The Duce Scoop

Joel Wesley Duce

2011-03-16T16:14:00.000-07:00

Well he came!! I was 41 weeks and 1 day, phew. Joel was born at 3:50 am Sunday March 6th and weighed 9 lbs 5 oz!! Where I fit a 9 pound baby I'll never know. =) We arrived at the hospital at 4:15 for a 4:30 induction on Saturday the 5th. When they first checked me before being induced I was at 3cm and 60% effaced - finally, I was starting to progress on my own! After getting everything ready & hooked up, doing blood tests and so on, they finally got the pitocin started at 8pm. At 10:30 I was given the epidural. By then I was having a steady pattern of contractions - nothing too painful, just the uncomfortable tight ones. At 11:50 they broke my water (and I was still at 3cm by then.) Jason and I slept from about 12:00-1:30am probably. At 2:50 my nurse checked me and I was a 4 and his head was way lower. Then I started to feel a lot of pressure down there with each contraction. At 3:15 the pressure was getting stronger, so she checked again and I was a 5. I was getting excited because it felt like Joel was getting closer and closer to coming. (And I remembered that this was how it felt when it was about time to push Kristie out.) Jason went to the bathroom and I remember thinking "Hurry Jason, I don't want you to miss this!" Haha. At 3:27 I was 10 cm and ready to push! My hands were shaking like crazy because I dilated so fast. And the doctor almost didn't make it in time! I felt like I was having to hold him in, he was coming so quick! At 3:35 I started pushing and 15 minutes later at 3:50, Joel was born! The pressure was really intense while I was pushing (more-so than with Kristie) but it was so quick! I can't tell you how amazing it was to bring another into the world with Jason at my side. Absolutely nothing like it. Joel is such a good baby and we're SO blessed to have TWO amazing kids!

Waiting to be induced!

Just seconds after being born.

Jason was so anxious to hold him, it was adorable! I breast fed him right away for awhile, so Jason asked "Is it my turn to hold him yet??"

It took Kristie awhile to acknowledge him at the hospital - but she got there!

First family of four picture! Kristie wasn't into it obviously, haha.

Love his little body. =)

And oh dear me, the toes...awww...

Dressed and ready to go home!

Look at all that hair! (Dark hair at that!)

Good to be home!

Joel's visitors in the hospital!

The last "Just Us" Days

2011-03-16T15:00:00.000-07:00

Here pictures from the rest of our girls week before Joel arrived. =) We finished off by going shoe shopping for Kristie at Payless (the crazy mirror picture), going to the Children's Museum (I'll never do that 9 mos pregnant again, haha) and getting our nails done at the salon! We had sooo much fun and I'm so grateful for my Kristie! Just because Joel is here doesn't mean we can't have those girly times together still - just means I'm going to work extra hard to make them happen! =)

Joel's tummy movements

2011-03-03T22:15:00.000-08:00

It was almost midnight a couple days ago, and I would've loved to be sleeping...but Joel had other plans. =) The top right of the screen should be an arm and the bottom left should be a leg. =)

Kriste's latest cute moments =)

2011-03-03T22:07:00.000-08:00

Induce Date

2011-03-01T22:20:00.000-08:00

Alrighty here's the scoop, 40 weeks & 3 days today. I had my OB appt this morning and still no progress. =( So the date for induction is this Saturday the 5th (wow, it's going to be a MARCH baby!) when I'm 41 weeks. Guess that's when Dr. Nathan likes to induce, hmm. I was kinda aggravated about it at first, but it'll be nice to give Joel a chance to come on his own still. I have a feeling he won't, but worth a shot! And again, more last days alone with my Kristie. Monday we did McDonalds after an ultrasound and NST. Today we went to Kristie's favorite place, the library. =) Tomorrow we're going to the children's museum. (I think I can, I think I can, I think I can. My body WILL hold up!)

Here's Kristie playing with another girl at the playplace in McDonalds yesterday. Of course, she's all over the computer and not as interested in the tubes and slides, haha! (She always runs to the computer first when we go to the library.)

Can't wait to see you Joel!

Baby Bump #2

2011-02-27T23:55:00.000-08:00

Well, I am 40 weeks and 1 day today. I had a feeling Joel would be late too. =) If he's not here this week, they'll probably be inducing me on the 3rd. I've been soooo anxious for him to make an appearance, but my good friend told me to look at it this way - every day that Joel is not here, it's another day Kristie and I have to be together! So we are going to take advantage of that this week while we're waiting for him to come out. She gave me a pass to the children's museum, so we'll go do that. Go spend my gift certificate for a manicure together (and have them do Kristie's nails too.) Heck, we'll even go to "Old McDonald's" and eat a happy meal together at the play place! But we sure can't wait to see you kiddo! Hope you're coming soon!!

Here's how my bump grew this time. =)

Our little house!

2011-02-27T23:18:00.000-08:00

Gosh, we are sure counting our blessings. Our friends just happened to move out of this house, in time for us to move in. Our apartment lease was up and they were going to raise our rent to more than we could afford. This house is $200 cheaper and bigger! And a house for heavens sakes! And we are good friends with the renters, who are our neighbors! And my most favorite part...no more climbing up three floors of stairs!!!

Anyway, we moved in last week and have everything unpacked and organized, so we are ready for Joel to come join us! Thank you for waiting 'til we were done moving! =) (BTW, I cannot believe all that moving and packing did not put me into labor. Seriously, no progress? Come on now, I exhausted myself!) We are just loooooooving it. Jason and I are just beaming from ear to ear - we are loving not being in apartment and having a little area to ourselves! We are so lucky and so grateful!

Here's a few pictures from the outside - top left, front of the house. Top middle, lots of trees surrounding us, nice and secluded! Top right, view from the front porch (big front yard to run around in) and a porch swing! Bottom left, back of the house - back porch and back door to the carport. (So fun just getting out of the car and walking right into the house, lol, we love it.) Bottom middle, carport with storage space on the side. Bottom right, front porch.

Pictures from the inside - Top left, entryway w/piano and entrance to the kitchen. Top middle, view into the dining room. Top right, other side of living room, our room, and Kristie & Joel's room. (Soon to be adding a toddler bed!) Bottom left, one of the two bathrooms, this is the one in our room. Bottom middle, living room. Bottom right, the kitchen. (There's also a laundry room that has a door leading out to the carport.)

Again, we could not be more happy with our little abode!!

Snow day

2011-02-27T22:59:00.000-08:00

Poor Kristie, all her mommy had the energy to do was walk around our yard. =) At least it put a huge smile on her face! We had been organizing and unpacking most the day and I asked "Kristie, wanna go walk around in the snow?" Her face lit up and she said "Oh! You're so sweet mommy!" How cute is that?!

Mom's Piano

2011-02-27T15:21:00.000-08:00

Since we've moved back to WA, Dad's been wanting to give me Mom's piano - and we've been living in 3rd floor apartments. So now that we just moved into the little house, we got it!! It was an exciting day for sure! To have such a huge memory of Mom in my own home is such a blessing. She taught me to play on this piano, taught many others piano lessons on it, and filled our home growing up with her beautiful playing. Jason's a better piano player than I am, so it's fun hearing him play on it too. =) And you know Kristie's going to get lessons on it as well. And I'm going to spruce up my piano playing. =) I am the luckiest girl in the world.

Moving it out of Dad's and into ours new place!

Cutest jammies on the planet

2011-02-23T14:12:00.000-08:00

Opa and Abue came over to give Kristie a present as well as one for Joel. She got these insanely cute jammies that I just can't get over! She's never had the baggy, flannel type pants and they just make her look so grown up!

Letter L Day

2011-02-23T14:06:00.000-08:00

Hosted at Amber's house, we had a huge turn out, but I didn't whip out the camera in time to catch everyone. Millie & I stayed longer to make lemon macadamia nut cookies and hang out. =) (So I mostly got pictures of our kids.) Earlier while everyone was there, we did felt pictures that started with L and ate homemade lentil soup - holy cow it was delicious. And the sun decided to come out so Kristie and her friends played outside! Soooo fun!

I met Jamie Ford!

2011-02-10T15:07:00.000-08:00

Last Friday was an author talk and book signing for Jamie Ford, the author of "Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet." I just happen to LOVE that book from when we read it for book club last year and couldn't believe he was going to be in town! Sherri & I were the only ones from book club who were able to go, but we sure had a ball! He gave a great talk and Q & A - completely nice, humble, funny guy! This was his debut book, so it was interesting with him being a brand new author. He's also from the Seattle area (where the book takes place) so that just makes him even cooler. Anyway, I had never been to one of these, and I thoroughly enjoyed it! If you haven't read the book, you should. Yay!

My source of sanity at night...

2011-02-10T15:03:00.000-08:00

...two huge body pillows from Costco for $11.50 each. Best $23 bucks I've spent in a while...

Can't get enough of you

2011-02-10T14:13:00.000-08:00

Really soaking up these last days of it being just Kristie & I before her little brother comes. (Wow, I can't believe she's going to have a little brother!) I can't get over how much she's grown up and how much fun we can have together as girly girls. The other day we got a book in the mail from a friend for Kristie, called "Will you still love me?" So sweet! It's all about a new baby coming to the family - Kristie, I sure won't love you any less! Like it says in the book, I'll love you even more!

This is what she was doing one morning when I came in to get her, on the left of the collage. Just chillin' with blanket on her head. Gosh she cracks me up! (And I still can't get over her adorable feet.)

(I finally painted her fingernails for the first time!! I always figured she wouldn't let me paint them like she does her toes, but she just sat so still and let them dry!) She specifically asked for blue polish on her feet and orange on her hands! Aw, so grown up. =) Sooo fun doing this with her!

Getting ready for Valentine's day! We didn't have any red paint or red glitter, so we made some colored sugar! You just put a cup of sugar in a jar and a bunch of drops of food coloring & shake it together. Easy peasy!

Playin' around with her old car seat before we got rid of it. (It expired in '09.) Look how much you've grown!)

We missed letter day one week, so we did it at home ourselves. J is for jewelry! We tried on all of mommy's jewelry, then glued beads to the letter J. =) (She's so careful with crafts, it's adorable!)

Helping me out one day. Thank you!!

Making good ol' chocolate chip cookies. I always seem to have enough energy to bake! Dinner on the other hand...

Kristie and some friends

2011-02-10T09:12:00.000-08:00

Aside from letter days, we spend lots of time hanging out at Mindy's house. She has two cute kiddos, Alestair & Emmet and watches Maddy usually everyday. So they have lots of fun hangin' out. =)

Kristie my dear, I just adore you!

NST days

2011-02-10T08:59:00.000-08:00

My OB was worried about my blood pressure since it's been up and down, and I had a history of it being high with my pregnancy w/Kristie. So since beginning of January I'd been doing non-stress tests (NSTs) twice a week. Thankfully as of this month we switched it to once a week because they've been perfect and so has my blood pressure. Last month regular OB appts were every other week, and this month they're every week, so Kristie and I feel like we live at the Pavillion for Women & Children where both appts are. The morning valet person knows Kristie & I quite well by now, it's funny. Luckily, NSTs are kinda fun. I sick back & relax in a nice room with a view and get to listen to Joel's heartbeat for a half an hour (and watch my bare belly move around.) Kristie enjoys it as well believe it or not. She brings her little backpack full of stuff to keep her busy and she's just happy as a clam to chill in a chair. And she adores going on the elevator. In fact when we get there, she says "Go to #4?" which is the floor we go to. Haha!

Anyway, everything's looking good and normal. And as far as regular OB appts go, I'm measuring right on at 37 weeks. Can't believe we're in the home stretch now! This Saturday I'll be 2 weeks away from my due date! (The 26th!)

Here we are at one of the NSTs. =)

SHEnanigans Alice in Wonderland Photo Shoot

2011-02-09T22:07:00.000-08:00

Wow, what an awesome shoot! The theme for January was "Fairy Tales" and our group did Alice in Wonderland. It turned out soooo super cute and I was so lucky to take pictures of my absolutely gorgeous friends. Jason's uncles Mike & Geoff let us shoot at their house in Seattle - (which is my dream house) and their yard is just perfect for this type of theme. We also lucked out on a sunny day! This was kinda my last hoorah for a little bit before Joel's born, so thanks ladies for being there and getting so into it! (Click on the collages to enlarge.)

Click here to see the facebook album on the Silly Girls United page for all the full sized individual pictures!

2011-02-09T21:28:00.000-08:00

Some days Kristie asks me to take pictures of her - and when I do, she'll go to a different spot and ask me to take another one while she poses. So cute! I wish she'd do this all the time!

Baby Shower for Joel!

2011-02-03T23:01:00.000-08:00

What a fun shower! My two best friends, Katie & Kali and my sis-in-law Leslie threw it for me! It was green, blue & froggy themed - I adore that for boy stuff! It was held at Kali's parent's lovely house and we had fun eating some delicious food, playing cute games and eating the amazing cake Katie, Kali & Les made together! I got the cutest little boy things, and it just got me more and more excited for Joel to get here! Thanks so much gals!!!

How cute is this cake?! Honestly!

Kaci made an adorable diaper cake!

Growth Ultrasound

2011-02-03T22:50:00.000-08:00

A few weeks ago I had an ultrasound to check on Joel's growth. I just love seeing his cute little face and wiggly body. Everything is looking absolutely perfect, and he was measuring two weeks ahead! (I was 33 weeks, and he was measuring 35.) He was about 5 lbs 4 oz and in the 80th percentile. Can you believe they can tell these things? The technician pointed out a fat roll on his neck! AW! And she pointed out fuzzy hair on his head. Oh dear, that just killed me. He's head down and just perfect. Goodness that got me excited! Afterwards in the excitement, Kristie and I went to McDonald's for lunch. =) I don't take her there often so it was a special treat! It was fun, just the two of us. We sat at a table in the play area, ate our lovely lunch together with smiles on our face and she played on the play thing by herself! (Usually she makes me go in with her. So I was verrrry happy about that.) Man it was fun. =) Anyway, good ultrasound, can't wait to see you soon Joel!!

Whoopie Pies!

2011-02-03T22:42:00.000-08:00

In December, Kristie and I made whoopie pies for a girls night. Man it's fun baking with her! (This was when we were still potty training, hence the underwear. That ship has sailed. =)) She was really good at licking the batter. And it was pretty much the cutest thing hearing her say "Makin' whoopie pies!" I would make these over and over again just so we can say it!

Winter babe

2011-01-26T00:12:00.000-08:00

Kristie lookin' all cute in her winter ensemble in December. =)

Christmas 2010

2011-01-25T23:19:00.000-08:00

Better late than never right? Phew!!

This was at the HP ward Christmas party - she didn't shed a single tear for Santa! Also didn't smile a tiny bit, but we were just excited that she didn't freak out! hehe.

(Here she was last year!) =)

Back to this year =)

I just had to make goodies for our neighbors this year! These are Peter Paul Mounds...yummm...

The beginning of caramel...

Mmmm, ready to pour...

Yummm...

And gingersnaps!

All packed and ready to go to our awesome neighbors! One of them left a present for Kristie in return on our doorstep when we got home Christmas eve - it was sooo sweet!

Her cute little Christmas jumpsuit from Auntie Katie, adorable. The shirt that goes with it has the grinch and cindy lou who on it!

A little big, but still cute!

So we were spending Christmas Eve with my family. Kristie was being sad and super clingy and we couldn't figure out why. As we were sitting down to a nice Christmas Eve dinner, we decided to lay her down upstairs and let her sleep 'cause it was almost bed time, she wouldn't even eat any appetizers and she was running a fever all of a sudden. When we got up there she threw up. (Alllll over me.) Ohhhh dear, it was SO sad!!! We didn't know how much more she had in her, so we ended up going home. Oh man, it was just so sad to cut the celebrating short! We felt terrible. She threw up several more times throughout the rest of the night. I was so bummed that Christmas was probably going to be a sad day. But miraculously the next morning, she was completely fine! Oh my heavens, I can't put to words how happy I was. We opened stockings, had Kristie open up a couple presents and then my family came over open a few presents and talk to Dallin over in Latvia!! It was soooo fun to hear his voice! (He only has 6 months left!) Then we got dressed and headed over to the Duces for the rest of the day. Opened presents there, played games, came home for Kristie's nap, then headed to the Petersons with the Duces for Christmas dinner! Lovely day!!

Opening up her LeapFrog Phonics train! (We inherited this from her Uncle Blake!)

My dad gave me (and the rest of my siblings) a brick from the church building that burned down. He was able to salvage some and even finished it up after Christmas by putting a plate on top with the picture Dustin drew of it years ago. Such an awesome present!!

Kristie with her presents, all set up. This cracks me up. =)

Christmas pull-a-parts after rising and ready to bake!

After being baked and turned over...yummmmm...

Jason showing Kristie how to use her first Pez dispenser.

From Jason =) =) =)

From me, new church shoes! He's been wearing the same ones that he had on his mission!

At the Petersons that night. (Ann, the one on the very left, is Dave's sister...Jason's Aunt.) All the girls. =)

All the boys.

The Duces.

Us after church the next day.

The only picture I could get of Kristie wearing her Christmas dress! Guess she was sad Christmas was over. =)

5th Anniversary

2011-01-10T15:02:00.000-08:00

On December 17th, we celebrated out 5th anniversary! Soooo much has happened in the last 5 years, and I can't put to words how lucky I am to have Jason as my husband. I love you my dear!!

Jason took me out to dinner at Lombardi's, right on the water in Everett. When we got out to the car I found a bouquet of flowers and chocolates in my seat. =) Dinner was just perfect! They sat us at a little table right next to the window so we had a gorgeous view of the boats out, covered in Christmas lights. The food was amazing! But I loved staring at Jason the most. =) Afterwards we did a little Christmas shopping and came home to watch a movie. (Opa & Abue came over to babysit Kristie.) Such a nice night!

Duce Family pic

2011-01-09T18:04:00.000-08:00

Well some of the Duces! We were only missing Erin and John, but Steve was home for a couple nights and we rarely get to see him!

26!

2011-01-09T17:52:00.000-08:00

I turned 26 in December! Woo! We had both families over for a birthday party which is always nice - man I love our families! Jason got me this awesome cake from Safeway that literally tasted like a ding dong. It was lovely. =) Devin works 'til 10 so as soon as he got off he came over and we (Dev, Les, Jason and I) watched "Eat, Pray, Love" til the wee hours of the morning. Looove that movie! Jason was a little under the weather with a bad cold, but he was a trooper and joined in the party. =) So overall a good birthday!

Letter Days

2011-01-09T17:40:00.000-08:00

My friend Mindy started up a group for our kids doing Letter days! Each week we get together with our kiddos and focus on a letter of the alphabet. It's been way fun! I had a week in December to host for the letter E - so we made "Elf Ears" (homemade elephant ears cut in half, hehe), colored the letter E with an elf picture and danced to "The Happy Elf" by Harry Connick Jr! Sooo fun. We usually have about 5 or 6 kids on average, so it's fun for Kristie have kids to play with!

For letter A we talked about Autumn and make sun catchers with leaves and melted crayons! (And colored the letter A.)

For letter B we colored the letter B and made butter by shaking whipping cream in baby food jars! (And it tasted SO good!)

For letter C we colored the letter C and decorated sugar cookies.

For letter D we made deer ornaments, colored the letter D and ate donuts.

For letter E we did all the elf stuff...

For letter F we made fruit loop necklaces with flowers and played with things that started with F.

And for letter G last week we colored a huge letter G and made G shaped pretzels!

=)

2011-01-09T17:32:00.000-08:00

Annual Gingerbread House Making Night

2011-01-02T15:27:00.000-08:00

We had our gingerbread house making night again this year! Aw, I just love it - we have so much fun together!!

Kristie had a blast playing with the flour. =)

I was smart this year and busted out the frosting bags instead of using knives to put the decorations on. =) So much easier.

All the goods. We had to pop some popcorn to eat something salty - we were eating waaayy too much candy!

Dev & Leslie's, almost finished.

Dad & Ada's, almost finished.

Ours after it was done!

One of my favorite parts - the rock candy chimney!

Gingerbread Men

2011-01-02T15:18:00.000-08:00

Kristie, Jason and I made gingerbread men together! It was sooo fun and Kristie got so into it! This first picture is the one I did completely, but Kristie did ALL of the buttons on the rest of them!! So cute if you look closely! Enjoy the video!

What makes me happy?

2010-12-20T22:30:00.000-08:00

This. =)

My Mom, me, & my Kristie

2010-12-20T22:04:00.000-08:00

I found this picture of Mom & I a couple weeks ago, and couldn't help but notice how much my Kristie looks like me when I was a kid! Holy cow! Kind of neat because a lot of people who knew my Mom tell me how much I look like her - I absolutely love hearing that. (And if you didn't know, we named Kristie after my Mom.) Anyway, these pictures make me smile. =)

Oh Christmas tree, oh Christmas tree...

2010-12-20T21:53:00.000-08:00

Christmas Tree Hunt

2010-12-20T21:29:00.000-08:00

We graduated to a real tree this year! We've always been in apartments, so we've just used a tiny fake tree and called it good. But Dev found an awesome tree farm in Redmond, so we HAD to go get one! We all went together the day after Thanksgiving. It was SO much fun, and we wouldn't have had it any other way. Kristie just had so much fun she could hardly contain herself! She loved holding our hands and walking around the farm trying to find the perfect tree. We absolutely found a perfect one, took a tractor ride around the farm, then had free hot chocolate and candy canes afterwards. Such a fun day!

Dev on the hunt. =)

Jason cutting ours down!

All set and ready to go!

Devin's took like ten minutes to cut down - it was hilarious. He celebrated as soon as he was done!

Woo!

Our trees gettin' a little trim!

Packed and ready to go home. =)

Thanksgiving

2010-12-20T21:17:00.000-08:00

We had a great Thanksgiving! The Duces held their big dinner the day after for the relatives coming from Idaho, so we had Thanksgiving dinner with my fam the day of. Love getting to spend so much time with both families! I only took a few pictures from the Frank dinner, and forgot my camera for the Duce dinner. =) Oh well. Two amazing dinners, two amazing families...I love the holidays!

Kristie and Uncle Dev enjoying our traditional cream cheese & chili sauce...YUMM...

Kristie and Aunt Leslie showing off their cute outfits. =)

Making our crystal glasses sing. =)

Snow Day in November!

2010-12-08T00:28:00.000-08:00

We got some snow the week of Thanksgiving, which was way exciting! Dev & Leslie came over and took Kristie out sledding. I was fine with just watching and taking pictures. =) This was Kristie's first time sledding and she had a ball!!

Poor thing, I haven't gotten her snow stuff yet, so she was sporting last year's coat which is small, and my hat! Luckily we were handed down some snow boats, so that was great. =)

Notice her humongous smile! She was having soooo much fun. =)

Tales of potty training.

2010-12-08T00:00:00.000-08:00

I'll try to keep this simple and short - I could write a novel on how frustrating potty training has been, but I'll spare you. =) This was my facebook status the first day I started...

Candace Frank Duce Day one, hour 4 of potty training Kristie - completely unsuccessful and miserable. I already want to quit. Now, I know this was only 4 hours into it, but the book I was using was "Toilet Training in Less Than a Day" and usually it takes a mere few hours to get success! Yikes, not for Kristie Duce. I did EVERYTHING by the book and it was absolutely not working. Using a doll that goes peepees to show Kristie how to do it, having Kristie "train" the doll, showing how the doll gets a reward (candy) for going in the potty, having Kristie ditch diapers and wear underwear around the hosue, giving her tooons of drinks and salty snacks to give her lots of chances to go, having her sit every FIFTEEN MINUTES, recording when she went, doing dry pants checks every 5 minutes...I mean, we did it ALL. It was just wet underwear after wet underwear all day long. And when they wet themselves, they're supposed to "practice" running to the potty, pulling their pants down, sitting down, standing right back up, and going to another place in the house and running back to the potty...TEN times...we only got to 5 times with a lot of tears. It was anything but pleasant.

After a week straight of all wet underwear, I was about ready to give up and put it on hold for another month or so. (She literally would wet herself just minutes after sitting down on the potty, so it was the most frustrating thing on the planet.) Then she went finally went peepees in the potty. So we kept trying. And since then it's been a good 5 or 6 times in the last couple weeks. Not very often and just here & there. Last night she went twice in a row so she's showing some progress!

So here's the pros - through that program you're supposed to let them do everything themselves. So she's a pro at putting on and taking off her underwear by herself. (Before this she had no idea what underwear was and how to dress herself.) And through all this we've learned her behaviors with having to go. Before she showed absolutely no signs of having to go and we had no choice but to sit her down constantly in hopes that she'd happen to go. But as of this week, she started doing the potty dance! Woooooo. So now we can just watch her and tell her she needs to sit when she starts marching and hopping around. (It's kinda cute.) So we're getting somewhere. I keep praying that she'll understand and just get it and go. But I need to be praying for patience and understanding. She'll get there. =)

The first picture and the one above was from the week after we started potty training and we were just exhausted and trying to stay sane at home. So Kristie and I made fruit loops necklaces that put a smile on our faces for awhile. =) The picture above reminds me of how Kristie just looooves "Baby Joel." I don't think she completely grasps that the baby inside mommy's tummy is going to come out and stay with us some day, but she sure talks about him and loves him. She loves to give him kisses and hugs and it's just the sweetest thing ever. =)

26 weeks tummy

2010-12-07T23:52:00.000-08:00

This was 3 weeks ago, so there'll be another one soon. =) Joel is QUITE a mover these days! It will never cease to amaze and fascinate me! Growing a baby inside of yourself is something you can't imagine or explain until you've been through it. I'm just so grateful I have the chance to go through this amazing life experience, to make a little home for a little baby for awhile and then bring it into the world to be with us for forever. My goodness, I can't wait to see what you look like, little one!

This has been a very smooth, uneventful pregnancy, thank goodness! I can only complain about being more tired this time around, since there's a toddler in the picture. And I'm having some back issues, which had started before I was pregnant with Joel, so it's naturally gotten worse with being pregnant. So I've started seeing a physical therapist and it's helping a little bit. Overall though, that's about it!!

Letter days

2010-12-07T23:48:00.000-08:00

My friend Mindy started up a little group doing "Letter Days." It's fabulous...we get together once a week to focus on one letter with our kids, starting with A, and we'll go through the whole alphabet together. This art project was from the first one for letter A where we talked about Autumn and made little sun catchers with leaves and melted crayon. We have so much fun every week!

Gorgeous, I must say!

And here's just a couple random cute Kristie pics. =)

Can't tell you...

2010-12-07T23:44:00.000-08:00

...how grateful I am for this haircut. So easy to do and so stylish. I miss long hair lots of times, but love the functionality of this. I think I will appreciate it even more when there are two kiddos around the house. =) Thank you Jessica for the amazing job you always do!

Fall was lovely

2010-12-07T23:29:00.000-08:00

Did you get to soak in yellow and orange leaves this year? We sure did - aw, I loved it. One day Kristie and I went over to Kate's house to play (where Leslie is a nanny) and just took some fun pictures in the backyard. This just happened to be one of the last really sunny days we had this year! And they just have SO much fun together...

This is darling little Kate.

My darling Kristie. =)

They had sooo much fun running around the yard together - it was adoooorable.

This is my absolute favorite. =)

Haha!!

And a picture perfect fall street in Kate's neighborhood. I would move to a house just for this in the fall! =)

Halloween 2010

2010-12-07T23:14:00.000-08:00

Better late than never right? Gotta have this on the blog, so here it is. =) Halloween was a ball this year! We were house/kid sitting at the Duces for the week before, so we carved pumpkins there. Kristie took one look at the guts inside the pumpkin and said "Ew, gross." Then walked away and wouldn't come back! haha. Maybe next year she'll get into pumpkin carving. haha.

Dev & Leslie had a Halloween party which was a blast! It was them, us, the Hatches, Becky, the Shurtz and the Browers. We looove our friends! For part of it we carved pumpkins, so we did Jason's there.

These were all the finished products. =)

Day before Halloween was the trunk or treat at church, so we all got dressed up as Seahawks (which is truly dressing up for us, 'cause we aren't the biggest sports fans. teehee...) Kristie was a little confused as to why we were going around to the back of peoples cars in the the parking lot, in the dark, asking for candy. =) But she sure LOVED the huge bucket of candy she came home with. That night we also went to the Sorenson's for their annual Halloween party which was also a blast.

These were our family pumpkins - mine was the stork, Jason's was the scary one in the back, Kristie's was Winnie the Pooh and Joel's was Mickey Mouse. =)

Pumpkin farm

2010-11-17T14:45:00.000-08:00

October 16th, we went to the pumpkin farm with Dev & Les to pick out a pumpkin for Kristie! (Would've gotten some for all of us, but they're kind of expensive for big ones!) We had fun on the tractor ride, roaming in the corn field and picking one out of the patch. So much more to do there than that, but we ran out of time! It was a perfectly sunny day for us to go, which was lucky 'cause most weekends were rainy! This was the day the HP church building burned down and we had been planning to go get pumpkins. So we went to see the church first, and perked up our day by going to the pumpkin farm. It was nice to be happy for awhile. =) (p.s. Had to steal Leslie's camera 'cause I goofed and left the battery charging in the car. And it was a looong walk back to the car, so I didn't bother. haha.)

SHEnanigans Pretty vs. Scary vampires shoot!

2010-11-17T14:26:00.000-08:00

For September and October, we had a combined photo shoot. The first half we did pretty vampires, like the Cullens. =) Then we shot at night and transformed into scary vampires. What a blast! Thanks for a great shoot girls!!

One of the last sunny days at the park...

2010-11-17T13:47:00.000-08:00

I just adore my little girl.

She spotted a duck flying around by the lake. =)

She'd just hold completely still and let the thing go around by itself - it was adorable. =)

Our number 2 will be a boy!!

2010-11-10T23:50:00.000-08:00

We found out on September 27th that Kristie will be having a little brother! Jason had the day off from work so he was able to go to the ultrasound as well and it was just, amazing. Got to see him wiggle around and even pucker his lips like he was sucking on something! At one point he had his arm resting on his knee, like he was just chillin. =) It was adorable. It took a bit for it to sink in that I was going to have a BOY. I had my hopes set on another girl, cause let's face it...two girls would be sooo much fun! But I'm in love with the idea of having a boy too. =) I can't wait to see what he looks like! Joel will be such a joy to add to our family!

Goodness, isn't he a cutie?

The "boy" shot. =)

Little feet!

Dev & Les Family Pictures

2010-11-10T23:21:00.000-08:00

I took some family pictures for Devin & Leslie at the Mukilteo Lighthouse, which turned out pretty cute! Not so hard when you have such a perfect, gorgeous couple!!

How lucky am I?

2010-11-10T22:46:00.000-08:00

Kristie is just too cute for words and I can't say enough how much love I have for her. She is so entertaining and her laugh is to die for! One of my favorite things about her is her singing. She's picked up memorizing and singing a lot of songs, and it just makes me melt! My favorites (that she sings all the way through, and in pitch for the most part!) are the original Winnie the Pooh song and I Am a Child of God. Oooh man, I can't wait to get those two songs on video, you will just die. I am constantly amazed at how much her little brain soaks up every day and how much she is constantly changing and growing. I am so blessed!!

One of my absolute favorites of her. (Her Aunt Anna made this hat!)

Reading up on some of mommy's books. She'll dump out her blocks, and pull up the container to sit on as a chair and read. haha.

Trying out a new pair of shoes ($2.99 at a consignment shop btw.)

Pro at opening the fridge and getting her milk for herself. (Thank goodness only her milk!)

Taking care of her baby. =) =)

I had never seen her do this before, putting her hands in her pockets, haha!

A halloween outfit from Katie's mom, so cute! She looked so grown up with this headband on. =)

Looooves to wear her boots.

Children's Museum

2010-11-10T22:19:00.000-08:00

September 25th, we finally took Kristie to the Children's Museum! She loved it, but she had her own way of showing it...when she's in places with huge crowds and lots of kids, she gets sooooo quiet. She she's not quite as expressive of how much fun she's having. It's kinda cute. =) We could tell she had a ball 'cause did just about everything and loved exploring!

Kristie and I on stage with Daddy doing the controls for sounds and lights. =)

Yup, I don't think I'd want to ride on this scary thing either. Sorry Kristie. =)

In the water area with a huge vest on.

This was probably her favorite part, the soft fire truck to play on. She could've stayed there for hours!

The cool light room thing. Haha, I wish I could remember what it was called.

Gettin' ready to drive the bus! =)

Hang on folks! The Duces are driving!

Playing on the playground on the roof!!! (That's Jason & Kristie poking their heads out on the tallest part of the playground.)

Notice the buildings in the background - this was so cool!

Our beloved church building, burned down...

2010-10-18T22:31:00.000-07:00

Saturday morning, at 3am the Harbour Pointe LDS church building was burned down by an arsonist. Hard to believe, and still shocking to think about. This is what it looked like before, just a year ago.

This is what it looked like as of Saturday afternoon. Just the sight of it was gut wrenching. I woke up to a text from Leslie asking if I got Dad's. I looked, and he said around 5:30 that the building had been burned down. Jason and Kristie were already awake so I ran out of our room, already in tears, telling Jason what had apparently happened. I just couldn't even wrap my head around the thought. All I could think about was all the memories I have there. I grew up there. Some of the last memories I have of my mom are there. Jason asked me out on my 16th birthday there, we attended Seminary there, our wedding reception was there. The friends and family I spent time with there. Most important of all though, I gained a testimony of Jesus Christ there and have built a foundation in myself that cannot be taken away. So it is with our faith. You can burn down a building, but it'll only make us bond together and grow.

This was truly an awful thing to see. Holding back tears was absolutely impossible. We went to see at around 11am, and my Dad was still there. He's in the Bishopric so he had been there since 5am. Other members of the ward were there as well, and all we could do was embrace and watch as the building was still smoldering.

Right Side

Back side

Here's an article with some pictures of it on fire that are pretty unbelievable.

Devin and Leslie ended up on the news with KOMO 4 that night -

Dad & I ended up in the paper with the Everett Herald.

As we live in Everett now, we've been attending a building in this area for the past year, so I just can't imagine still being there, and losing everything. Luckily, Harbour Pointe ward (the ward I grew up in) will be attending our building in Everett indefinitely and we'll be pushing our ward back a half hour. So it will be nice to have everyone I love in the building we're at now. I hope we can help them out in any way possible. Please keep the Harbour Pointe ward and the Beverly Park ward in your prayers.

Walking Chelsea

2010-10-15T14:24:00.000-07:00

Kristie walked Katie's dog, Chelsea a few weeks ago, and I just about died!!! She looked so grown up and had sooo much fun! She was just talking and giggling like crazy, and didn't want any help from me. Man, I will never forget how cute that was. She's talked about it almost every day since then. =) We will definitely do that again and get a video! (Katie took these on her phone - thank you!!)

Family Pictures 2010

2010-09-28T15:05:00.000-07:00

Katie took our family pictures this year and did a lovely job! She did ours and I'm going to take some of her & her hubby. Turned out so fun! Thanks a million Katie!!

September's Tummy Pic

2010-09-28T15:02:00.000-07:00

(This was two weeks ago.)

(August picture...)

The cutest pony tail on the planet

2010-09-28T14:58:00.000-07:00

Introducing, Kristie's first pony tail!!!!

Mukilteo Lighthouse Festival

2010-09-28T14:30:00.000-07:00

I look forward to this every year - I just love where we live...even though we live in Everett, I still consider myself a Mukilteo-ite. =) First was the parade!

Ada's mom was in town!

Every person passing out candy came up to Kristie and gave her some! They must know her mom's a candy freak. =) On the way home she was workin' on a sucker and loooooved it. (I LOVE this smile!)

THEN after nap time we went to the hospital to meet Scott & Aileen's new baby, Tanner! He was born the day before and it was so neat to be able to visit him. Congrats again Browers!! He is adorable!!

Scott & Aileen =)

As you can see, Kristie loved him! She's so into new babies! Got me excited for our next one on the way!

THEN we went to the lighthouse festival fireworks at the beach! Kristie was terrified again. =) Poor baby! They were awesome, as usual!

Lavender & a Sunflower

2010-09-28T14:24:00.000-07:00

Our apartments have lavender bushes and I don't know what took me so long to pick some! Kristie helped me and it was fun. I have no idea how make the smell last, but I just stuck it in a vase and called it good. Smelled awesome!

Aaaaaand, Kristie's sunflower has bloomed!! This was early on when the petals weren't all the way out, but my goodness - we were so proud!

Kate & Kristie

2010-09-28T14:18:00.000-07:00

Few weeks back Dev, Kristie and I went over to play with Kate & Leslie. Kate is the other girl Leslie nanny's for and she's just adorable. She has a play tent that they LOVE to play in together! (And Uncle Devin likes it too...haha.)

Hehe, I love this one.

Leslie and I got pedicures during the BYU/UW game that the boys were watching. It was fantastic. =) =)

Nothin' like...

2010-09-28T14:13:00.000-07:00

...kickin' back and eating cereal on mom & dad's bed...

...and getting chocolate covered strawberries all over your face...mmmm...

Jetty Island, for the last time.

2010-09-28T13:54:00.000-07:00

One morning earlier this month, I made an impulse decision to go to Jetty Island because it was a beautiful day outside! I figured it'd be one of the last warm days we'd have. I called Kali to see if she wanted to come, and came like 15 minutes later and we were off! Turns out, it was the last weekend Jetty Island would be open anyway! It was perfect. (Not to mention the weather.) And we got on a boat almost right away - it was amazing...normally you're lucky to get on. Kali had never been there before and we, as always, had sooooo much fun. We laugh over everything together just like we did back in middle school. I'm SO glad she's back in Washington again. =)

My best friend, Kali. Isn't she gorgeous?

Nice face, Kristie! lol.

Kristie loves playing with her Auntie Kali.

Sooooo relaxing...we moved our chairs out to the shallow warm water to sit, read and eat dried mangoes...it was wonderful. =)

Cafe & the beach

2010-09-28T13:30:00.000-07:00

My long time friend, Becky and her daughter Aubrey are back in town, so we've been dying to hang out with our girls! First stop was the Red Cup Cafe in downtown Mukilteo. Cutest little place ever. I always get an Italian Soda and a huge soft sugar cookie with pink frosting. Afterwards we drove down the street to good ol' Mukilteo beach. (It never gets old!) It turned out to be an awesome, sunny day, so the four of us had fun!

Kristie & Aubrey on the swings.

Aubrey's just gorgeous, like her momma.

Becky & Aubrey =)

Putting bark through the holes together. =)

Running along the sidewalk together - this was just the cutest.

Kind of a goofy picture of us, it was really sunny! =)

Can't leave the beach without getting a picture of the beautiful lighthouse.

SHEnanigans Super Heroes shoot!

2010-09-27T23:50:00.000-07:00

Last month the theme was Super Heroes and we had SO much fun!!! This time Katie took the pictures 'cause she had jaw surgery just the day before. She insisted on taking pictures even though she should've been resting and did an awesome job!! =) (If you have a group of girls in your area that want to take part in all the SHEnanigans, let me know and I'll help you get started!!! It is so stinking fun - you don't know what you're missing!)

Click HERE for the full album!

Had my hair chopped off again...

2010-09-27T23:46:00.000-07:00

...ahhh, it's like a breath of fresh air. I looove it. Takes much less time to do and it's fun. Jessica always does such a fantastic job!

Duce Family Camp

2010-09-27T22:27:00.000-07:00

Finally getting these pictures up! Every year we go camping with the Duces, and the past couple years have turned into camping out in a rental house on Crescent Bar. It's been fantastic!! So nice to get away, relax, boat, wake board, play on the beach and just have major family time. (Every one of us wake boards except for Kristie and Blake!) I was like counting down the hours to this trip, I needed a vacation so bad. =) It was a wonderful one!

Celebrating Dave's birthday! (We snuck the ultrasound picture into his b-day card, so that's how they found out!)

She looooved soaking her feet in the cool water off the back of the boat. =)

And she looooved driving fast in the boat.

The house we stay in. Just a short walk down to the beach. (Jason and Kristie to the right, walking up.)

Gorgeous here, isn't it?!

They were having so much fun together!

Getting some air!

Watching Daddy wake board.

Jumping off the back of the boat. =)

The Duce fam

Kristie and Grandpa coolin' off!

Yes, this is my snazzy "get-away-from-me-bugs!" outfit. The walk from the house down to the beach is just SWARMING with mosquitoes, and I was tired of being bit. =)

My hot husby. =)

So pretty! The house we stay in is second from the right.

John's incredible at jumping!

Me and my passed out baby!

I spy...

This picture just killllls me! That's a piece of the broken shade tent. Hahahaha.

The last night there, the power went out! (Which is fun 'cause the last night there last year, there was a big thunder/lightning storm!) So we got out the candles and Janelle popped out some glowsticks and we had a ball!

I got a zillion crazy pictures with the glowsticks, but I'll just post a couple. =) (This was a chain of glowsticks.)

"Erin" !!!

John was just cracking up Kristie like crazy!

#2, Here We Come!

2010-09-07T00:19:00.000-07:00

I am due February 23rd...oh MY we are excited! We kept it on the down low for about 3 months this time, so I am relieved that I've made it to the 2nd trimester and that it's out in the open now. =)

This was taken at 9 weeks.

Taken at 11.5 weeks...I am planning on doing monthly pictures again, but missed taking one the first month when I had a flat tummy to compare. =)

Petting Farm

2010-09-07T00:07:00.000-07:00

Kristie and Riya, little gal pals.

Brock, Karlie, Riya & Kristie. =)

Homemade Pretzels

2010-09-06T23:55:00.000-07:00

We were at Jamba Juice, and I spied their delicious pretzels...it made me think of when I worked there in Rexburg and I'd eat them with mustard...I instantly craved them. I had to have soft pretzels with mustard! So I found a recipe and made them that night and they turned out deeeee-lish. I used this recipe - just don't boil them in water, totally didn't work. Do an eggwash on top and bake them. =)

Imagine and huge squirt of mustard on the side there...awwww. I don't even really like mustard, but for some reason it tastes amazing with pretzels. Also, I didn't have the big fat salt, so I'll get some for next time. =)

2010-09-06T23:52:00.000-07:00

On a ride with her friend Alestair. Check out those built in carseats! Dude I couldn't get over that...haha.

A plus to having a toddler...

2010-09-06T23:44:00.000-07:00

She can help with chores now! Takes a little longer to get things done, but it's sure cute!

I later caught her cleaning the furniture in her dollhouse with baby wipes! AW!

Not so great at helping me fold the towels yet. =)

I wanna be a cowgirl, baby...

2010-09-06T23:42:00.000-07:00

Bachelorette Finale

2010-09-06T23:33:00.000-07:00

Les and I wore our wedding dresses for our Bachelorette finale night! Too, too fun...it had been almost 5 years since I put mine on and I just couldn't contain my giddiness. =)

Kaci & Jessica also dressed up...they were our hot bridesmaids. =)

Me, Jessica, Leslie, Kaci & Aileen...Amber took the pic. =)

Had to document this moment in the bathroom...how often would Leslie and I get to wear our wedding dresses at the same time?!

SHEnanigans Old West Photo Shoot!

2010-09-06T22:23:00.000-07:00

This was the photo shoot I did for July! We were assigned Old Western Movie as one of the many movie genres handed out to all the groups. MY goodness we had fun! The Silly Girls photography group has now changed it's name to SHEnanigans, due to a leadership change. Still the same ol' "worldwide photo shoots just for kicks" kind of a deal. Here's the website - http://her-nanigans.blogspot.com/. I'm just so glad that I can be a part of all the silliness, because it really brings out the fun and confidence in all of us. If you're in the area, you're more than welcome to join us! If you're elsewhere, this is worldwide, so get a group of your girl friends together and join in the monthly shoots! All the themes are posted on the website and you just let Laura know on the Silly Girls United facebook page. (Still under the old name.) I can't tell you how much fun we all have! (Let me know if you need any help figuring stuff out!)

Anyway! For this shoot, it's kind of a long story...but I found this location out in the boonies on Ebey Island, which is all farming land. We drove to the field I wanted to use and knocked on the owner's door asking if we could take pictures there. (I tried earlier in the week, and no one answered, so I had knots in my stomach about it up until this moment...) A man named Roger answered the door and said "Sure!" He dropped what he was doing and took us out to the barn area, saddled up the horses, gave us all a quick lesson and let us ride the horses around! That was icing on the cake...I just wanted pictures on the property...I had no idea we'd get to ride horses! He then just let us wander around and take pictures wherever we fancied. I was so pleased I could've cried! I got his address from him before we left and have since sent him a thank you note with one of the pictures inside. =) Thank you farmer Roger! And thank you Leslie F, Kali, Heather, Leslie P, Katie, & Kaci for coming and being so amazing!

Seattle & Part of the Torchlight Parade

2010-09-06T22:03:00.001-07:00

We had planned to go see the Torchlight Parade in Seattle, but didn't get there in time to get seats...so we sat on one of the side roads where the sidewalk had be stay clear as a fire lane. So we had a semi-sweet view! Until the two cops in charge switched out and the new set lost control of the mob of people wanting to stand around. Oh well! So we headed back, but I always enjoy a walk in Seattle! Such a beautiful city. This was all after a delightful dinner at Dicks. =) =)

Mount Rainier in the middle of Quest Field! Beautiful. Took this from the bridge that connects to Pike Place.

In our spots for the parade. =)

A glimpse of Apollo Ohno! Woo! (Here's a visual of what I was talking about...those two cops kept people from sitting or standing in that sidewalk...so we could see from the side street we were sitting on. haha.)

On a gorgeous walk back to the cars...I love Pike Place.

For the love of piggy tails...

2010-08-11T22:29:00.000-07:00

...I think I have the cutest toddler on the planet. Just sayin...

Windy day at Jetty

2010-08-11T17:09:00.000-07:00

Took another little Jetty Island trip with some friends...it was cold and windy!! So Kristie and I stole baby Emmett from his mama and cuddled with him. I couldn't believe Kristie let me do that - normally she gets jealous in a matter of seconds. But she LOVES Emmett!

Perfectly happy at the beach

2010-08-11T15:38:00.000-07:00

I just love watching Kristie in her own little world, having so much fun. So carefree and happy. I can see why we should be more like kids. =)

She insisted on wearing my necklace. =)

"Pack-pack"

2010-08-11T15:29:00.000-07:00

Kristie got this backpack for her birthday from Jason's Uncle Geoff & Uncle Mike and she's finally into it! She loooooves wearing her "pack-pack" around! She looks too grown up in it though! =)

Corn on the cob, on the porch

2010-08-11T15:24:00.000-07:00

This was Kristie's first time eating corn on the cob by herself! I've normally just cut it for her, but decided to let her try. =) It was just about the cutest thing I've ever seen. This was one of the nights we set up a table outside on the porch and ate out there...it's SO lovely!

Have I mentioned how much I adore my Dad?

2010-08-11T15:21:00.000-07:00

His birthday is coming up in a couple weeks and I can't wait to spoil him. =)

Kristie's little bf's

2010-08-11T15:15:00.000-07:00

Will & Kristie...just doesn't get much cuter...

Then Nathan & Kristie...they LOVE to hold hands. =)

My little rock collector

2010-07-28T21:33:00.000-07:00

Not having a car means you need to find things to do around the house - specifically, around the small apartment. =) So we resorted to rock collecting outside, and Kristie LOVED it! It was so cute. She pointed to "big rocks" and "small rocks", gasp every time we'd find a new one, gently put it in her bucket...it was the cutest thing. So we washed them on the porch...

Even helped rub them off with a washcloth. =)

Watering the flowers.

Her sunflower plant is taller than her!

Have you tried making these?!

2010-07-28T21:30:00.000-07:00

These are easier to make than they look - and delicious! Click here for the recipe!

Silly Girls Photo Shoot

2010-07-21T22:34:00.000-07:00

Two friends of mine started up a photography group called "Silly Girls" in Rexburg. They're both photographers and would get a bunch of girls together just for kicks to do themed shoots. Now that everyone's moved away from Rexburg, they decided to start a global shoot! They designated gals all over the US to participate in hosting a shoot on the same day with the same theme. I got to host one for the Everett, WA area! It was AWESOME. The deciding theme was split, so some did Secret Agents and some did Stripes & Polka Dots. We had such a ball doing Secret Agents! Here's the facebook page with the pictures all the participating groups posted!

Silly Girls United. Kali, Leslie, Kaci, Lexi...thanks for coming! It was sooo fun!

The next shoot is on the 31st and group is now called SHEnanigans. Laura is running it now, so it's taking a new direction. The theme is Movies and Laura assigned everyone a genre - it's top secret so you'll find out when we post the pics! It's going to be GREAT! If you want to have a blast being silly and getting cute pictures of yourself, you should come! Go to the event page for all the info!

Part of the fun is getting ready together before the shoot!

Location: Downtown Snohomish - tooooo many cute spots to take pictures! (Got my reflection in this one. woops...)

Leslie

Lexi

Armed and dangerous, on the roof!

The girls actually climbed down the ladder on the side of the building! They were so brave!

Kali

Kaci

Kali brought her moped for us to pose on!!

Disguises. =)

A job well done ladies!

Day at the pool

2010-07-21T22:22:00.000-07:00

Couple weeks ago during the heat wave, Janelle, Becca & Blake came over to use the pool. Awww summertime...

She's insisting on walking up the stairs herself now - fine by me! Just takes waaaay too long since we're on the 3rd floor. Haha.

Homemade popsicles!

2010-07-21T22:17:00.000-07:00

The SOFT & CREAMY kind I love...oh man these are good.

Here's the video I used...

Pool on a porch

2010-07-16T23:46:00.000-07:00

She could do this for hours!

Summer Girl

2010-07-16T23:32:00.000-07:00

This is one of my absolute favorite pictures of Kristie! All rosy cheeked from Jetty Island and in a cute summer dress!

Couple days after the first time, we went to Jetty Island with a good friend Mackenzie and her two kids, Hailey & Nathan. So sunny and hot outside, we couldn't pass up another chance to go!

Passed out while she was eating lunch in my lap. =)

Mackenzie & her daughter Hailey.

Kristie loves walking with Nathan.

Then the next day they came over to swim in our pool!