things and make a piece of art from them. Brykn wanted to "just get 100 nails and put them in a bucket." I told him that didn't count as art. So, we went a different route. His finished product was a poster board with 100 eyeballs on it. He glued those eyeballs with precision!

You're doing so great in kindergarten, Brykn. I can hardly believe you are already in school--but I'm so proud of your great learning! Love you!

Oh Christmas Tree...

This year was the first year that Harlee has been able to help decorate the Christmas tree and, my goodness was she ever a good helper! We had decorations and lights and bulbs, from one end of the house to the other! Oh well, it was all totally worth it! Let the season begin!

Family Photos

It's been a LONG time since I've udpated the blog. I always have the best of intentions, but, man, it can be super hard to find the time to fit this in! The demands on a full-time working mom can be hard--super hard.

Enough of that--onto the postings! We had our family photos taken toward the end of November, 2011. Harlee had very few melt-downs and Brykn was a big ham for the camera.

Some of my favorite things about these photos...1) I've looked and looked at the pictures of Brandon and I. We've been married nearly 9 years now and it sure doesn't feel that long. It's amazing how time flies when you're happy. Sure, we look a little older than we did in our wedding photos, but I'm so incredibly happy with the life we've built. I love you, Brandon. Thanks for being my everything!

2) My kids are so stinking cute! I mean, seriously, there are no cuter kids on the face of the planet! (Don't argue here...hell hath no fury like a mother who's told her kids aren't cute!)

3) Innocence. Isn't it amazing the innocence in a child's eyes? All that they will learn, experience, and become is yet to be. I LOVE being able to witness that.

Fantastic Family--that's what I have and I'm a lucky girl!