Introducing Vanna Vilate Pettey

Our little girl made her appearance in this world at 5:27 am this morning, weighing 7 pounds, 6 ounces and is 20 inches long.  She was 11 days early (one day before Asher) and actually weighs more than he did, I guess all that fattening food does make a difference. :)  She is very healthy, and has lots of straight black hair.  Mom is also doing well, and she and Dad are trying to recover from a brutal lack of night's sleep.  We are thrilled to have her, and can't wait for your all to meet her.  So far (after less than 24 hours) her personality is similar to Asher in that she is pretty mellow.  However, I still think she's got to have some mischief in here somewhere or she wouldn't be our kid. :)

Here are some photos with Mom and Dad:

We are pretty excited and the surreal feeling is still very much present.  Heaven help us! :)

Easter, Sticker Sunday Morning, and Prego Update

We decided to take it pretty easy this Easter, mainly because I didn't have the energy to make a big deal about it.  But we did have the family party and here is the beginning of the hunt:

On with the hunt!!!  Asher did a pretty good job of finding the eggs, and then proceeded to open them and eat the contents rather than search for more eggs.  Seriously - why leave the goods for the possibility of more goods in the future???  The boy is wise beyond his years.

It was tough going for a while, we gathered very few eggs.  However, we got plenty to keep him hyper for at least a week.

And here are the kiddos with their hauls.  I think it only took about 25 pictures to get them all smiling and looking in the same general direction.  And, yes, this is what you get. :)

And, just for funsies, here is a picture of our little family before we add baby Vanna to the group. 

That was our low-key Easter.  No special outfits.  No major gifts.  Nothing really that amazing, just a small lesson about what Easter is all about, a fabulous family dinner and memories that will hopefully last a lifetime. 

On a side note, we had a fun family Sunday morning that involved stickers and I couldn't resist sharing the evidence: 

Dad played too, but his evidence makes him look high so I decided to hide that for future blackmail. :)

And finally, I don't have any pictures on the pregnancy issue, obviously, because it just isn't pretty.  However, I can say that we are nearly to the "safe" period of 37 weeks.  It has been a rough go, and the end isn't any easier than the rest of the 8 1/2 months.  I've been having contractions for a few weeks now, and we had a couple near runs to the hospital.  Yet, with it all, still no baby (whew!)

I keep going back and forth on when I think she will finally be joining us.  Asher was 10 days early, and judging by the increased level of contractions I'd guess she will also be early.  However, I think this girl already has a mind of her own, and will likely come when she feels good and ready.  Which translates to: 2 weeks late... :)

Snowflakes, Tractors, Beetle Position and Laundry Helper

Random title, I know.  But I have to record the latest happenings at our house.

A few weeks ago we had a spring snowfall and Asher and Dad decided to take advantage of it by trying to catch snowflakes on their tongues.  It was actually pretty darn adorable watching Asher run around in the back yard with his mouth wide open.  But, here are a few photos:

As kind of a last hurrah for Asher as the only kid in our family, and as my last "legal" travel weekend for me Durrant decided we needed to go down to So. Utah for a weekend.  We abandoned all our responsibilities, took our flat of strawberries from Bountiful Baskets, and hit the road.  We made some absolutely delicious strawberry jam (which will likely be many of your Christmas gifts - unless we eat it all first) and sent Asher out to play on the tractors with Grampa.  He is all boy and playing on these big toys was a dream come true - thanks Grampa!

When your kids sleep, do they turn into a beetle?  Well, mine does.  He has slept like this since birth, and I'm curios to see how long it lasts.  Anyway, here is the evidence. However, in this case he has at least one of his hands near his face.  He usually has both down by his knees.  I think it looks pretty uncomfortable to me, but what do I know...

And, last but not least, this is what happens when you have a two-year old help with the laundry.  Yup, pretty much...

Special Night with Dad

It all started with a huge bubble bath.  I had taken a bath earlier and was surprised with how many bubbles appeared when I used the jets in the tub (duh!).  So, knowing how much Asher loved bubble baths I left them in there for him when it was his turn to bathe.  Here is the evidence.

Here's a close-up of this adorable bubble man.

Serious bubbles come from a jetted tub - lesson learned.

After the bath Dad and Asher were singing "I've been working on the Railroad" and I managed to catch a little on tape.  I'm seriously holding my breath so I don't bust out laughing during the tape - so dang cute!!!  Anyway, here's Take 1:

I don't think anyone expected the "moooorrrnnnniiing," that was where I lost it.  We got a little distracted jumping on the changing table and forgot where we were, so after a slight intermission we finished it off. Here's Take 2:

Yup, see that talent?  The kid already knows how to hold out his consonants.  Amazing, I know... :)

Then - the grand finale - the sleepover!!!!  Dad and Asher pulled down the mattress from Asher's bed and laid out the cushions from the couch and set about watching a movie.  They even enjoyed some popcorn as well. 

It looks like they are asleep, but they are intently watching Dash get away with teasing his teacher in The Incredibles.

Looks pretty cozy!

Yup, pretty much a perfect night for this little boy.  

Oh Bummer!!!

So, for valentines day we decided to make it a family day and went to Chuck E Cheese with Asher.  It was a really fun time.  The pizza is still terrible, and the toys are always a good time.  The only bad spot on the whole evening was that someone stole our camera.  LAME!!! So, we are in the market for a new one - anyone have any ideas???  Price range: less than $150 if possible.

Family Vacation

About a week ago The Pettey's returned from their first ever independent family vacation.  Of course, we met half my family there, but still... :)  Anyway, we, along with my father, went to Orlando to visit my brother and sister who live there, and my other brother, who lives in Detroit, drove down and met us there.  It was a family reunion, of sorts, and pretty much a BLAST!!! 

We naturally went to the parks while we were there and below is the documentation of the great times we had.

Dad and Asher speeding through Ewok land.  It's a good thing Asher's driving, because Dad's having too much fun!

Grama and Grampa taking a nap in Muppet land.  We just wore 'em right out!

We ate lunch at the French restaurant in Epcot and when we were finishing Remy, from Ratatouille, came out to visit us.  This was a dream come true for Asher.  That is his favorite show, always wanting to watch it.  He was so excited he could hardly contain himself.  Pretty much made the trip totally worth it. (Oh, and the food was DIVINE!!!!)

This is actually one of my favorite photos.  Asher loves Donald, as does his dad and grampa.  It was a lot of fun to see him get so excited about such a family favorite. 

Here we all are at the entrance to Universal Studios.  Not a bad pic! :)

A big day at Universal Studios may be hazardous to your sleep habits.

When Hayden showed up in the pajamas that Asher had I couldn't resist getting a photo.  They could seriously be brothers.  Dane and Alicia were awesome with these kids, and earned any rest they could have received after the vacation.

Overall, I would say it was totally worth the lost sleep, money spent, and stress involved.  I seriously had the time of my life, and am lamenting the fact that it is over.  It was so fun to spend time with my siblings and parents.  The memories we made will hopefully be a part of our lives forever.  I can only hope there will be many more opportunities like this in the future.  It really is all about family and the relationships we have.  LOVE IT!!!

Unfortunately...

So, I was so proud of myself for remembering to bring the camera for Asher's 2nd birthday parties.  Then... the memory card was malfunctioning.  The good news is, we were able to get the photos that were taken on Christmas morning.  The bad news is, we didn't get ANYTHING else.  I've contacted my mom to see if she can send me some from the birthday party, and if any of you viewers have any please send some - I would REALLY appreciate it.  I'm just plain sick that I have absolutely no record of my first kids second birthday.  Loser mom!!!

Anyway, here are a few photos we took of opening up the gifts here at the house.  Asher was so excited about opening things he wasn't really interested in what each gift was.  It was just so much fun ripping the paper off, he could hardly wait to do it again and again. 

I know D's eyes are closed in this one, but I honestly couldn't resist showing how excited Asher was to be eating his candy cane.  Yes, as a matter of fact, we did regret letting him have so much candy.  Won't be making that mistake again.

Father and son reading a new Christmas book.  Pretty intense, hunh?

This is my first attempt at Christmas Casserole.  Turned out pretty darn good if I do say so myself. :)

The two lessons learned from this Christmas: 1) easy on the sugar, 2) expect that your kid will be out of control and instead of enjoying the day you get to be the devil.  I now have a real love/hate relationship with the holiday that I'm sure will last for at least another 15-20 years.  Thank you, son... :)

No, in all seriousness (now that it is almost a month past) it was fun to see Asher have so much fun and we are excited to take some established traditions and start creating some of our own.  Can't wait!