Utah's Hogle Zoo

Mommy: We finally used our Zoo passes that Sam, Greg, & Caleb got us for Christmas last year. We were so excited to take Henry and John! We went on a nice warm day, without too much heat, and had a great time just the 4 of us. Henry had so much fun. In this post, Henry and I collaborated. My words will be in normal font, Henry's in Italics. :)

Mommy and Daddy took us to the Zoo on Saturday! I was really excited, because I remembered playing with the big ball and going on the train when I went with Nana and Papa for my birthday. I was also really excited to get drinks out of the Lion drink things!
Yes, Derek and I both remember the Lion drinking fountains from our childhood, and we have photos of us getting drinks out of them, as well. Henry was really excited about them (there are 2) and wanted to get lots of drinks.

As soon as we got there, Mommy had to feed Johnny. Again. Babies have to eat lots of times. 
While I fed Johnny, Derek and Henry explored the monkey house. Then we sat and ate some of our lunch. Or rather Derek and I ate some grapes, and Henry had some Pringles. After that, we got everybody loaded up and went to see the elephants. We were so sad to hear that we had just BARELY missed them swimming in their pool, but they did come over right by us to eat!
I liked watching the baby elephant eat her hay. She used her nose to put it in her mouth! That's silly. 

Next, we went to see the seals and the polar bear. The seals were swimming in their pool, and went right by me! I was really excited to see them swim by. The polar bear walked right by me, too! Daddy liked seeing the Grizzly Bears. They were outside playing in they fountain (Mommy's note: Henry uses they for their, me for my, and other things like that. I'm trying not to edit what he says about the zoo, so sorry if you get confused.) I wanted to see the polar bear some more, but there was lots of peoples in there. So, Mommy and Daddy said we could go see something else. 

We found a T-Rex at the zoo! Mommy said he was a nice T-Rex and that I could go say hi to him. 
It was fun seeing the dinosaurs at the zoo, they are special until the end of September. To be honest, Henry was less excited about them than we thought he would be, because he was too distracted with all the animals. Which is just great!

Derek and I both shared a favorite part this time: the leopard. When we arrived at his enclosure, he was pacing right in front of the window. There was a handful of kids right at the window, squealing and giggling any time he went by. Of course when they did that, he came right at them! It was pretty awesome. John was pretty captivated, and Henry loved squealing along with the other kids, and thought the "big kitty" was cool, too.
Mommy said that big kitty was saying hi to me! I think so, too. 

After the big kitty (the tiger and lions were sleeping), we went on the train! I helped Daddy buy the tickets, and then we all sat together. We rode by the giraffes and zebras! I liked riding on the train. 
Johnny, on the other hand, did NOT like the train very much. While he didn't scream, he cried just a little bit. It was very squeaky, and he is quite sensitive to noises like that. Poor little thing. He was glad when it was over, I think!

Our last animal stop before we left was the small animals, which includes the reptiles. Ew. I tried to be excited for Henry, though, because he has decided to be very fascinated by snakes, much to my horror.
I saw lots of nakes! Some big nakes and some mean nakes. 

After that, we went to the splash pad area so I could feed Johnny again before we got in the car to go home. Henry and Daddy played in the water for a bit, and then we headed to the shop. Where one of my nightmares came true.
Mommy and Daddy let me get a nake to bring home!
Yes, I did. A rubber snake lives at my house now. Here's what happened: I went in with Johnny to find postcards and maybe a small animal. Henry had just told us his favorite part was the polar bear and the elephants, so I was looking for a little plastic polar bear for him to play with at home. Unfortunately, the only ones I could find were really expensive, so I kept looking around. I took too long, and Henry and Daddy came in to find me. Henry found these MASSIVE stuffed animal snakes that he really liked. They cost more than I wanted to spend, so I convinced him to find something else.  Well, I saw some other polar bear toys out of the corner of my eye and headed towards them. Much to my dismay and horror (yes, horror is the only word really) the rubber snakes were in a basket just below the polar bears. And guess who spotted them before I could run away. "My have one of those nakes, Daddy?" (yes, he knows already who to ask). "Pwease Daddy?" Derek gave me that look. That look of "I know you hate this and you want to scream and cry, but I'm not going to say no so you better figure out how you're going to deny your child something he really wants." Yes, that look. And then the snake started talking to me, via Henry of course. "My go home with Henry? Ok." I couldn't talk him out of it. I tried to show him the polar bear, the elephant, the otter. Nope. "Nake, Mommy?" By now, he knew that we had decided to let him bring one toy home, so he had us (ok, me) in his clutches.

Finally, I caved. I made him choose a bright green, not so realistic snake to take home. He was SO excited. He carried it up to the register and it talked to him the whole way. "Hi Henry, Hi Mommy, Hi Daddy, Hi Johnny," it said. "My going home with you!"

I'm glad he was so happy about it, really. But it is, ugh. Gross. I HATE snakes. All shapes, sizes, dimensions, and materials. Yes, I hate rubber snakes, too.

But, I have to admit, he is cute with it. On the way home, the snake said: "My happy!"
"Why are you happy, Mr. Snake?" Daddy said.
"Cause my with Henry. My happy!"


Sigh....so it begins.......

--Little Brute and Jen

Middle of September

It's the middle of September, and Instagram just informed me that Johnny is now 14 weeks. Wow. Can you believe that? And my Henry is 2 years and 7 months on Tuesday. Yikes--I'm getting old. The boys have been doing and changing so much lately, I thought I'd get a few things written down.

Henry:

• Henry is still quite obsessed with his "bwankie." he wants to take it everywhere, and as soon as he gets hurt or upset he says he "needs bwankie." It's the only consequence that makes a difference when he's being naughty (which is quite rare. Usually just when he's harassing the cat.)
• Speaking of the cat, Henry does still love Rowena, but I have to tell him several times a day to leave kitty alone. 
• Henry, unfortunately, as discovered that he likes rubber snakes. Grandpa and Grandma have two at their house, and he found them in the toy box once. Every time we've gone out there since, it's the first thing he looks for. He wants to carry them all over and has even requested to have them in bed. So, snakes nap with him and go to bed with him. (EW!!!) Unfortunately, he and Daddy convinced me to let him get a rubber snake at the zoo this week, so now we have a lime green monstrosity at our house, too. At this moment, he is in his bed cuddled up with his bwankie clutching "Mr. Snake." It sort of makes me want to freak out, but he loves it so much....oh well. 
• Henry is learning his letters and is doing really well. He loves to watch the Leap Fog "The Letter Factory," and has learned the sounds of all the letters. He often points them out to me on signs when we are out and about, particularly the letters H, W, S, and M. Come to think of it, it was "The Letter Factory" that got him excited about snakes--for the letter S, a snake comes to teach the S letters their sound. "Ssssss!" For a while, Henry wanted me to rewind it and let him watch the "nake one" over and over again. 
• He likes watching sports with his Daddy. Any sport, really, he enjoys. 
• We played kickball with the family (my siblings and Nana and Papa) over Labor Day Weekend, and asks to play kickball almost every day now. 
• He's still a picky eater, which is rather frustrating. He does like to dip chips in chili, and asks for "chips and chiwee" almost every day for lunch. 
• Two funny stories about silly phrases: Uncle Greg was talking about a toy that Caleb has that tells what each body part is and what color it is. He said "Blue Ear" and Henry just started laughing uncontrollably. Seriously, for almost 30 minutes he was laughing hysterically and saying "blue ear!" Now, whenever we say it, he laughs. 
• The other thing that makes him laugh is "Banana peel." Derek was getting him out of the car at Old Navy a week or so ago, and almost slipped on a banana peel. Henry thought that was hilarious, and now laughs when you say "banana peel" to him. 
• He still likes to vacuum a lot, and reminds me most days. 
• Henry likes to play "nicken" (kitchen) in Nana's play house. He's recently started pretending that some of his other toys are food or drinks. He likes to "cook dinner" for me in the playhouse, and we are often out there for an hour or two. 
• Henry still loves watering flowers and mowing the lawn. 
• He also really enjoys sitting on the deck chairs and "watching the trees grow." Several times a day, he will inform me that he wants to go outside and sit on "his deck." He takes his blanket, spreads it out on his chair, and will just sit and look around for a while. He loves it when Derek or I join him, of course, but he will sit out there peacefully for ten to fifteen minutes at least once a day. 

John:

• He LOVES to laugh and smile. Particularly at his Daddy. After he eats, he just wants to talk to me or to Daddy and smile and smile. 
• He's also recently discovered chewing on his hands. Or his blankie. He gets pretty excited when he can get one or the other into his mouth. Sometimes, it looks like he's going to be a thumb sucker, but mostly he likes to chew on it. 
• John also loves to blow spit bubbles. As soon as I wipe his chin and mouth, he starts gurgling and blowing bubbles again. 
• After John eats, he expects to be able to lay down somewhere and stretch. He gets quite frustrated if he isn't in a position to kick his legs and wiggle around a lot. 
• John also really likes to lay under the little jungle thing and look at the lights, as well as listen to the jungle noises. 
• He loves to watch Rowena, and often laughs at her. 
• His favorite thing, however, is watching Henry. When Henry laughs, he will grin and laugh, too. Sometimes, when he can see Henry playing or Henry comes up close to him, he will just grin and laugh. 
• Unlike Henry, John has loved his baths from day 1. He relaxes and chills in his chair (we have a bath chair that he uses and takes a bath in the sink). I love giving him baths, because he really just enjoys it. We've put him in the bath with Henry a couple of times, and he really likes that. Henry tolerates it, but now will ask take a bath "by me-self" sometimes. 
• John has gotten pretty good at holding his head up, but he still wobbles quite a bit. He actually likes tummy time, but instead of trying to hold is head up, will just snuggle down and get cozy. I think he'll be a stomach sleeper when he's strong enough to roll over on his own. 

Johnny's Birth Story

Once again, I have Dr. Harrison to thank for starting my labor. On Wednesday, June 3, I had my 36 week appointment. Since I've been having so much pain, she checked my cervix--I was 70% effaced and around 2 cm (+) dilated. I left the office feeling like progress would continue and then spent the rest of the day fighting the increasing pain of what I felt was labor.

Corinne and her family were here visiting from Texas, and we spent the day outside helping Nana get ready for the garden show. We painted birdhouses, cleaned up the yard, decorated the play house, and even took a trip to the DI where we found treasures to enhance the cuteness of said playhouse. All the while, I kept having these terrible pains, cramps, really. I told my Mom and Corinne I felt like baby was coming that day.

A little nervous, but mostly excited, I tried to take it a little easy, but not so easy that my labor stopped. Imagine my disappointment when, that evening, I suddenly felt really good with no more labor. We had dinner and did the bedtime routine with Henry as usual. I went to bed a little sad but fine with not having the baby before he's full term.

Around 3:30 am, I awoke with a terrible pain in my abdomen and back. I took a few deep breaths and it went away, and I fell back asleep. Just ten minutes later, the pain was back. This cycle continued for about an hour. I tried to keep track of the times, hoping for more sleep for both Derek and me,  but I knew this was labor: he's coming!

Finally, at 5:00 I woke Derek up and told him I was in labor. We tracked the contractions for about twenty minutes, and we both realized that I better get to the hospital: contractions every five minutes for about a minute? Yeah, get out the door Mama!

I went upstairs to my parent's house (we're renting the apartment in the basement) and told my mom we were leaving for the hospital. She came down and spent the rest of the early morning in our bed so she could take care of Henry.

Before we left, I went quietly into Henry's room and kissed him on the head. Little did he know that his whole world was about to change, all while he slept peacefully in bed. It was hard, leaving him like that. I'm excited for him to have a brother and for all that that entails, but at the same time, I am worried for all the changes he will go through. As we left our house, I said a quick prayer for my Henry boy.

We got in the car and headed to Timpanogos Regional Medical Center in Orem, laughing as we both realized we prefer traffic at 5:30 am: no other cars to deal with! I was really struggling with the pain of my contractions, and watched as the minutes ticked by. Like clockwork, every five minutes the pain racked my abdomen and back with a vengeance. I forgot how painful contractions are! Thank goodness for that, cause I'm not sure I would do it over and over again. Good thing the reward is awesome.

We checked in at the hospital just a few minutes before six. It was quiet and peaceful in the Women's Center. Derek took his spot in the chair next to me while the nurse got the monitors hooked up to my belly and we listened to the steady heartbeat of our baby boy for the next couple of hours. Derek texted his parents and our siblings once we were sure they weren't going to send me home (I wasn't worried. I knew this was happening) and then got a bit of sleep, which he desperately need. I closed my eyes and rested between contractions, which was sort of a joke since they were coming exactly five minutes apart still.

Dr. Harrison arrived around 7:30 and checked me. Yep, almost all the way effaced and 4 dilated. She guessed I'd go to a 7 and then all the way within the next couple of hours, especially if I got my epidural.

The same with my labor with Henry, I requested the epidural after we'd been in the hospital about 3 hours, around 8. I was pleased that Dr. Jones, the anesthesiologist, was able to get to me so quickly, as he arrived just about 10 minutes after I asked for it. The process was quick and easy, and within just a few minutes I felt the delightful numbing of my lower body.

And then suddenly, it wasn't so delightful. While I could still wiggle my left foot and toes, my right leg was completely numb. So numb that it began aching. It hurt so badly, and I felt a bit panicked that I couldn't feel anything (which is weird, since it hurt. I can't explain it.) I asked Derek to grab my toes to help me calm down. He scooted his chair to the end of my bed, and spent the next three hours grabbing my foot every couple of minutes while he read The Wright Brothers.

One thing I felt quite frustrating, was all the "gloom and doom" from the nurses. Our baby was born almost a month early, and it seemed that every nurse that came in talked to me about my premie baby. He could spend time in the NICU, he might have problems, he might struggle with breathing, etc. etc. I was starting to feel panicked and it was quite stressful. They had a NICU specialist come in, even, and let me know that if baby had any issues, he would be taken straight to the NICU. It was hard for me to relax, thinking about that, but (luckily) they finally started leaving me alone and I got some sleep.

At 10:30, I felt a sudden bit of pressure. "Um, Derek?" I said. He looked up at me. "I think I can feel the baby's head."

"Oh?" he said in his usual (somewhat annoying) calm. "Call the nurse."

Karlie came in, a bit dubious I think, and checked me. She put her hand up between my legs and suddenly I felt the baby completely turn over. I gasped, and Karlie said "That's his head! Cross your legs, Jen! We need to get Dr. Harrison here right away."

So I did. I crossed my legs, trying to hold our little baby inside. Our little baby who was in a big hurry to get here.

Dr. Harrison arrived at about 11, and the other nurses came in to help us (they never told me their names, but I was a bit preoccupied anyway). Derek wrote down all the predictions for his weight and length, while I was prepped for delivery. I still couldn't feel my legs at all, so the nurses propped them up on the stirrups for me, and I braced myself to push. Derek held my hand and stood up by my head.

"You ready for this?" I said.

"Well, no going back now." He smiled.

"Ok Jennifer, let's push with this next contraction," Dr. Harrison instructed me.

I felt the pressure and began mimicking what I thought would be pushing. "Go, go, go, push, push, push!" She said. Apparently what I did worked, because she said, "he's right here, just a few more I think." Derek said some words of encouragement that I can't remember, but I do remember that it was more than the 3 or 4 words he said during Henry's birth (that was one of our goals, for Derek to actually talk to me during labor. :D).

I breathed for a few minutes, then: "here we go." I pushed again, "Oh wow, there's his hair!" I pushed for the whole contraction. "He's almost there. One more contraction, I think." We waited for about ten seconds. "I think he's ready. Let's just push, Jen."

So I did. I pushed without the contraction, and within just a minute, Dr. Harrison pulled my very purple and screaming little boy out of me. She cut the umbilical cord and held him up for me to see. At first, I thought "uh, are you sure that's a baby?" But the color quickly flushed through his face and I saw just how beautiful he was. He was wiped off quickly, a diaper and a hat put on him, and weighed and measured him: 6 pounds 6 ounces, 19 inches long. And then I was holding him, clutching him to my breast as he cried, looking for anything familiar.

It felt so strange, being in that moment again. It felt like deja vu, but at the same time completely new. Dr. Harrison delivered the placenta, stitched me up (just a few stitches this time! It was only a first degree tear) and then we were left alone for a while, just the three of us. I kept looking at this little person, this little boy that had joined our family. I felt overwhelmed, not sure if I was ready to be a mommy to two. But as he calmed down and looked up into my eyes, I felt so grateful to have him. I knew he and Henry needed each other, for one reason or many that I don't know yet, but I am sure of. His warm skin against mine felt so nice as we bonded for the next half an hour.

Quite by surprise, however, I heard my Mom's voice in the hallway. And my beautiful little Henry came in to the room holding her hand. I was so pleased to see them, so glad that Henry would be one of the first to meet his little brother.

But the whole hospital situation overwhelmed him. I was still had an IV, there were lots of machines and things in the delivery room, and he wasn't comfortable with the situation at all. I was crushed that he didn't want to sit with me, but I understood that it was a lot for a two-year-old to take in all at once.

Henry looked at our little baby as his Daddy held him up so he could see, and proudly told me that he had brought me "dellow flowies." I admired the yellow mums out loud.

"He picked them out," my mom said. "First ones he saw and they were definitely the ones he wanted to get you." She had also brought me some pink flowers, and they were set up on the table next to me. This whole time, our baby was still against my skin, listening to the voices of his family as they wafted around the room.

My Dad arrived shortly after that, and Derek held baby for just a few minutes before handing him to my mom to see. Tom and Cindy walked in just moments later, and it was a bit busy and a bit noisy all at once.

"So, his name?" Tom asked.

I looked at Derek. "John Wellington Bruton." I said. Yes, that's it, I thought, looking over at the little bundle in my Mom's arms.

It wasn't long before Henry discovered the foaming hand sanitizer, which he decided was amazing and that he needed to have some every 90 seconds or so. He made sure everyone had some, then went back again and again to make sure his own hands were clean.

Cindy had a turn holding baby, and then the tired hit me. I think everyone noticed, because it was just a minute or two later that everyone was saying their good-byes and "we'll be back later."

It was quiet again, and just the three of us. I already missed Henry, and wished that he could have stayed with us. I felt a little hole in my heart without him there, wishing our family of four could be together for a while.

But the quiet was nice. Derek handed our Little John back to me and I kissed his cheek. "Well, Daddy," I said. "Now we are four."






The next 48 hours rushed by in a quiet sort of way. Both sets of grandparents came to visit, each with enough time to hold our Little John, but not too long. Derek and I both agreed that Henry needed to have Daddy at home, particularly at night, so John and I spent a lot of time together just the two of us. While I missed Derek, it was quite relaxing to just worry about me and Little John. It also forced me to get out of bed a bit more, which was good and I believe helped in my postpartum recovery. Johnny and I watched HGTV, we read 101 Dalmations, and cuddled. Lots of cuddling.

But it wasn't all relaxing and bliss. Since Johnny was a LPT (Late Pre-Term), they were keeping a close eye on him. One of the things they checked was his blood sugar, to make sure that his body handled it correctly after he ate. Unfortunately, he failed the first couple of tests. That meant for at least 36 hours, he had to have his little heel poked and squeezed for a blood test. By the end of the first day, both of his heels were bruised and swollen. One of his hands had an IV in it, so they could draw blood that way if need be. He kept getting it caught on his shirt and his blanket, which I know was painful for him. Every three hours, a nurse would come in to make sure I had fed him and then poke my little baby. It seemed that his  cries got worse with each poke, and I was starting to feel annoyed. He passed each test after failing the first one, and I just wanted them to leave him alone. But by our second night, he was given the all clear and no more pokes. They FINALLY took the IV out (which they didn't ever end up using. Another Mama Bear moment, as I demanded they take it out). I was so grateful that he could finally rest and his feet could recover.

Another thing that happened since Johnny was an LPT, was a carseat test. He had to sit in his carseat for 90 minutes, observed by the nurses, to make sure his oxygen levels didn't go down. Apparently, LPTs sometimes struggled with getting enough oxygen if they are in carseats for a while, because of the position they are in. Luckily, Johnny passed. Whew.

Henry came by again our second day, which was nice. I was able to get out of bed and sit on the rocking chair, and he actually sat in my lap and helped me feed Little John. I think he was a little more comfortable without me being all hooked up to IVs and things, so he could see me better. He enjoyed the hand sanitzer again, and liked eating the crackers that the nurse brought for me. One thing I found quite funny, was that Henry thought that I was at work. He referred to the hospital as "my office." He was also quite proud of the "Big Brother" bracelet that he received at the front desk the first time he came to see us, and showed it to me several times.

While I desperately missed Derek and Henry during those hours I was in the hospital, I was very grateful for the one on one time with Johnny. I think it helped with our bonding, that I was able to hold him so much. We had a lot of skin to skin time as we got to know each other.

On Saturday morning, Derek and Henry arrived ready to bring me home. Henry was so excited and said "ready come home, Mommy?" as soon as they walked in the door. He wanted me to come right then, but we still had a few things to do to get ready. We got Johnny dressed in his new outfit, I had some lunch, and we got all of my things together. And then suddenly, the nurse was there, helping us check out. We walked out to the car, the four of us, and we were on our way home.

We were welcomed home with a sign made by Nana and Aunt Chels, as well as some beautiful flowers from the Brutons and another bouquet from some of my co-workers. It was so nice to be home, but all that was enough for me--I was already tired and actually missing the peace and quiet of the hospital. But with my three boys around me, I knew that things would get better. I was so grateful to have my Henry and my Derek back with me. Our little family of 4 was all together.

Family Portraits

It was tough for me to narrow it down to just 30..but I did it. :) I wanted to get some up for family to see who don't have access to them (ahem, big sis Corinne!). Enjoy. :)

Rebekah holding Johnny MAKES this picture. LOVE IT!

Movie Night at Lavell Edwards Stadium

Beginning last year, BYU has had a movie night at Lavell Edward's Stadium, where families can bring their blankets, pillows, etc., and sit on the grass to enjoy a family friendly movie. This year, they showed Big Hero 6 on Friday night (the 13th!). We decided that even though it was late (the movie started at 9pm) we would go for a while and leave when people started getting tired. By people I mean Henry. 

We had a blast. We got there just after 8 so we could get a good spot (good thing, too! It filled up!) and enjoyed running around on the grass. Henry ate almost a whole bag of popcorn, a ton of fruit snacks, and some oreos--and that was before the movie started!

My favorite part, though, was running with Henry across the field. He loved running on the white lines, and yelling "Touch down!" any chance he got. Every time he said it, he would lift his arms above his head, and then touch the ground. Literally touching down. It's awesome. 

He also got the new BYU football promotional poster, which he was super excited about. He kept unrolling it and looking at it. We hung it on his door, and he loves looking at it. 

Johnny fell asleep pretty early on, so Derek and I took turns sitting on the blanket with him and then running about with Henry before the movie started. Once 9 o'clock hit, the lights went off, and the screen on. It was really fun, watching the movie! Henry actually watched a good portion of it, and then ate his snacks the other bit. Johnny woke up about 9:45 and wanted to eat, so I got him fed, and then we looked at the time. Almost 10:15. We decided that it was time to go home while everyone was still happy--end on a high note, as it were. 

We packed up all of our pillows and blankets and fruit snack wrappers, and headed out to the car. We had a GREAT time and I can't wait to do it again next year!

The next two pictures are of Henry doing "touch down." First hands up, then down to the ground!

BYU Women's Soccer vs. Arizona State

Last night, we took the boys to the BYU Women's Soccer game against ASU. It was an exhibition game, and school hasn't started yet, so we thought it would be pretty empty. Let's just say it was a good thing we got there early, because it was crowded!

We ended up with fantastic front row seats--which was good, because our Little Brute didn't really have any interest in watching the game. Oh, he watched here and there, ("that ball fly Daddy!") but mostly he wanted to play with the rocks under the bleachers, "run on grass with Mommy," "drink from fountain," and "get an-udder drink." It's ok, though, because we had a lot of fun and Derek and I actually got to watch a good portion of the game, as we took turns. And the grass is right by the pitch, so we could watch Henry run around with the other kids and still see the game. :)

Johnny was a champ and loved being at the game. He ate right at the beginning, then spent the next hour and 15 minutes grinning, talking, and kicking his legs. He even watched the game a little! At the end, I wrapped him up, gave him a binky, and he went right to sleep. He even slept through 3 corner kicks, which, at BYU, means everyone stomping on the bleachers and making a terrific noise. I was impressed.

While we were there, we got to see Cosmo! Poor Henry, though! I asked him if he wanted to go talk to Cosmo and give him a high 5, and he said yes. So we walked over to Cosmo, Henry said, "Mommy do it?" and so I gave him a high 5. But Cosmo, trying to get Henry to laugh, grabbed his hat. Henry started crying. Cosmo put it back on his head, backwards. "Hat on wrong Mommy!" Needless to say, Henry's shyness was not helped by Cosmo's teasing. Luckily, though, a few minutes later Henry was back to talking about how cool Cosmo was and wanted to go get a picture with him. :) Ahh, the mood swings of a two year old!

And we did get a picture with Cosmo! At least the boys did. Henry kept looking at Cosmo and not at the camera, so our photos aren't necessarily picture perfect, but that's ok. I'm still glad I have one of my 3 boys with my favorite cougar!