Cheeeeeese!!!!

So, Asher has become a little bit of a photo-holic.  He all the time is wanting to hold Vanna.  Then when he gets her on his lap (I make him sit down to hold her) he always - ALWAYS says, "We need to say cheese!"  This is probably good for me, as a non-picture taker, to take more pictures.  However, virtually all of these increased photos are of Asher.  What can I say...  Anyway, here are the results.  I think they are kind of fun.

H Squared Family Reunion, 2 Month Birthday and Other Stuff

 Every 4th of July my family has a reunion up at the family cabin on Cedar Mountain.  I don't have nearly enough photos of the event, but here are a few I thought I'd share.  Both of these are down by the creek.  We went on a field trip to go "swimming" that turned out to be wading and throwing rocks.  It was so much fun it might have to be a tradition. 

Clay, Crue, Asher, Jill, Kimberlly, Dayna, Rachel and McKinley

 

 

The next photo was too cute not to post.  Asher and Cooper were having sooo much fun throwing rocks.  I tried to get the both to smile at the camera at the same time, but it was just asking too much.  This was as close as I could get. 

Asher and Cooper Urie

While we were in So. Utah we happened to get both kids in the tub at the same time.  And, you guessed it, I happened to have the camera handy.  I love Asher's mohawk and Vanna's look of utter resignation.  You would think she had years of this kind of stuff ahead of her or something... 

Asher has recently discovered how much fun it is to take a picture and then look at the digital image.  Every time he sees the camera he begs to "say cheeeeeeese."  I was working on some of my mystery shopping stuff and he finally talked me into it - this is the result.

Many of you saw my post on Facebook about baking bread.  I've been wanting to attempt it for some time, but have been timid because I don't have mixer.  Yes, it is somewhat ridiculous to be intimidated by hand kneading, but there it is.  Anyway, I had a neighbor who helped me conquer this irrational fear by having me come over to her house and do things by hand.  Here are the results, and I can hardly wait to discover the world of bread/cinnamon bread/pizza crust/anything else super yummy.

And, finally, we had a small birthday celebration (translated to: Jill remembering to take pictures) for Vanna on her 2 month birthday.  The first was yet another attempt by Asher to steal the show, but Vanna was smiling and Asher looked pretty cute too - what can I say, I'm a mom.
 

This one is a close up of her face.  She's changed so much and not at all, all at the same time.  All I can say is - she has stolen our hearts and her smile melts us at every showing.  Happy 2-months, our little Vanna-girl, we love you!!!

Latest Happenings

First: My Shower.


THANK YOU SO MUCH TO SARAH AND MELISSA!!!! They did a fantastic job of putting the shower together!  The food was fantastic, the decorations (that I'm wishing I remembered to take a picture of) were beautiful, and a great time was had by all.  Thank you also to those who were able to come.  I have actually written your thank-you cards and will eventually put them in the mail.  Maybe you will get them by... Halloween???

Anyway, here is a couple pictures of Baby Lucy (Melissa's baby who is 5 weeks older than Vanna) and Baby Vanna.  (Baby Sophie, Sarah's little one, was with her Dad - we'll catch her at the next party)

The car seat photo.  I thought they looked cute with their little bows and pink blankets.  

Lucy was doing a great job of playing along, but Vanna was way too interested in something over there.  Not sure what, but she would not deign to give us her attention while the camera was out.  

This shower was the first time my Aunt Vanna met her namesake, and fortunately Durrant's Grandmother Vilate was also able to attend the shower.  Here is one of the most treasured photos I have.  It seriously makes my heart go all soft and warm.

Baby Vanna Vilate with Vanna and Vilate.

I have such a precious little girl and am so grateful for these two women that she is named after.  They are both amazing people whom Durrant and I very much love and admire, and I truly hope my daughter will be able to realize how lucky she is to have such a legacy. 

Next: Durrant's Birthday and Utah State.

On a whim Durrant decided to take his birthday off and we drove up to Logan to get some good old Aggie Ice Cream.  While we were on campus we decided to let Asher get out of the car and run around to get some energy out.  It was a bit chilly and rainy so we didn't get to play too long; however, he did find the A so we had to get a record of the school he will someday be attending (he he he...)

Future Aggie, waiting for his True Aggie partner to join him on the A.

What do you think - are they related?  Wait - gotta do something about that shirt...

Third: Vanna at 4 weeks.

Taking photos is not my strong point, so I have to congratulate myself on the fact that I remembered to take a few 4-week shots of Vanna.  She is now 6-weeks old, so I'm a little behind.  However, at least you now have some updated photos.

This is a cute one with her eyes open.  I love that little "O" she does with her mouth!

This is her crying.  I can't help it, I think it's a cute photo.  (Yes, I do realize I will be punished for this later.  No, I don't care. :)

Fourth:  Girlfriend Visit

Two of my dearest friends who have amazingly stuck around going on 20 years now actually were able to come for a visit a few weeks ago.  Macey (the brunette) now lives in Wisconsin and only gets out here every other year or so.  And while she was here Kara (the redhead) made the trip up so we could spend some time together.  It was absolutely amazing to see them again.  By some magic I always feel like we are back in high school when we get together and my life now seems very surreal.  Anyway, here's the proof.

Jill, Kara and Macey - back together again.

Fifth:  The Zoo.

A few weeks after Vanna was born Grama Farol came up and Dad, Grama and Asher went to the zoo.  Good times were had by all, and Asher kept talking about the dinosaurs they had on exhibit there - he seriously loves it.  Anyway, here are a few photos of the day.

How nice of this gorilla to provide me such a comfortable place to sit! :)

Dad and Asher on the merry-go-round.  Do you think he liked the Gorillas???

Finally:  Brother and Sister

Okay, I'll be honest.  It's been pretty tough here at the Pettey house for Brother to have all the attention off of him.  Asher loves his new sister - A LOT!!!  He loves to kiss her, and hold her, and poke her in the face, and steal her binky, and climb in her bed - should I go on?  Anyway, occasionally we catch him being an awesome big brother and this was one of those times.

This was taken when Vanna was about 2-3 weeks old and her favorite place to be held at that age was directly on our chests.  Asher was doing what a good brother should do and "held" her just like Mom and Dad.  

Brother "holding" sister on the bed.  

Photos from the Hospital

I just got the CD from the photos they took at the hospital and I can't wait to post them.  Yes, the were way overpriced, but when you get suckered you get suckered.  Besides, I have to think about it this way: in 5 years I'll be awfully glad I got those pictures.  Okay, enough talk - here are the pics:

This one is my favorite.  I can't help it, it just makes my heart melt to see the love of my life hold this precious little girl so gently.  And I love that she is holding on to him so trustingly.  Total safety.

Love that little diaper bum! ;)

This is where she's saying - okay, I'll take one more, but I do so under protest! 

This is the one we decided to get enlarged.  I don't love the bow, but I do love the eyes, face, hand and mouth. 

Overall, we've pretty much fallen under this girls spell.  Even Asher loves his new shiny toy - at least for now.  It's a bit weird to think that we are now a four person family, and it's a lot of fun for Durrant to have his playmate and I can have my... whatever she will end up being.  And when we are all caught up on our sleep we might even be able to carry on a decent conversation! :)

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...