Naughty, Messy, But So Cute

I was making the bed and turned around and could not see Haley anywhere. Then I heard noises coming from inside the closet. I call her my little Magellan because she is always exploring.



Same day, finger painting with pudding. Oh so fun.

All Sorts of Reunions

JR had his 10 year high school reunion this weekend, so we traveled up north to the party. It was really fun to catch up with his old friends and to see our good friends, the Crowthers. It was a really elegant night of fine food and dancing and we had a great time.

While in the area I was able to reunite with some friends from my social work program. It was so fun to hear about what everyone is up to and who is working where. Class of 2008 changing the world, one social worker at a time.

Haley enjoyed reuniting with her grandparents on both sides and we enjoyed reuniting with our dear freinds, the Andersons. We were able to go out with them and meet the new addition to their family, Dane. He is so cute and we had such a great time with them. I also had a fun day reuniting with the girls at Lacie's house. We are happy to have had some great reunions with friends and family.

Anyone Up For a Swim?

A really fun day at the pool...

can really tucker you out.

My New Little Niece, Jordyn

My sweet sister, Natalie, had her baby today - 8/8/08. She is so stinking beautiful and sweet. I can't wait to meet her. We are so happy for Natalie and Chad and Cameryn. Happy Birthday, Jordyn.

Fun in the Sun

We have been having so much fun at our new home. We just got internet, so I'll give a quick update.

We have been having so much fun at the pool here at the condo. There is even a little kiddie pool for Haley. She really likes that it is so warm. We bought her a beach ball and it is her favorite toy. To JR's delight, Haley's all-time favorite toys are balls. Any size, any sport. She loves her Nurf baseball more than anything. Funny, huh? Do you think she may take after her daddy?

JR and I just celebrated our 3 year anniversary. Our good friends here babysat so we could go out to a nice romantic dinner. It was raining here and we ate by candle light. Could it have been more romantic? We are so lucky to be so in love and to have had three amazing years together.

We are enjoying house hunting. There are some beautiful homes here and gorgeous red rock views. We really like it here a lot. Haley and I are still biking everyday and hoping that it will soon cool down a bit.

This weekend we went to the farmers market here. It is not as good as the one in Sandy, but we still got some great tomatoes and peppers. JR spent all day canning fresh salsa. He is so cute. He was so proud of himself. His salsa turned out awesome! We are really excited to try more canning recipes.

JR's newest obsession is Rock Band. Haley really likes to join him in playing the drums. She rocks back and forth and giggles the entire time. It is really cute and funny. We are going to start our own family band...I'll sing, JR will play guitar, and Haley will be on the drums. Watch for us. We may become famous. :)

Requested Update

Many of you have been asking me for an update on how it is going here in our new home. Here is the latest on our move...we are loving it here in St. George. We live by two fantastic parks and a great bike trail. Haley and I go on a bike ride every morning before it gets too hot. We stay indoors during the hot hours and then usually have dinner outside on our deck. Our house is finally all put together (no more boxes) and we love having the extra space. Haley has a darling room with an entire wall of windows. It is so bright and nice. It's great now that our living room does not have to also be Haley's toy room. JR is liking his new job and it is much more flexible. I am loving it because he can usually come home for dinner and does not work late as often. We are excited to go to church tomorrow and see how we like the ward. Our church is at 11am, which is a much better time for Haley's nap schedule, so we are happy about that. Well, there is the update. We feel so blessed by the Lord and we hope life is going as well for all of you.

Wednesday Words on New Discoveries

The art of teaching is the art of assisting discovery.
---Mark van Doren

I think the greatest part of motherhood, so far, is watching Haley discover the world around her. Everything is new and exciting to her. I get such a thrill from helping her experience this amazing world. New flowers, foods, activities, and sights make up the best parts of our days together. She is at such a great age. She reacts now with giggles, claps, and wide eyes. I feel so lucky to witness it.

Some of her latest and greatest discoveries include:

Blueberries - squishy, tasty, two thumbs up

Cheerios - fun to pick up, hard to get into mouth, yummy once accomplished

Standing up in her crib - exhilerating, free, glowing with pride

In-N-Out Burger - not quite sure why Daddy wants to go there daily (don't worry, he doesn't...he just wants to), pretty sure it is the reason he wanted to move to St. George

The baby pool - wild fun, refreshing, even tastes good (I am just assuming because she consistently attempts to drink from it)

Clapping - comes in handy, makes me happy and seems to make everyone else happy too

Babbling "Ba, ba, ba" - fun to do with my lips, the louder I get the more attention I seem to get

Okay, Jokes on You

Ha, ha, ha...just to clear things up, that is a lovely home, it's just not our home. I think I am hilarious. We have actually moved into a condo while we look for a home and save money. We do have an extra bedroom, though, for any of you who need a sunny place to stay. We'd love to have you.

Home Sweet Home

Yes, we have finally moved to sunny St. George, Utah. Our move went smoothly, but we are still in the midst of boxes. We are very excited to have much more room now and a beautiful deck for barbecues. So if you are ever down south our way, give us a call. Thanks to all our friends and family who helped us move and who went out of their way to send us off with a goodbye. We will miss many people, but we are excited to meet new friends and renew our Las Vegas friendships.

Just Her Own

Our sweet friends, the Gustafsons, made Haley this gorgeous quilt. It is so soft and pretty. We absolutely love it! It also has Haley's name and birthdate embroydered on it. It was such a thoughtful moving gift. She will love it forever.