Where Have I Been?

There is no easy answer to this question. I know where I haven 't been. I am having a terrible time trying to figure out where exactly I have been. I am still working three days a week watching Addison. I am cutting hair more and more. (No complaints there from me.) I have been running all over the house chasing my kids, and our new dog, Strawberry. But I would say if you want to keep up with us, you need to come to AZ. I have been doing some Scrapbloging, you can check out the things I have done at http://www.scrapblog.com/gikkisphotos . I am not up to date, but I am progressing. I love this site. You make your scrapbook pages with out the mess, and...now you can print your book. So that is where I have been. Some new things for us is our Puppy...

Her name is Strawberry. Dani named her. It was a toss up between Chocolate and Strawberry. Since she can't actually say Chocolate (it sounds like a combination of her clearing her throat and saying ChChCh over and over.) we lovingly guided Dani to name the dog Strawberry. She goes by Berry most of the time. Strawberry when she pees on the floor and needs to vacate the house before I kill her.

The next new thing is our new Mini Van. I LOVE THIS CAR!!!! I can't wait to take some long trips in here to see our family is Utah, and Idaho. We are also planning a trip to California to spend a night on the beach camping. YEA!!!!!

We have been really blessed since I have last written. J.J. is doing so much better than he was in December. We hope they have figured out what his problem is with his lungs. We went to Phoenix Children's Hospital and had some tests done. FINALLY!!!! They are saying that his epiglottis doesn't fully cover his trachea when he swallows liquid, so a portion of his liquid is going into his lungs, and that is why he breaths so fast. Because his lungs are compromised. We now have to thicken all of his bottles with baby cereal. Fun times....But he is everywhere. He is crawling and climbing up stairs, standing up to furniture and literally chasing me down.

Danilynn has entered her terrible twos...does anyone know how to handle this developmental period of a child's life? She is making me crazy. I love her to pieces, so she is worth it. She loves to go riding in the truck with her daddy and drive to Sonic for an Apple Juice Slush. She is addicted.

Jerm is working 45 hours a week, and taking two classes. I rarely get to see him, I have to catch myself to make sure I cherish the time we do get together. I have to remind myself that he is working so hard for our family. He is a hard worker and I have never been more grateful for him in my life, than I am today. He is everything I could ever want. I have been blessed.

you are deeppink #FF1493

Your dominant hues are red and magenta. You love doing your own thing and going on your own adventures, but there are close friends you know you just can't leave behind. You can influence others on days when you're patient, but most times you just want to go out, have fun, and do your own thing. Your saturation level is high - you get into life and have a strong personality. Everyone you meet will either love you or hate you - either way, your goal is to get them to change the world with you. You are very hard working and don't have much patience for people without your initiative. Your outlook on life is very bright. You are sunny and optimistic about life and others find it very encouraging, but remember to tone it down if you sense irritation.

the spacefem.com html color quiz

Diaper Clad Kids...

I am normally a disfunctional mom only because I am trying to go 500 miles per hour. But I took some time to take some cute photos of my kiddies, just how their Daddy likes them: in their diapers. I can't wait to get this picture framed. It is by far my favorite picture of them together. What a blessing it is to be a Mommy. I wish for myself to take more hours of the day to slow down and enjoy my kiddies, just how I like them. HERE WITH ME!!!!

Chris and Mindy's Wedding....

Chris & Mindy Wheeler

Married October 18, 2008 @ the Holiday Inn

Chris is Jerm's cousin. We don't get to see them very often, so we were really excited to see all of his extended family at the wedding.

We had a lot of fun chasing Dani around the Ballroom. She had alot of fun with the D.J.'s and their music.

Smile my J.J. Boy!!!

Smile Pretty!!!!

Jeremy's Uncle Rod & Aunt Jennie, live in Las Vegas. We only get to see them every once in a while so it was really great to see them for the wedding.

It doesn't happen very often, but they were all in the same room. Cathy was pretty close to tears.

Dancing with Daddy At the Wedding...

Dani loves to dance with her Daddy. The wedding was the perfect place for her to do that.

City Of Fun...

Last night we went to the City of Fun. It is a traveling carnival that frequently comes to town. They set up in the old Walmart parking lot, stay for a few days, and then leave again. They come every couple of months. In the past, I have tried to get Jerm to go with me, but he wouldn't, but now that Danilynn is old enough to have some fun there, he is all for it. All day long he kept on asking Dani if she wanted to go "ride rides". She of course, would nod her whole body (we call that the "dolphin yes"). By the time we arrived at the carnival she was saying "rih ries". She was so excited and so were we.

Here they are looking at the carnival. There was so much anticipation.

Merry-go-Round:

This was her first ride, and as soon as it started moving her eyes got really big and a huge smile grew on her face. She loved it.
Here she caught sight of her Papa and Nana outside the fence yelling her name. It was a couple of times around before she realized where they were and she was able to see them. She was so excited when she saw them. Her legs started bouncing up and down and she had her hands flailing all over. She was adorable.

The Slide:

This slide was so much fun. You would seriously catch air on the bumps, which was a little crazy for a 1 1/2 year old, but she loved it. She made us ride it like 8 times. The treck up the stairs was enough of a workout for me once I had done it three times. The best was when she asked Papa to take her. After the first bump he was flat on his back and screaming. It was hilarious. I would have taken a picture for all to enjoy, but the batteries had died in my camera. Not very prepared huh?

The Roller Coaster:

Jerm will never be the same after this ride. His head was bobbing around much like J.J.'s does on a daily basis. I swear he has whiplash. Dani wasn't too sure about the rollercoaster, but she didn't cry. She definately didn't say "moe" (more) when they got off.

Donald Duck Boat Ride: (with no Water)

I was a little concerned putting her on the "Donald Duck Boat Ride" She has issues with us walking away from her, but I stayed inside the fence and was there each time she came around. She is growing up so fast. I was so proud of her.

The Maze:

Also where my camera died. We had so much fun. There were bridges and rope ladders and slides. This one brought smiles to our faces.I had to snap this picture. It is a blessing to have such a wonderful husband and father. He was just as excited as Dani. It was so much fun to watch their excitement and joy grow as we walked around the park. The Merry-go-Round AGAIN:

We rode the Merri-go-Round about 6 times. It was her first ride and also her last. She dragged her Nana on this ride with her. Dani couldn't get enough.

She was reaching for her Daddy.

J.J. was all tuckered out. He hung out in Nana's arms all evening.

She would watch the "big kid" rides in amazement. She wasn't about to go on them, but she had some fun just watching them.

Say "goodbye" to the rides.

So Proud...

Jordan is doing great on his mission. Here is a letter I just recieved from him.

Hey fam,Hows is everyone doing? Sounds like you all had a great week. We too had an awesome week. Yes mom, i barely squeezed into my white pants but i think that i am getting skinnier because it was a little bit easier this time. Yolanda and her daughter, Solange got baptized, it was such a relief to finally see them get baptized and great to the fruits of all our work. We really did have to fight to get her in the water though, satan just did all the he possibly could to keep her from getting baptized. First of all they got there like half an hour late and she told us that everything that could have went wrong, went wrong and that she had just had a really tough day. She told us that even her and her husband had been arguing and as you can see satan was really working. but thats not all, when they finally got there to the stake center Yolanda had forgotten her white tunica for the baptism so me and my comp had to go back to our apartment to get another one and then she finally got baptized it was quite a stressful day but a very awesome day at the same time. Yolanda and Solange are very excited to members of the church and to have been given the opportunity to start their lives over again with a clean slate. The two sons have changed their minds about getting baptized for now but still go to church and everything, i know that sooner or later they will get baptized. The husbands name is Ciro but he still is not wanting anything to do with baptism, lots of prayer and faith will do the trick. Well last night we got the call from the district leader and i have changes. Tomorrow i will be in my new sector. I am excited to see where i will go and who will be my new companion but at the same time i am very sad. I have really grown to love the members here, i have been here for six months now and i feel like i am in my own ward at home. Oh well the Lord knows what he is doing and has work for me in another sector.Well fam gotta go, thanks for everything and i love you all very much.

Jordan Walker

What's Up?

J. J. is a very funny kid with a ton of Funny Faces. He is starting to smile and it is so freaking cute!!!

Marly Allene Cook Has Arrived!!!!!

Marly Allene Cook

Daughter of Ernest and Suzie Cook

Born: October 11, 2008 @1:47 am

Weight: 6lbs 12oz Length: 19in

Danilynn was so excited to see Marly. She had heard of her and kissed the little belly that was Marly's home for so long. When Dani met Marly for the first time, she was excited. We told her all day, are you ready to go see Marly, she is here and wants to meet you.
This is the proud and happy Nana!!!!

Danilynn was ready to hold and love on another cousin.

Beautiful Mommy and Daughter!!!

Sleepy Time!!!

Proud Uncle and Aunt!!! We were as excited to meet little Marly as Danilynn. Jerm even came home from work early so we could travel to Phoenix to see her.

Suzie with all the Arizona Grandkids. We missed Cameron!!!!!

Give Marly loves and tell her you will see her soon!!!!

We love you Marly and we are happy you are in our family!!!!

We also received the exciting news that Cami and Jason are expecting #2!!! Yeah!!!! We can't wait to meet another cousin!!!!

HuSbAnD TaG!!!

What is is name? Jeremy Lynn Barber. He prefers Jerm

Who eats more? He does

Who said I love you first? Him, I think, but I could be wrong. I never keep score.

Who is taller? Him, but only by a little bit, I have to be careful of the heal size on my shoes.

Who is smarter? Well, I am not stupid, but He is probably overall the smarter of the two of us.

Who is more sensitive? Him. He reads things between the lines, and there are no lines.

Who does the laundry? Me, but he always helps if I ask.

Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? He is currently the only one who sleeps on the bed. I spend the majority of my nights in the lazy boy recliner next to the bed, holding J.J. I am terrified to sleep with J.J. in our bed and I always fall asleep nursing.

Who pays the bills? I pay the bills, He makes the money.

Who cooks more? Me. But he can do it.

What meals do you cook together? Sunday Dinner

Who is more stubborn? We are equally a pain in the butt.

Who is the first to admit they're wrong? In our arguments...neither of us are wrong. We always agree to disagree. We just don't argue anymore. It is pointless. We listen to the others point of view, and we try to move on. Talking about controversial things for too long is a bad idea.

Who has more siblings? Me. My family has twice as many kids as his.

Who wears the pants in the relationship? We both do. We share the burdens and joys of life equally.

What do you like to do together? Currently, we like to do anything together. Anytime that we can be alone together is valuable.

Who eats more sweets? Me...HANDS DOWN...FOR SURE...NO DEBATE NEEDED!!!!

Guilty pleasure?? Playing his WOW game on the internet.

How did you meet? Payson, Utah Singles Ward. Someone invited him to Movie Night at Jerrod and Erika's house when I was living with them.

Who asked who out first? Date? We didn't do that, we went straight from making out to being engaged and that went so fast we didn't officially have our first date until after we were married.

Who kissed who first? He kissed me first. He said he tried like 3 times and then I finally let him. WHATEVER!!!! He held my hand, kissed me and made out with me all in the same night. And his mom was upstairs (unknown to us...) And he didn't even have to buy me dinner. Am I cheap or what?

Who proposed? He did, three nights after he held my hand, kissed me and made out with me.

His best features? He is Eye Candy!!! I always enjoy looking at him. He has a great smile, gorgeous brown eyes, very sexy butt, and amazingly built legs and arms. Augh...Just thinking about him makes me happy.

What is his greatest Quality? His heart. He is always so concerned about being and doing enough. He is an amazing husband and father. I am so proud of him and grateful I married him.

I tag anyone who wants to join the FUN!!!

What a DAY!!!!

Today, I questioned my ability to parent wisely. Dani found my ink pad that I had left out on the dining room table. I would LOVE to be able to blame that on someone else, there are three other adults in the house, but alas the blame is mine. She opened up the ink pad and stamped her leg, the inner calf of her left leg. Which she then proceeded to run her little fingers through and smear all over her little body.
She had ink on all 10 fingers and every appendage. The worst part about this whole story, is that in the next picture you can see where I left the ink pad. I closed it, but left it again on the table...and you guessed it, she did it again. Which is why I had to question my ability as a parent. She had fun playing with it. After she played with it she got to have a bath, one of her favorite things, OF COURSE SHE WAS GOING TO GO LOOKING FOR IT AGAIN. Sometimes I wonder if my brain functions at a high enough level to teach my children the important things in life. I had already started to clean it up when I realized that it was a funny situation that needed to be remembered forever by pictures. The ink came off of the table no problem. Right now, almost 12 hours later, there are still gray marks on Danilynn's little body.

After that experience, I needed some brownies, well, needed is not the correct word. WANTED is more accurate. Dani loves to stir any type of batter, but licking the spoon was a new experience for her. She loved it. She had the biggest smile on her face when I gave the spoon to her and showed her what to do with it

She is so strong and helpful. I was amazed that she could lift the bowl. I caught this picture on accident and I was so grateful that I did. I think it is so cute. Check out her little panties. She finds them in her drawer and makes us put them on over her diaper. She is growing up too fast. Before I know it, she will be going to kindergarten. :(