She's Here!!!

Annalyn Mae is finally here! We went in to the hospital Thursday morning 17th and she was born that afternoon at 12:42 pm :) It was such a different experience having a c-section but I am glad that we went that way in the end. I was just as nervous for the unknown going in but felt a little prepared after talking to friends & family about their experiences. To sum up the c-section experience I went in at 10:30 (not in labor) they had me get in a gown then monitored the baby for an hour and took more blood then I thought they needed to :) from me. At noon they wheeled me into the operating room (which reminded me of something from a medical show - bright & clean & scary & super COLD). I sat on the table and they gave me a shot in my spine - similar to an epidural - then I immediately laid down & started going numb in my legs...after about 15 minutes I was completely numb from my mid-section down & Blake & Kirstin were in the room with me all scrubbed up. They cut in & after like 30 minutes they said "OK you are going to feel some pressure"...& man were they right....it felt like someone put a car on my chest! That lasted for about 1 LONG minute (Blake & Kirstin were watching & said 3 people were literally on top of my chest pushing the baby out) & then out she came & I am almost certain her & I started crying at the same time - both from shock but me mostly from total joy at hearing her & knowing that she was here safe :)

We got home Monday afternoon & are all doing well :)

Can't wait for Annalyn to come!

I recently had some photos taken from a friend in my neighborhood and they turned out so great! Thanks Tomi! It may look as though Kurtis was the most cooperative kid ever in the photos but it was quite the opposite....Tomi had to brib him with marshmellows and he kept pulling on the back drop :) she is just a great photographer and was able to snap some cool pics at just the right moments. Check out her website at www.stillmemoriesbytomi.com

Fun in Tulsa! Happy Halloween

Enjoying having just one "baby" for the time being... :) Kurtis and I and my Grandma Hoopiiaina went to visit my cousin Natalie & Aunt Carol in Collinsville, OK the end of October for 10 days and had a GREAT time! I loved being with her family and miss them all so much. Kurtis was really good for me and loved playing with his cousins. They probably got tired of hearing him say "That's mine!" which seems to be his phrase of choice when playing with other kids....but besides that I thought he did pretty well considering he's never been around them (that he can remember) and we were staying in a new environment without his toys or daddy. Speaking of daddy we sure did miss him, especially me. He does so much to help with Kurtis and I missed his support while I was away. He stayed home to work & when we got back had surprised me with getting Annalyn's room painted & set up as well as Kurtis' new room, the family room painted & overhead lighting in 2 of our bedrooms (thanks for the help Matt)! It was awesome...it does pay to stay away sometimes I guess. :) Love you Hun!Aunt Carol, Cousin Natalie, prego me & Grandma Hoop....our girls night out!
We went to a Halloween party at my Aunt Carol's branch in Skiatook. The kids all looked GREAT!
Kurtis had his very first bubble bath experience with Ben in Oklahoma and as you can see he loved it! Guess I'll have to invest in some bubbles....Cute nephew Brayden & Kurtis trick-or-treating at my mom's trunk or treat. We had a great Halloween! We hit up all the family to show off our "scary" pirate & Kurtis got tons of candy, which I have managed to eat most of....good thing I have plenty of room to store it :)

Fabulous Fall

We love going to Classic Skating - the Bounce zone with Kurtis...especially on $2 Tuesday. It is a great way for him to burn loads of energy & work on his coordination skills! We recently went with Blake's brothers & Kurtis had a blast being THROWN all over the place. It was a riot!

Blake & I took Kurtis to the scarecrow festival at Thanksgiving Point and had a great time. The weather was perfect and he got to go on a hay ride, pony ride, train ride & play in a million different bounce houses! The lines were pretty long but we tag teamed so it worked out great! I got a zoo pass in August and have pretty much used the crap out of it :) We go at least 2 times a month if not more and honestly even though I know our zoo is not the greatest Kurtis doesn't care & I love that every visit is different. I am actually going to the zoo today :) Gotta get it in before the snow hits!

My Aunt Sharon so kindly has offered us jazz tickets twice now and we took her up on them taking in the Jazz pre-games. I took a risk and brought Kurtis not knowing if he would sit through the whole game or not but he did great. He loved how loud it was. He mostly liked watching the Jazz Bear and Jazz dancers...what a boy :) Thanks Aunt Sharon!

We enjoyed UEA Weekend too!!

We got to go to the Sand Dunes with Brandon and Ashley Emery and her family which was really fun! The weather was a little chilly but we didn't get rained on and we were very comfortable in our trailer. Kurtis loves going camping too & this will be our last camping trip of the year...

Kurtis got to go four-wheeling with his dad a TON! Blake is always safe with Kurtis and Kurtis loves it. He could stay on the ATV for hours and not get bored...seriously though he could.

I even got in on the action riding in the Emery's Machine -which was smooth sailing - and little AnaLynn seemed to enjoy herself kicking me all along the way. We played games, had smores, and yummy BBQ. On the way home Sunday we even got to listen to conference so all in all great weekend!

Kurtis and I and Jenny, Stetson and LeAnn went to the zoo too and saw the baby elephant. We love going to the zoo and it is especially nice since I have a zoo pass to get in for FREE :)

Icky-sicky

I just wanted to thank my most wonderful husband for all the help that he has been to me while I've been sick. I literally have not had to change one diaper, cook one meal, or do one ounce of house work since Saturday night. I also need to thank my mom, my friend Sara and Sheri who are neighbors, and my sister for the meals and Kurtis sitting they did. I am finally starting to feel better today and have not had a fever since early evening yesterday. I was very sad to miss out on my friend's special day at the temple and my first bunco group party last night but having every ones love and support made it easier to get through this nasty infection. I just can't wait until the day I have saved up enough money to get these stupid tonsils out!!

Thanks again to everyone for your help and support it meant the world to me!

Yuba Lake Camping Trip

So I just am getting to this trip we took the end of August to Yuba Lake with my family...mostly because I just had a second to upload some pictures from the trip. It was nice to go camping with my parents, it has been a LONG time since we have gone on a trip together as a family. Unfortunately Richard couldn't make it but we are glad he is getting better.

I had the most amazing time on the boat with my mom and 2 sisters....I somehow convinced my mom to go tubing with Jamie and it was pure comedy!! I laughed so hard my mouth hurt that night and I was trying not to pee (I blame the baby) :)

Then I got to go tubing with her and laughed even harder because her screams were so much louder sitting right next to her. I loved it! We ran out of swim diapers & so Kurtis got to run around half naked, for the 1st time I might add, in public....he loved it and buried himself in the sand.

Cheesecake and Alfredo from Blakes birthday bash

Thought I would post the recipes from Blake's birthday so you can try them yourself! Have fun and thanks for all your love and support!




Golden Caramel Cheesecake Bars recipe at Kraftfoods.com: "Golden Caramel Cheesecake Bars

Prep Time: 15 min Total Time: 5 hr 20 min Makes: 20 servings, 1 bar each

What You Need
24 Golden OREO Cookies, divided
2 Tbsp. butter or margarine, melted
25 KRAFT Caramels (1/2 of 14-oz. bag)
1 Tbsp. water
2 pkg. (8 oz. each) PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese, softened
1 jar (7 oz.) JET-PUFFED Marshmallow Creme
1 egg
How to Make It
PREHEAT oven to 350°F. Place 14 of the cookies in food processor container; cover. Process until finely crushed. Mix with butter; press firmly onto bottom of 9-inch square baking pan. Bake 10 min. or until golden brown. Cool 10 min.
PLACE caramels and water in microwaveable bowl. Microwave on HIGH 1 min. or until caramels are completely melted, stirring every 30 sec. Set aside. Coarsely chop remaining 10 cookies. Beat cream cheese and marshmallow creme in large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed until well blended. Add egg; mix well. Stir in chopped cookies; pour over crust.
Drop spoonfuls of the caramel mixture over batter; swirl gently with knife for marble effect.
The caramel will set quickly once you drop it onto the cheesecake mixture so swirl quickly then use remaining caramel and drizzle over entire cheesecake without swirling in.
BAKE 20 to 25 min. or until center is set. Cool completely. Refrigerate 4 hours or overnight. Cut into 20 bars. Store in tightly covered container in refrigerator.

Quick and Easy Alfredo Sauce - All Recipes

Quick and Easy Alfredo Sauce - All Recipes: "INGREDIENTS (Nutrition)
1/2 cup butter
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese
2 teaspoons garlic powder
2 cups milk
6 ounces grated Parmesan cheese
1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
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DIRECTIONS
Melt butter in a medium, non-stick saucepan over medium heat. Add cream cheese and garlic powder, stirring with wire whisk until smooth. Add milk, a little at a time, whisking to smooth out lumps. Stir in Parmesan and pepper. Remove from heat when sauce reaches desired consistency. Sauce will thicken rapidly, thin with milk if cooked too long. Toss with hot pasta to serve."

Bear Lake

Bear Lake was a Blast! The weather was great, the water was warm, and the good times were rolling! Kurtis loved the beach and building sand castles. Matt buried all the kids in the sand which they loved. Blake got to take Kurtis on the wave runners...thanks Darren and Leah...and he seemed to like it at first and then fell asleep while we were still driving so we know he was comfortable. We had a couple of unexpected visitors in our camp with us....they were black and white and small and smelt a little funny....they loved to eat our garbage and pretty much terrorized me ever night. Skunks are not my thing.

I was feeling especially pregnant this trip and Jana got to say "Hello" to AnaLynn. I went tubing - slowly - with my cousins and sister and took Kurtis with me (he actually liked it this time Surprise Surprise). Glad to be home and now we are getting ready for another camping trip this weekend with my parents and siblings...should be fun!