The Old and The New

So...

now we have an almost 98 year old 

and a 3 week old living under the same roof.

(Kinda crazy to think about)

But, we love it!!

My Grandma sure does enjoy holding Cooper.

She talks to him, rocks him and comforts him.

Coop has given her "new life"

She has gotten a bit possessive of him.

She does NOT like it when we take him from her.

Pretty funny.

Grandma Great and Cooper Stone...

Quite the Pair!!

Spring is Welcome here!

Most of our snow has melted.

It is warmer (40's)

Ducks and Chickens love their free-ranging...

 And their afternoon dips in the mud puddles...

 And soaking in the sun.

No flips for me - yet.

BUT, it won't be much longer.

(Hang in there toesies - you will soon be FREE!)

A New Ride

 It's true.

Caleb (aka "Jeremiah Johnson") has a new mode of transportation for his mountain excursions.

 He has turned in his hiking boots for a pair of cowboy boots.

    Meet his mountain pony,

 MerryLegs.

  She takes him anywhere he wants to go.

(sometimes I think she goes where ever SHE wants to go)

 Not sure who is in charge -

the rider or the ridden.

Regardless, they make a great pair!

So,

mountain lions, coyotes, and fox...

beware of the "dangerous duo".

They will track and find you!

A funny sidenote:

My husband gets a call from a guy that is staying at Big Canyon.

"Hey Brian, there is a white horse running down the road with a halter and reins hanging on his neck."

Brian asks, "Is there a teenage boy with a gimp (track injury) chasing after her?"

He says, "Ummm, uh..... oh ya, there is someone chasing her."

At that point, Brian knew it was the "dangerous duo".

Real dangerous huh?

Wrap him up!

I have had many baby slings...

this one is my absolute favorite.

Let me introduce you to the 

Moby Wrap!

It crosses in the back, crosses in the front and wraps around the waist.

The weight is well distributed so your shoulders, or back, or arms don't ache.

Very comfortable!

The baby's bum goes in one side

 the feet get tucked in the other side

Voila!

Hands free.

Comfy mom.

Snuggly baby!

And then...

Kiss Kiss Kiss

the baby.

Mmmm Mmmm

Can't get enough of this boy! 

My sister gave this to me and Cooper,

SO...

Thanks sweet sister.

We love it!!

Cooper is Home!

From Hospital Bed...

to his bed at home!

(well, actually, it's my bed but I love to share)

Oh Friends and Family!...

where do I begin?

Thank you for everything!!!

Thanks for the meals brought to my family, thanks for the comments, emails, phone calls, texts and most importantly prayers!

It all started Wednesday afternoon when my midwife came to do a 2 week postpartum check up. She noticed his struggle to breathe so checked his oxygen level.

 It was in the low 70's. 

(needs to be in 90's)

She put him on oxygen and he was in 90's but couldn't stay there with just room air.

So, we loaded him up and went to Park City ER.

They assessed him and sent us down to SL (Primary's Children) via Ambulance.

He slept the entire ride.

We paid all that money and he didn't 

even stay awake to "take in the ride".

I am sure he will regret that he slept for his ambulance ride...so,

I took pictures for him.

When we arrived they put him on High-Flow oxygen and sent him to PICU.

He spent one night there and then went to normal (sick) floor.

They took great care of him (and me).

Praising the Lord that he is doing better.

"Praise the Lord, all you nations;

extol him, all you peoples.

For great is his love toward us,

and the faithfulness of the Lord endures forever."

Psalm 117

Keep the Prayers Coming!

Hello friends, it's Laurie again.

I just wanted to keep you all updated on our favorite superhero - "Cooperman" or "Super Cooper," either one will do!

His breathing has improved overnight and he is down to 2 L of oxygen.  The plan is for him to go home if he can get down to 0.5 L of oxygen.

Ashley's text this morning said, "If he stays stable for a couple of hours, they will  take him off the high-flow oxygen.  Still no fever, eating like a teenager [she would know], not laboring as hard to breathe, sleeping great, and still as cute as ever!"

Thank you all for your prayers and for checking in.

Please Pray for Cooper!

Hello faithful friends!  This is Ashley's friend Laurie posting for her because Ashley is at the hospital with little Cooper who has been diagnosed with RSV.  He is doing relatively well and has been moved out of the PICU into a regular room, but is still on oxygen and needs to get rid of all the goop in his lungs.  Please pray that he does not get a fever and that he continues to eat and heal.

Also, please pray for Ashley that she is well rested and at peace as she is away from home, where we all know that moms are needed all the time!

Thank you friends!

Squeaky Clean

It is tradition around here that Nana gives the 

First Bath

to our babies.

My mom was here for about 5 days after his birth.
Oh my goodness!
She was so helpful with Cooper, the other children, housekeeping, cooking -
you name it, she did it!

Before she left, she gave Cooper the "traditional" first bath.
He didn't love it - but what is there to love about a bath you can't actually soak in.
It was just a warm washcloth wipe down.
Nana made it as pleasant as best she could.
He cleaned up well.
And smelled so good!!

Washing and

rinsing his hair.

Drying off

Getting the oil rub-down and clean clothes.

Ahh, done!

And Squeaky Clean!!

Thanks Nana!

Such a Guy Comment...

Background:
Tessa, our 4 year old, has been sick. She has had a cough and an earache. Basically, she has been miserable. And in her misery, she has been very fussy.
Lots of crying. Lots of fussing.
Not just about her pain but about anything that anybody does or says to her.
Very sensitive.
Very, out of the norm for our happy-go-lucky Tess.

So, we are eating dinner and Tess realizes no one put water in her cup.

Oh, the tears!

And more tears!

Sob :-( Sob :-(

(this situation would not normally bring tears)

So then Caleb chimes in - 

"Why do girls cry about everything? 

They are so emotional.

Life is too short. They should just enjoy it.

Things happen. Don't cry. 

Why can't they just Get over it and Move on!"

He was not trying to be mean or malicious.

It was a sincere question.

Something he seriously doesn't "get".

I just laughed. He is so right. And I see his perspective.

But, I am a girl and I understand the emotions and

 I understand there need to be tears sometimes.

After all, God made us girls to be emotional, caring, and sensitive.

His comments started a great and very fun conversation amongst me and the older children.

Hopefully, with the help of his sisters, he will better understand us girls so that if/when he gets married he will be more sensitive to his wife's tears and emotions.

:-)

This IS for Real...

Many of you have been praying for Brian since his ladder accident on January 1st.

Many of you have been asking about him.

BRIAN'S UPDATE

For those of you who are new to our blog and may not know - -

Brian was on a ladder. His feet were about 10 feet high when the ladder began to slide right out from under him. He didn't want to get crushed so jumped to the side and landed 100% on his left foot hitting cement. His calcaneus heel bone shattered into about 12 pieces.

He had surgery on January 18th.

The surgeon put a steel plate and 12 screws into his foot.

OUCH!

Brian has not put any weight on his foot/heel since the accident.

Talk about makin' a man go crazy.

Well, he saw the surgeon this week. 

The surgeon was very pleased with the progress/healing.

He told Brian he can start putting 25% of his weight on it.

Finally!

This is the x-ray taken from the bottom of his foot.

CRAZY!!

I don't think he will be getting on an airplane

 without setting off a few alarms.

Brian is doing well.

However, he still has no feeling in his heel.

There seems to be quite a bit of nerve damage.

Time should heel the nerves.

Time will tell.

Thanks again for your prayers.

One Week Later...

Eatin', Sleepin' and

Growin'

No Words!

Just in Awe...

Gettin' Nuthin Done!

And here is why...

I spend a great deal of time just looking at this boy.

And while I am looking at him, I just praise God for such a wonderful gift.

I am smitten!

Using the cell phone to call his Nana -

"Come back!"

Bright eyed and bushy-tailed!

A very content baby.

The other thing that occupies my days are nursing.

Oh, I love it!

And it helps that he loves meal times.

Pictures Pictures Pictures

His first photo shoot

It started out well with his eyes open

then he yawned...

and he was out!!

Oh, I L.O.V.E. to watch sleeping babies..

so peaceful and precious!!

So, with staring at him, taking pictures, and nursing him throughout the day, there is not much time to do other things. 

That's ok. My baby won't be a baby for long. 

The other things will just have to wait.

I have a baby to adore!

I am sooo in love...

with this amazing little boy!!

We are loving the sweet smell of 

"baby" 

in our home.

Labor and delivery was not the greatest and by far my least favorite.

However, we are both alive and doing fabulous.

Praise the Lord!!

"Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good.

His love endures forever."

Psalm 136:1

Thank you again for your words of encouragement 

while waiting his arrival and your prayers 

before, during and after his birth.

You have blessed me!!!

Little Man has arrived!

Praise the Lord!

Our "little man" is in our arms.

We are so thankful for this precious gift.

Cooper Stone Z---

March 10, 2011

6:38 am

7 lbs 7 oz

19 1/2 inches

CUTE as can be!!

Pics and more to come...

Thanks again for your prayers from all around the country.

He WILL Come...

I think!

Labored all night.

Midwives and all of my labor support showed up around 2am.

We worked hard.

Then...

at about 6:30 am

things really slowed down.

My labor support (besties) and midwives left mid-morning.

I have rested/slept with contractions still coming but less frequent.

Oh WAIT!

One is coming....

OK. Got through that one.

The contractions are picking up a bit now.

Hopefully, little man will be here soon.

Back to laboring...

Pheasants, Ph-un, and Ph-amily

Back in December
(yes, I know that was a few months ago)
a big portion of family went to South Dakota
for some pheasant hunting.
It was very cold and very much a
BLAST!!
How could not be with a crew like this?

(Brian, Hudson, Abbi and Weston went from my family)

Brother Paul and his daughters

Dad and Hope

Paul and Elaine

Grant and his son, Josh

Brian and Abbi

Grace + Emilie + Abbi

=

Inseparable

Alli, Hudson, Grant and Lauren

The Young Boy Crew

Calvin, Weston, Mark, Jacob and Josh

The Girl Crew

Alli, Abbi, Lauren, Emilie and Grace

Off They Go!

Bundled up, Orange on and Guns loaded

The rule for the field walkers was to "drop" as soon as a bird flew up and guns were raised.

They did a great job of "dropping" and they did it ALOT!

The Shooters

Paul

Alli

Grant

Brian

 Hudson

and Dad!

A Few of the Birds

(and the retrievers)

Weston

Calvin and Jacob

They spent 4 days of hunting and then drove to Mt. Rushmore

What an amazing sight!

They came home with many stories to tell, lots of pheasants, and great memories.