Life of a Hunter

26 reasons why I love my husband!!!

2012-01-30T20:58:00.000-08:00

1. Does housework that I hate! (dog poop, yard work, etc.)

2. Works Hard

3. He's funny (even if a lot of times he's talking about poop or farts :))

4. Supports our family

5. Honors his Priesthood

6. Has a testimony of the gospel

7. Always tries to make me laugh

8. Awesome Dad!!

9. Makes Easton happy

10. Will do anything for me and Easton!

11. Teaches me new things (lots of times about sports)

12. Changes poopy diapers without complaining

13. Understands my ways and still loves me for it!

14. Selfless

15. Always holds the door for people (sometimes I don't notice and keep walking and turn around wondering where he went, but there he is still holding the door no matter how many people keep coming!)

16. Handles finances (we'd be broke if I did it!)

17. Tells me I'm a good mom :)

18. Watches girly shows with me and likes it and likes a lot of the same shows I do (minus Teen Mom and my ABC family shows haha)

19. Has the funniest laugh when I tickle him. Always makes me laugh when I hear it!

20. Patient! (He may not think so, but he's much better at it than me!!)

21. Loves his family and keeps in touch with everyone who lives far away

22. Puts up with my family!!

23. Loves me!

24. Adores Easton to death and has a sweet bond with him that I love seeing everyday!

25. Took me to the temple!

26. I get to be with him and our family FOREVER!

Happy 26th Birthday Jameson! I love you babe!

(thanks Ashley for this cute idea)

Adorable!!!

2012-01-25T19:26:00.000-08:00

I just LOVE this face!!!

My little pet!

2012-01-21T08:58:00.000-08:00

So did I ever mention I'm raising a kid/dog/hamster all in one? Well it's true. Easton likes to pretend he's these animals every now and then. At first we couldn't figure out why he likes to take food from us and put it on the floor and then proceed to eat it with his mouth, but then we realized he has become a big copy-cat. He's always copying what we do and now our dog Jessie too. He loves to eat food off the floor! Kinda gross and weird!

Now the hamster thing... I don't know where he got this from because we don't have a hamster, but Easton likes to place his sippy cup on the baby gate and drink it like so...

At one point he was doing it without hands and looked like a little hamster trying to get water. He's so weird sometimes! Haha

Sick baby

2012-01-20T13:54:00.000-08:00

We have been very lucky in the health department with our little man! There have only been a few times where he has been really sick (once with the acid reflux and another with the dehydration). He's been very good at avoiding common sicknesses such as a cold, flu, cough, etc. That is until now :(

I had a cold last week and was finally getting over it when poor little man picked it up. Then on top of it he had to get his 15 month shots too.

And as sad as seeing him sick makes me... he sure has been making up for all that lost cuddling time over the past 15 months! I love you little man, feel better soon!

4 AMAZING years!!

2012-01-06T08:30:00.001-08:00

This past Wednesday January 4th was our 4 year wedding anniversary! I wasn't going to tell Jameson at all what we were doing until we were on our way, but I spilled the beans early on Christmas day of my plans. And just FYI all these pictures are from the internet because I did not take any of my own pictures :(

So anyway, to begin Jameson got off work early on Tuesday and we headed over to the in-laws to drop off the little guy. We made a quick stop at IKEA to look at some toy storage ideas for Easton's room before heading over to Jameson's favorite place in the world- The Brazilian Bull steakhouse! Delicious as always, we stuffed our bellies full of the best tasting meat you can imagine! We finally surrendered all our tummies could handle and headed to our hotel "casita" for the night. Jameson's aunt works at the Sanctuary resort and spa in Scottsdale and its super nice! Working there she has met many celebrities so you can imagine the fancy smancy-ness of it. Plus, I like the idea of not having a hotel room where you walk down a hall room by room, but instead we had a secluded little spot just for us. It was amazing!

After taking a bath in their soak tub we were ready to relax the rest of the night away- baby free! We put on our fancy- shmancy robes and drank our sparkling cider in fancy-shmancy glasses. The glasses in fact were so fancy Jameson was hesitant to give it to me afraid I might drop it. Haha. Anywho, the rest of the night was amazing and it was great to "get-away" from it all for a while.

The next morning we checked out, but not before I took another bath in the soak tub. So relaxing! We then went to one of my favorite places in the world- Sprinkles! Yum! I indulged on a delicious red velvet cupcake and a pumpkin cupcake.

(again not my picture, but you get the idea :))

Following Sprinkles we went to the dine-in theater for lunch and a movie. The movie was cute, but we weren't impressed with the food.

It was still a nice way to end our little "get-away." I told Jameson next year for our 5 year anniversary he should surprise me... with a cruise :D

Temple Lights

2012-01-01T14:08:00.001-08:00

I had a photo shoot in Mesa on Thursday so we decided to go see the temple lights that night. It was the only way I could convince Jameson to drive to the "east side" of town since he's not a big fan. So the Haggard's and Jameson met up with me after I was all done. It's always a joy to see the temple all lit up and the way they display the beautiful lights around the temple grounds. We topped it off with dinner and hot cocoa at Denny's! Yum! Thanks for the fun night guys.

(P.S. Easton loved it!!!)

14 1/2 months old!

2011-12-28T20:39:00.000-08:00

I was folding and storing away all of Easton's baby clothes last night and almost had a melt down! He was so stinkin' little!! Now I look at him all grown up and my heart aches. Plus it doesn't help that all my friends are having babies right now and I've photographed some newborns recently. It REALLY makes me want another tiny thing around here to snuggle and cuddle with. I guess baby hungry would be the right word to describe it. I must admit though that the phase Easton is in now is so much fun and entertaining that I've forgotten how the newborn phase was! He has so much personality and we love him to death. I don't think it's the best thing for us right now, but it still weighs on my mind a lot.

Now onto the update of the little stinker.

Easton is 14 1/2 months old. His favorite things to do are talk, dance, give kisses, and play hide-and-go-seek. He has quite the personality these days and it makes me wonder if I was this weird as a kid. Often times he bangs his head against things on purpose, spins around in circles til he falls down dizzy, walks around with a blanket over his head purposely running into walls, looks at the world up side down, and sticks his tongue out and plays with it. There is seriously never a dull moment with this kid! I love him to pieces!!

Easton also got his second hair cut! I swear he looks so grown up when his hair is shorter. He also got his first molar and is working on his second (that makes #10). He knows how to say "Hi", "Daddy", "Da-Da", "Kitty", and I'm pretty sure I heard him say "Bye" the other day. He STILL won't say "Mommy" no matter how hard I try. Jameson says he heard him say it, but it doesn't count til I hear it. I also knows how to clap, wave, and demonstrate what a touch down is. He is getting so smart and he amazes me still everyday with the things he can do. Love it!

Christmas Festivities!

2011-12-28T19:34:00.000-08:00

Christmas was wonderful this year! We had so much fun with Easton introducing him to all of our Christmas traditions and all the joy this time of year brings. He helped my mom and I do our day of baking (mostly he tasted, but that still counts). He helped mommy shop for presents. He helped mommy put up decorations (mostly playing with the boxes of course). We also took him to see Christmas lights which were his absolute favorite! I can't wait til next year when we can really start seeing his eyes light up even more. We didn't set out any cookies for Santa this year, but I look forward to that as well as he gets older.

Easton also got spoiled to death with presents. I don't know if he liked the toys or the boxes more. Either way he had a blast!

Did I forget to mention he really LOVES giving kisses lately. He gave Elmo on the wrapping paper kisses...

...and the snowman on the box. Lol

Checking out the goodies in his stalking

and enjoying his new toys :)

Oh and he got another hair cut. This is BEFORE...

...and AFTER. So handsome!

The day of messy disaster!

2011-12-06T20:34:00.000-08:00

So I have to tell you a story about what happened today...

When I came home from driving to Payson with Abby this morning it was time to feed Easton lunch. However, as soon as I got out of the car I could smell the stench of poop in our garage... You see, our cat has this habit of pooping on the floor RIGHT next to the litter box. This time it smelled really bad. So I walked inside and set all my stuff down and decided I would quickly pick it up before I fed Easton. He is usually fine if I leave him for a second to do something (run upstairs to grab him some clothes, take the trash out, etc.) So I grabbed a paper towel, picked up the poop and took it out to the trash can (I use the access door in the garage to get to our trash cans out back). Literally, it took me no more than a minute to do this.

When I came back in I opened the garage door to find a can of paint from the shelf in the laundry room knocked on the floor and SPILLED out everywhere. Gazing up, I follow the paint-stained foot steps to find my little boy covered in paint in the corner!

Thank goodness it was our tan paint from the walls in our living room and not the dark red paint from the walls in Easton's room.

Anywho, I quickly stripped off his clothes and took him over to the kitchen sink to rinse him down. I then went over to his highchair to feed him where I found dried up sticky banana and left over green beans all over the floor and chair. It just so happens to be a big pet-peeve of mine when I go to feed Easton and his chair is all messy! A little mess is ok, I'll let him get it dirty and then clean it up. The bananas, however, were pretty gross. I would like to thank David Workman for this little tid-bit since he seemed to be the guilty party in this mess.

Then, while Easton was eating (strapped in and not going anywhere), I went back out to the garage to clean out the rest of the littler box. I checked the bag I was going to use for holes because I have had the litter spill out the bottom of the bag before. It looked good so I dumped out all the old litter and put the new litter in the box. Then as I proceeded to throw away the old litter, I lifted the bag and saw tons of litter spilling out of the bottom! AHHHH!! I swear I had checked it!! I finally swept up all the litter and went back to check on my little boy. Usually if I leave him strapped in there too long I will come back to find bits of food thrown all over the floor. This is his way of telling me he is finished. To my surprise he was sitting happily in his chair finishing his last little bites. I think he knew mommy had enough and didn't make the mess he usually does... At least with his food that is :)

Thanksgiving weekend!

2011-11-29T21:09:00.001-08:00

We had a great time this Thanksgiving and all week having Jameson's two brothers in town. The week consisted of lunch a Peter Piper pizza, Thanksgiving day with football and food, Black Friday shopping, a trip to the Wild Life World Zoo, and a night at Glendale Glitters. All of it was fun, but I only got pictures at the zoo (which mostly Jameson's dad took). Easton had a blast hanging out at grandma's house with his cousins Bailey, Jordyn, Brexton, and Levi. He could have cared less about everything else we did :)

Anyway, here are some pictures from the zoo... It was fun going with Easton now that he's older. This time he giggled and ran around. He loved pointing to all the animals. I think he liked the birds and monkeys best.

Being grateful!

2011-11-23T18:06:00.001-08:00

In the spirit of Thanksgiving here it goes...

Today I am grateful for the trials that make me be humble.

I am grateful for a home and warm blankets to bundle up with when it's cold.

I am grateful for food to eat. I complain about having a gut yet I know others out there are starving.

I am grateful for family and friends.

I am grateful for those who are serving to keep our country safe!

I am grateful for modern technology. Without it my job would be a lot more difficult.

I am grateful for Jameson's job because I know others who are still struggling to find one.

I am grateful for a crazy little boy who keeps me on my toes all day because I know that means that little boy is healthy!

I am grateful for my husband. He truly is my better half!

Last but not least...I am grateful for the gospel. It reminds me of the things that are truly important

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!!

Trunk or Treat!

2011-10-30T21:45:00.000-07:00

Our ward had their Trunk or Treat last night. I always look forward to these every year, especially this year because of Easton. He had lots of fun running around, eating corn bread, and chasing his shadow on the pavement. Yes... you heard me right... chasing his shadow! Too bad I didn't have the video camera, it was the cutest thing ever!

He was the cutest little puppy there! He was also a great first-time trick or treater going around to collect some yummy treats. Some for him and some for mom and dad. He doesn't know how to say "thank you" or "trick or treat" yet so I was having him give high fives to everyone as his way of saying thanks. They all loved it.

My little friend Ginger....the bumble bee and the lady bug

And our trunk... found some great stuff in the dollar section at Target!

FEAR FARM!!!

2011-10-30T20:41:00.000-07:00

Scary chainsaws, people jumping out at you, bloody carcasses, and a creepy corn maze... Does that sound like a way you'd like to spend your night? Not likely. Unless of course you're dressed up in a costume, it's Halloween weekend, and you're hanging out with a great group of friends :)

And of course when you follow it with yummy chili, apple cider, caramel apples, chocolate covered pretzels and hot chocolate- It doesn't get any better!

Pirate and Lady Bug

SWAT and life size doll

Super Heroes!

Juno and the Nerd

Where's Waldo and Wanda- attacked by zombies!

Kristen and Abby- she's making an angry face because she was the only one not to dress up... should have read the email Abby :)

Where's Waldo?

I had never been to Fear Farm before. It was quite scary. The last time I had been to a corn maze was when I was in mutual. It was great to get dressed up, hang out, and get scared like back in the day.

Thanks Workman's for the fun night and delicious food!

Pumpkin Carvin' Party

2011-10-30T15:45:00.000-07:00

A few night ago we had a super fun pumpkin carving party over at the McClellan's home courtesy of Deidre and Katelyn. It was fun hanging out and meeting some new people Deidre knows from work. It was also a great way to start the Halloween festivities! Thanks again guys!

My bat

{left to right pumpkin artists} Brian, Shawn & Deni, Katelyn, Me, and Joe

Crazy spirits coming from our pumpkins ;)

The pumpkin heads

(Joe)

(Shawn)

(Katelyn)

Welcome to Elmo's World!

2011-10-28T10:07:00.000-07:00

We had a fabulous Elmo birthday party for Easton last weekend. It included yummy chili, fruit and hot dogs for the adults and Dorothy Snacks (goldfish crackers) and bubbles for the kiddos. And of course a delicious candy bar enjoyed by all!

Elmo's pet fish Dorothy was also hanging out during the party

Here's the Birthday Boy!

A big thank you to Bryan and Katie Workman for Easton's fabulous Elmo cake (http://katiecakestheblog.blogspot.com/) and a big thanks to everyone who came! Easton was definitely spoiled by all the presents and we had fun celebrating with you all!

We ended singing "Happy Birthday" to the most wonderful little boy I know :D

CHEEEEEESE!

2011-10-25T20:08:00.000-07:00

I couldn't resist sharing.

He's such a little charmer :)

Halloween's approaching!

2011-10-24T12:17:00.000-07:00

Well it's that time of year again! Honestly I have been excited for a few months now for Halloween to get here. Last year I'd say Halloween was pretty much a bust with Easton being two weeks old and all. So this year I was excited to bust out the decorations (which were minimal, but still set the mood) and find a cute costume for Easton. Well grandma I guess couldn't wait either and found this adorable puppy costume for Easton months ago...

Adorable of course!

Now all we need are some costumes for Jameson and I. It's driving me nuts that I still don't know what we're going to be for Halloween. If it were up to Jameson he wouldn't even dress up this year, but he knows that's not going to happen.

So we're going on a last minute shopping trip tonight and I'm determined that we are NOT coming home empty handed! But we are not coming home with something lame either. Anybody have any bright ideas?

Happy 1st Birthday to our Little Man!

2011-10-15T20:23:00.000-07:00

My how the time has flown. It feels like only yesterday when we were so anxiously awaiting your arrival- and yet here you are a year later. Bigger than ever! I still remember the day; how nervous and excited I was to meet you. And when I saw you for the first time how my eyes swelled up with tears I wasn't anticipating.

Everything I had been waiting for these past 9 months had finally arrived. You were tinier than I had imagined and more beautiful too. I never knew I could love something so fragile and little so so much! It was then that I realized my life would never be the same.

When I look at you now all grown-up with your silly smiles and silly faces-

-I can hardly believe its been a whole year.

Your little baby chicken legs look more like little tree stumps. Your face has filled out. You've never been a chubby boy, but for now your feet are an exception. Your dark hair is all gone and new blonde hair takes its place. You look more grown-up too with your little boy styled hair cut. 4 teeth have taken over your cute baby gums (I sometimes miss that gummy smile). You have loads of personality. Sometimes you're stubborn. Actually a lot of times you're stubborn. Makes me remember how easy it was for me to make you do the things I wanted you to do. The only things babies were suppose to do... eat, sleep, and cry right? Not throw temper tantrums or spit food out of their mouth because it tastes icky. Because you think you know better. Crazy right?

Well then an even funnier thing happened to this scrawny little boy whom I love so much.. You started doing crazy things like rolling over... crawling... standing... walking... RUNNING even!

You started growing up. I guess you weren't going to stay this tiny little boy forever. I didn't want to believe it. I knew if you grew up things would happen to you that I might not be ready for. Like that time you acted like a love-struck teenager going around kissing girls. Or that time you fell down and bumped your head on the wall. Made me realize I won't be able to protect you from everything. But it also made me realize how special you are. How much personality you've developed.

How much you fun you are! Sadly, I can't predict most of the things that will happen to you or what you'll experience in life... Except for maybe a few things. I can predict you will probably grow up loving sports just like your daddy. Or that you'll most likely grow up wishing I had never gotten those naked pictures of you in the bath tub with your "future girl friends."

(*wink wink*)

You'll grow up. I know that much is for sure.

And even though you won't let me hold you like this anymore...

Or like this...

At least I have pictures to remind me what once was. You'll always be my lil peanut. I'd like to think someday you'll come find me and tell me "mommy, I wuv you" and sit yourself down in my lap to cuddle and snuggle with me all over again. That way I can at least feel like for some small moment in time with my arms wrapped around you, that I'm protecting you. Keeping you safe.

My little Easton bug. I love you so much. Mommy and Daddy will always be there for you. You've grown into such a fun-loving, happy little boy. A little sarcastic at times I think too. I love seeing you enjoy life and explore new things. Happy happy birthday buddy! I wuv you!

First hair cut!!

2011-10-10T15:37:00.001-07:00

Easton's hair was starting to get a little shaggy so I told Jameson I wanted to cut it for his birthday. My friend Kelsey told me about this great place called Snip N Snap for kids in Surprise. They sat Easton in a little car and put Elmo on the TV. He loved it!!

Here is the before...

...and the after!

So handsome!

When it was all done we gave him a sucker for being a good boy.

He would not let go of it!

Just Because...

2011-09-27T09:55:00.001-07:00

Showing off those teeth that are about to poke through.

Messy boy!

"See-food"

He liked the food just as much as he liked the mess

This picture just makes me laugh... Its almost like he's a 3 or 4 year old you ask to

smile and this is what you get.... Cheesy!

Being a goober as always!

Love him! <3

Baby Joshua

2011-09-16T10:45:00.000-07:00

"The Lord takes many away, even in infancy, that they may escape the envy of man, and the sorrows and evils of this present world; they were too pure, too lovely, to live on earth."

-Joseph Smith

Marissa and Joshua

My sweetest sympathy for you. You are brave and strong. He was beautiful and perfect! His life was short, but meaningful and someday you will be able to hold him again. Until then he is your sweet little angel. Thank you for sharing him with me!

All the little things

2011-09-12T14:28:00.000-07:00

I just realized the other day how many cute little things I find you doing throughout the day and I wanted to write them all down before I forget.

So this is for you little buddy...

You love your blanket! The only way I can get snuggles out of you is if I drape your blanket over my shoulder for you to lay your head on me. It never lasts very long, but I love it!

You learned how to wave bye-bye! I'm not quite sure if you know what it means yet, but anytime you do it you get some sort of reaction out of mommy and daddy so you keep doing it with a smile on your face.

You LOVE kisses! You like to give them and receive them now... they're the big open mouth kind, which I don't mind if it's coming from you :)

You kissed your first girl (without crying that is). Lexie will always be your first, but Kennedy was the first girl you tried to kiss all on your own. You walked right up to her and leaned in with that big open mouth. I guess I'm in trouble if you're already starting that early.

One more thing you like to kiss is daddy. Not on daddy's lips though... actually you like to pull up daddy's shirt when he's lying on the floor and give him a wet one right on his belly! He doesn't mind this either :)

You actually LOVE elmo! It's not just some silly cartoon mommy turns on the morning to keep you occupied. When you hear that little jingle "La-La-La-La" you turn and look in the direction of the TV with a big smile on your face.

You think bubbles are fun! Then again what baby doesn't. The first time you saw bubbles you laughed and smiled and got mad when they were all gone.

You still love your kitty Callie. You squeal and giggle whenever she walks by. You try and chase after her, but she'll usually run upstairs to get away from you. One day she'll love you back :)

Um... what else... Oh you also LOVE your sippy cup. You don't necessarily like to drink out of it... you'd be just as happy with an empty one as long as you can walk around and just play with it.

I can hardly believe you'll be ONE in just over a month from now. You've grown so fast and you bring mommy so much joy everyday. I find myself laughing and smiling at mostly everything you do. Now matter how big you get you'll always be my little peanut. I love you!

Saying goodbye to Natalie

2011-08-23T21:47:00.001-07:00

In high school I was quite the little athlete. I danced, swam on the swim team, and played soccer. For some reason though I was a lot closer with my friends from swim than I was with the girls from soccer or dance. Friends that, to this day, I still hang out with. For the most part, when I got married right out of high school I lost a lot of friends and didn't really keep in touch with people from school. I think that is just bound to happen when your friends are younger than you and you are the first one to graduate and get married.

But I am grateful to this day that I still have my little Natalie and Shelby! They are seriously the best! Plus it helps that they absolutely LOVE Easton and try to see him whenever they are down from school.

BUT now for the next year, my little Nat will be venturing into the big city! She got accepted to a program at Queens College in New York! (Can you say jealous!!) She will be there for the whole year and we will miss her dearly. She is very sad she will be missing Easton's first birthday, but I promised her we will skype and I will upload lots of pictures on facebook for her (which I do already so that's easy)

Anyway, for our last day with Natalie we spent it at Shelby's house going swimming and hanging out. Natalie, Brittany, and Shelby all came and Keith (Shelbs lil brother) joined in on the fun when he got home from school. Easton had a good time and I know he will miss his Natalie just as much as I will :)

he loves her!

going swimming

In the pool just like back in the day :)

(Left to right is Brittany, Shelby, Easton, & Natalie)

When we were in the pool he wanted out and when we were

out he wanted back in... silly Easton!

So cute!

Playing airplane

Little guy and big guy (Keith)

I Heart Faces: Beautiful Eyes!

2011-08-14T21:22:00.001-07:00

I've never entered an 'I Heart Faces' contest before

(You can find them here http://www.iheartfaces.com/)

I just recently ventured out with my business so I thought it might be fun to see how I stand up against the BIG DAWGS! The theme for this week if beautiful eyes and I immediately thought of this photo.

For the 10 short months Easton has been mine, every one tells me how much he looks like his daddy. He has daddy's mouth, nose, face, etc., etc. Nevertheless, at least the ONE thing he got from me is his best and most complimented feature...

Those beautiful baby blues!

Giveaways!

2011-08-12T08:54:00.000-07:00

I've been obsessed lately with entering giveaways! Why not?!?! It's free stuff and most of the time it is something I could use in my photo shoots. I've won a few things before, but so far nothing photography related.

I just entered this quick giveaway @LoveByCC at

http://lovebycc.blogspot.com/2011/08/quick-contest.html

This puppy hat is absolutely adorable! So here's to crossing my fingers I finally win one :)

Easton's 9 month update

2011-07-19T21:47:00.001-07:00

Our little boy is not so little anymore. He is becoming more and more of a big kid everyday.

He hasn't been in for his check-up yet, but on our scale at home is a whopping 20lbs! I think it's mostly all muscle. He is constantly on the move. He officially took his first 2 unassisted steps yesterday walking from daddy to the couch. He loves walking along furniture and pulling himself up on everything in our house. His new favorite is crawling along the floor with something in one hand... whether it be a toy, movie case, remote, or cell phone, he has it in one hand and scoots it along the floor or up the wall.

He is still absolutely obsessed with electronics. The only change now is he gets really mad when you take it away from him. To which mommy usually gives into. I can't hide it from him either. He knows now that if I take it away from him and hide it to go look for it behind my back. I decided I was ok with giving him the remote as long as I took the batteries out of it.

We are working on getting him to wave and clap his hands. I feel like he almost doesn't sit still long enough to let me teach him. Sometimes he will sit in my lap and let me read him a story. He has learned how to turn the pages by himself in his board books.

Easton loves food (what kid doesn't!) He loves finger food and does good at feeding himself. His favorite are Gerber's little crunchies, grapes, and strawberries. He also loves his veggies, but mostly just the jar kind. I tried streaming some carrots and cutting it up into pieces for him, but he wanted nothing to do with it. Plus, even if he's eaten a full meal and we sit down for our dinner he wants a taste of what we have too. He could seriously eat all day.

Easton makes tons of funny faces. His latest is this one...

sometimes he snorts too while doing it.

Sometimes this one... which I think is a little weird and slightly creepy

But mostly this one... Which I get to see all the time because he's a very happy boy!

Gotta love those baby blues!!!

Everyone compliments him on his blue eyes, one thing he did get from his mommy. Everyone is always telling me how cute and smiley he is. He gets lots of attention at the store or whoever sits behind us at church. One lady actually told me she tries to find a seat behind us just so she can stare at him all throughout sacrament. Haha. He's a big talker though so it's hard to even keep him quiet during sacrament and I usually have to take him out. Last Sunday I think Easton actually met his match. There was another little boy named Nolan out in the foyer who's a few months older than him. Easton was sitting on the floor and Nolan would crawl up to Easton, poke him and run away. He repeated this process about five times and on the fifth time he crawled up to Easton (who was still sitting in the same spot surprisingly)... he crawled up to him and got really close to his face and squawked so loud it made Easton jump. He got a really sad look on his face and nearly started to cry... but still super funny to watch.

We adore Easton to pieces and thank our Heavenly Father for him everyday! Especially thankful that he is happy and healthy! He is so much fun and I can hardly believe he is almost walking. Time sure does fly!

Here is a picture I got of him for my attempt at his 9 months pictures (and by attempt I'm referring to the fact that he would not sit still)

Pictures

2011-07-14T20:50:00.000-07:00

I know this is late, but a few months ago we got some family pictures done. My sister in law Chelsea @Chelsea Karch Photography did an awesome job!! Here are a few of my favorites... (which is like all of them)

Splash Pad Fun!

2011-06-29T20:34:00.000-07:00

Last week I went to the splash pad with Easton and our friends Kelsey and Connor! Easton had so much fun! This kid loves the water just like his mommy :)

2011-06-26T20:34:00.000-07:00

I love this kid with every fiber of my being!! It's crazy how big he's getting every single day. It makes me sad that he got mobile so fast, but it is just his personality.

He is seriously so determined at everything he does. When he learns something new it is all he wants to do. Before Easton was even 8 months old he figured out how to pull himself up onto things. Now he's trying to stand alone and climbing up stairs. Jameson and I have been debating how long it will take him to figure out walking... I say he's walking by his 9 month check-up and originally Jameson said 10, but he seems to not be sticking by that guess anymore. We'll see originally who was right :D

My life is over

2011-06-08T11:11:00.000-07:00

Well my child has officially figured out how to pull himself up onto things, which means my life is pretty much over. He will most likely be walking withing the next couple months. He still has not figured out how to use his knees to crawl, but does that stop him? Heck no! He's fast enough on his army crawl that he can pretty much do what he wants and get where he wants to. But until now almost everything was still out of arm's reach. He uses those sneaky little hands already to get into everything he can and pretty soon that will all be within reach. I did not sign myself up for a little monster who would be walking at 9 months. That's just not fair! I want him to still be that tiny little boy who would be in the same spot I left him when I came back into the room. I miss that. I knew he would be walking eventually, but I was just hoping he would at least be a year old.

Look at that face! So proud of himself!

He's just lucky he's so stinking cute!

Levi's baby blessing

2011-06-04T09:34:00.000-07:00

This past Memorial Day weekend Jameson's whole family came in to town. It was this little guys sweet baby blessing

Levi

This little guy it so sweet and happy. He smiles a lot like Easton did when he was that age.

Billy and Crystal decided to have the blessing in Phoenix since none of Billy's siblings got to attend Hailey's blessing in St. Louis last year. Its been a while since the whole Hunter side has gotten together at the Hunter's home. It was nice to see everyone and spend time with the family. Congrats to Billy and Crystal. Thank you for setting this past weekend up!

Billy, Crystal, & Levi

The whole Hunter side

8 years ago (before I joined the Hunter family) the siblings took a photo at Billy's wedding. We finally got another picture of all the siblings together...

May 2003

(Billy, Jameson, Holly, & Mike)

May 2011

(Mike, Jameson, Holly, & Billy)

I think it's funny to see how much everybody has changed (except for Mike who still kinda looks the same to me). I have a picture from January 2008 from our wedding with all the siblings somewhere. I'm going to have to look for it now to see the differences.

the newest addition

2011-05-25T16:01:00.000-07:00

So this past Monday, Jameson's childhood dog Pebbles was put to rest. They found a lump on her throat and she also had some internal bleeding. While she did live with my in-laws for the past couples years, she was still Jameson's dog. He's had her since he was 11, which would make her about 15 years old. It was definitely her time.

(Pebbles)

(Jessie)

A few days before we found out Pebbles died Jameson got an email about this rescue dog. From both photos above I am sure you can see the resemblance. They are both the same breed of dog, which is a Border Collie/ Lab mix. Having Jessie in our home is bittersweet. She reminds us so much of Pebbles and is such a good dog. In some small way, it feels like a piece of Pebbles is still with us. Plus, Easton loves her! He follows her around the house just like he does with Callie. Except hopefully when Easton is a little bit bigger Jessie will actually play back :)

San Diego: Day 3 & 4

2011-05-18T00:13:00.001-07:00

Day 3: This day was a relax and chill day. We started off our morning with a swim in the heated pool and jacuzzi. So refreshing. Easton loved the warm water ;)

Then that afternoon while the babies took a nap we played a few rousing games of Carcassone and ate delicious Subway sandwiches. That evening we headed off to L.A. for the Dodgers vs. Diamondbacks baseball game. Despite the long drive through L.A. traffic, this was one of the coolest parts of the trip. We had great seats in the first row of center field and Dodger stadium has a much more traditional baseball feel to it than Chase stadium. Very cool!

We were surrounded by Dodger fans and didn't want to get beat up so we didn't wear any Diamondback paraphernalia

Day 4: San Diego Zoo Safari Park

This park was pretty cool. I don't know if the animals are usually so far away, but that was the only thing I didn't like. Even after Bryan got us lost and we walked up and down hills forever.

So if nothing else I got a good workout ;)

Oh plus Easton and Lexie both had their first carousel ride. They seemed to like it.

Night 4: Our last night we actually stayed up late, made more S'mores of course, and just had some good old fun.

This picture had me laughing forever....

Notice Bryan and I (totally not planned and completely hilarious).

Thank you Workman's for a fun trip!

San Diego: Day 1 & 2

2011-05-17T21:18:00.000-07:00

We just got back Sunday from a much needed vacation. Easton was a little hard to handle at times, but at least now I know why (his first tooth poked through). I still think it was a perfect vacation! We got way too much sun, ate way too much junk food, sat around the camp fire saying way too many weird things, drove for way too long to L.A, and took the kiddos on way too many walks to get them to actually fall asleep.

Day 1: we arrived and set up camp at Campland on the Bay. Here are the cuties hanging out before dinner. They are almost the same size now and just 3 months apart.

That night we ate out at Anthony's, a seafood place along the boardwalk in downtown San Diego. Yummy! I'm not a big seafood fan so I ordered the one thing on the menu that didn't have fish in it. Lol. My favorite part was actually the butter they gave you to put on your roll... sun dried tomato and Parmesan cheese. Delicious! That night also consisted of another favorite...S'mores! You can't camp without making S'mores... It's just not American.

Day 2: Beach Day! I love the beach. It was a very cold windy day so we didn't get to go swimming, but falling asleep in the sun on the sand was perfect enough! Easton didn't know what to think of the beach. He definitely did not like me sticking his feet into the cold water...this picture pretty much sums up what he thought of that...

He did have a little fun, but most of the time he was not happy. Maybe he'll like the East Coast beach better when I go to Michigan next month to visit my sister.

(he always manages a smile for the camera no matter what the mood)

Playing together on the blanket... this picture pretty much sums up their friendship :)

Beach Bound

2011-05-10T09:43:00.000-07:00

As of tomorrow... this will be me :)

I am so excited! We looked ahead and the weather is suppose to be chilly, but I don't think that will stop me from getting in the water. The boys will probably not even try and get in it... I know this from experience. But even if it is too cold I just love being at the beach. It will be wonderful!

I love this kid!

2011-05-03T23:13:00.001-07:00

But then again... who wouldn't love this face!

6 month stats

2011-04-30T10:46:00.000-07:00

I wanted to post Easton's 6 month stats

At 6 months he was 15lbs and 3.5 ounces

27 and 3/4 inches tall

And these tidbits are Easton up to now (which is 6 1/2 months)

Easton had a 2nd visit to the hospital since he was born... not fun! He got the stomach flu and was mildly dehydrated so I am glad we took him in when we did.

Right now Easton can't sit up on his own, but I think its because he'd much rather be down scooting around. Yes, that's correct. Easton can army crawl everywhere and he's pretty fast too.

Easton sleeps on average 11 hours at night. Pure bliss!

He loves his binky! He will sit there and play with it and twist it around in his mouth and then suck on it up-side down. He loves to put pretty much anything in his mouth actually. Haha.

He also loves anything electronic. If he spots the remote or a cell phone on the ground he is there before you even realize it changing the channel or something. Stinker!

Easton has just recently discovered we have a cat. She apparently is more aware of him too. She'll come up to him now and sniff his face, to which he will just lay there and open his mouth while she does it. Ha! She especially loves his new found ability to army crawl as he follows her around the house. Not really... the reason I say "around the house" is because she keeps moving around to get away from him.

Easton loves bath time! If he is tired and fussy I can stick him in the tub and everything is better.

Easton went swimming for the first time Wednesday and loved it! He kept trying to wiggle away from me thinking he could do it on his own. My own personal fish boy someday I'm sure. I'm excited we got season passes to Wet n Wild because he loves the water so it will be nice to get outside on the hot summer days.

Easton also loves to be sung to. His favorite is the "Baby Bumblebee" song. When he was getting an IV at the hospital we told the nurse to sing it and he immediately stopped crying.

Easton's favorite food right now is Peaches... just like his daddy :)

Easton already loves baseball (of course). He sat through the Diamondbacks game and also sits through Jameson's softball games on Tuesday nights. It's hard to get him to sit still for anything but that so it must be in his blood already.

Easton loves his daddy.

Jameson gets the biggest smiles from E-bay or Easton bug when he gets home from work (those are Jameson's nicknames for him).

These 6 months have really gone by fast, but I can't imagine and different life than now. Easton is so happy and brings so much joy to our little family.

smiling as always

Always putting things in his mouth

found him under this the other day... he thought it was great!

love him!

Easter fun!

2011-04-30T10:32:00.001-07:00

We had a great Easter this year. After a hectic week it was nice just to relax and spend some time with the family. Saturday we had dinner with Jameson's family and Sunday we had dinner with mine. Gotta love ham when you visit both families on the holidays :)

Easton looked so handsome in his outfit and I actually convinced Jameson to match us since it was Easter Sunday (this never happens). I didn't get a picture of all of us though, just Easton.

Here he's sitting up, but it only lasts for a few seconds before he falls over.

Easton also got some new toys from Grandma Hunter. Jameson use to have a little duck basket when he was little so Grandma filled that same basket with a bunch of duck toys and a duck towel. Super cute!

On Sunday I got to give the lesson to my primary class (I co-teach so we switch on and off each week). I was grateful though to give this one and teach my 7 year olds about the Resurrection of Jesus Christ. Helped me remember his great sacrifice and what Easter is all about :D

Let's not make a habit of this...

2011-04-22T10:45:00.000-07:00

This has been a VERY long week for us and I am so glad things are back to normal. Making it 6 months without so much as a stuffy nose is very humbling (aside from the acid reflux) for our family. This week, however, was very different. It all started Monday when I took Easton in to get his 6 month shots. He did fine afterwards and was acting completely normal til that night. At about 6 oclock after he ate dinner he started vomiting. I may have lost track, but I'm pretty sure he vomited 8 times within two hours. I read the paper about his vaccines and it did mention that vomiting could be a reaction to the shots he received earlier that day.

Later that night consisted of two parents not sure what to do, a baby who was very hungry, but also a baby who could not keep his food down. Tuesday morning finally came and I talked to the pediatrician and Jameson's mom who both said to give him little bits of Pedialyte all day to keep his little body from becoming dehydrated. He had thrown up a little that morning, but throughout the day Tuesday it seemed like he was taking the Pedialyte well and was keeping it down. Tuesday night we fed him a bottle before bed, which he took well and kept down. Things were looking up!

Or so I thought...

Wednesday came and he had a bottle that morning, which he took and kept down. Then after his morning nap he woke up and when I tried to feed him he just was NOT interested. He pushed it away with his hands and got mad when I showed it to him. I just figured I would wait it out and he will be hungry again later. An hour later he was very tired and ended up falling asleep sitting in my lap. So I put him down for his second nap and woke him up a few hours later to try and get him to eat. He was still not interested. I tried Pedialyte and a bottle and he refused both. By this time I am a little worried he wasn't getting back on track like I thought he was. I tried some rice cereal to see if he would eat from a spoon and he did. Yay! I tried to make him a little more, but then he didn't want it. Then I started to notice he was acting sort of lethargic and sleepy again so I put him down for his 3rd nap. I had to wake him again around 5 when Jameson got home to feed him dinner. He STILL was NOT interested. By now he really hasn't eaten anything since 8am and the day before he did not have much either. We decided to take a medicine dropper and see if he would eat some formula that way. After a few times of denying it we finally got him to take some food from the dropper. But then after he was all done about a minute later he threw it up. ALL OF IT. It was everywhere! I went upstairs to clean him up while Jameson called his mom. He told her what happened and she told us we should come in to the hospital to make sure everything was okay.

We arrived at the hospital a little after 7. After being checked out by the PA, Jameson's mom and one of the nurses gave Easton an IV with fluids and Zofran for the nausea. Jameson and I left because neither of us wanted to watch him being poked. We had to wait an hour for him to get all the fluids through his body. Here you can see he was very tired...

After an hour on fluids, we were allowed to give him some Pedialyte. He could not get it fast enough and was getting mad we weren't giving him more. This was a very good sign that his appetite was back and he was doing much better. Later, the PA came in again and she said the hospital had been seeing lots of kids lately with the stomach flu. Lots of vomiting and diarrhea. My guess is he picked it up Monday at the doctor's office. Isn't it ironic that people usually go to the doctor to feel better, not to get sick!

Anyways, we got home late that night and gave him a little more Pedialyte before finally putting him down for bed. He ended up sleeping the whole night and Thursday morning he was back to his normal self. Slowly we've been getting him back on his regular diet and he is doing great.

The stomach flu is definitely going around because although Easton was better, Jameson woke up Thursday morning vomiting. Stomach flu is the devil! Luckily I did not get anything. It is now Friday and the sick house is no more! Here's to not making a habit of going to the hospital. We told Easton from now on if he wants to see Grandma Hunter he doesn't have to get sick to do it!

Diamondbacks game!

2011-04-18T21:45:00.000-07:00

On Saturday we got tickets to go to the Dbacks vs Giants game. Now let me tell you... this is something Jameson has looked forward to since he knew we were having a boy! Actually, the day we found out we were pregnant we were at the Dbacks fan fest and we bought a little baby outfit. So before we even knew what we were having he was getting ready for his little baseball fan.

Anywho, we went to the game Saturday and had a blast! Easton did great! Despite all the noise he even got a little 15 minute cat nap. How he managed to fall asleep is a mystery to me. It was loud! We sat next to some pretty annoying Giants fans. Easton was such a ham too. He was sitting in my lap and would lean himself over just to look at all the people behind us and smile at them. There was this one girl who kept making faces at him and he was giving her the biggest smiles. I tried to not let him because she was a Giants fan, but he passes no judgement :)

Here are some pictures from the night...

In his Dback outfit. Jameson insisted on the eye black, which turned out really cute!

having fun

They look so much alike!

We had great seats. Left center 2nd row!

I absolutely love this picture of us!

We made a sign, but didn't get on the Jumbotron. Why someone

wouldn't put his cute face on the Jumbotron is just weird.

Passed out halfway through :)

That's what you get!

2011-04-17T18:31:00.001-07:00

It's no question that besides Jameson my dad was the most excited to hear that we were having a baby boy. I remember when my sister got pregnant with the first grandkid on our side of the family and my dad really wanted it to be a boy. I particularly remember we went to Sedona one summer to go cliff jumping at Grasshopper point. While walking across some rocks my sister, who was pregnant at the time, slipped and fell. To which my dad replied... "Is my grandson ok?" Not is Meagan ok, but his grandson (who turned out to be Tiffany, very much a girl).

Anyway, the point of this post is not that, but about a few weeks ago when we were visiting my parents for dinner. My dad was holding Easton on the couch and out of no where decided to intentionally scared him. Easton's reaction of course was shock and then the infamous sad face appeared. He freaked out and started bawling! It took a good five minutes or so to calm him down.

Now a few weeks later, I think Easton still remembers the incident. My parents came over two weeks ago for dinner and if my dad would so much as look at Easton this is what would happen...

Easton is not a baby who cries a lot. He whines, but he rarely cries hard like this. I think he even remembers where the incident happened because I was at my parents the other day with just me and my mom and he started to cry for no reason. He NEVER does this unless we're at my parent's house. So to my dad I would say... I gave you a grandson, but it is NOT my fault if he doesn't like you anymore! ;)

That's what you get!

playing catch up

2011-03-27T21:27:00.000-07:00

So the past month or so whenever I have free time I've been playing catch up on my scrapbooking. I realized I have pictures as far back as New Year's Eve 2009 all the way up to Easton. This is over two years worth of photos... and if you know me you know I like to take pictures! I've been at this now for weeks, and while I did catch up I'm still not even close to being done. See for yourself...

Looks like a lot (like 30 pages already), but still so much more to go!

At least it helps to be a little more organized. I realized while playing catch up how messy and disorganized my craft area . So we went and bought some shelves and a ribbon holder. It made a world of difference and now I don't feel so overwhelmed when I sit down to scrapbook.

BEFORE... paper stacked everywhere

I can't tell you how many times I knocked over these stacks of ribbon. Haha

AFTER... loving it!

Now these walls just need some color :)

Home Improvements

2011-03-23T10:18:00.000-07:00

Jameson and I have been busy doing some improvements on the house. Actually Jameson has done most of the work while me and Easton watch. Haha. He's much more handy than I am. Summer is coming so we FINALLY installed the rest of the fans. Hung lights up out front. We use to have these UGLY plastic gold lights hanging in the breakfast nook and dining room and we upgraded those to something much better. We purchased a new table for the dining room. We decided to go synthetic and put some grass in the backyard. Here are a few before and after pics of the improvements.

We put up 3 fans... one in the master bedroom, one in Easton's room, and another in my craft room. I didn't get a picture of the one in Easton's room because he's taking a nap, but here are the other two. Something much needed now thats it getting hotter again!

This is the new table and the ugly gold light that hung off center in the dining room

Much better... and more centered!!

This is the new light in the breakfast nook. We didn't one that hangs only because eventually we plan on getting rid of the table and putting up bar stools. So its just something simple (but still better than the other ugly gold light that hung there before)

For our tax credit this year Jameson decided he really wanted to start working on the backyard. He also decided that he does not want to pay or do the work to put in real grass. Although I do prefer the real thing, I don't mind the synthetic grass either. It actually looks really good. Here is before with the curbing...

After...

It looked bad before, but now that it's not all dirt I definitely want to finish the rest of the backyard soon!

Some other things we plan on doing soon is getting some nice couches for the front room for a sitting area and we plan on transforming our loft into a movie theater room. We got a projector for Christmas and have yet to put it to good use. I also got some shelves to help organize my craft room.

I have feet!!

2011-03-23T10:10:00.000-07:00

Easton has just recently discovered his feet and he loves them!! I'm always catching him grabbing at his toes no matter what he's doing. It's fun to watch him discover something new almost every day :)

Welcome Levi and Addie!!

2011-03-15T14:30:00.000-07:00

My sister and sister in law were both expecting this March and had the same due date... Funny enough they both had their babies yesterday! One went into labor and the other had a planned

c-section. I love that I got a new nephew and niece all in one day. They were almost exactly 12 hours apart... one born at 8:45 am and the other 8:43 pm. Such a special day for our family! Now I only wish they both lived closer so I could see these cute new babies in person, but that's not going to happen. Michigan and Missouri... both live the farthest away than any other family members. Boo!! Soon enough I guess.

Now welcoming...

Baby Levi- 9lbs and 2oz

Baby Addie- 7lbs 4oz

I think both babies look like their older sisters and both are soooo cute!

Congrats Billy & Crystal and Blake & Meagan!

Operation fatten baby up!

2011-02-22T08:22:00.001-08:00

So Easton went in for his 4 month check up last Thursday. He now weighs 11lbs 13 oz and everything is great! I think he's perfect, however the doc was a little concerned that he only gained 2oz since she saw him last month and started talking to me about different options. She mentioned formula first and I'm sorry, but that one got shot down instantly. NOT because I'm opposed to feeding my baby formula, but because we've tried to and he absolutely hates it!!

Not kidding.

So then she said we should start feeding him solids. She said to try rice cereal for 7 to 10 days and then we can start him on veggies! Yes! I am so excited! When I first gave Easton a bit of cereal he did not know what to think. He kept spitting it out and making funny faces. I couldn't decide if he didn't like it because I mixed it with formula or if it was because it was something new and different. (I actually tried it once before the doctor even said to :)) Now I pump so I can mix the cereal with breast milk and he LOVES IT! Yesterday I even gave him a little more than usual because he scarfed the first bowl down. What a little piggy! We go back to the doctor at 5 months to get his height and weight checked again so I will let you all know how it goes. Here's a video of Easton the first time he tried his new food. His face cracks me up :)

If he wouldn't have eaten it I'm sure Callie would have.... she was very interested.

Happy Birthday to my Hubby!

2011-02-18T08:18:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday to my wonderful husband! He turned 25 on January 30th. I'm a little late I know, but better late than never. He got a few Wii games that he wanted... Gold Eye and a new one that came out called Mario Sports Mix (something had to be a surprise). We also had a fun Minute to Win It themed party (which I will go into a little later). The day after his birthday we went and walked around Ikea and went to the Brazilion Bull, one of his favorite restaraunts. If you've never been there its amazing. Even better when you go for lunch and you are the ONLY people there. You get full a lot faster when you're they constantly are bringing you food. Pretty freaking awesome!

Also, Jameson gets a call from our 6 year old nephew on his birthday to wish him a happy birthday. This is how the conversation went...

(Keep in mind he lives in Utah many miles away)

Bailey asks: "How old are you Uncle Jameson?"

Jams: "I'm getting old Bailey. I'm 25. That's half way over the hill now."

Bailey: "Really? That hill over there? Wait.... I see you! Hi Uncle Jameson! Can you see me?"

(He was driving to McDonalds at the time)

Jams: "Ha... Yeah I see you Bailey."

I had to mention to Jameson after wards that over the hill is actually 40 and he hit that half way mark 5 years ago :) Bailey also like to fabricate stories and its just so fun to play along to see where he will go with it. He went on to tell Jameson that he just turned 17 and that he could drive a car now, date, and everything. Gotta love it!

Now onto the Minute to Win It party. It was a success! I decided to post some pictures of the "Face the Cookie" game to let everyone vote on which one they think is the best face... I just can't decide on my own :)

(This one is for Deidre's face)

Travis

Katie

Lauren

Ian

Katelyn

Jameson

This game was awesome enough for just the pictures. Thanks to everyone who came.

Vote on your favorite

Happy Valentines Day!!

2011-02-15T07:44:00.000-08:00

I realized yesterday that a year ago on Valentines Day we found out we were pregnant. What a wonderful adventure it has been. Happy Valentines Day to all! Here is me with my newest Valentine. I couldnt pass up this chance to snuggle, one of my absolute favorite things in the world.. when he gives it to me.

(little blurry from the phone camera)

Oh darlin don't you ever grow up...

2011-01-31T08:34:00.001-08:00

I cannot believe how much my little Easton has progressed in this one week. I visited my friend Abby in the hospital with her new baby and I'm trying to remember just 3 months ago Easton being that tiny. And guess what? I CANT! How crazy is that. It was only 3 short months. Then to top it all off my little man has decided to hit 3 milestones all in one week...

1. He slept through the night for the first time!

2. He's rolling over like crazy! Front to back, back to front, 360's.

3. He's been able to hold things in his hands for a while now, but on top of that he's starting to reach for things and hit them with his hands

Is this fair that he's progressing so quickly? He is amazing me with one thing after another. I feel like he should still be my little jelly bean inside of me or at least the little boy who use to just be content with laying there and staring up at me. Now before I know it he'll be crawling... and standing... and walking! Eeek.

I have to admit that his new found abilities do bring a smile to my face. Like when he rolls over onto his tummy and back, he gets this look on his face like "Woah, did I really just do that," that always makes me smile. Or when you put your face really close to his to kiss it and he puts his hand on your cheek (or in my mouth, he likes that for some reason). Melts my heart everytime.

I can hardly believe how much he changes everyday.

There is a new song by Taylor Swift called Never Grow Up.

The first verse is perfect for how I'm feeling...

Your little hand's wrapped around my finger
And it's so quiet in the world tonight
Your little eyelids flutter cause you're dreaming
So I tuck you in, turn on your favorite night light
To you everything's funny, you got nothing to regret
I'd give all I have, honey
If you could stay like that

Oh darling, don't you ever grow up
Don't you ever grow up, just stay this little
Oh darling, don't you ever grow up
Don't you ever grow up, it could stay this simple
I won't let nobody hurt you, won't let no one break your heart
And no one will desert you
Just try to never grow up, never grow up

So please....

Easton, could you please stay this little?

Cute Stuff!

2011-01-23T20:41:00.000-08:00

I know so many girls who make the CUTEST homemade stuff! I wouldn't even know where to start to make these kinds of things for myself, but I really want a new hobby! This stay at home mom business makes me want to learn a new talent. The latest cuteness I've seen is here...

http://moda-chic-boutique.blogspot.com

Some of the new items are my favorite...

Alyssa you are very talented! And I'm not just saying that so I'll win the headband. Serisously... I wish I was this talented and could make stuff like this. If you follow her I just discovered all these cute giveaways she does. I hope I win!!

Sweet Baby Blessing

2011-01-18T17:48:00.000-08:00

A few weeks ago we blessed Easton in church. I thought I would cry, but somehow managed to hold back my silly mommy tears. That was until Jameson decided to get up and bear his testimony. That little boy loves to talk just as much as his daddy loves to talk with him. Its so much fun watching them together. I love my two boys so much!

And Easton was quite the stud in his blessing outfit... I think I saw some little baby girls drooling that day. See for yourself...

After everything we have been through so far with Easton I must admit that I sometimes forget how blessed we are. I tend to focus a lot on things that go wrong instead of all the amazing blessings Heavenly Father has given us. Easton is the sweetest little boy and Jameson is the greatest husband ever. Jameson has been so supportive and optimistic about everything that has happened when my crazy hormones have gotten the best of me. I don't know how he does it sometimes. What I do know is that I definitely married the perfect man for me that helps me remember to be thankful for what we have.

Congrats to TJ and Chelsea!

2011-01-05T21:57:00.001-08:00

Congrats to TJ and Chelsea who were married on Saturday January 1st. That's definitely one way to start the new year! I am very excited for them! I wonder how he felt when both of his sisters got married within a year because I still can't believe he's married. Well, I love him and Chelsea both and I'm excited to have a new sister-in-law.

Here's the lovely couple

Uncle TJ with Easton

My cute pregnant sister

Me and my niece Tiffany

At the temple taking pictures. Love this one!

And I just thought this face was funny...

Easton actually started the new year by scaring his mommy and daddy pretty bad. Somewhere between taking pictures and the reception we managed to fit in a trip to the hospital. When we got back from taking pictures we went to Jameson's parents house to feed Easton. Right when we got there Easton actually spit up a pretty good amount of blood. Scary! Becky was going to work that night so we went with her to the hospital to get him checked out. He was still acting normal and happy despite the episode he just had. When we got there we just followed Becky into the back entrance and got in right away (Shaweet! That's the way to do it). Anyways, he got checked really fast and everything was normal. He ate again and when he spit up there was no blood. What they think it was is inflammation from acid in his tummy that I guess sometimes causes bleeding if it happens too often. I do think Easton spit up a lot, but never had anything to compare it to. Now I think he has acid reflux, but the pediatrician doesn't seem to be worried. We'll see what happens, but I'll probably be looking for a 2nd opinion here soon... I'm just grateful he's okay and that he's still the happiest sweetest little man :D

Happy Anniversary!

2011-01-05T07:58:00.001-08:00

I can't believe Jameson and I have been married for three years! This year we have learned so much about each other and have been through a lot together. We started out with lots of struggles trying to get out on our own and purchase a home. Then it was filled with many firsts that brought about lots of happiness, adventure, and joy! When I look back I feel like we have grown even closer together, which sometimes as a married couple feels hard to do. You feel like you know some one and they know you, but then you get thrown a trial or struggle and you learn so much more. I feel so blessed to have such an amazing husband and best friend. Life is truly the best!

We purchased a home in April.

This is the day our life truly changed... the day we found out we were pregnant. It happened to be Valentine's Day and we had a whole day planned with the Workmans of fun things to do

Our first trip to a new state... Wyoming!

Our first trip to the farthest east I've ever been... St Louis! (and a new state, Missouri!)

Then in October we had a baby! Obviously another first. This has changed our marriage, but definitely in so many good ways! If anything can test your relationship together it's a baby. Jameson has been awesome at the points where I felt like I was falling apart. I am so grateful for how loving and reassuring he is to me when times were tough. I love him and I love our tiny little family!

This is the first year for me where I haven't been working. I 100% enjoy being a stay at home mom and love that Jameson has a job where he can make enough money to support our family. In March he will promoted to an office manager, which we're very excited about. He will have better hours and overtime will be making as much money alone as we were together.

It has been a great year and I'm sure next year will be as well. Jameson I love you! Thank you for the best 3 years of my life and for hanging by my side through all the tough times.

Christmas with the Hunters

2011-01-04T08:24:00.003-08:00

The was the first Christmas where we actually had room for a big tree. We bought a fake one so it would last for several years and then bought a pine scented candle that we burned on Christmas day. I loved having our first Christmas together as a family :D

Santa's Favorite

Cute picture frame from Jameson

Video camera from Jameson's mom

Cowboy hat from grandma hunter

Lots of toys

Happy boy. I think he likes his presents :)

Grandma Hunters

Cousin Jordyn. She didnt even have to look at him

and he would sport a big grin when he saw her

He's wearing his cowboy outfit for the game... its too bad they didn't win though

Easton's First trip to the zoo... and second

2011-01-03T17:51:00.001-08:00

Last Monday Jameson and I went with his brother and family to the Wildlife World Zoo and Aquarium. This was Easton's first trip. It was quite an experience to say the least.

Our little Easton is quite the picky eater. He has taken breast milk from a bottle before, but for some reason wont anymore. Even though I pumped so we could go to the zoo he still fussed the whole time we fed it to him. When he finally finished he was still hungry after so I ended up going out the car to finish feeding him anyways.

Then Monday I went to the zoo again with my sister. I tried to feed Easton in public at one of the cafe shops so I didn't have to walk all the way out to the car... and that did NOT go well. He hates being covered up and the only time he lets me do it is when we're in the mother's lounge at church (thank goodness). So I ended up having to go out to the car again, which was not easy with a crying, hungry, screaming baby walking from the farthest point possible out to the car. I do love that little boy, but I sure wish feedings weren't such a hassle.

Anyways, here are some pictures from our trips to the zoo...

Easton when we first got to the zoo

Then passed out fifteen minutes later...

Looks like he's thinking hard about something

Jameson and Jordyn

Brexton

Awake again and talking with daddy

One thing I love about the Wildlife zoo is they give you

chances to interact with the animals and they have plenty of things for kids to do. Here is Brexton with Grandma feeding the giraffes

Feeding the Lori birds

Jordyn and Brexton would do it, but not Bailey

Train ride around the park

Petting zoo... these animals are insane.

If you have food they will be all over you until its gone!

Easton got a stuffed giraffe at the end of the day from grandma because he is tall and skinny... just like a giraffe :)

Zoo Trip #2

( I didn't get as many pictures... sorry)

I thought this was cute though. We stopped by the flamingos to take a picture

and Tiffany mentioned that they were singing...

Next thing we know she is conducting the music

It was very cute!

And she knew it too because she had the biggest grin on her face

Touching the star fish at the aquarium...

I wish I would have gotten a picture of the sting rays... they were pretty cool too and came right up the top to let you touch them... Which by the way were really slimy.

Some cool looking fish...

And you can't even see it in the picture, but this is Tiffany with the penguin that kept following her behind the glass. Regardless she's posing and looks really cute

Christmas Party Fun!

2010-12-23T21:14:00.000-08:00

Last Friday night we went to an ugly sweater party.

Easton was a reindeer...

Yes I won for ugliest sweater... oh the things you can find at Savers :D

Then on Saturday we had an awesome party at our house co-hosted by Joe and Deidre. Thanks guys for the awesome fire pit and hot cocoa maker!!

Yummy s'mores and hot cocoa pretty much made the party.

We also played this really fun game... it doesnt have a name, but I just made one up... Its called the really hard to open present that actually wasn't that hard to open. Haha.

It was really fun watching everyone go crazy trying to open the gift that was taped a million times with packing tape and contained four different layers of boxes. Plus you had to wear gloves while trying to unwrap it. No teeth allowed!! So funny! I knew everyone would get into it! You can kinda tell from the pictures....

Thanks everyone for coming! It was really fun. Here are a few more pictures from the night

Lily

Brian and Joeseph

Katie and Lexi

Joe and Deidre

Brian and Katelyn

Bryan and Katie

Ashley and Kal

Bruce and Emily

We were there too :D But I didn't get a picture

I am really excited now that Christmas is upon us. I love all the festivities and feelings of Christmas. One thing that always makes me think of Christ this time of year is the actual word Christmas... my mom once told me (and since then it has always stuck) is when you see the word CHRISTMAS never shorten it to XMAS because then it is like you are Xing Christ out of Christmas. And he is the reason for the season... Just thought that was something interesting to share.

Merry Christmas everyone!

Hailey Carolyn Hunter

2010-12-20T19:15:00.001-08:00

One year ago tomorrow this little girl would have been one. She was taken from our family too soon when she passed away at 2 and a half months of age of SIDS. We miss her dearly.

I never actually got to meet her in person, but I know I will see her again someday. I know Heavenly Father has a plan for all of us and that her purpose here on earth was fulfilled. We will never forget her.

Billy and Crystal... we want you to know that we are thinking of Hailey and we miss her. I am sure her and Easton were great friends up in heaven and she was preparing him for his crazy parents.

We look up to you and your strong spirits. We love you both and we love your beautiful daughter! She will always hold a special place in our hearts.

(Click on picture to enlarge and read quote better)

Expressions and Interactions!

2010-12-08T09:48:00.000-08:00

Easton is so much fun now that he interacts with us. He makes the funniest faces and he loves to smile. After he eats is when he's happiest (go figure) and this has become my favorite part of the day. He is a wonderful little boy!

Here are some of the many faces of Easton...

My personal favorite :D

Free Free Free!!

2010-11-29T18:13:00.000-08:00

Who doesn't love FREE stuff right?!?!

Shutterfly has an awesome promotion right now where you can receive 50 free Christmas cards!

I was introduced to Shutterfly a few years back by my wonderful friend Katie and now I make stuff from them all the time. While I am a big lover of creating scrapbooks the old fashion way, shutterfly has so many cute products you can purchase (in addition to the adorable photo books) that I just can't help myself! I recently just made some birth announcements of Easton from Shutterfly and was already thinking of using them for our Christmas cards as well. They have some super cute photo gifts ideas as well, which will be great gift ideas for the grandparents this year! Here are a few examples of some of their cute products...

http://www.shutterfly.com/cards-stationery/baby-cards-stationery

http://www.shutterfly.com/photo-gifts

http://www.shutterfly.com/cards-stationery/christmas-photo-cards

I can't wait to make some Christmas cards the fast and easy way. Their templates are way better than any other place I've made photo cards from before! If you interested some free Christmas cards too here's the link...

http://bit.ly/sfly2010

If you aren't sending out Christmas cards this year, then at least sign up to receive email promotions. They always have great sales and deals going on! I just got my photo book I made for Easton in the mail today and they sent me more coupons in the box with it. I love it!

1 Month Already??

2010-11-16T12:57:00.000-08:00

I cannot believe my sweet little Easton is one month old today! The expression "time flies" is totally understated when you have a kid.

I love my little guy SoooOOOoooo much! It is so much fun seeing him get bigger and do the little things you love to see a new baby do. They say babies aren't social at this age and so they only really smile when they fall asleep, but I swear he smiles at me all the time. I just can't capture it on film because its so fast. But he does smile as he falls asleep and I did manage to catch that...

He's also starting to hold his head up, which makes him less 'newborn fragile' now. He's developing a personality more and more each day. And now when he's awake instead of crying all the time he's starting to take more notice to the world around him. He's finally content just laying on his own trying to make out his surroundings.

And although he is one month old today, I had to stop putting it off and finally take him in to get his second newborn screening done. He did not like that very much!!

Poor little guy handled it like a champ though. So sad to see him so happy and then in one second start screaming his head off :(

I gotta say though it is so awesome being a mom! I love my new full time job. Even though its sometimes stressful, it is totally worth it and one of the most joyful things in the world!!

Happy ONE MONTH birthday buddy!!

The Reality of Breastfeeding...

2010-11-10T19:15:00.000-08:00

Breastfeeding was the one thing I worried about most when I was pregnant. Now I can truly say everything I worried about turned out to be okay...

BUT all the stuff I didn't know about SUCKS!!

When your hear about breastfeeding everyone makes it out to be this easy, beautiful and natural process that you and your baby undergo. However, they fail to tell you the reality of it and what its really like... Everyone tells you that it will hurt and thats to be expected when you have something sucking on you. Dry, cracked, and sore nipples was something I was aware of, but probably the only thing I was aware of. There is so much more to it that I wish I would have known about...

For instance, I expected at the hospital to breastfeed my baby within the first hour and someone would be there to teach me what to do. HA! So not the case. They hand your child back to you and basically just stare at you like your suppose to know what to do... I just stared right back and thought- Hello, first time mom here! You of all people should know I have no clue what I am doing or how to go about it. I took birthing classes and they teach you different positions and how to latch the baby... TOTALLY different with the real thing! They only help you if you ask for it or if you have a really awesome nurse like we did (but we still didn't get help for the dreaded first time when we really needed it).

Then when you attempt to do what they teach you, you might feel totally incompetent like I did of whether or not it would work. You have this tiny crying infant in your arms that expects you to feed it, yet they don't really know how to go about it either. You have to teach yourself as well as your child.

Gratefully, Easton and I miraculously figured it out! Of course you would think that once they figure it out they would remember how to keep doing it in order to keep maintaining their food source. Natural instinct is to eat right?!?! Well, unfortunately this also is not true.

Breastfeeding is something you have to constantly work at! Just when I thought I finally had it down, something would happen that would completely throw me off.

For another example- clogged milk ducts- When I heard about it I would not even think twice about learning more about it. I didn't think it was common or that it would happen to me. (Google it for sure if your thinking about breastfeeding so you know somewhat to expect) And although I'm still not sure what causes them, what I do know it that they hurt a HECK of a lot more than dry, cracked, sore nipples. That at least is tolerable. This pain (in addition to sore nipples) makes it very uncomfortable to even move. You want to sleep on your tummy now that there is no baby in the belly... not going to happen! I couldn't even sleep on my side because of the pain. I could barely tolerate breastfeeding anymore when I got a clogged milk duct (multiple times) and was ready to quit at that point. It also brings about emotional pain as to whether or not anything is getting through to your child. I still constantly wonder if he's getting enough food because, although it might be nice, there are no ounce marks on my breasts and I can't see whether or not its being emptied. The only indication I have of whether or not he's eating enough is his temperament and whether or not I "feel" full.

In addition, there is a huge misconception about the amount of time you should breastfeed on each breast. The hospital and even lactation consultants (ours did) will tell you to feed him for fifteen-twenty minutes on each side. This again is not true in my case. If your baby poops gross green instead of the normal yellowish breastfeeding stools, then something is wrong. I couldn't figure out why at first and then Jameson googled it (Google is our parenting for dummies) and we figured out that it can be caused by an oversupply of milk. This happened to me because he would be eating and after fifteen minutes I would want him to switch so he could empty both sides (and because that's what I was told to do). I now know that you shouldn't do this because if they don't empty the breast or get enough time on one side then they get too much of the fore milk instead of the fatty hind milk that they need. This will make them more gassy and more likely to have an upset tummy. I knew my baby was eating enough, but didn't really know why he would be fussy after I fed him. I just figured I had a fussy baby... and now I know that he is a good baby and is ok with being content when he gets a full tummy. All of this I wish I would have known weeks ago to make the last few weeks a little easier. But as we all know parenting is a learning process and there are just so many things people don't tell you that you end up learning on your own.

Another thing I never expected is how much breastfeeding takes out of you... Literally! My skin is so dry and cracked its not even funny. No lotion can help heal the dry skin on my hands. I've tried. I am also thirsty almost all the time and you still have to pay attention to what you eat. They say no caffeine while your pregnant and you think as soon as you have the baby you can finally indulge on that Dr Pepper you have been waiting so patiently to enjoy... not true. Spicy foods are still a 'No No' as well. These I learned the hard way. I just thought well one soda won't hurt right? Again not true! And if you don't eat or drink enough you will feel it. At one point I was getting a headache every day/night and had no idea why. I soon figured out one hectic morning when I did not get to eat breakfast til noon that this was because I was not eating and drinking enough liquids. If he is eating, you should be too!

Now I want you all to know, moms or soon-to-be moms in the future, that me sharing this should not mislead anyone that breastfeeding is horrible.

It is in fact beautiful, natural, and wonderful!!!!

It does somehow create a special bond between you and your baby.

It does make you feel like you are in some way doing something right for your child, even if you do nothing else right.

It is cheaper!

It does eat up a lot of calories and get you back to your pre-pregnancy body faster!

I love that breastfeeding is working for me and I am very grateful for that. It is, however, difficult. This may not even be the case for some people. Every person and definitely every baby is different! Just consider this your google experience now instead of having to look it up in the future :)

Happy Birthday Easton!

2010-10-25T18:43:00.000-07:00

So it all started Friday October 15th around 4:30 am. I woke up having contractions that were, (what I thought at the time) pretty painful. When I started to keep track of how far apart they were I was getting them every 5 to 6 minutes, but not consistently. I was told by Dr Mckernan's assistant that I should go into the hospital if I had more than 6 contractions in an hour... otherwise I probably would not have thought about going in til they were 5 minutes apart, which is when they usually tell you to go in. So we got to the hospital around 7:30am where they admitted me into triage. When the nurse checked me I was dilated to 2cm and 90% effaced. She told me to walk around for an hour and then they would check me again to see if I had made any progress. When she did I was still the same, but since I was so close to getting over the "hump" she decided to ask the on-call doctor if I should be admitted. He left the decision up to us. He said I could have stayed and been induced or we could go out and walk around and come back later. So we decided to walk around, mainly because I wanted to eat something. I wasn't sure how long my labor would last and I didn't want to be starving :)

After walking around Arrowhead mall for a few hours I was getting pretty sick of walking. Well... I don't know what it is about being in the car, but as we left Arrowhead mall and got in the car the contractions pretty much subsided all together. I was completely frustrated that this was happening... considering how much pain I had been in for the past 10 hours. We went back to the hospital hoping that they might still take me in since that morning they were willing to induce me. But when we got there they basically said "come back later we're too busy." So reluctantly we drove home. When we got home after a little while my contractions started up again. They were extremely more painful than they were that morning and were coming every 2 to 3 minutes!! SoOoOoO... we got in the car to drive back to the hospital (this was around 5pm). BUT when we got in the car they seriously stopped! Again!! You have to understand how frustrating this was. So instead of going home we drove around the city of surprise hoping by some miracle they would start again. We even stopped by the Workman's and Svancara's house to help the time pass, who unfortunately were both not home :( After an hour or so of just driving around the city of surprise we... even more reluctantly... went home again. I took a shower and just decided to relax and live with the fact that this baby might not come for a few more days.

We went to bed to TRY and get some sleep that night, but as Jameson went to bed I laid there half asleep and half awake. Around 1030pm my contractions started back up again, but this time much MUCH more painful. I kept thinking there is NOOO way I am getting any sleep tonight if this keeps going on. And it did... more painfully and closer together! I was so scared about considering going back to the hospital once again and being sent home... especially since this time it was the middle of the night. At 12:30am I finally made up my mind that these contractions were too painful to ignore and I wanted to go back to the hospital regardless.

When we got there they nurse checked me and I had progressed! Woohoo! I was now 3cm dilated and his head was at a zero. And the best part... I graduated from the triage room into the labor and delivery room!

Around 3am the doctor came in. I was a little disappointed my doctor was out of town and a doctor I had never met before who knew nothing about my pregnancy was going to be delivering my baby. At this point though I knew I had no other choice because someone had to do it. When the doctor came in (Dr Shah) he said he wanted to check me and insert an internal monitor... that's all he said. Next thing I know he said "now your going to feel a gush of water." I was like oh ok... your breaking my water, which I had no idea he was going to do. Having your water break feels really REALLY weird... its warm like pee, but it just keeps coming and you cant hold it in. Then every time I had a contraction I would feel more and more come out uncontrollably. After they broke my water they said I could have the epidural. This also feels very weird. I was a little freaked out by the fact that they made Jameson sit down in front of me and not even let him watch. I guess its very uncomfortable to get the epidural, but I was too distracted by the shaking and gushing warm water coming out of me to notice. Finally, after the epidural I was able to get some sleep. It had been about 24 hours since I last slept and I was very excited for this.
As you can see...

After napping for an hour and half the nurse checked me at 5:30am where she said I was dilated to 7cm! Yes!!! This meant I was doing it all on my own and I wasn't going to need to get pitocin. Then around 7:30 (we had to wait til after the shift change) the nurse checked me again and we were ready to start pushing! 10cm! Even when I started to push my contractions were still inconsistent. I would have one right after the other and then would not have another one for 4 minutes. It was kind of nice to have a break in between pushes. Then finally the doctor came in... 8 contractions worth of pushes and an episiotomy later.. at 7:59am we had a beautiful healthy baby boy!

Easton Robert Hunter

6lbs 7 oz and 21 inches long

Finally, our amazing little guy was here! I was so overcome with so many different emotions. I cried as the doctor let me reach down and pull him out the rest of the way where they laid him on my chest. I fell in love instantly! When he took his first breath (which is actually a cry) I was the happiest mommy in the whole world! Its all kind of hard to describe, but it just seemed like everything in that moment was perfect.

Then they take him away and clean him up... and when they bring him back to let you hold him everything is perfect all over again.

Proud daddy holding him for the first time

First picture as a family!
My favorites...

Now two weeks later we have this little boy that I love more and more everyday. The pain and discomfort I've been in for the last two weeks can't even compare to the happiness I've felt. I didnt even know it was possible to love something so little and helpless so much. We are so grateful to have him here as the newest addition to our family!

Easton Robert Hunter

2010-10-20T19:58:00.001-07:00

Born Saturday October 16th at 7:59 am

He was 7 lbs and 6oz and 21 inches

We love he is finally here and feel so blessed to have him in our lives.

Birth story post coming later...

Check List....

2010-10-13T15:27:00.000-07:00

Hospital bag ready...CHECK!

Car seat installed... CHECK!

Baby swing...CHECK!

Clothes ready to be worn...CHECK

CHECK!

Nursery finished...CHECK!

CHECK!

I think we have about everything we need. I know there is one more thing we need, but I just don't know if I can put my finger on it....

Oh yeah... THE BABY!!

Ok... so HALF A CHECK! (39 weeks)

Well unfortunately hes still inside my belly...

I am scheduled to be induced on the night of Wednesday the 20th. However, I don't even know if I will make it that long. He may decide to come early all on his own. I've had several contractions lately, they just aren't that consistent yet. The doctor of course is out of town this weekend, but I honestly don't mind if he comes anytime before Wednesday right now. The nurse does most of the work anyways right?? Haha. Well we're definitely ready for his arrival!

Any day now buddy... mommy is ready for you to come any day now!

Chocolate Covered Cherry Cookies

2010-10-12T21:53:00.001-07:00

By request, here is my recipe for chocolate covered cherry cookies. I've been in a baking mood and nothing satisfies a pregnant woman's craving like these cookies.

1-1/2 cups flour

1/2 cup cocoa powder

1/2 cup butter or margarine

1 cup sugar

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp baking soda

1 egg

1-1/2 tsp vanilla

48 undrained maraschino cherries

1 6-oz pkg semisweet chocolate pieces

1/2 cup sweetened condensed milk

In a mixing bowl combine flour and cocoa powder and set aside. In a large mixing bowl beat butter or margarine on medium speed for 30 seconds or till soft. Add sugar, salt, baking powder, and baking soda. Beat till well combined. Add egg and vanilla. Beat well. Then gradually add flour mixture.

Shape dough into 1-inch ball; place on ungreased baking sheet. Press down center of each ball with thumb. Drain maraschino cherries, reserving the juice. Place a cherry in the center of each cookie. In a small saucepan combine chocolate chips and sweetened condensed milk; heat until melted. Stir in 4tsp. of the reserved cherry juice. Spoon about 1tsp. of the frosting over each cherry, spreading to cover the cherry fully.

Bake at 350 degrees for ten minutes. Remove and let cool.

officially starting the countdown...

2010-10-04T19:57:00.000-07:00

19 days... OR LESS!!

Things that I've been experiencing...

-Achy, itchy belly

-More pressure on my bladder

-Back pain

-Easily tired... I actually think I sleep quite well for a 37 week pregnant woman. This is probably due to the fact that I am still working 8 hours a day.

-VERY emotional (forget postpartum, I feel like I'm going crazy right now!)

-Bigger boobs (yes again and yes it is possible unfortunately)

-More stretch marks...apparently this is possible as well

-Worry about labor and postpartum

-Cramping caused by gas bubbles

-Heartburn. More than ever!

-Nesting. I find myself cleaning everything. I also go into the nursery all the time and just play with or reorganize things

...And last but not least...Ready for my little guy to be here already!

I keep wondering when I will go into labor. At this point I am just playing the waiting game, which isn't much fun. Hopefully when I say 19 days or LESS it means Easton will soon be just as anxious to get here as I am :)

Baby Easton's room

2010-09-20T18:12:00.001-07:00

Here are some pictures of what we have finished on the room so far...

We still have to hang curtains, put up bumper pads, and hang a few more things on the wall. But it makes me feel a WHOLE lot better that the crib is put together and things are definitely more organized.

5 weeks left

2010-09-12T16:17:00.000-07:00

I really can’t believe that we only have 5 weeks left! I am completely mixed with emotions. I feel so excited and ready for him to get here. I am so ready to hold him and stare at this little guy who was made by Jameson and me. Yet, on the other hand I feel completely unprepared and scared out of my mind!

I am the kind of person who likes to know what’s going on, when and where, and have stuff planned out. So this whole baby thing is completely throwing me off. I feel totally ill-equipped, unqualified, and untrained for this BIG change that’s about to take place in our lives. I keep freaking out on Jameson that there isn’t enough time left. I especially feel like I don’t have time to get everything ready for his arrival because we work all day. Everything we have left to do on the baby’s room I need Jameson’s help with, so even on my free time I can’t do anything. Then when we get home from work we’re both worn out and don’t feel like doing much of anything.

In addition to that, every time I go to the store I ALWAYS have to go to the baby section now to look around. Then every time I look around I feel more and more like we don’t have everything we need. Yeah sure we have the clothes and diapers, but there are so many more things. And considering how fast babies grow we have enough clothes for when he’s born, but like nothing past newborn and 3 months. I don’t even know if he will fit into newborn clothes by the time he gets here because he’s suppose to be 8 pounds. There is just so much to consider and think about before he comes and even after he gets here. My mind is constantly going and going. It’s really stressful. Not that everything has to be perfect before he gets here, but I want to at least feel somewhat ready. Is that possible?

I know you can never be fully prepared for being a parent and I’m sure most woman feel like this, but I still can't help it. I am about to take full responsibility for this little being who just came straight from Heavenly Father. He will be ours to look after and care for. Then when I think about it that way it eases my mind a little bit. I know if we weren’t ready to be parents at least somewhat, Heavenly Father probably would not have allowed me to get pregnant in the first place. I also know you learn by doing, and a lot of things I feel unprepared for will come to me with practice and experience. It’s still hard to cover up those feelings of anxiety and worry. Even if we are completely unprepared, I still cannot wait for him to get here!!

Just a little perspective...

2010-08-29T08:30:00.000-07:00

This is what it felt like when I first started to feel the baby move...

This is what it feels like now when the baby moves..

Slightly a little over dramatic, but I think you get the picture.

He's running out of room in there and taking it out on my insides! Lol

Baby Shower!

2010-08-21T12:51:00.001-07:00

Thanks to everyone who came to my shower! And a special thanks to Katie, Katelyn, and Abby for helping out with food, games, and planning. I feel bad making people do things for me (especially when those people are days away from having a baby and then just had a baby) But Katie insisted I am not suppose to help with anything. So my job was the guest list and everything else was left as a surprise... This made for the best baby shower ever! Thanks again guys! I can honestly say I have the greatest friends in the world!

One of the games we played... Everyone had to guess how big around my belly was

We measured and...

Deidre was the winner!!

Opening presents...

When I showed this one to Jameson he called it the Harry Potter

sweater, but I think its adorable!!

This rug will go PERFECT in Easton's room! Which we are starting to work on

by the way so pictures are to come!

Of course the baseball outfit

Yummy food!

Thanks everyone!

Photography Blog

2010-08-16T18:06:00.000-07:00

Check out my photography blog!!

http://desireehunterphotography.blogspot.com/

I just recently updated it with some newborn photos I did...

Let me know what you think!

Here is one of my favorites!

Star Valley Wyoming: Part 1

2010-08-08T09:04:00.000-07:00

The last week in July Jameson and I spent it in Star Valley, Wyoming! This was a much needed relaxing vacation. Our sister in-law Crystal; her family owns a cabin up there so we spent our week enjoying the outdoors and all the fun Wyoming has to offer. We were able to see all of the Hunter family at some point even though some had to leave early. Anyways, here are some pictures of our trip...

Saturday we arrived at the cabin around dinner time so we spent most of the time settling in and hanging out with the family. Sunday was also just a relaxing day at the cabin. We did go on a hike Sunday in a town near us called Afton.

On the hike, which was beautiful. The horse flies everywhere

were not fun, but still a good short hike.

Hunter and Holly

Billy with Brexton

We also spent some of our time on Saturday and Sunday playing whiffle ball

on a golf course near the cabin.

Jameson helping Jordyn

Billy helping Brexton... The only two words Brexton knows

is "Hi" and "ball"

Bailey

Jordyn being a cheese ball for me

Brexton

My cute little baseball player :)

Jameson and Brexton

View of the scenery near our cabin

What's a golf course without the golf cart?? Lol

Monday we went up to Jackson Hole where we visited the down town area, went shopping, and had a picnic in the park. After that we went to the Bar J Chuckwagon. Here we had dinner and enjoyed some country style entertainment. I still can't get over how good the food was... super yummy!!

Then on Tuesday we spent the day closer to the cabin at the Star Valley community pool. We also visited the Star Valley cheese factory and candy store...

Hunter with his butt stuck in the tube

I caught a picture of Jameson throwing the beach ball at Hunter's head

Bailey and Hunter

It took the whole day to get Bailey to jump into the water. He would barely swim on his own

without the life jacket even though he knows how to swim

The deer we saw multiple times outside our cabin

On Wednesday most of the family went white water rafting down Snake River, which obviously I could not participate in. Jameson had a lot of fun, while I stayed at the cabin on child duty.

Star Valley Wyoming: Part 2

2010-08-05T17:52:00.001-07:00

Part 2 of our Wyoming trip...

On Thursday we went to Grand Teton National Park. There we visited Jenny Lake and went on a hike up to Hidden Falls. After coming here I am starting to think Wyoming has some of the most beautiful scenery of any place I have ever visited. It was absolutely gorgeous!

We took a boat ride over the lake to get to the beginning of the trail on our hike

Some of the beautiful scenery

Hidden Falls

Here is Mike and his family in front of the waterfall

Me, Jordyn, and Bailey

Flip flops on a hike... not recommended

I think the whole trip Bailey was worried about bears and

other wild life showing up

Little guy who came right up to us looking for food, this

was the only wild life I saw on the hike

After the hike we headed over to String Lake to have lunch and

play in the water

Friday Jameson and I ventured back to Jackson Hole where we visited the Snow King resort. We rode on the Alpine Slide and played miniature golf.

Riding the chair lift to the top

Jameson coming down the slide...

Then after the slide we did some last minute shopping before we ended our stay in Wyoming. Saturday morning we packed up and left for Idaho to see Carson be baptized. It was a stake baptism, but it was only Carson and one other kid who were baptized that day. This was a very special moment for Dan and Holly so we were glad we could be there. We didn't stay long though because Jameson and I had a flight to catch in Salt Lake and 5pm. Oh and by the way... flying was the BOMB! I don't think I would have survived another road trip.

Last minute trip to Idaho!

2010-07-06T20:35:00.000-07:00

So this last weekend we went to Idaho to see Jameson's sister bless her baby. We didn't think we could go at first because we are taking a week off at the end of July to go to Star Valley. Then while I was at work, Jeff came out and surprised us that we get Monday July 5th off from work. YAY!! I was so excited and thought... well what could we do?? Immediately I thought Idaho! So when we got home from work we looked up flights to Salt Lake and WOAH were they expensive. You can never book flights last minute without it costing you an arm and a leg. So we called Jameson's parents and they agreed to wait for us to get off work on Friday and drive up with us. Now being 6 months pregnant, driving was not my first choice, but I decided to suck it up anyways. The best part about all of this is Jameson talked to his sister a week before this and told her we weren't going to make it, so when we found out we could go we decided to keep it a secret. This was the funnest surprise to keep secret and be a part of :D
When we got to Holly's house on Saturday we had Jameson's dad drop us off around the corner. We showed up at their house a few minutes after everyone arrived and rang the door bell. Dan opened the door only part way and Jameson acted like he was out of breath to joke that we had walked the whole way there. Then when Dan opened the door all the way he said "Holly look whose here!" Her face was priceless! She was shocked, but very excited to see us. Well worth the trip to be there for Holly and Dan, who had a beautiful blessing.
Unfortunately I did bring my nice camera with me, but I left the battery at home charging in the wall. I did bring my small digital camera, but that battery was dying too so I only managed a few pictures before it completely died....

Here is sweet little Jordyn holding baby Callie. I honestly hope I have a little girl just like Jordyn. She is the sweetest little girl ever! She will be your best friend if you just smile at her. When we got back to Provo on Sunday night, me and her had a tea party and then we got ready for bed. I did her hair and we washed our faces together. I told her to splash the water on her face to wash off the soap... bad idea. She splashed water over her head and ALL over me. But it really was the cutest!

These were the last two pictures I got before my camera died. Here is Jameson with his favorite part of the trip... FIREWORKS!!! They were definitely a lot of fun AND LEGAL IN IDAHO! Oh and I cant remember any fourth of July where we were freezing our butts off in the middle of the summer! Notice Jameson's heavy duty, double insulated jacket.
All in all, this was a great trip and vacation! Minus the driving... by the end of the drive home on Monday I was ready to be done. I think everything hurt and no position seemed comfortable. My wonderful husband did massage my legs and feet for about a good hour on the home stretch because he knew I was having a hard time. My bed also never looked so good... even if it is still on the floor in the other room :P
I cant wait til the end of July when we get work off for a whole week! Woohoo! Thank goodness we're flying!!

Birthday Fun!

2010-06-28T22:28:00.001-07:00

We had a lot of fun celebrating my birthday this weekend :D
First on Saturday morning, I went and got a pedicure at the best foot spa place EVER!!!
Ever gotten a pedicure with a hot stone massage for only twenty dollars?? Let me tell you... $20 never looked so good!! I think I am hooked and will use any excuse to go back (aka my birthday):D
Then after the amazing pedi, Jameson and I went and saw Toy Story 3 in 3D! It was AWESOME!! Jameson wouldn't say so, but I really enjoyed it. I don't think you need to see it in 3D though... and if you don't feel like crying at the end you are not human... definitely a tear jerker.
After the movie, Jameson and I met up with our friends Joe and Deidre for some yummy Japanese dinner from Ah-So's. It was fun going with someone who has never been before and enjoyed the experience for the first time. One thing the cook did that was HILARIOUS is he was tossing pieces of steak into Jameson's mouth... he caught the first one and then the cook told him to close his eyes and catch it.... So he threw the steak at Jameson and MISSED! It smacked him in the face pretty hard, but it was priceless!
Next on the agenda was As You Wish... I made a chip and dip dish and Jameson made a piggy-bank shaped like a baseball for the baby's room....

...actually for Easton's room. By the way we picked a name...
EASTON ____ HUNTER
Still working on the middle name but we love it :D
After we painted our pottery we grabbed some delicious ice cream from Cold Stone and watched a movie at Joe and Deidre's. I got a Like It size of my favorite... cheesecake ice cream with graham cracker crust!! HEAVEN!! No this does not count as the cheesecake that Jameson owes me from when I left my cheesecake from Cheesecake Factory in St Louis

Lastly, Monday was my actual birthday and we had some friends over to watch the Bachlorette and enjoy some cake and ice cream. Thanks to everyone who came!

23 weeks...

2010-06-21T20:30:00.001-07:00

And counting... also for those of you who keep bugging me to post pictures here you go :D

More Pictures!!

2010-06-15T21:01:00.000-07:00

I did another photo shoot.. this time with two of my good friends Natalie and Shelby. We took some individual portrait shots for each of them, as well as some group shots. Let me know what you guys think!

http://desireehunterphotography.blogspot.com/

P.S. I am still taking any volunteers/guinea pigs for anybody who wants a FREE photo session. I'm also in the process of setting up my own photo studio in my home for anybody who wants child portraits or newborn photos.