maddies big 1

more party and birthday pictures to come!

must be the new thing

cody went to check on maddie and this time she had the blanket over her head in her new favorite sleeping position. should i be worried?

happy (but a bit sick) camper

maddie has had this cough for a few weeks now. our md thinks it could be anything from teething to allergies. we decided to take a chance and still head for the hills near logan with our friends for the 24th. it was a little rough with a sick kid who still was resisting milk, but we had a great time with our friends. maddie even had a great time playing with shane and haileys little griffin (who hopefully we didn't pass something to).what could be the reason for this great grin? auntie brittney and her lickadish (that is what maddies cousins call it). maddie sure loves our friends partly because they love her and treat her well including giving her treats on demand. britt and i loved this picture especially maddies hold of the licorice. graham crackers are also a huge hit with this little one.

i think we finally od'ed the little tyke and uncle josh

Perhaps I will gather some additional groups pictures from others but in the mean while for the record...Brady, Jenna, Taylor, Meg joined a bit late, Matt, Jeremy, Dakota, Josh, Britt, Shane, Hailey, Griffin, Ryan and Emily all joined us for a weekend of four wheeling, great food, lake swimming and laughs.

drake & maddie

I think Vanessa was right in suggesting we get a puppy before having our baby. Although it was a little close (Drake is only about 3 months older than Maddie) we sure love how these two love each other. I do feel for Drake because he did get forgotten when Maddie arrived but I am sure she will make up for the disturbance when she can play with him out back. Also, for some reason I am a little bit more short tempered with Drake then I am with Maddie. Possibly because he jumps on everyone and gets everyone wet when there is water near where Maddie rarely is a nuisance. They sure are cute together already at this young age.

first the washer

now our dish washer. we were lucky to have gotten three good years out of the appliances that we were lucky to have bought with our house but they are all starting to go. today i have been hand washing dishes all morning and thinking of all of my favorite memories as a kid. cody always teases me that all of my greatest memories as a kid revolve around work. we had office buildings to clean, apartments to maintain and chores galore at home. i think it is the secret to success for close relationships with siblings. my siblings love each other and i think it is because all of the work and fun we had together growing up. it was a total trip down memory lane as my fingers turned to prunes, i had my ipod on shuffle as every song played seamed to be from my dads collection we all grew up to appreciate great rock and roll on. although it was an enjoyable start to today i think it will be getting a replacement this afternoon.

snug as a bug

i was so glad to have caught this picture without our little bug waking up. there is nothing better then a sweet sleeping baby. maddie has a thing with crossing those feet, looks like she does it in her sleep as well.

sanpete county fun

cody and some friends joined barclay mechanicals annual golf tournament down in manti. us wives decided this was a good excuse to head down that way for some fun with john, markell and kaydence. as liz, the kids, meg, britt and i entered moroni we learned that john suggested going boating and they were all in swim suits (some even sewn to size) ready to go. we went and got boat ready at walmart and headed for gunnison res. i learned a great lesson from this trip...always come prepared for anything fun (snowmobiling, wakeboarding, jeep jumping, etc.) when you get on the road towards johns house.

we had a great time on the boat including a big surprise wave getting liz and her family, who were on thier way to a family reunion, soaked. i even got to wakeboard for the first time in a few years which was fun. cody still can land a 3 and jeff stuck a raley which is always exciting. we got cleaned up at john and markells recently updated house and ready for the nephi ute stampede rodeo.

here is our first attempt at whole milk at john and markells.

and this shows how much she liked it. i should have known not to offer it with her favorite pinwheel. after some corndogs and nachosoff to the rodeo. we had a great time watching calfs get roped, cowboys bucked, clowns ramed, barrels tipped and dirt bikers lives at danger. we learned the night before at codys softball tournament, which cody hit the final triple that won the game, that maddie has a thing for fenses. she would shake the fense and scream it was adorable (even all of the players thought so). this fense didn't have as much give but she still enjoyed it for a while.

the straw was fun at first. luckily britt was there to save the day and give maddie a break from cody and i.

that is one happy baby with her happy daddy

grandma would be proud

olivia's at it again...big purchases to big ideas. we decided that we better put the machines to work and make dresses. i made paige and maddie a pillow dress for my first project and olivia went for this. we just have to make the final touches and olivia should be good to go by wednesday.

veggies are in

maddie and i are so glad cody has quite the green thumb. we are hoping we have a few more yellow squash to consume this week. maddie also is getting used to whole milk. we started offering it to her over the weekend and i stopped nursing sunday. i thought she would drink more. hopefully she follows in her cousins footsteps and soon thinks she is getting a treat when given a glass of milk.

maddie took it upon herself to continue to eat even when i took a break for a picture. look who is walking next to furniture. we think it is funny that she only crawls super fast or walks when there is food in her view. we just love our near one year old.

givin' is livin'

we all have times in our lives where we give and times when we receive. at this time i am compelled to share a story in hopes that it will inspire you to give at this time and in turn receive so much.

many know my family is full of girls. i have a big brother and five sisters. my oldest sister, emily and her husband jon recently faced some trials many of us will never experience. here is their unique situation from my perspective.

emily and jon have been married 7 years, in those 7 years they have been unsuccessful in having children. they recently felt inspired to apply and work with lds family services in hopes to bring a child to thier home. https://itsaboutlove.org/ial/profiles/23753205/ourMessage.jsf (in case you know of a situtation where a baby needs to be placed into a wonderful home).

shortly after that decision they were devestated by the flooding in nashville, tn and their home was completely destroyed. they now rent in raliegh, nc where jon has just completed his first year as a college professor. because they don't live in thier home in nashville they are considered landlords which excludes them from any government natural disaster relief. in short, they have to completely repair their homes damage (estimated costs at $40,000), pay the home in nashvilles mortgage without the aid of renters due to the condition of the home and continue to maintain thier rent in raliegh.

if you find yourself able and willing please join me in supporting this good cause. http://helpthewades.blogspot.com/ (paypal account not necessary)

for givin' truly is livin' (slogan taken from bumper sticker found on jon's 1980 something honda civic hatchback)

gee tar

I ran out of our room for a minute when I heard Cody's guitar being played I grabbed my camera and this is what I found. I love whenever I come near Maddie reaches out to me. She also waves good bye with her little fingers. She is just too cute.

After Cody finished working Monday we headed up to the Richters to take a little dip. Sadly we missed Taylor and Olivia for the picture. Maddie was not so sure of the water but slowly we warmed her up to the idea and eventually she relaxed in the frog floatie.

Well I don't know if she ever relaxed...as her hands grip the sides, her legs were flexed straight up and never a smile to cross her face.

She was content in the shade enjoying her favorite snacks.

I finally got a picture of those beautiful lashes and that golden hair.

We are so lucky to have friends with pools that Maddie (and I) can learn to love swimming.

4th July Weekend

For the holiday weekend we skipped up to Wyoming for some camping at my parents cabin. We had had a long morning finishing up girls camp and a big day at work for Cody but made it just in time for smores around the campfire. The next day we had a big breakfast, watched some soccer, movies, Cody and Ryan went fishing, my Dad and Jeff kayaking, Ethan learned to ride the mini four wheeler, we drove the new four wheeler trailer around gathering fallen trees and cut and burned a few trees killed by the beetle bug. It is always nice to breathe fresh air, sweat a little and just relax in the great outdoors.
I found our Independence Day picture from last year. It was fun to see me just about 40 weeks prego with Maddie and our little puppy. Too bad, Cody wasn't as stoked to wear his T we got him last year as I was.

Camp CSU 2010

Girls Camp has come and gone. Heber Valley is beautiful, the women I worked with amazing and the girls wonderful as always.

legacy trail

When Emily is in town we typically try to do new things. Liz had just gotten a new road bike and I got this trailer for my first Mothers Day. This is as far as me, Maddie and Ethan got because I didn't know how to connect it to my bike. To bad Cody wasn't there because he got it connected in minutes and Maddie and I went on our first ride last night. She was so cute alone in the center of the trailer gripping the seat belt for dear life. I had to add the picture below because this is Maddie's perfect moment, sitting by her closest cousin Mason and laughing at Ethan.

two 2 year olds

Maddie and I had an extra fun day when Paige and Bridger came to play. It is fun that Maddie's cousins from both sides get to hang out especially when they are only a day apart. A few of my neighbors stopped by while we were out playing and all could tell instantly that Bridger was from Cody's side of the family. Little do they know that according to my mom, Paige looks just like me when I was her age. I think the light eyes and hair throw people off.