The Little Van Wagoners....

Maddy Cake Gets A Birthday Cake :)

2012-02-21T10:52:00.000-08:00

On Friday the 17th, our little girl turned 1. I cannot believe it has already been a year since we first held her in our arms. I remember the day she was born like it was yesterday... and probably always will. It was a perfect day. I loved having that unbelievable feeling that she was mine, and that I was hers. Here is her birth story if you want to check it out! http://danashvdubb.blogspot.com/2011/03/shes-here.html I keep reading it over and over. Even though I said I remember like it was yesterday, there still are a few little details that I forget so its fun to look back on. :)

So now here we are today, celebrating that wonderful day! Even though Maddy will not remember her 1st Birthday, I always will. And I am so thankful for my Mom in law and Sis in law for taking pictures and videos the whole time so we can all look back and remember her first birthday! :)

Getting things ready :)

Haha wouldn't you say I am such a talented cake decorator? Yep, I thought so :)

Her party decorations! I made a little banner with pictures of her from every month of her first year. It's fun to see how much she's grown!

She didn't like all the attention she was getting, and when we all started singing to her, she looked like she was on the verge of tears! It was so sad! And she wouldn't even touch her cake! We even tried putting her hands in it, or putting some frosting on her lips, but she was having none of it! That's okay though because her adorable cousin gladly stepped in and helped her out! haha Atleast someone was able to enjoy the cake! :)

So I got her out of her chair and cleaned her off with a towel and she started to play peek a boo! I guess she was feeling better once all that pressure was off for eating the cake!

Happy to be with her Da! (She doesn't say Da-Da anymore, just Da.)

Opening presents! She's trying out her new waterbottle :)

Happy Birthday little one! :)

Hibernation.

2012-02-13T18:58:00.000-08:00

Okay, so I have to confess.... I am DONE with this whole winter thing! I remember back in September I couldn't wait for it to be cold and to see snow falling from the sky, and to spend all day indoors sipping hot cocoa and snuggling under a cozy blanket. But honestly, once Christmas came and went, I was ready to get back into the groove of things. But ironically enough, it seems like the seasons are starting to shift like a whole a month! Last year I remember it didn't even start to get warm till June... JUNE!! I cannot wait that long this time! I wont. Especially now having a little one that LOVES being outdoors, I just feel bad keeping her cooped up in the house all day! Plus, Danny and I are pretty outdoorsy kinda people ourselves and we're just about ready to lose our minds! haha. We feel like we have been hibernating. So needless to say, I am ready for...

Pick nicks

Walks

BBQ's

SWIMMING

The zoo

Laying in the grass and reading books

Cute summer dresses

Hiking

Camping (possibly)

SUNSHINE and awesome tans (I'm tired of this pasty-business)

Trips to the park

Feeding the ducks

Nana and Papa's bon-fire!

Bike rides

And of course, the lake

Summer-time cant get here soon enough! :)

Month 11

2012-01-17T08:42:00.000-08:00

Maddy is officially 11 months old today! And this time last year... I looked like this.

Ahhhhhh!!! I was soooo ready to POP! Little did I know I still had an ENTIRE MONTH left! Stubborn little girl did not want to come out ;)

Oh, but it was sooo worth it!

These past few weeks she has done the cutest thing, she will smile at you while tilting her head to the side and it is so adorable! I tried to get some pictures of her doing it. (sorry if some of them might be a little blurry)

She's gonna be a heart breaker I tell ya!

Oh and she'll shake her head no, but it'll be at the most random times like this... it's so funny!

She has also been doing this fake laugh that is hilarious. I don't have that one on video, though.

But any ways... her birthday is a month away and that means its party time!! And you all are welcome to come :) there will be yummy cupcakes...

(Although, I probably can't decorate them as good as this, but they'll still be yummy! Oh and its Valentines Day themed :)

Cake...

Balloons and party hats...

....and other yummy snacks as well! (Did I bribe you enough?)

Ah! Talking about her party makes me so excited! My baby is going to be one NEXT MONTH! I cant believe it :)

Birthday Boys :)

2012-01-16T13:45:00.000-08:00

My sweet baby brothers had both their birthdays in the past couple weeks! Brandon turned 5 on the 7th and Michael turned 6 today!!! I cant believe it! My babies are growing so fast! haha. Its just crazy to me that it was 5 and 6 years ago when we were all at the hospital anxiously waiting to see them. I am so thankful that things turned out the way they did and these boys were able to come into all of our lives! I love them so much and they make the cutest little Uncles, EVER!

This picture was taken the day Brandon was born <3

Michael welcoming his baby brother with kisses :)

Me and my sweet Brandon... I love him so much because he is my little snuggle buddy. He will hug and squeeze you for as long as he possibly can. I would drive 4 hours just so I can get one of his world famous hugs. And he is the most kind and loving little boy. He melts my heart! He is definitely the "baby" in our family.

And I love Michael because he is soooo funny! He is witty, and charming, and knows how to get what he wants. And he is such a little smarty pants!! This kid seriously knows more stuff then I do sometimes (especially when it comes to sports.)

I absolutely love that they are the best of friends!

Gosh aren't they the cutest?!

And Maddy is one lucky niece! :)

Happy Birthday Michael & Brandon! Sissy loves you both! xoxo!

A great lesson for children :)

2012-01-05T09:51:00.000-08:00

These Kids are so cute!! And this such a great video :) Enjoy!

Pictures from last night :)

2012-01-01T12:42:00.000-08:00

Maddy sure loves her Uncle Jakey :)

Our good friends T.J. and Kat stopped by for a little while :)

Got my new year kisses!

We had some fun in the "Photobooth"

Tanya and her sisters... they are hilarious!

Emma, Jake, and Annabelle :)

Us :)

Tom Quinn gave an awesome toast. We shot off some fireworks. Played games. Ate good food. And drank Martinellis. :)

Highlights of 2011

2012-01-01T10:16:00.000-08:00

Hooray to 2012!! And hooray to setting new years resolutions!!

So many great things happened this year... First things first, WE HAD A BABY!! :) :) :)

I quit my job to become a full-time Mama (and do the occasional hair-do on the side!)

Danny got a job that he loves and we moved to Taylorsville!

Danny got a motorcycle!

I got my cosmetology license!

We got to see our families quite frequently throughout the year!

Maddy and I went on lots of hikes (back when it was warmer!)

We took many road trips!

Danny went Canyoneering!

We went boating quite a bit this summer, and I got up on the wake board for the first time EVER!

Almost gave Danny stitches :(

I discovered PINTEREST!!!

I got boots for the first time! Now I'm obsessed.

I got a calling that I was terrified of having but am loving it now :)

Danny signed up to go back to school the beginning of January!

...aannndd I cant really think of anything else super exciting that happened... besides watching our little one grow and loving her :) ... if there's anything you can think of, please feel free to remind me! haha :)

Here's to a wonderful NEW YEAR!!!

*2012*

1rst Christmas!

2011-12-30T22:00:00.000-08:00

Christmas is over already?! It cant be! I realized I have not done a single post about Christmas... which is funny because it is my most ABSOLUTE FAVORITE time of the year!! I literally put up the decorations ONE WEEK after Halloween and will keep them up till the day after new years! :) I will be sad to take them down... especially since this was our FIRST YEAR having a tree!

For Christmas my sweet sister in law got me the most perfect book that really expresses the true meaning of Christmas to me, and every time I read it, it brings me to tears! Its so beautiful! It's called "I Believe in Santa Clause". I'm glad I have this book to read to my children for the years to come!

This is what the introduction page says and I love it! Word for word.

"Sometime I hear people complain that the department stores put up Christmas decorations too early. Or they say that the merchandisers are only thinking of commercial gain when they advertise with lights and decorations. For me, Christmas symbols cannot be displayed too early or too much. The wreaths, the lights, the red bows, the decorated trees, the presents, all remind me of the true meaning of Christmas. I say "thank you" to the people of the world who spend time and money to make lovely displays of gifts and decorations. They are advertising the spirit of Christmas. They are reminding me of CHRIST!"

On that note... I'd like to share some photos and memories we made this Christmas... MADDY'S 1RST Christmas!

We got to spend Christmas morning with my family and had such a great time! My mom made some delicious cinammon rolls and hot cocoa for breakfast. And Maddy got completely spoiled! No joke.

We had matching Christmas jammies :) and that was really fun! I would like to make that a tradition from now on!

Maddy with her Grandpa Mike... and Shadow :)

... and with her Uncle Jake!

She loved opening her stockings :)

This was the ONLY picture I got of her in her dress. She only wore it for about 20 minutes and then went down for a nap... then we just decided to make it an all around pajama day haha :)

The "football get-up" my littlest brothers got :) and those are their favorite teams! They were pretty excited!

Later that evening we went over to Mikes moms house and played games and did a little gift exchange that they do every year! It was so fun!! While we were there Danny kept bugging my brother Michael about his loose tooth and finally convinced him to let him pull it out! Ahhhh..... He was so brave to let him do that! And it was his very FIRST tooth!! It was a big day for him :)

This was the only way Maddy took her naps the whole time we were in CO, like I said.... she got spoiled ;)

We also had the chance to go and spend some time and have Christmas Dinner with these beautiful people!!!

Danny also got me a VIOLIN for Christmas!! On top of other things. (He went wayyyy over board) But It has been 4 years since I've played and I missed it so much!! Once I picked it up I couldn't put it down!!! I love love LOVE it!

Him and his Dad having a jam out session :)

Maxy and Maddy playing with her new toy :)

Also, a few weeks ago we had the opportunity to go see the lights at Temple Square and they get more and more beautiful every year! (Referring to the message at the top: Seeing those beautiful lights definitely puts you in the Christmas spirit!)

Oh and gotta love the holiday Loft House sugar cookies!! Yumm! :)

Our tree :)

Her first Christmas ornament! :)

I made this little Nativity and I got the idea from Pinterest (of course)... its probably my most favorite decoration we have :)

I cant even express how truly grateful I am for my family and friends! And for this wonderful season, celebrating Christ. I hope you all had a VERY Merry Christmas!

Gotta love me some baby kisses! :)

2011-12-28T17:49:00.000-08:00

2011-12-22T08:51:00.000-08:00

So, I basically just copied and pasted this off another blog... But I just thought I'd share. :) Yay for him!!

American Idol 2007 runner-up David Archuleta announced before a hometown crowd in Salt Lake City that he planned to take a break from music to serve a full-time, two-year mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.

“It’s not because someone told me that I’m supposed to do it, and not because I no longer want to do music, but because it’s the feeling that I’ve felt I need to do this with my life,” Archuleta, 20, said to a crowd that showered him with applause and cheers.

An emotional Archuleta seemed astounded at the crowd’s support and wiped away tears. He did not announce where he would be serving. The singer rose to fame as one of the youngest-ever contestants on American Idol and came in second to David Cook. Archuleta has since released three albums.

The church operates 350 missions around the world, according to its website. Archuleta’s mission is expected to begin shortly after the 1st of the January.

[article and photo src]

I got to open a Christmas present early! :)

2011-12-21T11:43:00.001-08:00

I can't believe it!!! My sweet husband got this for me for Christmas and obviously it was waaayy too big to take to CO with us so i got to open it early and I absolutely LOVE it! Last night we played with it for nearly 2 hours and he gave me a couple lessons! Im so excited to learn how to play! Thanks babe! :)

Happy 10 Months Maddy Cakes!

2011-12-17T15:00:00.000-08:00

Today I had to put Maddy in her crib so I could vacuum (which has practically turned into a twice a day thing now a days!) She was so intrigued by the vacuum that she followed me all around the house trying to either pull herself up on it.... or she would speed-crawl to the doorway and plop her cute little bum right down so I couldn't pass her. I guess its a good thing since she used to be terrified of the vacuum! So the crib made a nice little babysitter while I could get that chore done. She didn't seem to mind. But then check out this other cute game she has been playing lately......

Ahhh.... yes! The "lets hurry and unroll as much toilet paper as I possibly can before mom catches me" game. Man, that girl sure knows how to keep me on my toes!

But I sure love to squish her :)

And the 10 month old Madison also...

*Always pulls herself up on me while I'm getting ready for the day, doing dishes, cooking, etc.

*Follows me all over the place

*Sometimes mimics what I do

*Has been saying "Apple" and "Happy" (and when I say she's been saying these words, I really mean she is just jabbering in her little baby language and that just what it sounds like to me....)

*She has a top tooth

*And now that she is 10 months old that means her Birthday is just around the corner! (still in disbelief)

Any-who... today we are just trying to finish and wrap the rest of the Christmas gifts ( I feel like I have been saying that for months now!) It's only a week away! Where did December go? And 2011 for that matter?

When Daddy comes home thats all that matters...

2011-12-15T13:19:00.001-08:00

Every night when Danny gets home from work the first thing I do is look over at Maddy and watch her face light up with excitement! I love the relationship they have... In fact, I envy it! The past couple of nights have been rough for the little one... Her top teeth have been breaking through and so she has been up all night crying and screaming. After trying everything I could do to comfort her I had to throw in the towel and wake up Danny. After a while of her crying she eventually melted into his arms and fell asleep. I don't know what I (we) would do without him. A really good friend of mine who is my age and has a little girl just a year older than Maddy recently lost her husband in a car accident. My heart aches for her and her daughter. After I heard the news I went and buried my head into Danny's chest and cried and cried for my friend. I could never imagine in a million years losing Danny. I would be a complete train wreck! Life can change so quickly. And it makes me realize how precious every little moment spent with them is! Please keep my friend and her daughter in your prayers... And always appreciate the little things in life! So excited for Christmas to come!

My dancing/chatty girl

2011-12-10T11:52:00.000-08:00

My baby turned 9 months old today!!!

2011-11-17T22:45:00.001-08:00

And we celebrated by going to Red Lobster! Ha! Totally kidding. But we really did go to Red Lobster (thanks to Maddy for winning the costume contest at our apartment complex and scoring us a $25 gift card! Sa-weet!!) but we didnt go to celebrate. Although, I asked Danny if I should ask the waiter if they did anything "special" for 9 month birthdays. Haha. I'm totally gonna be THAT mom that says, "hey my kid just graduated from the 2nd grade, can you sing to her please? And possibly bring some ice cream while your at it?" ;)

But anyways... Can't believe Honey Girl is growing up so fast! It really makes me sad! She is so much fun to be around and sometimes I wish I could just freeze time and soak in the moments with her just a little longer! I know it might be a little selfish of me but I just dont think babies stay little long enough, and my baby is still pretty little and I already feel that way.... But I also know I have so much to look forward to!

Danny said this morning, "I think when she grows up she's going to be a Dentist!" Cause she is always so fascinated with our mouths and teeth.

Her new tricks are....

*she can clap

*she can say "mama, dada, and baby"

*she can stand up next to something and let go for a couple seconds, and then hold on to it again

*she rocks back and forth every time she hears music

*She is most certainly a Daddy's girl...(in case you haven't already figured that out)

*She's really good at getting into my purse, finding my wallet and pulling out all my cards (what is it with babies and wallets anyway?)

*And she is all around just a happy person!

And we just love her to pieces!

What I LOVE most.....

2011-11-15T11:08:00.001-08:00

Is laying in bed all morning, laughing and talking with my best friend.

It's about time!

2011-11-14T15:24:00.000-08:00

Sweet Husband of mine (bless his heart) would not let me cut his hair for the longest time! He said he wanted to grow it out and have it look like this ---->

Which I think is gorgeous!

But unfortunately it looked like this---->

(Still handsome, but not quite what we were going for haha....and yes folks, that IS a ponytail)

When your husband (or atleast mine) can put his hair in a ponytail, it's definitely time for a HAIRCUT! Eeeekkk! ;) I get so excited for drastic haircuts! Infact, earlier that evening I cut my friend Kylie's hair, and we chopped off like 7 inches!!! I so should have taken pictures of her cut cause she looks H-O-T-t-e-r! haha anyway, I was also excited because it had been 6 months since we cut Danny's hair last (and that is a LONG time for a guy to go without cutting his hair! ) So I hacked away......

.....and...... drum roll please.....

BAM!

Check out what he's been hiding this whole time!

Ahhh... brings me back to our High School days, haha. What a hunk! :)

Happy Halloween!!

2011-10-31T23:50:00.000-07:00

Maddy and I got to go to our very first "Trunk or Treat" this year and we loooooved it! Infact, we went to TWO trunk or treats! First we crashed Jake and Emma's in Orem and then we headed up to American Fork to hang out with Tom and Tanya Quinn at their trunk or treat! It was so much fun, the only thing that would have made the night better was if Danny could have been there :( sadly he had to work. But he was with us in spirit :)

Here's me and my little chickie :)

Her and her cousin Annabelle made the cutest little chickens.... EVER!! :)

So FUN!

It started to get dark and cold really fast, but little one still managed to have a good time!

This was earlier that day.... she was a very tired little chick!

Danny was able to get actual Halloween Day off so we were planning on dressing up and handing out candy, but the dressing up part didnt happen and we only got one group of trick or treaters...... and none of them were even in costume so Danny told them to come back in a costume and he would give them candy! haha how sad! I wasn't there when this happened either!

Also, we found out that Maddy won the costume contest that was going on in our Apartment complex!! We get to go retrieve her prize today! :)

Oh and here's just a fun video of Danny spinning Maddy in the air on Halloween night haha.

Hope you had a Spooktacular weekend!!! :)

24 on the 24th :)

2011-10-25T12:11:00.001-07:00

My hunny bunches of oats turned twenty-four yesterday! (i know, he's getting super old) and we're so happy that we were able to be home to share it with him. We flew in from NM just

the night before. I've calculated how long we've been away from him total this year and it has been over 2 1/2 months!!! Poor Danny. But hopefully we were able to sorta make it up to him yesterday....

.... He started off the day by waking up to 24 reasons why I love him....

Then we got ready and walked around the Gateway mall for a little bit

Stopped off and had lunch at California Pizza Kitchen

Strolled around a while longer

All this running around made the little one sleepy

We then came home and had Shepherd's Pie for dinner (Danny's request) opened presents from a giant golden bag (since its the GOLDEN birthday and all) with golden flowers.... Well actually they're yellow, but it's the thought that counts, right?

We then followed up with a movie an some delicious Ice cream cake (thanks Maddy) ;)

Ice cream cake for breakfast, anyone?

Happy Birthday sweets, we're so glad to be home with you again! :)

"Rapunzel, Rapunzel let down your......."

2011-10-20T08:21:00.000-07:00

Um... hair? hehe :)

Baby Grace is coming in 2 days!!!

2011-10-19T00:19:00.000-07:00

The babe and I are down in good ol' New Mexico right now awaiting the arrival of the newest member of the Lovell family... Grace Charlotte. My sister in law, Tiffany is scheduled to be induced on Friday! And I cannot WAIT to hold this sweet little new born baby girl! It's gonna be great! I'll try and post pictures when she comes :) But in the meantime we've just been hanging out and having a good time. Maddy is really enjoying all the attention she's been getting from everyone here.

Today Emma, Tiff, and I went and got pedicures while Todd stayed home with Max and Maddy, and it was really nice. I havent had a pedicure in ages!!

And the other day we carved some pumpkins.

Here's Maddy's little pumpkin :) Tiff had the idea of putting the 2 teeth on the bottom to match her 2 bottom teeth haha. I thought it was cute :)

Maddy with her pumpkin :)

Driving to Santa Fe

Emma is always asking me if she could feed Maddy, she loves to feed her, she's probably done it more than I have since we've been here :)

Infact, EVERYONE wants to feed the baby haha. (She's a bottomless pit)

Getting some lovin all around :)

We've also been crafting and sewing and watching episodes of "Ugly Betty" every night. It's been lots of fun! So excited for Friday to come!!!

My 8 month old Madison....

2011-10-18T22:46:00.000-07:00

*Loves to be around kids and other babies (especially her cousins)

*Laughs every time she see's a picture of herself or looks in the mirror

*Scoots around ALOT, and actually CRAWLED today.... she doesn't do it very often, but she CAN do it :)

*Likes to wake me up in the morning by strumming my lips like a guitar

*Her favorite food right now is peaches, green beans, and rice cereal mixed together.... delicious, right?

*Is patient

*She can twist her tongue all the way around

*Likes to give big, cheesy grins like in the above picture ^

*She also likes to have a couple licks of my sucker.... who knew?

*And her new favorite thing is to pull herself up on me

I love my Madison. She makes me happy :)

Zoo-patch-a-palooza!

2011-10-09T19:38:00.000-07:00

My Mom and youngest brothers came to see us this weekend and we had so much fun! The time just went by waaayy too fast! And Maddy loooooved all the attention she got from her Grandma and her Uncles.

Grandma was so much help! She bathed Maddy, changed her, fed her, watched her so I could get a little extra sleep in the morning, and she loved every minute of it. And I loved having a little break ;) and waking up to hearing them laughing together. They had a lot of fun with eachother!

On Saturday we went to the Hogle Zoo in Salt Lake and took loooootttss of picutres :) (Sadly Danny had to work all weekend so he didnt get to join in on all the fun.)

Me and my Mama

We got to ride the train around the park

Me and my sweet girl. She was so tired (didnt have a nap the entire day..... too much excitment going on) but she hung in there and had a good time!

Oh! I forgot she did nap for a few min after I nursed her (I dont necessarily think it counts though haha)

Gobble gobble....

Fun drinking fountains!

I let Michael Jr. take some pictures with my camera and he took this one of the elephant eating.... he's pretty good at taking pictures :)

Silly silly boys....

She was just the right size

Us kids :) just missing my brother Jake and Danny

Riding the carousel :)

She kept wanting to eat the pole haha.

aaahhhhh.....

Playing at the playground

She's starting to WAVE! :)

Me and my baby..... brother! I seriously want to keep him though, such a sweet boy!

Heeellloooooooooo.......

Later that night I did my mom's hair! Here's the "before"

Ta-da! Look at my hot mama! We put some lowlights in there (tone down the blonde a bit) and gave a sassy textured cut! She loves it!

I LOVE this picture.... It looks like it was taken back in the 80's or something. They are just adorable.

I love them :)

We also went to a pumpkin patch! I am so excited to carve pumpkins with the little one this year :)

A tiny pumpkin for a tiny girl

I am so happy they made the time and effort to come out here and see me! We had a blast and I miss them all already!

September!

2011-09-19T15:30:00.000-07:00

It has been quite a busy month! My little one turned 7 months old on Saturday! How crazy is that!?

She's not crawling yet, but getting close!

I dont know if I should be.... but I am super excited about it :)

This was before we left for our trip to Seattle. These two love each other so much! When Danny picked us up from the airport she had the biggest smile on her face and later that night she fell right asleep on him just like this. She really missed him.

She looks so big to me in this picture! (Ps. sorry the pics are hard to see.... they were taken in the dark)

We were gone for almost 2 weeks and during that time Danny was pretty bored, so he started making these bracelets and belts out of "para cord" I guess you could use it as rope in a survival situation, and since he was going backpacking with his Dad he figured he would make a TON of them haha.

I think they look pretty cool!

So I am really bummed because like 2 days after we got to Seattle my camera died and being the silly/forgetful person I am I completely forgot the charger.... so I only got pictures of the first couple days. Luckily Emma had her camera and took a lot of pictures. While we were in WA we were able to go to Marie's (Emma's sister) in laws LAKE HOUSE! Yeah, it was pretty awesome! And I couldn't believe how nice the weather was! We went night time wake boarding (which was so fun) and the water was perfect glass. It was actually very peaceful.

We drove around in the car a lot. How did we manage to do this with 3 babies, 2 kids, and 3 adults? You don't wanna know! Lets just say it was quite an adventure ;)

I thought this was a cool picture! I didn't do any editing or anything to it! It almost looks fake to me.

Having fun at the lake :)

Marie's baby wanted to drive the boat haha.

Here I am getting ready to get my wake boardin on again! We couldn't take pictures of the night time wake boarding cause it was too dark so we got some the next day! I could seriously live at the lake :)

Getting up....

Going....

GONE!!!

One of the nights we were there we decided to have a girls night out! So while all the kids were sleeping we snuck out for a couple hours and went and saw "The Help". Oh my goodness this movie was amazing!!! If you want a good cry movie WATCH THIS! I loved it! Plus it was nice to go to a movie... haven't done that in a looooonnng time!

And Emma Stone is in it... I LOVE her!!!

We had a good time in WA and made lots of fun memories! It was so great to see Marie and her family again! They are such great people! And I am so glad we could fly this time instead of DRIVE! Happy to be back home now with the husband :) Life is good!

I love this!

2011-09-16T20:25:00.000-07:00

Remembering 911

2011-09-11T15:03:00.000-07:00

This is sorta long, but definitely worth watching :)

New Tricks

2011-08-27T15:55:00.000-07:00

She's playing peek.a.boo now and it is so funny! Everytime she pulls the blanket down, she see's me and follows up with a loud chuckle, she could seriously play it all day! (I took a video, but I thought I would save you the trouble of having to listen to my crazy voice on camera..... so here's some pics instead. You're welcome.)

She ate Squash today for the first time.... and LOVED it! After it was all gone, she wanted more.... and she hasnt done that with any other solid food so far. So that's a plus!

I know, I'm so horrible. We still haven't gotten her a high chair. We need to get on that! But in the meantime we're using her entertainer.... she doesn't seem to mind :)

Washing down the Squash with some water. On her own!

I like to take pictures of her sleeping..... lately she's had some funny positions goin on!

(my mom said I used to sleep like this when I was a baby)

Oh and don't worry, I saved her. She was sound asleep under her "Bodie" or "Bunny" (not sure what we're gonna call it yet..... I think "Bunny" is cute just cause that's what Danny called his blanket when he was a baby.)

Her tongue trick she's been doing lately.... I really wish I could video tape her in the shower with me when she sticks her face in the water and tries to drink it with her tongue like a puppy..... but unfortunately I cannot. So sorry. :)

Copying Daddy.... I wish these last 2 pics were more in focus, cause they're so cute!

She's been saying Da-Da! And Danny has been Loving it. Also, lately she will stick out her bottom lip before she smiles almost every time! It's like she's joking around with you. I'll try and get a picture of it. Funny little girl :)

My Brother Started Kindergarten Today!

2011-08-26T13:24:00.000-07:00

I cant believe it! He's growing so fast! Here are some pictures my parents sent me this morning, wish I could be there to see him on his very first day. This is the start of a big adventure! Handsome little man.

What a cute family I have.... and I love that Brandon is wearing a backpack too. I bet he cant wait to start school either!

And this was just when we were visiting last weekend. She sure loves her uncles :)

He's all ready :)

Congrats Michael! You'll do great! We miss you all!

Happy Six Months!!!

2011-08-17T09:00:00.000-07:00

I cant believe my sweet girl is now six months old!!! Thats 1/2 a year! I cant even tell you how much of a joy it has been watching this sweet little angel grow and blossom! I know in my last post I kept saying how I didnt ever want her to grow up (which is still partially true) but lately I've been seeing alot more personality come out of her and every now and then I'll catch glimpses of what she's going to be like and look like when she's older. And now I cant wait to continue to watch her grow and become a little person :) She is so beautiful and sweet! I just cant get enough of her!

Also, I was going through her drawer and found this adorable hat Emma made for her when we were both pregnant. It makes me so excited for wintertime so I can dress her in cute winter clothes! Thanks again, Emma!

Maddy and I have alot of fun together! I am so grateful that I can stay home with her and not miss a single smile, laugh, coo, bubble, snuggle, or milestone!

Oh and she LOVES her fingers! She sucks on them all day :)

Representing her Daddy.... he works for Apple so of course she's gotta have the "Apple Apparel."

She is so good in the car, she usually keeps herself pretty entertained with her toys, but after a while of driving and running errands with me, she gets pretty worn out! What a trooper!

I love you Maddy Cakes! Happy 1/2 Birthday! :) The real one is only six months away!!!

YIKES!

All about Maddy :)

2011-08-15T22:15:00.000-07:00

Every day and every night, while our little angel sleeps, I always (and I mean ALWAYS) find myself watching videos of her, or looking at pictures of her, or blogging about her! I constantly think, "Gosh I miss her" during these quiet times to myself, and I am sure I am not the only mother who does this. Right now is definitely one of those moments. My life is seriously "All about Maddy" and sweet husband too, cant forget about him ;)

Love these two to pieces!

2011-08-15T13:50:00.001-07:00

2011-08-15T13:35:00.000-07:00

....I couldn't agree more! This quote is for sure going on my walls!

"Blinterests"

2011-08-01T19:42:00.000-07:00

So, lately I have been spending a little too much time on Pinterest. But for some reason I cant get myself to sign up for one. I don't know if it's because I feel like I will get addicted (which I'm pretty sure I already am) or because I don't want to stress about it. But it really is so great to get inspiration from there. Whoever came up with this idea is a Genius in my mind! Anyway, I would just like to share some of my interests that I Pin'd on my blog ;)

I am so obsessed with white flowers in pretty jars/vases. They are just so fresh and pretty and bright up the room. And I think that wreath is so fun and cute :)

These photos give me such a warm, happy feeling inside. The one on the right with the mother and daughter brings tears to my eyes. It's like eternal bliss.

I so want to take a picture like this for my next pregnancy! So cool. I also love that headband. And the baby in the turtle outfit? Give me a break! So adorable.

Ahhhh..... I love to dream big :) And DIY projects are always fun!

Once you go Scratch.... you never go back!

2011-07-31T19:28:00.000-07:00

That's right everyone..... little ol' Ashley Thay made cupcakes. from Scratch! If I've ever made cupcakes before it would just be out of the box from the grocery store. No one has ever told me how divine they are homemade!!! Anyway I bet you are dying to get your paws on the recipe. Oh and another thing that I love, is that I easily had all the ingredients on hand. So if your ever in the mood for a quick, easy, and homemade treat, make these babies :)

Much Love!

Vanilla Cupcakes

Ingredients:

- 2 cups all purpose flour

- 1 1/2 cups sugar

- 3 teaspoons baking powder

- 1/2 teaspoon salt

- 4 egg whites from large eggs (Save 2 of the egg yolks, you'll need them for the frosting)

- 1/2 cup shortening

- 1 cup milk

- 2 large eggs

- 1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line cupcake pans with paper liners.

Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, salt shortening, milk and vanilla in a large mixing bowl. Mix at low speed for 2 minutes. Scrape bolw. Add egg whites and mix at high speed until fluffy and smooth, approimately 2 minutes.

Fill liners 1/2 to 2/3 full of batter. Do not overfill. Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

Cool 10 minutes in pans then remove from pan, and place on wire racks to cool completely.

Frost and decorate your vanilla cupcakes as desired.

Butter Cream Frosting

Ingredients:

-1/2 cup butter, softened

-1/8 teaspoon salt

-4 cups confectioners' sugar

-2 egg yolk, beaten

-1 teaspoon vanilla extract

-2 tablespoons milk

Directions:

Cream butter until soft. Add salt and part of sugar gradually, blending after each addition. Then add egg yolks and vanilla; blend well. Add remaining sugar, alternately with milk, until of right consistency to spread, beating after each addition until smooth. Makes 2 1/2 cups.

*******

Oh and Ps. do not eat all of them in one sitting, you might get a stomach ache.... just sayin'.

Oh Happy Days

2011-07-30T08:54:00.000-07:00

On July 23rd Danny and I shared our 2nd Anniversary! I cant believe how fast 2 years has gone by! I love being married to him, he makes me so happy! He is my best friend and I am so excited to spend forever with him :) Awwww....

I will never forget the way I felt on that special day....

Here we are on our way to the Temple.... we decided to make a tradition to go to the Timpanogos Temple every year on our Anniversary as a reminder of that day.

(This little jokester cant take a serious picture for nothing....)

(....Ah! There we go...kinda :) )

On the actual day of our Anniversary Danny was on a fishing trip with his Dad, Brother, and Uncles, so I didn't get to see him or even talk to him cause he was out of range. Tear. But all the girls got together and we had a really good time! We crafted, went to the lake, and just shared some good, quality time with one another! Later that evening, Sue and Ash came home with a bouquet of Roses for my anniversary. How sweet is that? I love you Sue and Ash! You guys are the best!

They are so beautiful too!

Also, we all went to Cafe Rio for dinner one night! YU-MM! I even had the privledge of staying with the babies while everyone else was ordering, and I cant even tell you how many people walked by asking if they were all mine, and if they were triplets! hahahahaha Really?! I could never imagine in a million years having 3 babies at once! But it was fun, and they always get so much attention :)

Well.... Here's to many more Anniversaries and babies for that matter! I cant wait!

A Special Visit

2011-07-26T11:50:00.000-07:00

So last week while Danny was in California doing some training for his new job, I decided to go to Grand Junction and visit our family to help pass the time. It's always nice to go visit and have them spend time with their grand daughter. Both mine and Danny's side of the family live 5 minutes away from eachother, which is nice and difficult at the same time (only because its hard to get in enough "shared" time with each family, let alone go visit old friends) but anyways, I had this bright idea of taking my little brothers home with me for a few days and have some fun one-on-one time with them. My mom said it would probably be easier on me if I just took one of them at a time (which she was very right about) so Michael Jr. was the lucky one to go first!

He got to stay with us from Thursday to Tuesday..... which is probably the longest he's ever been away from home, and let me just say.... he was such a joy to have! We had a blast and we miss him very much!

He was so good with Maddy, and whenever she would cry, he would always sing her songs and she would stop and just stare at him, he's such a good uncle. He even made up a song for her which is really cute! While he was here we got to do alot of things.....first, we were able to visit Ashley Kay, and Michael go to play with Kaylee, they had a really good time together.

We also went swimming

Michael got to ride his bike around (he just barely learned how to ride without training wheels so he was really excited to show us)

We went to the park, had picnics, watched movies, I taught him how to play "Go fish" which is a fun card game he loves now.

We made cookies together (his favorite part was cracking the eggs)

This is him enjoying one of the delicious cookies he made...

He helped me do my chores..... I know what a mean sister, right? Actually he offered to help and he loved it too.... which I was totally okay with :)

We took hundreds of silly pictures..... oh the things we do to keep little kids entertained... jk ;) it kept me pretty entertained too haha.

And last but not least....yes.... he got to ride on the Motorcycle! And dont worry, I got permission from my mom if he could, and it was just around the neighborhood..... he loved it!

We love you, Michael Jr. and we're so glad you could come stay with us! We cant wait to steal Brandon next :)

5 :)

2011-07-20T10:02:00.000-07:00

Dang! I missed the 5 month mark for the little one.... but only by a couple days. That's not too bad considering this past week has been pretty crazy! But any-who my precious Maddy is now 5 months old!! I cant believe it! Sometimes I think, man that flew by.... where has the time gone? But when I look back on these past 5 months so much has happened!

Right now I am loving this age! It's like she has her own personality! It makes me sad to know she cant stay this age forever :( I do look forward to her growing up and doing fun things, but for right now I just want her to stay my baby! Is that so wrong of me?

She has this adorable bashful smile that I just cant get enough of, and she totally has her dad's crooked smile too :)

Her laugh sounds like a hiccup/cough.... its really funny!

She chews on anything and everything you put in her hands. (Lately its been her toes)

I'm getting ready to start feeding her solids soon

She can sit up on her own for just a few minutes

She is still chatty as ever! Especially in the mornings!

She is so sweet and dear to me! Happy 5 months Maddy Cakes..... do your mommy a favor and stop growing please! :)

Holy Cow! I'm online!

2011-07-04T23:30:00.000-07:00

Just browsin' a bunch of blogs since the little one is down.... and the hubbs is in California doing some training for work, and guess what I came across? Well first off, let me tell you that I did a little Maternity photoshoot for this awesome swimsuit company called Lime Ricki just days before Maddy was born. I kinda forgot I even did this photo shoot! Well I came across this blog that had an advertisement for Lime Ricki so I checked it and look what I found.....

.....Crazy/Cool huh? Ps. aren't their swimsuits so cute? They are way comfy too! :)

Play {Its what we do all day}

2011-07-04T22:41:00.000-07:00

I hope you dont mind all the videos! I seriously CANNOT stop kissing those cheeks! Man, I love her! Even when she sneezes in my face! haha

Waking up in the night :)

2011-07-04T20:43:00.000-07:00

Shattered....

2011-06-29T22:35:00.000-07:00

We just moved to Salt Lake..... well technically Taylorsville and I am in love with our new place! It is very {bright} and {roomie} and {clean}. We literally live like 8 minutes from downtown Salt Lake which is pretty fun, and I like our new ward!

However....

I H-A-T-E driving here! If you thought driving in Provo/Orem was bad, think again! I seriously see my life flash before my eyes almost everytime I get on the road, especially on the freeway! I dont know, maybe its because I'm not familiar with the area as much and so not knowing where to go can really be scary at times, but it seems like the drivers are all so mean and everytime you need to get over you almost have to force it and cut them off because they are so rude and will speed up the second you try to get over! Grrrr....

So, I bet you are wondering why the title of this post is called Shattered... well basically that's the best word I can use to describe this little move of ours! We pretty much broke everything we own! Let me just make a fun list for you:

Ready?

~ 1 46in Flat Screen TV.

~ 1 Coffee Table

~ My awesome Pampered Chef Batter Bowl

~ Countless Drinking Glasses

~ These super cute plates we got for our wedding!

And the list goes on and on! Doesn't that make you just want to cry? This is in order too, so by the time the plates broke I wasn't even surprised, I figured that it was just my luck! Yuck, I hope we never have to move again (at least till we buy a house, then we will for sure never move again!)

On a brighter note it has been super fun getting to start fresh and completely re-decorate my home! Its not finished quite yet, but check out how cute my front door is! haha

Thanks to Marie and Emma for finding this wreath at the goodwill for only 3 bucks! All it needed was a couple extra flowers and it looked good as new! I am in love with it!

We also took little miss Maddy Cakes to the pool the other day. She really enjoyed herself, and we enjoyed her too!

Have a wonderful day!

Fathers Day Weekend

2011-06-20T20:36:00.000-07:00

I am very thankful for the Fathers I have in my life

Dave...

...is amazing. I am grateful for his example to me and for the love he has for me. He is so sweet, and loving, and compassionate. He holds a special place in my heart. I am so glad that Danny was raised by this man, and I see so much of Dave in him! I always remember our fun road trips to New Mexico and San Diego. He would tell me the coolest stories and he was always such a good navigator :) He's so funny, has such a big heart and I know he has so much love for all of his children. I am so thankful that Dave is in my life! And I can be apart of his family, forever!

I love you, Dave!

Mike...

...is so fantastic! He is so funny, and giving, and generous! I am so grateful to have him in my life! I know he loves all us kids very much. He has done so much for us all throughout our lives! I was 13 when Mike became a part of my life. I remember playing basketball with him all the time and staying up really late playing card games and losing bets to him :) He is such a FUN and awesome Father and we are so lucky to have him as a Dad. I am especially grateful for the Father he is to my little brothers!

I love you, Mike!

Danny...

...Now I know he is not my father.... even though he sometimes acts like it ;) But I get to watch him be a Father to our little girl and my heart just melts when I see him play with her, love her, and take care of her! She means the world to him. He is so amazing and we couldnt be more blessed to have him in our lives! I always knew he would be a great Dad, but he shows me more and more everyday that not only is he a great Father, but he is an amazing Dad! We are a couple of very lucky girls :)

I love you, Babe!

So this past weekend was so much fun! Josh and Ashley were in town and Josh's Dad and his wife, Marleen rented Jet skies and a boat for us all to go boating. I hadnt been boating in atleast 3 years, and we all had a BLAST! our bodies were so sore after holding on to the tube for dear life, we all got pretty awesome tan lines too. The tube they had could fit 4 people on it and we all got shot off atleast once. I wish I would have taken pictures cause it was so funny seeing us all flying through the air :) Speaking of which... this is a sad/funny story.... So I have never actually driven a Jet ski before and Danny let me drive while he sat on the back. Ashley was driving Josh on the other Jet Ski and we started to race. Then, Danny told me to turn a little bit to splash them and I ended up turning just a little too hard :/ Danny and I both went FLYING off the Jet Ski!!! My first reaction was like That. Was. AWESOME! But as soon as I turned around I could see Danny gasping for breath.... I got so scared! He got the wind completely knocked out of him and we're pretty sure he got a couple bruised ribs :( I felt so so bad! We laugh about it now but at the time it was really scary. I love that he never got mad at me, he knew how bad I felt. He is feeling alot better now though! Other than that, we had a great time! Thanks Josh and Ashley for inviting us! It was so fun!

Oh, and that night we went to this yummy restaurant in Salt Lake called The Garden and it was on top of the JSB so you could see all of Temple Square! It was so beautiful!

Jake & Emma

Ash & Josh

Me & Dan

(The view from the window)

Happy Father's Day !!!

Rolling 3.5 months

2011-06-17T22:18:00.000-07:00

Rolling Attempt

2011-06-17T22:17:00.000-07:00

4 :)

2011-06-17T21:36:00.000-07:00

The little one is now 4.... months! hehe so far this is my favorite age, she's growing before my eyes! I want her to stay this age forever!

She's so happy and so sweet.... her smile is infectious.

This is the face she makes when she's chattin away

On June 3rd, she rolled over for the first time and found her toes.... crazy that it both happened in one day! I never thought something as little as finding your toes would be so exciting as a mom.

On a side note: Danny made some yummy scones the other night, we had a little bit of dough left over so he tried to make a heart-shaped scone.

We personally think it looks like a rooster.... the right side is the face and beak, and the left side is the tail feathers. Can you see it?

Delish....

Happy 4 months little one! :)

.... I've been slackin

2011-06-13T20:01:00.000-07:00

So... Its almost been a month since I blogged, I will admit though it sure has been a busy month. Started it off by taking a week and a half long trip to Seattle, WA with my awesome sister in law Emma.

We seriously got lost driving a million times (yuck) But only while we were in Seattle, luckily our friend Drew let us borrow his GPS which saved our lives! We also made a couple inside jokes with that thing.... yes that's what driving for that long will do to you!

We had the privilege to stay with Emma's sister, Marie. Who am I kidding? She is the whole reason we went to WA. This woman is amazing! She is a mother of 3 and she has the most sweetest and funniest personality ever! I immediately felt so comfortable in her beautiful home. She is so easy to talk to and get along with, at night when all the kids were asleep, all of us girls would stay up waaayyy late just talking! It was like having a week long sleepover! Anyway Marie is such a great example of a mother and a friend to me. I admire her so much! She is so patient and easy to love!

As you can tell, we did some fun photoshoots :)

Marie worked so hard on taking picture of my baby, she probably took like a 1000 pictures! Here's one of them :)

I snuck in on a couple too :)

We were waiting for the Ferry with all the girls and our babies :) Marie even left 2 of her babies at home with her husband so we could go shopping. Needless to say it was a baby overload.... but so so so fun!

I've never seen a bridge like this before! It was HUGE! We definitely were in the big city!

We also went to the Zoo and had a really good time

Here are some pics of the drive up there, it was so beautiful the entire time we were there!

The girls did so great! I couldnt believe how patient they were on this 15 HOUR drive home.... We're so proud of them!

I've had a Birthday shout Hooray!!

So my sweet husband suprised me with tickets to the Stadium of Fire, it's this huge 4th of July celebration at the BYU football stadium and this year 2 of my favorite people are performing...

Brad Paisley

....and

... and of course there will be Fireworks!!!

Also thanks to everyone for wishing me a happy birthday! It was a great day!

My sweetie got a new job! He's gonna be working for Apple at the Genius bar! He starts at the end of this month and it's up in Salt Lake.... so we are moving on MONDAY.....

... to HERE! I am super excited! This place has a pool, fenced in playground, racket ball courts, a movie theater room... its pretty much awesome and super cheap too! I cant wait!

The Hubbs got a motorcycle :) at first I didnt want him to get it because they are dangerous, but he made sure to promise me he would be safe and a cautious driver, he got all the safety gear he needs too.... plus he took me for a couple rides on it and I'm not gonna lie... it's pretty fun! I felt like a little teenage girl again riding my daring boyfriend's motorcycle haha

Went to a beautiful wedding of a dear friend of mine! We still have a couple more to go to, Its definitely wedding season here.

Maddy was having a great time too! She loved dancing with her Mama :)

We also went to a bbq last week and watched our husbands play this game called "Ninja"

There's probably been more, but I cant remember. Hopefully next time I wont take forever to blog and try and shove everything into one post! :)

3 months!

2011-05-17T15:23:00.000-07:00

My sweet baby is now 3 months old! For some reason to me, she seems much older than that, I think maybe its because I cant ever remember life without her. She is my pride and joy, she makes me so happy.

I know I already posted this picture but I thought it would be a good close up of what she looks like at 3 months! I want to keep trying to post every month what she's been doing and the changes she's going through, I really want to be able to look back and remember what she was like!

Ready for this:

She found her HANDS! Yay! haha I know its probably not as exciting as finding your toes but its so funny to see how fascinated she is with her hands.... its kinda nice too cause it keeps her pretty entertained :)

Actually... funny story.... today we were at Red Robin taking our friend Dan and his fiance out for his birthday and I ordered an Oreo Milkshake (which was soooo delicious) anyway, I have Maddy sitting on my lap and all of a sudden she takes her hand, dips it into the milkshake and squeezes the whip cream through her fingers!!! I couldnt believe it! I was so not used to having to worry about her grabbing things yet so it came to me as a surprise! Funny girl.

She can also hold her head up almost perfectly now, not as wobbly.

She can sit upright on your lap for a long time!

She loves too look at the T.V.

She's in size 2 diapers now.

She's becoming a little chunk :)

When I put her down at night, I can hear her talk herself to sleep.

She is such a sweet heart too, the other day I was crying on the phone while I was nursing her and she stopped and just stared up at me with a little crooked smile... the way she was looking at me just melted my heart, it looked like she was trying to tell me everything was going to be alright! I just love her!

Oh and one last thing, she has been doing this "fake cry" that I think is so funny, i'll have to try and get a video of it, and she even sticks out her bottom lip too :)

Happy 3 months, my little one!

Jakes Graduation 2011

2011-05-16T23:14:00.000-07:00

Way to go, bud!

Trip to Colorado :)

2011-05-16T16:30:00.000-07:00

We came out to CO last week and have been having a great time! Danny has been helping his Dad work in the yard and they got so much done, it is looking GREAT! Also my little brother Graduated high school this year so we also came out for that too! Its been great getting to see friends and family again.

We've been staying with the wonderful Nana and Papa, but sadly, Nana had to go to Moab this weekend for a Photo workshop :( but she had a really good time so that's good, we just missed her alot. So Danny, Dave and I finished watching the series "Jericho" and if you havent seen it, watch it! Its on Netflix and so so good!!!

The first day we were here we went to Jimmy Nelson's to try out his "Crotch Rocket" that Danny is thinking about buying... (which I secretly hope he does, it's sooooo fun!) And we visited with them for a while. Also, the carnival was in town and so we got to go.....

The kids had so much fun

Mara, David, Alexis, and Xavier :) It was their first ride!

Brandon won that Jaguar, he beat everyone at the game, even the big, strong guys!

Grandma got to take Maddy on her first ride on the Carousel :)

He made it!!!! I am so proud of my sweet, sweet brother for Graduating High School. Doesn't he look so handsome?

This was Maddy the entire time haha.

I LOVE this picture of him with my Aunt Janice, we're all so proud of him!

You're next Michael Jr. :)

"Our Deepest Fear"

2011-05-15T21:01:00.000-07:00

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate.

Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.

It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us.

We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant,

gorgeous, handsome, talented and fabulous?

Actually, who are you not to be?

You are a child of God.

Your playing small does not serve the world.

There is nothing enlightened about shrinking

so that other people won't feel insecure around you.

We are all meant to shine, as children do.

We were born to make manifest the glory of God within us.

It is not just in some; it is in everyone.

And, as we let our own light shine, we consciously give

other people permission to do the same.

As we are liberated from our fear,

our presence automatically liberates others.

Acrobats!

2011-05-13T14:42:00.000-07:00

Oh the fun things you can do with a baby... although I'm not sure if she likes it. Judging by the look on her face, she doesn't seem to care haha.

Smiles and funny faces

2011-05-13T10:43:00.000-07:00

Coo's

2011-05-13T10:42:00.001-07:00

The Cousins at Easters :)

2011-05-13T10:42:00.000-07:00

Annabelle telling Maddy a story

2011-05-13T10:41:00.000-07:00

A and M hanging out

2011-05-11T12:38:00.000-07:00

These girls are too funny!

Danny singing to Maddy

2011-05-10T18:35:00.000-07:00

Random

2011-04-20T22:06:00.000-07:00

So lately Picnik has been my newest addiction. It just gives me something to do when Maddy is sleeping :) Here's what I've been doing so far.

Our first family photo :)

I'm going to frame this and give it to my Mom for her Birthday :)

And this too...

This was when Maddy was only 2 days old...

I think I just realized I'm a little obsessed with Black & White.... oh well :)

Here's a colorful one.... that I lOVE...

On a side note: Maddy had to get her first round of shots yesterday and I had been dreading it for a long time. Surprisingly, it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be, but I definitely hate seeing her in pain for those few brief moments :( ever since then she's been sleeping a ton! I wonder if the medicine just made her extremely tired. Poor girl.

She is also in the 89th percentile for her weight (12lbs 8oz), 92nd percentile for her height (24in long) .... and.... ready for this.... 56th percentile for head circumference (15.3 in)!!! Big girl with a cute little head... awww!

2 Months!!!

2011-04-17T20:59:00.000-07:00

My sweet baby girl is 2 months old now! And she's finally starting to smile and is being alot more active! She is so sweet, I love her more than anything in this world!!!

Here's some things that she's been doing the past month...
*She falls asleep to white noise
*She raises one eyebrow and looks at you funny (definitely got that from Dan, cause I sure cant raise one eyebrow)
*Coo's, smiles
*Curls her toes....I'll post a video soon
*loves to bounce
*Sleeps through the night
*Loves being outdoors
*LOVES to be held
*She's much more alert
*If you stick your tongue out at her she'll eventually do it back
*She's getting really good at holding her head up
*She likes music

*She's a good little traveler

*She loves to take baths
*She likes it when I lay her on her back and kick her feet
*She LOVES her cousin Annabelle, they are constantly cooing and grabbing at each other when we lay them side by side.... Annabelle is even starting to roll towards Maddy :)
*She grew out of her newborns and is now in 3 month clothes
*She likes to hold hands

Im not sure how much she weighs or how long she is now, she has her 2 month check up on tuesday so we'll find out then :) also, she has to get her shots :( I'm soooo NOT looking forward to that! Wish us luck!

P.S. Uncle Jake gave her the nickname "Maddy Long-Legs" which I thought was pretty funny, since after all she does have pretty long legs haha.

Oreo Heaven

2011-04-16T23:32:00.000-07:00

(Emma, this post is especially for you)

Homemade Oreo Ice Cream Cake:

1/3 Cup Butter, Melted
1 Package of Oreo Cookies
1/2 Gallon of Vanilla or Chocolate Chip Ice Cream
8oz. of Cool Whip
15oz. of Chocolate Syrup

Directions:
Prep Time: 30 mins
Total Time: 30 mins
1 Break up cookies. Save 1 cup for topping.(I just put them in the blender)
2 Mix remainder of cookies with butter and spread in 9x13 pan.
3 Layer ice cream on top.
4 Pour syrup over ice cream. Freeze 5 minutes to somewhat harden chocolate.
5 Add Cool Whip.
6 Sprinkle the cup of cookie crumbs on top of Cool Whip.
7 Keep frozen. Allow 10 minutes thaw time before serving.

And... ENJOY!

This was such an easy recipe too!!! Beats spending 30 bucks on an ice cream cake anywhere else :)

A perfect end to a perfect day.... my little miracle

2011-04-03T21:27:00.000-07:00

I just have to document my feelings right now. Especially for myself. My heart is so full right now and I have been so very emotional today. Its been so great to lay in bed all day with my 2 favorite people and to be uplifted by the wonderful speakers of General Conference. I have learned so much and want to strive to be a better mother, a better wife, a better friend, and a better person. I want to be the person that Heavenly Father wants me to be. And not only that but I also want to be a good example to my daughter and other future children. Children learn so fast and watch and analyze everything you do, which kinda scares me.

Maddy was getting pretty fussy for a little while and both Danny and I kept bouncing her, comforting her, checking to see if she was dirty, hot, cold, hungry, or if she had any bubbles or gas.... after all that I just tried rocking her and started to sing "You are my sunshine" and I kid you not, she IMMEDIATELY fell asleep! I instantly broke down in tears. I never thought in a million years I could love someone so much! I do love my husband and my family and friends VERY much, but its so different loving a perfect little baby, MY baby. And whats even better is she doesnt care how horrible my singing is.... (i'm not gonna lie, its pretty bad :/) I could sing "off key" to her all day long and she would be in heaven, she just loves the sound of my voice and I love being loved by her. I am so very blessed to be her mom. That moment made my entire WEEK! I now know that my baby loves to be sang to, so if you're ever around her, just start singing, no matter how silly you may feel, she will love it! Our little musical baby <3

Obsess much?

2011-04-03T18:19:00.002-07:00

I just cant help myself taking pictures of these cute girls together! It'll be fun for them to look back on these pictures when they're older. I especially cant wait for all the cousins to get together! That will be so so so fun!!!

CUTE! CUTE! CUTE!

We did it!!!

2011-04-02T20:44:00.002-07:00

Yep, thats right! Emma and I ACTUALLY hiked the Y mountain today! We strapped the girls to our chest and made the trek to the top! It was hard work but all the hikers we saw on the way up kept telling us how awesome we were for doing this, and it definitely gave us more motivation to keep going! We felt so powerful once we reached the top, definitely a self esteem booster! We are trying to get in shape to run this half marathon in August!!! Its been really fun so far, taking Madison an Annabelle with us has been a BLAST, they love being outside with us, you can tell they really enjoy it! Plus it feels so good and productive to get out of the house and get some exercise in. I am so grateful for this nice weather too! I am really looking forward to this summer!

Oh by the way when we got to the top of the mountain we were gonna take a picture and I had realized my phone fell out of my pocket on the way up :/ so we were searching for it on the way down, then all of a sudden this sweet girl and her mom came up to us and asked if I had lost a phone! Ahhh I love these honest Mormon people! She even called Danny on it to see if she could bring it to him. Such nice people!!!

Half marathon here we come!!!!

2011-04-02T20:44:00.001-07:00

My Missionary is HOME!

2011-03-25T16:36:00.004-07:00

Isn't she so cute?

My dear friend Megan Story just got home from her mission!!! She served in San Diego SPANISH SPEAKING! and she had such a great time! While she was gone her sister in law did a blog for her so the friends and family could keep up with everything weekly (which I thought was a brilliant idea) plus now she always will have it to look back on her mission.
She was such a great missionary. I love this girl. I really feel the spirit when I'm around her. She is an amazing person and friend. I cant even imagine how many lives she has touched and changed forever! She has always been such a great example to me!

Meeting baby Maddy for the first time

They really hit it off!

Meg's sweet mom Michelle

She loved holding the baby and Maddy loved being held by her (she's an experienced grandma:))
Glad your home Meg!

A Month Already!?!?

2011-03-17T18:37:00.001-07:00

My baby girl is 1 month old today! I cant believe it!!! This past month has been quite the adventure too! My number 1 goal has been to try and get her to smile!!! So far, no such luck, although she smiles a lot in her sleep, but she hasn't done it consciously yet. She always has a confused look on her face, or she does this cute little scowl, but no smiles yet. I'm pretty sure I've been super annoying to her and in her head she's telling me "Enough already!" but I just cant help myself. I can tell she's already ticklish (she gets it from her Dad) every time I lift her arm to kiss underneath it she gets really squirmy and tries to pull her arm down. I've also noticed that she is extremely fascinated with the walls.... I don't understand why the walls, there just plain white, even if you put something colorful in front of her she will look around it to stare at the wall.

(Oh and today was St. Patty's day so I put this little green flower her haha)

One of the features I love the most on Maddy is her ADORABLE little feet!!! I seriously cannot get enough of her cute teeny tiny toes, and I know they say babies dont like there feet touched or rubbed, but I'm pretty sure she loves it! She's always so content when I touch her feet.

Aren't they adorable?

One of the biggest challenges I have had since she's been born has been nursing. I dont know why, I always thought it was supposed to be such a natural thing, and people make it look so easy, but alas, it is NOT! We have worked very hard and pushed through those first few weeks in hoping that it would get better, because I really want to breastfeed, and you know what? It has gotten so much better! Thank goodness! But now she's going through a little growth spurt so she has been eating almost every hour it seems like. So needless to say I feel like a walking bottle, but I love it, I feel like I can really bond with her and relax. Plus I know she is getting all the nutrients she needs and thats all I need to know to keep going through with it!!

Since nursing takes quite a while each time I have been watching Scrubs from the very beginning (to kinda make time go by) and luckily netflix has 7 seasons of it! I love this show, it is hilarious! And Usually 1 episode will be the same amount of time as 1 feeding, so thats nice!

Blessings

2011-03-17T16:11:00.000-07:00

Last Sunday was so great because our sweet Maddy-Lynn was blessed. As well as our adorable niece, Annabelle-Sue. Words cant really describe the feeling I had that day. It was such a tender time for all of us and the boys did such a good job on the blessings.

I feel so proud to be the mother of this sweet little angel. She makes me so so happy. For the opening song we sang "I am a child of God" and never in my life has that song been so powerful to me. I am so grateful that she chose to come to us and that we have the privilege of raising her and being with her for all eternity.

I'm not gonna lie, I was getting a little teary eye'd putting her in her dress. I guess I'm still a little hormonal (but I dont think it'll ever go away)

I am also so thankful for our family making the trip out here to be with us during this special time, it was so fun to be suprised by my sister in law Tiffany and her cute kids. And of course, the wonderful parents!!! I dont know what we would do without them. All we needed was the Hermann family to be there and we would have been complete. But thats alright we will see them for Easter!! Yay!

My wonderful and super talented sister in law also made us these beautiful blessing blankets! This will be something she will be able to cherish for a long time. Thanks Ash!!!

She's HERE!!!

2011-03-07T19:32:00.000-08:00

Well she's actually been here for 2.5 weeks, but its been a busy couple of weeks so here is Madison's official blog post!

Our beautiful baby girl was born on Thursday, February 17th 2011 at 1:45pm. She weighed 8lbs. 9oz. and was 21 inches long..... she's absolutely perfect! Here's her birth story....

I'll begin with my last Dr. appt which was on valentines day...3 days after my due date! It went just like any other check up, my doctor checked my cervix and I was still only dilated at a 1 (for the 3rd week in a row) but I was 80% effaced, which I thought was pretty good? We talked and the earliest he could induce me was on that upcoming Thursday because they dont induce on Fridays and the following Monday was Presidents day, so I was able to get in just before I turned 41 weeks. By then I assumed I wouldnt go into labor on my own (and I didnt want to get my hopes up cause it made time go by much slower) so I just planned on having her on the day I was scheduled to be induced. I always used to be afraid to be induced, which I dont understand why because it was so nice. I loved waking up that morning knowing for a FACT I would have my baby that day. It just felt very organized, stress-free, and we were as prepared as we could be! I didnt feel nervous one bit, just ready. Can't you tell? haha.

That morning I woke up at 5, took a shower and got everything ready to load up the car, Danny and I knelt down to say a prayer, and then we were on our way! I remember while we were driving to the hospital the moon was still out and it was so big and beautiful! We arrived at the hospital around 630 and they got things going right away. I walked into the room that I would be delivering in and they had me put on the gown. A couple minutes later my nurse, Jennie came in got me hooked up to the IV and put the baby's heart monitor and contraction monitor on my belly. Jennie was amazing and she was able to be there when Madison was born, she was such a great nurse and was very funny too. When she put the iv in me I immediately got super nauseous and threw up. It was the most painful thing out of the ENTIRE DELIVERY, and I never thought it would have been, but it was. (and ps. up untill I was pregnant I never used to throw up....)

The doctor came in around 7 and broke my water, which was the weirdest feeling. He got this big crochet hook looking thing and just poked around up there and seconds later I felt this gush of warm fluid. Yuck, it felt like I was peeing, and it kept gushing for hours! Once my water was broke they started me on the pitocin. My nurse said I could request the epideral at any time, but I wanted to feel some hard contractions first, just so I was sure what they felt like. The pitocin caps out at 20 and by the time it was at a 16 I had felt some hard contractions and they were so close it seemed like they wouldnt stop. So then I requested the epideral, I had my fun and I was ready to relax.

Here's Jennie showing me the contractions on the screen

Waiting for the anesthesiologist made me feel very nervous, just cause I have heard so many horror stories about the epideral and after my experience with the IV I was not looking forward to be poked with a large needle again. Just a couple minutes later the anesthesiologist came in (which was pretty fast) and he was awesome!!! He definitely became my favorite person that day haha. It honestly did not hurt at all! I just felt pressure, which was a little uncomfortable, but hardly any pain. He did a great job and didnt take long for it to kick in. After it kicked in I was literally in HEAVEN!!! I had not felt that comfortable in a very long time! It did make me kinda loopy however and I was starting to say things that didnt quite make sense, but I didnt care I was off in my own little world haha. It was fun to see the contractions on the monitor and not feel a single thing. They actually ended up putting an internal contraction monitor inside me so they could get a more accurate reading.

Getting the Epideral

Happy girl after the Epideral feeling very relaxed

Aaaannd taking a little snooze.... fighting those contractions really takes alot out of ya!

Jennie checked my cervix at 9am and I was only at a 3+ and she told me I would probably dilate a cm per hour, so I was planning on having her around 4 or 5. So we all were just hanging out, it was nice to have both the families here for the support. Jennie decided to check me again around 1215 or 1230 and when she did, she had a very shocked look on her face. I asked her if anything was happening and she said "ummm we're gonna have this baby right now" my stomach dropped when she said that and I was just in shock! She said "whatever you do, do NOT laugh, sneeze, or throw up because the head is right there and I need to go call the doctor". My adrenaline immediately started pumping, I thought I would be scared but I was so excited! Everyone left the room, except for the 2 moms and Danny. We started doing a couple "practice pushes" until the doctor came. So Danny was holding my right leg, my mom holding my left, and the nurse front and center, while my mother in law took pictures. I am so grateful for her capturing us bringing our baby girl into the world. The nurse then had me hold my thighs and hold my breath for 10 seconds when a contraction came and then I had to PUSH.

A few minutes later, Dr Harward came in all covered up in his scrubs and wheeled in this table that had all these scary looking sharp tools on it. It all was kindve a blur from there! I remember it was hard to breath cause i would have to hold my breath for so long with only one breath in between contractions. so they put an oxygen mask on me to help me get air flow faster between the contractions.

I kept using my arms and pulling my legs in towards me, which wasn't working the right muscles. It was hard to tell what muscles I was actually using because I couldn't feel anything. When the head started crowning the nurses asked me if I wanted a mirror to see.... I paused for a second and then said sure, why not? I am so glad I decided to because it was so incredible to watch her come out!!! Probably the most amazing thing I've ever seen. Plus it helped me focus on the muscles I needed to use to get her out! All of a sudden I just went for it and threw my arms around my legs and pushed with all my might and in just a couple pushes, her head was out!!! The Dr. started sucking things out of her nose and mouth and then it was time for me to push the rest of her body out. That was a breeze, her whole body came out in like 2 pushes! Once we heard that first sweet cry Danny and I looked at each other and we immediately started to cry. It was such a special moment and Dan did so amazing! He was such a good support and was by my side the entire time! And that's just what I needed :)

Danny cut the cord and then off she went to get cleaned up.

Hearing that sweet cry!

My first look at my daughter!

I didn't even realize it when he took the placenta out. But there were still pieces of it inside me so the Dr spent quite some time literally digging and scraping around inside me to get everything out! UGH! But I was just so focused on Danny and hearing that sweet cry that I really didn't notice that much. Plus I was still feeling pretty numb from the Epidural. Moments later they brought her to me and laid her on my chest for skin to skin contact to raise her temperature and to have that connection, it was the most amazing feeling to hold my baby for the first time. I couldn't believe she was inside me for all those months and now finally here she is! I felt an immediate connection with her. I love her more than words can even describe!

It was so crazy because right after you deliver a baby, all the organs are still off to the side so the nurse had me push down on my belly and I could literally feel all the way to my spine!!! Ahhh!!! It was craaazy! The actual delivery was not hard at all! But the recovery however, was the hardest part. Just those next couple of days I was incredibly sore and every time I sat or stood up I would completely lose my breath. Danny and I would take walks around the hospital together and I would hold on to my IV pole with one hand and wrap my other arm around his, and waddle around like an old woman. And as soon as we got back to the room I felt like I had just ran a marathon, I was so ready to get back in bed. My arms were super sore from when I was pulling my legs and squeezing all my arm muscles. So needless to say I was sore EVERYWHERE!

We were able to go home on Saturday morning and it was such a good feeling to finally be home with our sweet baby girl. Words simply cannot describe our love for her. She is perfect. And so incredible. We are so in love with her. What a wonderful experience this was.

Super Cheesy, Mushy, Gushy, Valentine Post :)

2011-02-14T13:37:00.000-08:00

Top 10 reasons why I am so in love with this delectable man:
1.) He loves to jump into a freshly made bed.
2.) He helps me put socks on my feet when I cant reach them.
3.) He reads me stories to put me to sleep.
4.) He tickles my face while I am sleeping and I love waking up to him snuggling me.
5.) He is such a hard worker and provides for our family.
6.) He always slaps my behind and kisses me on the cheek when he walks by.
7.) He will never tell me my cooking is bad, even though 99% of the time it is.
8.) He is truly my best friend.
9.) He knows me better than I know myself, and can always predict what I'm going to say next.
10.) He sometimes acts like a little brother to bug me, and makes me laugh till I cry.... or pee :)
I could go on and on...
I love you, Babe! Happy Valentines Day!

Dance Central

2011-02-13T18:57:00.000-08:00

We got a new video game, its pretty fun! I snuck a few snapshots of Dan while we were playing. We've been trying to put me into labor by playing this game.... so far nothing.... but it sure is fun :)

Danny doing the "Soldier Boy"

Solutions :)

2011-02-12T16:24:00.000-08:00

This has been an ongoing problem with the 2 of us, the second we get home we either throw our jackets on the floor, a chair, or worse, on the bassinet! Clearly after we have this baby we will not be doing that anymore, but I figured why not try and look for a coat rack to make hanging up our jackets much easier! ..... can you tell i've been super bored? haha anyway, I found this cute coat rack on Amazon for super cheap, and i love it!

Problem

SOLUTION!!!

Yay for solutions! And for Amazon! And for cute coat racks!!

The Countdown is Over! But still going.....

2011-02-11T08:56:00.000-08:00

Today is literally the day I have been waiting for for the past... 10 months! Holy cow you really are pregnant for practically an ENTIRE YEAR!! any ways I know there is a super low percentage of women who actually deliver on their due date, but I was kinda hoping she would be early instead of late? I bet she gets it from her parents (we are terrible procrastinators.... ESPECIALLY her daddy :)) But its fun to know she could come any minute now... just wish I knew when! If I dont have her this weekend, I have a doc appt monday morning and he's gonna check to see if he can induce me earlier than Thursday, I'm sure either way a couple days is not gonna hurt, especially if I'm full term! We'll just have to wait and see!

My Beautiful Sammy

2011-02-07T13:07:00.001-08:00

Tomorrow marks the 2 year anniversary since my dear friend Samantha Ann Loy passed away. Words cannot describe how much I miss this girl and her contagious smile! She was everybodys friend and she always made you feel special. We had so many fun times together in highschool, running track all 4 years, cheerleading, Express, lunch breaks (we would ALWAYS go to Taco Bell) Going on trips, (lake powell) sleep overs, dances, football games, and the list goes on and on! I loved her so much because she never cared what anybody thought about her, she was so outgoing and friendly and was always her crazy self! She's so talented, smart, and beautiful. She was truly a wonderful human being. It was amazing to see how many people were at her funeral... i kid you not the whole town was practically there! She had touched so many lives! She was also probably one of the funniest people i have ever known too. We had so many inside jokes together that i still think about to this day! I think about her everyday.... I miss her. I wish things could have been different. Its hard because every time we go to Grand Junction, we always pass by her cross on the highway, and I always honk my horn when I see it! I know she's probably playing with my baby girl right now and telling her all kinds of stories about me! I love and miss my Sammy!

Rest In Peace, my friend.

The DEVIL

2011-02-06T22:36:00.001-08:00

My sweet husband has some friends' wives tell him that drinking Castor Oil has helped put them into labor. Since I am practically 4 days away from my due date I figured, "why not try to get the process going a little quicker". I'm not completely miserable right now, I know there are a lot of women out there who have much worse pregnancies than I have had so I am not the one to complain.... but I am very much ready to be DONE with being pregnant and to have my baby out for everyone to enjoy. Sleeping at night has been the BIGGEST challenge for me and its so sad because I really do love sleeping, I just cannot get comfortable and I am literally going to the bathroom every hour (and that is not an exaggeration).... in a way i think it's Maddy's way of telling me I will never get sleep again, she is so sweet to give me this warning ahead of time :) haha. Anyway back to... the devil... Castor Oil! It is the most horrible thing I have ever consumed and to make things worse, it did NOT work! I mixed 3 tablespoons of it in a glass of cranberry juice, but thanks to good ol' science, oil does not mix with liquid no matter how hard you try. So there was my glass of cranberry juice with a yummy thick layer of Castor oil on top ready for me to drink it. My first sip made me gag! It was horrible. For some reason the texture of it felt like i was drinking super thick lip gloss!!! Ugh! nastiest thing ever! Anyway I chugged the whole glass and then I thought to myself "wow, I am going to be up all night with the worst case of diarrhea" considering Castor oil is a stimulant laxative. However, not even an hour later I started to feel super nauseous and ran to the bathroom! It all decided to come out the opposite end (which I am kinda grateful for) but it was just as horrible to throw it up as it was to drink it.... so no more, Castor Oil, never again!

The End of Another Chapter in My Life

2011-02-06T21:58:00.000-08:00

It's time!!! My final days at the good ol' BO have come and gone. Saturday afternoon was my last shift and I was having such mixed feelings. You would think with how sucky of a job it is I would be jumping for joy to know I will never have to go back to that dump again..... but I was actually very sad. During my shift I kept thinking about how much has changed around there since I first started and it is definitely not the same place.... well it is still the same place, but its the people that make it what it is. I started back at the end of September of 2008, nearly 2 1/2 years ago, and I could not even tell you how many fantastic people I have came in contact with since then, whether it be co-workers, managers, or even customers! Brick Oven was seriously my life for the longest time. It was a great job for me when I was a poor college student working my way through hair school. And to save money for my future child :) I am truly so grateful for Danny and for how hard he works to support his family and to give me this privilege of staying home with our daughter! He's awesome! Well I could sit here and go on and on about every person who has touched my life at this place, but that would literally take years to write, but you know who you are! I am closing on yet another chapter of my life to start a new one. Thanks Brick Oven!!! I will miss you all!

Goodbye my discusting man outfit that I practically lived in... I will miss you the least!

Thanks Rachel :)

2011-02-06T21:37:00.001-08:00

So my good friend Rachel Jensen, (a super sweet girl I went to hairschool with) got a really nice camera a while ago and has been getting into photography alot lately. She is such a natural at it too! Anyway she was in the mood to do a photoshoot of some sort and asked me if she could take some maternity pictures of us.... of course I said yes, cause I kinda wanted to take some anyways so maddy could see what she looked like in my belly :) we had fun taking these pics, the only thing that sucked was the frigid cold temperature outside, and the little time we had. Danny's back was hurting him really bad that day so he scheduled an appt with Aunt Julene and Dr. Staples (our massage therapist and chiropractor) but by the time he was done it was 5 oclock and we were running out of daylight. But these turned out great! I couldn't be happier! And Rach had alot of way cute ideas of some poses too! Thanks Rachel!!!!
The Beautiful Photographer :)

Look at that massive belly!

Week: 38 Day: 3

2011-01-30T15:51:00.001-08:00

Could I possibly get any bigger??? I cant imagine how big i'll be if this little girl decides to come late! We've got most of the hospital bag packed, all her clothes washed, house ready.... now we just have to wait for her to make her debut!

Counting down the days till we get to meet our sweet baby girl <3

A Shower for Our Baby Girl!

2011-01-26T21:02:00.000-08:00

Tonight I had my baby shower and let me just say.... my daughter is already so spoiled!!! I felt so loved and I am so thankful for everyone who came and for those who helped make it happen. It was a really good turn out and it was so good to see some old friends that i havent seen in a while! Emma took a TON of pictures so here are just a few snapshots from the party. It was so fun!

My friends mom made this blanket, if you look closely you can see that the stitching is her name and its around the entire blanket! Its incredible!

Thanks again for such a great time!

Called to Serve....

2011-01-09T19:41:00.000-08:00

Yes, its true. Danny and I have been in our new ward for 2 weeks and we already have a calling.... we are the Primary teachers for the Valiant 10 class. I dont think either one of us were expecting to receive a calling that fast, But we couldnt be more excited! This will be such a big learning experience, not only for the kids, but for US! Considering the fact that I never went to Primary, I sure have a lot to learn! Today was actually my first day teaching the kids... and well... it was kinda rough. This Sunday was Danny's Sunday to work, so I was all by myself. I feel like we need to get to know the kids really well so we can teach them in a way that they all enjoy. There are 2 boys and 6 girls and most all the kids are well behaved except for a couple, and once they get to chatting, they kinda get everyone else riled up. I got some good advice from my mother in law today on what to do to keep them interested and involved. So next week I will prepare myself more and hopefully it will be better, plus I'll have Dan there to help... so that'll be GREAT! It's amazing the blessings and challenges that heavenly father will throw your way. This will be a very interesting year and I am hoping I will be able to find a good balance between being a new mom and caring for a newborn, and also being a teacher and learning how to work with 10 year olds! Wish us luck! We might need it. :)

An update on our little Maddie

2011-01-02T20:44:00.000-08:00

How your baby's growing:

Your baby now weighs about 4.75 lbs. (like your average cantaloupe) and is almost 18 inches long. Her fat layers-- which help regulate her body temperature once she's born-- are filling her out, making her rounder. Her skin is almost smoother than ever. Her central nervous system is maturing and her lungs are continuing to mature as well. If you've been nervous about pre-term labor, you'll be happy to know that babies born between 34 and 37 weeks who have no other health problems, generally do fine. They may need a short stay in the neonatal nursery and may have a few short-term health issues, but in the long run, they usually do as well as full-term babies.

We cannot wait to have this sweet girl! I love her so much already! Just anticipating the moment where she'll finally be in my arms and out of my ribs!

Our Holiday

2011-01-02T19:17:00.000-08:00

It has been quite a while since I've last updated the blog. Honestly, i dont even know what to write half the time without it being super boring! One of my new years resolutions this year is to try to update as much as possible, no matter how boring our lives may sound, or even if all the posts are about Maddie. It will be so nice for later on to look back and remember these times, considering im not much of a journal-er either.

Well let me just begin by saying we had a great holiday this year! It was a little bitter-sweet only becuase we werent able to drive to colorado to be with my family for christmas. The roads were pretty bad and we didnt want to risk anything, so we ended up staying in utah. My mom told me how much fun they all had, I wish we could have been there with them. Here are a couple pictures she sent me of the boys. They are soooo cute and so sweet! I love them!

We still had such a great time here in utah, we were able to share this time with some of our family, I am so greatful for this family! They are wonderful! I love them!

This was the "infamous" taffy pull. Its a Van Wagoner tradition and we all had such a good time!

Our beautiful niece, Annabelle Sue's first Christmas!

*Merry Christmas*

Happy 23rd, 24th, & 25th Birthday to My Danny!

2010-09-14T13:38:00.000-07:00

Welp.... here it is! Danny has been wanting a new guitar for a very long time but once he saw his brothers new guitar that was the end of it! So last weekend we went to a guitar shop that had these really nice guitars on clearance and he got to try a bunch out. Dave and Sue were there to help him make his decision on which one was right for him. While we were picking out guitars for him to try we had him close his eyes so he could really find the right one. When he found the one he loved the most (and that was within our budget) we got it! I have really benefitted from this investment because every night I fall asleep to beautiful sound of this guitar and his sweet singing voice! Ahhhhh..... plus it'll be fun for him to one day teach our children how to play and perhaps pass it down to them. Oh and Merry Christmas and Happy Anniversary too! :)

That Sunday evening was so great because Dan, Jake, and Dave all had their guitars with them and played tons of songs for the family! They are all such talented musicians!

Eating in the dark

2010-09-14T13:11:00.000-07:00

About 2 weeks ago Danny woke up in the middle of the night to a loud crashing sound from outside.... he looked out the window to see what happened and a few minutes later the police showed up! I was sound asleep through all of this. In the morning we realized that the power had gone out during the night, as I was on my way to work I noticed the entire street was blocked off so I had to take a detour to get there. Apparently what had happened was a semi truck driver had taken a sharp turn a little too quickly and tipped the truck over on its side, knocking over all the telephone poles and what not. Thankfully no one was hurt! Later that evening I was making dinner and all of a sudden the power went out again (we live in a basement apartment so it gets really dark at night, so I have to have night lights all over the house, but even those went out) so it was time to pull out the candles. Luckily I had finished making dinner so we were able to eat by candle light. I felt very resourceful and wondered what it would be like if we had to live without electricity? Anyway a few minutes later the power got back on and everything was back to normal again! Here's what our house looked like in the dark.....

I accidentally turned the flash on and look who I found sneaking around :)

Kicks, Pokes, and Butterflies :)

2010-08-31T11:23:00.000-07:00

This past week has been a very fun week for us! A few days ago I started to feel little flutters in my belly and couldn't tell if it was baby or my stomach growling or just gas! But the other night I really felt our baby kick and new instantly what it was! I started crying cause I was so excited and ran up to Danny and told him I felt the baby! It was such a sweet moment! Last night we were just laying in bed watching a movie and I could feel my baby kicking up a storm, and I thought for sure I could feel it on the outside of my tummy too, so I had danny put his hand right where I was feeling it and 2 seconds later..... he felt a big kick!!! I can't believe he can already feel the baby even when I just barely started feeling it myself a couple days ago! What an awesome feeling it is to know our son or daughter is playing around in there and in just a few short months we'll be able to meet our little bundle of joy!!!! I. Can't. Wait! I'm still having morning sickness but its every other day or every 2 days now instead of everyday! So that's good! We will find out if it's a boy or a girl on October 4th! :)