Our weekend

On Saturday I ran my 2nd half marathon! Yay, I'm so glad it's done! This particular run benefits local families fighting cancer. It's named after a little girl, London, who passed away 5 years ago during her treatment of Leukemia. For more info on her, click here.

It was neat to be there for the opening ceremony and see the families and children that are continuing their fights with cancer. I knew a few of the kids and parents there and I am so glad to see the money that was earned for the race will be going towards the treatment of these kiddos.

During the run, there were pictures posted next to the mile markers of the kids currently fighting or those that have lost their battles with cancer with phrases like "Running is Easy, Cancer is Hard!" or "Keep going" or "Dont give up!" Pictures like this one of our Bree:

(taken almost exactly 1 year ago)

Everytime I would pass a picture, I would get shivers & feel touched by these sweet children. I even ended up crying while I ran because I would think back to when Bree was battling cancer and all the emotions that came with it. I also thought about Layla (see my post below). Seeing the pictures would also give me the motivation to "keep going" and finish the race.

I'm glad I did it and accomplished my goal. It felt good to run! Here's a few of the girls I trained with. (L to R: Amber, Collette & me)

Here's a few other pictures of our weekend. I actually took this one last week because Gunner was cracking me up. He loves swords (go figure) and kept trying to put it through the belt loops on his pants. Instead, he figured this would suffice:

The kids were having a blast in the bath together and I wanted to capture their sweet faces. I didnt get too many because they were tossing water everywhere and I feared for the life of my camera!

Then, today we just relaxed as a family after church. We made cookies, had a yummy dinner and just hung out! I snapped a few pics of my favs!

I promise Bree didn't stick her finger in a light socket, this girl's hair is just naturally fluffy! It's so wild & crazy, just like her! I wouldn't take her any other way!

Until the next time....

Saying Goodbye

Today I received some bad news. Bree's little friend Layla passed away this week. I don't have many details. The only thing I do know is that she passed away in her sleep.

We met Layla and her Mom, Nicole, back in April of last year. Bree had a bacterial infection in her line and we were in the hospital for our 5 day stay until she got better. While we were walking around the halls of our hospital room, we met a cute little girl with dark brown eyes and a beautiful bald head. She was very friendly and interested in Breezy. They shared the common bond of having the same cancer. With neuroblastoma, it's not that common to meet someone else because it is such a rare cancer. Layla showed us some of her scars and wanted to see some of Bree's too.

From then on, Nicole and I kept in contact. They weren't from the Phoenix area so they would travel down and stay at a Ronald McDonald house while Layla received chemotherapy. Whenever they came to town for treatments, we'd try to go visit them. Layla liked baby dolls just like Bree. They were cute friends, even though they were 5 years apart. Kindred spirits I guess! We visited Layla on her 6th birthday (which she spent at the hosptial) and gave her a bunch of toys to brighten her day.

She had been through so much. Nicole has been through so much as well. As a parent, it's so hard to watch your child suffer with a disease like cancer. I am at a loss for words at the moment. My heart hurts for this family because they watched Layla fight for so long. The part that gives me comfort is that she is now free from her little body that was sick for so long. She is now with a loving God that carried her and her family through their journey.

Goodbye sweet Layla. Until we meet again. We love you!

**If anyone would like to check her caring bridge site or inquire about funeral details, please leave a comment with an email and I will contact you. (I will delete the comment if you dont want your email shown) Thanks for reading!

Thirty Something

Today is Justin's birthday! He's 33 and he's the love of my life. This man is kind, gentle & loving. He's fun and silly yet can be serious when he needs to be. He's a wonderful Daddy who loves our kids and takes the time to play with them, teach them life lessons and always teaching them about the gospel of Jesus Christ. He often listens to me ramble and is my own personal "counselor." (I've told him so many times that he'd be a great psychologist because he listens well and always has the greatest advice.) He's a strong, yet sensitive man and I love that about him. We've been through so much in our 10+ years together. I'm grateful I have him for eternity! Love ya babe, and Happy Birthday!

For Christmas Justin surprised me with a new 50mm lens for our camera.

One word: Heavenly!

I can take lots of close-up shots and fun ones of the kids with that natural "fuzzy" background. I've been having fun with it over the past few weeks. The kids love to be my guinea pigs...not that I know what I'm doing. :)

Here's a few of my favorites over the past few weeks.

This girl will stop and pose everytime I get the camera out. She loves to give me a big toothy grin and say "Cheese!"

Gunner will most often pose in some super-hero stance. I dont know what he's doing here.

More from the little lady in red:

One of Gunner's favorite presents from Christmas was his battle gear and sword. And yet again, another fighting stance:

Caleb's sweet smile:

One Sunday after church I made cookies and Caleb downed about 5 in one sitting. I guess he liked them a little.

That's all for now! More to come later!

Christmas Eve & Day

We had a wonderful Christmas this year. We celebrated Christmas Eve with Justin's family. We all got together for a yummy dinner then shared presents with each other and had the kids perform Luke 2. It was SO GREAT to be together with family.

Before I put all the pictures together from our festivies, I wanted to post this picture: For anyone that hasn't gone shopping on December 24th, dont go! I went to pick up a few last minute things that we needed for the parties and it was InSaNe! So many people! Anyway, I took a picture of Breezy that I wanted to share because she has enough hair for pigtails! Yay!

Okay, on to the fun...

Grandma & Grandpa Cook gave presents to the kids. Caleb loved and still loves his book! Thanks G & G Cook!

Caleb's cute smile!

Gunner told everyone the story of baby Jesus and how the wisemen "followed the star." He reminded us of a little missionary!

Grandpa Cook with some of the grandkids. He is adored by all the kids!

It wouldn't be a family get together without a wrestling match! Thanks Uncle Scott!

Alisa & Joe (and baby #3 due in April!)

Uncle Tyson showing off his guns:

This was the only picture of the Nativity scene I took. Oh well, at least we got a video!

Bree played "the star" in the story of Luke 2, this is why Justin is holding her high in the air. We decorated her with leftover tree decor so she would "shine" like the star! We had a great time being together and sharing together the most important part of Christmas...remembering the Savior's birth. The next day was very busy! We celebrated Christmas with our own family then went over to my parents house for brunch and then to Justin's parents for dinner and more presents! Whew! It was quite a day!

Gunner was all business on Christmas morning.

Caleb enjoying his presents.

GaGa (Grandma) Smith.

Breezy & Papa, helping her with her new heels. :)

Papa, cousin Corinne & Breezy

We hope everyone had a very Merry Christmas! The End!

Christmas card & letter

I love LoVe LOVE our Christmas card this year. I wanted to post it so I could let everyone see how cute it turned out. It's so bright and happy. Just my style! My sweet friend Summer designed it for us. She's incredibly talented! The pictures were taken by my other sweet friend Jill. She is a brilliant photographer! See for yourself!

Then, Caleb wrote our letter. This has been our tradition since he was born. If you ask me he is quite the gifted writer! Hope everyone had a great Christmas and has a wonderful New Year!

Merry Christmas to all our Family & Friends! It’s our family tradition that I write our Christmas letter & I’ve heard I do a pretty good job! I am so talented.

I am now 7 years old and very handsome. I am in 1st grade (special ed) and I love school! I love riding the bus everyday and especially like it when the bigger kids (5th & 6th graders) come in and read with me. Even my principal comes in and plays his guitar for me. I still don’t talk but each year I get closer. One day I will figure it out and then make up for lost time. I go to lots of therapies but love my music therapy the most. It’s my favorite time of the week. I love dancing to music, wrestling with Daddy & playing with my dog. This year I took swim lessons & played soccer on the same team as Gunner. One of my highlights this year was going on my first “date” with my schoolteacher, Ms. Amanda. She is awesome. During the summer she missed me so much, she came and picked me up, took me to a movie & then we had a romantic lunch at McDonalds…she knows how I love my chicken nuggets.

Gunner is 4-1/2. He is a great brother to Bree & I. He likes to tell everyone that I’m his best friend! Gunner & I like to go “hunting” in the backyard and fight the “bad guys” all the time. Gunner really liked soccer this year & did great. His specialty was defense because when the other team had the ball Gunner would go after them like I go after ice cream…like a maniac. He scored lots of goals too. He is really smart and says great prayers thanking God for his family and not to be eaten by sharks. He also loves going to preschool with Mrs. Stacey. He loves all his friends from school & church and he also loves riding his bike outside. He loves swords, knives, anything superheroes & especially our Dad.

Bree is almost 2. She is doing great now. She kicked cancer’s butt! (Shhh, don’t tell Mom, I said that word!) She finished her treatment in April & in May her yucky tumor was removed. She was declared in remission on May 27th. Our family thanks Heavenly Father every day for this great blessing. Breezy still receives monthly check-ups and MRIs every 3 months to make sure the cancer stays in remission. Bree and I play really well together. We love to wrestle and laugh. One of my favorite things about Bree is her sassy personality. She lets me know when I get too rough but she is also sweet & quick to give me hugs & kisses. Her favorite things are her blankie, her babies (she has more babies than OctoMom) & our doggie. She loves our Mommy a lot because they spent a lot of time together while she was sick.

Dad is still working in Real Estate. He ranks within the top 1% of his industry. He is very grateful to loyal clients & friends who have allowed him to have another great year. He loves sports & almost had a dream come true when the Cardinals went to the Super bowl. My Dad took me to a couple of Suns game this year. After the games my Dad likes to take me on the court to shoot a free throw, but instead I just like to sprint up & down the court yelling as he chases after me! Mommy still loves to blog and enjoys jogging & the classes at the gym. She is training for a ½ marathon in January. She enjoys taking our pictures with her new camera and loves doing my sister’s hair, Bree finally has enough hair for a ponytail sprout!

We were able to go on a few family trips this year to celebrate Bree’s health. We went to SeaWorld to visit Shamu & play on the beach. Gunner & I loved how the waves would chase us. We also went to the cabin & got to play in the snow up in Flagstaff & go on the Polar Express where I saw my buddy Santa. We had so much fun!

This year we are so grateful to celebrate Jesus’ birthday. I love him so much. Even though I can’t say it out loud I try to show it by hugging and kissing as many people as I can. He has been with our family in so many ways this past year. We love to celebrate his birth and His life during this special ChristmasSeason. Merry Christmas!!

With Love,

Caleb Cook

Merry Christmas!!

With only 2 days left til Christmas, nothing makes me happier than these people right here!

Merry Christmas everyone! Enjoy your little ones on this wonderful day!

P.S. Gotta give props to my friend Jill Rich for taking these amazing pictures! More of these to come!