bandit's 3rd birthday

Our furry little friend Bandit turned three!  No celebration, but he definitely deserves his yearly post of cute pictures!

Helping with laundry!

He loves it when guests stay with us because that means the futon mattress comes out!

No box is too small to fit in!

 

We call him King of the Ottoman Empire:

If we have people working in the house we put him in Brandon's room so he doesn't get in their way.  One day after the piano tuner was here for several hours I went in to get him and could not find him!  Then I noticed a lump under Brandon's comforter and found him like this!

Another day I came home from errands and could not find him in his usual spots.  This is where I found him...in the hallway on the table with the decor!

He loves to lie upside down:

And he enjoys the open spots in the entertainment center:

And these just because they're cute or really good pictures of him:

Sometimes he makes us crazy, but we sure love this little guy and the fun he brings to our house!

piano duet

This summer, Brandon found this Spirit of God duet in a stack of sheet music that we inherited from Kevin's mom when she moved last year.  Brandon and Tyler figured it out together with absolutely no help from me or their piano teacher. This is not an easy piece of music...it has 5 key changes (including 5 flats at one point).  I told them they should play it in sacrament meeting someday.  "Someday" came sooner than we expected when our good friends the Meekers were visiting (she is their piano teacher, he is in the Bishopric) and heard them playing it.  Two weeks later they played it in sacrament meeting.  I was way more nervous than they were, but they did AMAZING and we are so proud of them! 

brandon's birthday party

Now that we have a pool, we will be having be pool parties for birthdays as often as we can.  14 year old boys are pretty easy.  We don't worry much about drowning, just boys showing off and poor judgment so Kevin sat out there the whole time.  We served pizza for dinner and ice cream and cheesecake cookie bars (Brandon's choice) for dessert.  Only about half the boys Brandon invited were able to come, but it was still plenty crazy with only 7 boys!  Brandon has really good friends who are very respectful and are welcome here anytime.

I only took a few photos (and mostly through the window since I got death glares when Brandon saw me with the camera), but I made them sit and smile for me before I gave them pizza and then they cooperated!

L to R: Hunter, Connor, Yang, Jacob, Brandon, Evan (also Josh who came later)

In case you're wondering how much pizza 6 hungry teenage boys go through, the answer is 4.  And 25 Gatorades.

brandon's 14th birthday

I can't believe we have a 14 year old!  Honestly, there were times when he was a baby and toddler that I wasn't sure if any of us would survive. It has not been any easy road, but it gets better each year. Brandon is quite fun to be around (and tease!) and just a really good, responsible kid overall.  He's very self-motivated and will be a success in whatever he chooses to do.

Brandon is not a fan of having his picture taken, so because we did lots of pictures for his Eagle court of honor I did not make him take more for his birthday, so instead I'll share a few of my favorite "out-take" non-posed photos that I caught.  They show some other sides to his personality!

And as always, here's his answers to our traditional birthday quiz:

Favorite Color: Gray

Favorite Number: 7

Favorite Drink: Mountain Dew
 
Favorite Food: Shells & Cheese

Favorite Game: Clash of Clans

Favorite Animal: Octopus

I feel sad when: I don't have any free time

I feel mad when: Tyler and Natalie are annoying

I like it when my friends:  Have the same hobbies as I do

I like it when my teacher: Gives no homework

I wish I could: Have telekenesis (move objects with your mind)

Who is your best friend? Yang

Why? He's smart and has the same interests as I do

What makes you laugh? Puns


What is your favorite movie? Pirates of the Caribbean

What are you afraid of?  Big insects

What is your favorite song? Birdland

What is your favorite thing to do? Football cards

If you were parent for a day, which rule would you get rid of? Video game time limits

What do you want to be when you grow up? A robotic scientist

Do you think it would be hard to be a mom or a dad? Yes

Why? Because kids are annoying

If you could have a magical power, what would you choose? Telekenesis

What three things are you are good at? Memorizing, being trustworthy, and video games

What is the best thing about turning 14?  Moving from Deacons to Teachers

I am special because: I am unique in my own way

eagle court of honor

It was finally time for Brandon's Eagle Court of Honor!

I did the invite photo (above) but asked my good friend Gwen who is a professional photographer to come take pictures for us - one less thing for me to worry about it and I knew we would have beautiful photos.  She did an amazing job!

Display table

 

 

Chris Meeker conducted for us. He is our good friend who also happens to be in our Bishopric and was the Eagle Scout Specialist previously.

 

Tye Havey was the Scoutmaster for most of Brandon's time as a scout. He spoke about the Trail to Eagle and told a story about Brandon on one of their biking adventures.  It was a funny story but also showed that Brandon is a strong worker who does not complain when things get hard.

Presenting the official award!

Parent pins

Brandon in the Eagle's Nest where he will get to sit for the rest of his life!

Our brother-in-law (Brandon's uncle) Tom Turner gave the Eagle Scout Challenge.

Brandon's response to the Challenge and presentation of his mentor pin.  It was a hard decision since he had many amazing scout leaders, several of which have been with him since cub scouts.  But he selected Todd Williams.

I created a video of Brandon's scout journey.  It is crazy to see how much he grew up in six years! Unfortunately, the sound didn't work during the court of honor because technology hates me!


Wade Nielsen is our Stake Eagle Scout Specialist and asked to say a few words.  He spoke about Ethan and Kyle who also became Eagle Scouts before they turned 14.  They have been great friends to Brandon, and together they are setting great examples to the younger boys.

Todd Williams gave some closing remarks and spoke about Brandon's strong leadership skills.

It was wonderful to celebrate Brandon's great accomplishment with so many friends and family, and we missed those who couldn't join us. It was a journey and an evening that we will never forget.  And now we get to start all over again with Tyler!