Maybe it's just bloating?!?!

Believe it or not, these are the only "belly shots" we have taken this pregnancy and I really don't like them. For the sake of journaling though, I thought I'd post them anyway.

So, as this pregnancy draws to a close I am trying to appreciate each day as this is my last pregnancy and I know looking back the time will have gone quickly. That is much easier said than done, however. I remember getting this way w/ Seth, a little irrational. I'm starting to wonder what would happen if someone really was pregnant forever. Because of different health issues, they always induce my labors. When my body shows signs of being ready, the doctor schedules a time w/ the hospital. For Cooper and Ella, my body cooperated and this seemed to work fine as they were born one and two weeks early. With Seth nothing was happening and they ended up inducing me anyway because they thought he was getting big. That's what is happening this time around, nothing is happening. Last week a doctor on call saw me for my normal appt. and said my body was beginning to make some progress towards preparing for delivery. Well today (one full week later) I saw my normal doctor and he said that I have done absolutely nothing, he even took away the one little centimeter she had given me! I made myself wait to cry until I got to the car and once I was there I decided the crying would just give me a headache anyway. Instead I chose to drop by Costa Vida and treat myself to a sweet pork burrito and when I got home I defrosted some Rhodes Cinnamon Rolls for dessert tonight. The food did seem to help, how sad is that?

I have 3 mom's looking for a date as they are all scheduled to be out of town around Labor Day (the holiday that is) and are hoping it's not Labor Day for us, too. When I called The Parker's (the family I lived w/ in high school) to report today's appointment George wondered if I was really pregnant at all. He suggested it might just be some serious bloating. I did get a good laugh out of that and spent the rest of the afternoon cleaning and trying to be on my feet and active as much as possible.

Wish us luck! In the back of my head I do know that all will work out and he will come when he's supposed to. We're just praying that in the meantime he remains healthy and well and that my body does as it needs to.

Sailboats and School

Cooper pinning the mother's Bear pin on Mark's shirt. He deserved it more than me anyway.

The group giving Cooper "The Fonzie (from Happy Days)" cheer for earning his Bear.

This is the guy Cooper lost to.

Cooper winning a race.

Our ward's rowdy Cub Scouts.

The kids' first day of school. J-7th E-1st C-4th

A very excited Cutie Pie (this is where the camera batteries ran out)

On Saturday Cooper had his Sailboat Ragata for Cub Scouts. He had a good time and ended up getting 2nd place, which he was pleased with. He also received his Bear Award and is now on to Webelos. We were proud of him. I wasn't feeling well and wasn't able to go, unfortunately. I was also saving my energy for a friend/family b-day party for Cooper at the park later that afternoon. It was nice seeing family and there was even a little breeze to keep us from baking in the sun too badly. It has been hot here! After the park, Mark took Cooper, John and 4 of Cooper's friends to pizza and swimming for 3 hours. What a Dad! They had a blast! We had no camera at the park to document his b-day, which I'm sad about, but at least I've journaled it here, right?

Today was the first day of school. The kids were so excited, especially Ella. I only wish the jumping up and getting ready quickly and being happy would last all year! Again, we had camera issues and the batteries ran out after only 5 back to school pictures. I'm glad I took the group pictures first. It was a quiet day for Seth and I. He even took a little nap for me and wasn't as bored as I was afraid he'd be. It was fun to pay a little more attention just to him and to talk to him. He's a good boy and so badly wants to go to school like the others. At Back to School Night last night he brought his back pack too and rolled it around to all of the kids' classes. So cute! Well here are a few of the pictures we did manage to get this weekend and today.

Double Digits

Chuck E Cheese (May 2004)

Cooper holding newborn Seth (February 2005)

Brothers w/ new haircuts (October 2005)

Whitefish Lake, Montana (July 2005)

Receiving a medal for running laps at school (May 2006)

First year of tackle football (September 2007)

Backpacking at Loon Lake (July 2008)

Today our Coop is turning double digits! I can't believe it's been 10 years now that he's been a part of our hearts! He's a great kid and adds a lot to our family. He's funny and full of energy. There's never a dull moment w/ him around. If there's anything that's daring to be done, he'll give it a try. Because of this, he's had more accidents and been hurt more than any of the other kids. Some interesting things about Cooper are ~ 1) When he gets sick, he gets really sick. He's been in the hospital 4 times in his life for different things (none of which proved to be serious, thankfully.) 2)Kind of on the flip side of getting really sick from time to time, the kid is strong! He's been abnormally strong from the time he was a baby. He can give kids older and bigger than him a run for their money in arm wrestling, wrestling, etc. 3) He's a good chess player. 4) He's competitive and likes sports. He used to ask me what would happen if when he got older he was too good to play football for the BSU Broncos. 5) Though some would never guess it, Cooper is very sensitive and loving. He loves his family and friends and likes to make them happy and tries to do what is right, even when it's hard for him. We love you very much Cooper! Happy Birthday!

Random Thoughts and Pictures

So, I've been a bad blogger. When it's been so long since I've updated, I get overwhelmed and don't do it at all I guess. We've all been doing well and having a good summer. Baby and I seem to be getting along just fine. Our household is anxiously awaiting the next month. Here are a few highlights and pictures of everyone's activities (they're not exactly in chronological order.)
This was a while back, but I made mention at the beginning of the summer of John going on a Grandma and Grandpa trip w/ Grandparents Bishop. They started w/ the oldest grandchildren and take a couple each year to do something fun w/ them. John and Paige, Brent and Jen's daughter from Utah, went to Yellowstone. Mark's sister Janice, and her kids, also went w/ them. They got these great hats in the park. Grandpa's hat flew off down a canyon somewhere. They decided to not try and go after it. They saw the play Oklahoma while they were there, which John especially loved. He had a great time w/ everyone. They stayed overnight in Idaho Falls and went to the temple's Visitor's Center.



John attended Scout camp for the first time and was gone for 6 nights. He loved it and got 3 complete merit badges I think, and parts of others, and a whole lot of mosquito bites. Mark was able to join him for the last few days of it, which was nice. It was at Island Park, in Yellowstone I believe, so it was far away from home. So he's been to Yellowstone twice this summer, lucky kid. My favorite part of having him gone was getting a letter from him in the mail from scout camp. You always hear about getting letters from your kids away at camp. I also like the basket he made me as part of his basketry merit badge. He lost his scout shirt while swimming in the lake, so the rest of Camp he had to wear Mark's. John is in the red shorts w/ the gigantic, over-sized shirt on. Hilarious.


John went w/ the Youth of our ward to Martin's Cove Wyoming on a Handcart Pioneer Trek. It was a once in a lifetime experience for him that I know he'll always remember. They walked a total of 26 miles pushing the handcarts. They reenacted some of the events that took place in the Willie and Martin Handcart Companies. What a spiritual experience! He walked for an ancestor from the Gunnerson and Bishop sides. The ward is providing a DVD of the experience, which I'm glad of, because I don't have any pictures of our little pioneer.


Mark and some of his brothers and their kids went backpacking to Loon Lake. Cooper got to go along. It was his special thing this summer, and he had a great time. He carried a pack that was 30-35 pounds(Cooper only weighs 68 pounds) and carried it without help until the end. What a strong kid! Look at those little legs underneath the huge pack! They caught frogs and saw the ruins of a fighter jet that had crashed and had many other fun experiences.

Seth has been up to no good this summer. He has been busy figuring things out, such as this. He's a little sweetie.

Ella lost her first tooth this summer. It always makes them look so much older. The tooth fairy left her a bracelet.


We've enjoyed a family reunion on the Bishop side. It's always great to be w/ family and the kids love being w/ their cousins. We've had fun welcoming home Brian and Kamber from England (Mark's brother and his family) and then bid farewell to Steve and Amanda and their family as they moved (another of Mark's brothers and his family.) We didn't get many pictures of the reunion. Here's one of some of the group at a park in Melba where we met for lunch before going swimming at Givens Hot Springs. They had the neatest old swing there. To close the reunion we had a family talent show. Amanda was the MC.




We had the opportunity to go to the Twin Falls Temple Open House. There was a special spirit in the temple and we all enjoyed it quite a bit. Ella loved the brides room the most and Cooper liked all of the rooms except the Women's dressing room which we briefly walked through. Funny! We made a little trip out of it and stayed the night in a hotel. The kids and Mark swam and we ordered a movie to our room and relaxed. We went to see Shoshone Falls, which was gorgeous! Notice the rainbow at the bottom of the picture?