Merry Christmas!

Isn't that the cutest picture of Londyn? We love it! And just so you know - it really is a real tea cup. It was NOT photoshopped. :o) The cup is more the size of a mixing bowl - so cute! We hope everyone has a safe and happy holidays!

Growing, growing, growing

This was Londyn's first time in her bumbo. Don't let this picture fool you though, she totally loves it! She was so content just sitting there watching me as I was making dinner. It's probably nice being able to see the world from sitting up rather than laying down. Plus, she likes to be where she can see me, so this worked out great!

Londyn has found a new comfort thing. Her right hand goes to her mouth and she sucks on the knuckle of her pointer finger. Then her left hand goes directly to her hair! It's so cute. I wonder if she'd suck on her thumb if she didn't always tuck it under her fingers. Anyway, Tagg and I were getting ready to go to his ball game and he went to put her in the car seat and this is what he found. Londyn wasn't even screaming, she was just kinda grunting like she does when her binky falls out. :o) We thought it was pretty funny that she had pulled her bow over her mouth. The next day she pulled it down again, but it was just covering her eyes. I sensed her bows wouldn't be staying in her hair when she was grabbing her hair at a couple of weeks! Dang kid...leave the bows alone. :o)

I have totally loved Londy Lou's smile, coos, and grunts. She cracks us up all of the time and she is only 2 1/2 months old!! Londyn had her two month check-up today - yep...shots! She was supposed to get it done the week of Thanksgiving, but I just couldn't do it to her then! And this last week we were babysitting my cousin Troy's girls. So I didn't want to do it then cuz I knew I wouldn't be able to snuggle her all day. So...today was the day. She has been doing pretty good. She definately is hurting, but I've been trying to stay on top of it with the Tylenol. Luckily my friend April suggested to start giving her the Tylenol about 30 minutes before going to the doctor. I totally think that was our saving grace. After her appt. we had to go get my blood drawn to test my thyroid levels and Londyn was smiling and talking to the nurses and that was an hour after her shots. She was still smiling till about 3:30 and then she started crying. It was killing me to see her in pain and that she had to wait another hour before I could give her more Tylenol. Poor babygirl!

Londyn's stats at birth:

Weight: 6 lbs 13 oz (14% for her age)

Height: 19 in (24%)

Here are Londyn's stats at 2 months and 2 weeks old.

Weight: 11 lbs 6 oz (49%)

Height: 23 1/4 in (64%) Wow this will probably be the only time she's above avg for her height :o)

Happy Holidays

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Happy Birthday Tagg!

It was Tagg's birthday last Sunday. He got a dirt bike, it's a 2002 Yamaha YZF 250. He went riding the day before Thanksgiving with his family and they froze! So, I think he is really looking forward to this spring when it's warmer. I'm excited too so I can take Londyn on the four-wheeler and we can all go. I'll have to take some pic's of his bike, he's pretty excited about it. He had gone riding with his brother Lex just around Hamer in the creek beds. Well, they weren't having too much fun so they decided to ride out of it and head back to their parent's house. Tagg ended up having to bail off the bike and broke off the rear fender. So, he got new fenders for his birthday and the bike looks as good as new. :o) Now just for a little mushy part...I just want Tagg to know how much I love him and appreciate all that he does. I'm so grateful that he works hard so that I can stay at home with our sweet baby! He is such a great husband and father, I am truly blessed!! I absolutely love seeing him with Londyn. There is such a special bond between a daddy and his daughter. Doesn't this picture just melt your heart? I couldn't love them more!!

Oh, and people have been telling me that I should include my side of what happened at Londyn's blessing. I finally did so just go to her blessing post and it's under the second picture. :o) Good times.

What are the chances?

Last year at my company Christmas Party, Lacey, Ashley, Kassie, and I all decided that we would purchase tickets to the Celine Dion concert for Nov. 21st. At first we thought it was a little crazy to be buying concert tickets nearly a year in advance, but hey, why not. We were so excited for our girls weekend. Well, Kassie and I got pregnant and can't leave our babies. So, we decided to take our husbands and go Christmas shopping and stay at the same hotel so the guys could hang out while we were at the concert (and watch the babies). We've been so excited for this, but then Lacey called and broke the news. The concert has been post-poned till February 22nd (a Sunday night - how dumb!). Seriously!! What are the odds? Apparantely Celine has inflammed vocal cords and a naso-pharangeal infection or something. GRR!! I can't go in Feb. because one of our friends from N.D. is getting married the day before. I'm so bummed now!! At least I got to see Celine in Vegas last Nov. But still, we'd been waiting ELEVEN MONTHS for this!! Did anyone else have tickets to go this weekend?

All about Londyn

Londyn has been smiling & cooing and I've been loving it!! She is getting big so fast, I can't believe she will be 2 months old on the 25th! I just love this picture. Tagg had just set up her play mat and she was just a smiling away and talking, it was so cute!

Londyn also loves tummy time. Actually, everytime we have tummy time, she ends up falling asleep. She naps better on her tummy than her back. I guess she really is her daddy's child as Tagg is always sleeping on his stomach. :o)

So, between weeks 1-4 Londyn HATED her bouncer and swing! It was a little frustrating because I couldn't get anything done since she just wanted to be held. So, I decided to just love her and snuggle her and enjoy it! The housework could wait. Well, at 5 weeks Londyn decided that she LOVES her swing and is warming up to her bouncer. HOORAY! I nurse her at about 8 a.m. then change her, snuggle her, and then put her in her swing. She is usually out in less than 5 minutes. So, I quickly shower and get ready and even get a few house chores done before she wakes up. At that time, we bathe her and get her ready for the day. So, thank you Lataun for letting us borrow the swing!!
I am SO loving being a mommy! It is the best job I've ever had. :o) Even though we've had a few rough days/nights, it has been so very worth it. She has been so much fun and has totally changed our lives. Here's some things about Londyn:

~ Loves tummy time, warm baths, and snuggling

~ Loves her car seat, stroller, and swing

~ Loves her binky

~ Likes to have a blanket by her face when trying to fall asleep

~ Hates being cold (I turn up the heater during bathtime so it's not so cold when she gets out, and it has seemed to help)

~ Holding head up a lot better

~ Smiles and talks to mommy and daddy

~ Recognizes our voices
~ Sleeps from 11pm-3am (sometimes 4) then eats again every 2 hours till about 8 am then she naps till 11 am and eats the rest of the day between 2 1/2 and 3 hours.

Halloween 2008

I couldn't find anything that fit Londyn for Halloween, so we put her in this pink cow fleece outfit and called it good. Halloween was so much fun this year, a baby really does change everything. :o) We went to Tagg's parents for a family party. Jan thought it would be fun for us to line up oldest to youngest and play pass the grapefruit under our chins. It was hilarious!! If I can figure out how to put the video of it on here, I'll add it. Hope everyone had a fun and safe Halloween.

Londyn's Blessing..."Oh Sh**"

Well due to the fact that this was a personal experience I, Tagg, have decided to do this post - but don't get used to it. On Sunday we had the opportunity to bless Londyn. We were both very excited for this, but I was probably more nervous than anything. As the night approached I called my dad to double check how I was suppose to do everything and he was able to calm my nerves a little bit. Well Sunday rolled around and we went to church. I was very nervous because Londyn had fallen asleep a little earlier and I was worried she wouldn't sleep during the blessing. Just as the song ended and ward business began Londyn, like I thought, woke up and was wide eyed. I was sure that she was going to start crying right when we were getting ready to bless her. Well Londyn and I and a few gentleman walked to the front and she was still wide awake. We gathered around the circle and I started the blessing. Don't forget that I was as nervous as a little kid going to the dentist for the first time. Well as I was trying to rememeber the words I felt Londyn kind of sliding in my hands, I opened my eyes and looked at everyone in the circle to see if they looked paranoid at all, and everyone seemed cool so I just thought it was me and my nerves again. Just after I named her there she went.... I opened my eyes, I saw her sliding very quickly down our arms like a ride at raging waters and just as Bishop and my dad almost hit their knees to catch her I non-chalauntly said "oh sh**". I looked around even more nervous now hoping that no one heard it through the microphone.... Fortunatley no one did but I was nervous before and now I was just completly rattled. I made it through the blessing and so did Londyn, although when I raised her up so that the congregation could see her, her dress was up by her neck and her bow had all but fallen off. Needless to say Londyn barely made it through the blessing, and can't wait to see what happens when we baptize her...Anyone sense a drowning???

DARCI'S STORY: I just thought I should include my experience of this crazy story. So, I knew Tagg was pretty nervous for Londyn's blessing. All week he kept asking me if I could please make sure she was fed so that she wouldn't scream through the whole thing. Well, Sunday came and as I tried to get her nursing scheduled around Sacrament I decided to pump enough to hold her over just in case. I was glad I did because she was ready to eat by the time church started. Anyway, so Tagg went up to bless her and just as he named her, he went silent. I didn't open my eyes (unlike several friends and family members) instead, I just thought "Okay honey, find the words..." and still silence. So I thought, "just say something, anything" (which apparently was when he said oh shiz and about dropped our precious baby!!!) And then, finally, he kept going with the blessing. I really didn't think anything of it, just that I felt bad that he either couldn't find the words, or that he got pretty choked up. When he went to hold up Londyn for everyone to see her, I noticed that the Bishop was still holding on to Londyn. I then noticed Tagg mouth to the bishop "I got her". I thought that was a little weird but then thought that Bishop was just giving him a hard time cuz he was a new dad. And then I quickly noticed that Londyn's beautiful dress was up to her neck and that her bow was all cricked and about falling off. I thought, "what the heck did they do to her?" Little did I know that they nearly dropped her! I also noticed that Chad, Tagg's brother was holding back his famous laugh as he was saying something to Tagg. But, I just thought it was Chad just giving Tagg a hard time for not being able to find the words. Once Tagg and Londyn made it to me, Jerry (Tagg's dad) and Tagg were laughing and asking me if I saw what happened. Uh...NO!! I didn't see, but it all made sense that Londyn looked like she had been tossed around the circle afterwards! :o) Tagg also was wanting to make sure that we didn't hear him swear. Uh...nope... just those who were in the circle, including the bishop! So just for the record, I didn't see her nearly hit the floor and I will be sure to have lifeguards at her baptism!

So adorable

Our little rocker girl! She'll be playing Rock Band with us in no time, right?

These are the most recent pics, just from Sunday. She finally fits into one of the many dresses she has. Don't you just love her little face? I can't get enough of her!!

I thought this pic was so sweet and had to post. She is getting so big, so fast! Everyone at church couldn't stop touching her hair. How do you nicely tell people to stop touching her dang hair...you're gonna mess it up. :o) Just teasing. She has so much hair, ya just can't resist putting you're fingers through it. So, Londyn is now 1 month old, I can't believe it. Where did October go? Londyn is so much fun. She is so alert and content. I've found that during her fussy hour at night, she likes to just lay down on her blanket and have her belly rubbed. She loves being talked to and loves to go for car rides. So, I mentioned before that Londyn loves her hair. Well, the other day she was laying on her blanket while I was getting ready, and all of a sudden she let out this monster cry. So, I ran to her and saw that she had a hand full of hair in a death grip. No wonder little one, sheesh. It was pretty funny though. She's done it a couple more times, maybe one day she'll learn not to pull so hard. :o) Thanks for all of the comments and calls regarding my last post. It really helps to know that I'm not alone. And yes, it has already started to get easier. I think we're finally getting used to each other. :o)

Feeling inadequate

Today my baby is 4 weeks old. Where has this past month gone? I've found myself pondering a lot today and decided I needed to blog in hopes of getting some advice and maybe feeling like I wasn't alone on this. Do you ever feel inadequate? Last night was pretty rough. Tagg was in Arco all day and was only home for about an hour and a half before he left for his Basketball Game. I decided to stay home with Londyn since she had just fallen asleep when Tagg was getting ready to leave. Good thing I stayed home because not 20 minutes after Tagg left, the screaming began. Ususally she is a little fussy from 8:30 to 10:00 p.m., so I wasn't too surprised. But when she wouldn't nurse, wouldn't sleep, wouldn't cuddle, wouldn't bouce with me, all she did was scream bloody murder, I didn't know what to do! Tagg finally called to let me know he was on his way home, an hour and a half later, and I was tears and at my breaking point! I yelled at him and told him that he was selfish for leaving his wife and baby to go play basketball after only seeing us for a few hours the whole day! I feel bad for saying that to him now, but at the time, I was so mad that he wasn't there to help me...just to give me a break...and give Londyn a break. So, Tagg hurried home and wouldn't ya know it...Londyn fell sound asleep the second that garage door opened. You'd think I'd be relieved right? Nope. I then felt that Tagg probably thought I was crazy. And I, of course, gave him the cold shoulder, then let him know again what I thought about him leaving us. I felt so inadequate as a wife and mom! How could I be a mom that didn't know how to comfort her own baby? Why did I blame Tagg? I've thought that maybe I should go back to work instead of being at home, so she can have a break from me...but I couldn't bare the thought of someone else raising her! Nobody else would love her like I do! So, I've found myself on my knees, more in the last month than ever before. It's a lot harder being a mom than I ever thought, but so totally worth it. How do you other mom's make it look so easy? Your kids love you, your husband doesn't think your crazy, your houses are always clean, and dinner is always ready, how do you do it??? Luckily today was a better day. Tagg couldn't go to Arco today since the parts weren't in, so he was able to spend most of the day with Londyn and me. Thank heavens for new days...I had a new day to be a better wife and mom.

How can you not love this baby? Screaming or not, (preferrable not), Londyn...I LOVE YOU!!

Can't get enough

What happens when your high school gets a turf football field? An Alumni Football Game. Yep, West Jefferson has a turf field, so the alumni came up with a way to play on it. They have a Charity football game where the proceeds went to help a kid from WJ with Medical Bills as he was diagnosed with Throat Cancer. This was the second year they did it, but the first for Tagg and Chad (Tagg's brother). They split the teams according to the year you graduated, so the odd years were the away team and the even years were home. Tagg and Chad graduated ten years apart and it was so fun to see them play a football game together. Chad took over as the QB and Tagg as a WR, and there was no stopping them. The only thing the other team could do was hit them hard and do a lot of trash talking. :o) Tagg and the odd years, won 26-12 I believe. Woohoo - way to go! But...was the sore knees, ribs, back, legs, arms, etc worth it? I guess so cuz Tagg and Chad both say they'll play again...they just can't get enough!

Diva or Ball Player?

Londyn turned two weeks old yesterday. Seriously, where does the time go? I am loving being a mom, but sheesh, it is a lot of work. These are just some things that I love and wanted to write down:

1. She wakes up at 3:00ish every morning, and I love this hour she's awake. It's such a quiet, peaceful hour for just the two of us. She's so alert; she's studying my face, as I'm studying her's.

2. Her hands. She LOVES her hands. I'm not sure if I mentioned this or not, but when Londyn was born, she managed to slide one of her arms out with her head. And I told Tagg, hopefully that doesn't mean she's a diva. And his reply was, Nope, she's going to be a Basketball Player, already practicing her shot. Anyway, she can't stand to have her arms swaddled, she always manages to wiggle both arms out and then her arms go straight by her face. It's adorable, and we love it. She's also discovered her hair. She'll reach up and just play with it. I think this is her telling me that the bows will not be staying in her hair for very long. :o)

3. Her grunting. She does this distinctive grunt that only her parents could love. :o)

4. Her facial expressions. I'm amazed at the time I spend just watching her.

5. I love the sweet spirit she brings to our home. Our home has been more peaceful and filled with love, even with the couple of rough nights of crying. I'm so thankful for such a wonderful husband and sweet little girl.

Londyn's One Week Birthday

My beautiful, sweet baby is one week old! I can't believe it, Oct. 2nd was my due date, and I can't believe she's been here for a week now. I told Tagg yesterday morning that we should put her back in my tummy and do it all over again. He said no, she's more fun out than she was in. :o) Anyway, yesterday was a big day for little Londyn. We started the day off by having Katie Wells take her newborn pictures. Katie posted a few of the cute pics on her blog, but I chose just a few to put on here. I think they turned out so cute!! You can go to katieportraits.blogspot.com to see a sneak peek of a few more. I can't wait to get the CD of all of the pictures, it is going to be so hard to choose which ones to print. Katie did an awesome job, I highly recommend her!! Londyn was kind of a stinker though. First, we took some family shots and then got Londyn undressed to take some pics with daddy, and sure enough...she peed, luckily only a little on Tagg, the rest on the floor. Then she was wide awake, kind of hard to take pics of a sleeping baby when she isn't sleeping! So, I nursed her and it seemed to work. But, when I went to put her in this bean bag thing, Londyn decided to poop. And oh did it go everywhere! I felt so bad, but Katie reassured us that everything was washable and not to worry. After getting things cleaned up, Londyn was wide awake again. We finally got her to sleep and Katie took some amazing shots! Oh, and Londyn's umbilical cord fell off! Tagg got a little panicked at that point since he made a deal with me that as long as I didn't make him change diapers until her cord fell off, he'd not complain about diaper duty. :o) Some things that Londyn has done this past week. At four days old, Londyn slept most of the day. She had her first visit with her Pediatrician. She had dropped a little in weight, which is normal I guess. So, she weighs 6 lbs. 9 oz. and is still 19 in. I let them know I thought she may be jaundice. They drew her blood, and we found out her levels were a little elevated. They said to keep her in the sun and they'll check the levels again in 24 hours. That night, Londyn was up crying off and on from 10 p.m. to 4 a.m. Tagg and I were pretty worried about our little girl, but all was well. Sept. 30th (day 5), got her tests back and she doesn't have jaundice! Hooray! Oct. 2nd (day 7), Londyn slept through the night! She was up from 9:30 p.m. till 1:00 a.m. but slept from 1:00 a.m. till 8:30 a.m. I am pretty sure this was a one time thing, maybe not, but it was sure nice to get a good night's rest! I guess she was exhausted from getting her pictures done.

So very blessed!

I can't help but to just stare at this little miracle! It's amazing to me how much love you really have for your baby. I'm so blessed to have such a wonderful husband and now a beautiful, healthy baby girl! I have dreamed of this moment for such a long time, it's still very surreal. I can't believe she is finally here. What an incredible journey, and I can't wait for what lies ahead.

I love this picture of our new family of three and our fabulous doctor. We are so thankful that Dr. Meredith was able to help us through infertility and make it possible for us to have this little angel! Tagg was amazing through the labor and delivery. We were scheduled for induction at 11:00 on Thursday morning, but got a call saying there were 5 ladies in labor and we'd have to wait till they delivered before we could go up. We arrived at the hospital at 12:30 p.m. They broke my water at 2:00 and then started me on pitocin. At 4:00 p.m. I was dialated at 4 cm and 90%, which is when I asked for the epidural. At 7:20, I had dialated to 6 cm. The nurse said it still could be a couple of hours, so we were prepared for an all nighter. Well, at 8:00 p.m. I started feeling a lot of pressure, called the nurse in, and she said, "you're complete. I will go call Dr. Meredith to let him know." When she left, Tagg asked me, "so, what does complete mean?" And I looked at him and said..."Honey, I'm at a 10!" I think at that point his nerves really kicked in. The nurse came back and said to push through a contraction to see if we could get things going, that was at 8:15 p.m. I pushed through 2 contractions and then she said she had better call the Dr. He got there pretty fast, and was panting a little. Tagg asked him if he ran here, and Dr. Meredith said, all the way up the stairs! The Dr. wanted me to push through another contraction so he could see where I was at, just as he was telling me that most first time labors can be pushing for an hour or two at least, so to prepare myself...then he quickly told me to stop pushing! He said, oh never mind, she's coming! And little Londyn was born at 8:40 p.m. It went really quick and I couldn't believe it was over, just like that. Tagg didn't pass out either, for all those who were wondering. He did say he got really nervous that the doctor wasn't going to make it though, but once he arrived, he was good to go. What an experience!!

Okay, last one. This is us just getting home from the hospital. So, here's a crazy story. We left the hospital on Saturday around noon and went to Wal-Mart to pick up my prescriptions. When Tagg got back to the car, he said, well...let's go see Brooke (she had just had a baby, too). I kinda looked at him like, are you kidding, we just left the hospital. Anyway, Tagg had got a call from our nurse at the hospital letting us know we hadn't been discharged yet and needed to come back because there was a problem. Not something we really wanted to hear. Apparently, there was another Williams baby girl born and they thought our baby had got all of her shots, but hadn't. So, we had to go back so she could have her Hepatitis B shot, and her first screening. Crazy hospital! :o)

She has finally arrived!!!!

Londyn Mineko Williams was born Thursday, Sept. 25, 2008 at 8:40 p.m. She weighed 6 lbs. 13 oz. and was 19 in. long (short). This is a picture of Mommy and Londyn meeting just after her first bath. Check out all that hair!!! Actually, it is a toupee....

Here is a picture of daddy and Londyn get ready to check out of the hospital. Isn't he, I mean she, so cute? Mommy and Londyn are doing great and Daddy is stressed out and extremely paranoid!!!! We'll be sure to post pictures of her smiling from the left and the right views, one from birds eye and also one from underwater. Then we will post pictures of her crying in 3D and we also have 45 minutes of video of her sleeping. Ha ha....

39 Weeks

This is Darc and I leaving for the hospital and a picture of her at 39 weeks.

36 weeks and 2 days!

Grr! I so hate posting pics of myself, but for some reason people keep telling me that I've gotta post some pics of my belly. So, this was taken on Sat. Sept. 6th, just before my baby shower. I was 36w2d. Today, I'm 37w4d. I can't believe that I could have this little girl any day now. It's still so surreal. In church yesterday, Tagg grabbed a pencil and asked if he were to poke my belly with it, if it would deflate like a balloon and if that would make the baby come out. I think he's getting tired of me being pregnant too. :o) I still can't complain, I've had a great pregnancy. Even then, I am getting very anxious to meet this beautiful girl. We go in tomorrow morning to see how far I'm dialating, so we're excited for that. Last week, we had an ultrasound and even though they can't give an exact measurement, they say right now she is only measuring in the 24th percentile. They say she only weighs 5 lbs 7 oz. So, she needs to stay in my belly as long as possible. I was glad to hear she wasn't huge, having Gestational Diabetes increases my chances of delivering a big baby. But, I am also scared to have a tiny baby - with babies losing weight at first, it'd be scary if she dropped below 5 lbs! Anyway, we are so excited and nervous and can't wait to let you all know when she's born!!

What...Another Baby Shower?

I just wanted to tell Courtney (my sister) and Lacey (my friend from work) THANK YOU, THANK YOU for throwing me such a great shower last Saturday! I'm pretty lucky to have you two and Katie and Erin to throw me such great showers! And thank you to all my friends and family that came. I know some of you came from out of state just for the shower, and others that I hadn't seen forever, I was so glad that you all came. Tagg and I are truly blessed to have such wonderful people in our lives that support us and love us. We got so many amazing gifts - when we were unloading the car, we just kept saying how thoughtful and generous everyone was. We seriously hit the jack pot. Mom, thank you so, SO much for letting us have it at your house! I know it must have been a headache, but I truly appreciate it! And Jan (my mother-in-law) thank you for coming over and helping me get organized. I can officially say that I'm ready for our baby girl, well, as far as having all of her clothes washed and put away. It's a great feeling! Anyway, thank you again to all that came and Court and Lacey, I seriously can't thank you two enough! Sorry - I'm so sad to say that I didn't get a single picture with me, Court, and Lacey. But, I'll be posting my prego belly here shortly.

Baby Shower

On Saturday, my friends from Utah, Katie and Erin, threw a baby shower for me. It was so fun having them here with their babies. Katie's little boy, Jett is 9 months old and Erin's little boy, Eric is 5 months old. Aren't they so cute? And I'm getting pretty big, I am 34 weeks! CRAZY!! All three of us lived in the same Apartment complex in Utah and have been friends ever since. It's so fun that we all have, or in the process of, having babies. I just wish they lived closer. Anyway, thank you Katie and Erin for all that you did!! And thanks to my friends in my Ward that came and gave such great gifts. I had so much fun and appreciate all of you!! Thanks again! :o)

No more Bees!

Tagg was stung by a bee the other day and it swelled up more than when he sprained his ankle! He even woke up in the middle of the night needing to throw up - which the doctor said was a reaction to the bee sting. He had to take anti-biotics and draw a line on his ankle where the swelling was at, and if the swelling spread beyond that line, he would have had to go in for a shot. If anyone knows Tagg and his fear of needles, you'll know that he was faithfully taking his medicine. (Not something he usually does.) Anyway, the swelling went down and all is well. All except for the bees that lurked in our front yard! The bees were getting really bad this year so we were off to the store to find something to kill them. This is where the picture comes into play. Raid is my new favorite product!! It seriously zaps the bee and kills it on contact. So, Tagg was having his revenge and was killing these bees left and right. We found two huge nests under this bench by our front porch, another one under the lid of our garbage can, two in the eaves covering our porch, and then one in our neighbors mailbox that is next to ours. We went through two cans of Raid and haven't seen nearly as many bees since. Thank you Raid!

Most Valuable Player

One of Tagg's sweet interceptions during the Championship Game.

And the award goes to...Tagg Williams - Most Valuable Player 2008!
Dustin Simmons, Tagg, and Matt Landon after the Championship Game.

Okay, so I am so late on posting this, but better late than never, right? Tagg and a few of his friends played for the semi-pro football team, Eastern Idaho Lionz. They usually play in the AAA division, but after the craziness that went on during the season last year, they didn't know if the Lionz would even exist this year. So, they moved them down to AA and they dominated. It is always fun to see Tagg in his element, I seriously don't know what this kid would do without sports! Everyone keeps giving him a bad time that once this little girl is born, he won't get to play so much. I'm hear to tell ya that I doubt things will change. I am already excited for Basketball to start up and even though we'll have a little one, these sporting events give us a chance to get out of the house. :o) Tagg had an awesome year with the Lionz, he had a total of 9 interceptions. The first 3 were in his first game and the last two were in this Championship game. He was also chosen for the All RMFL Defense 1st Team as Safety. Way to go, Tagg!

Nursery ready? Check.

Here are pictures of our baby girl's Nursery. Pretty pink, right? The wall behind her crib is pretty bright, and the other walls are pretty pink. I'm so excited to have it all painted though, we got it done in one day. Thank you to my sister, Courtney for the awesome crib and dresser/changing table. We LOVE it! There is also a glider on the other side of the crib - thanks Court for that too. She has totally hooked us up. That mirror in the corner won't be staying - we just don't have anywhere else to put it right now. Now I've just got to get some decorations for the walls, you can see that Tagg still hasn't hung that picture that is sitting on the changing pad. Oh, and I've got to get a lamp for the lamp shade. So many things still to do and time is winding down. I'm 29 weeks today, feeling great, and counting these next 11 weeks down!

26 weeks and counting!

After getting my own personal Blog Cheerleaders, Erin & Katie, I am finally posting a picture of my belly. This is the most recent one I have. I'm 26 weeks in this pic, and I will be 29 weeks on Thursday. I just got diagnosed with Gestational Diabetes, last week and it's not so fun! I am not on insulin...yet, but I'm afraid it may be around the corner. I have been watching my carbs and sugars and yet my blood glucose levels are still elevated. I was pretty shocked to learn that I had G.D. since I have only gained 10 pounds at 28 weeks. I have quickly learned that there are many factors that contribute to GD and I am not on a diet. My main problem was that I was eating most of my carbs at night instead of spreading them out throughout the day. And I can't drink so much juice, oh how I am missing my Grape Cranberry juice every morning! I also learned that I am slightly anemic, so I have to take more iron pills. I was on such a roll, I had no morning sickness, a great 1st and 2nd trimester, and now on the home stretch - I have some minor set backs. At least the baby is healthy and for now, I can manage the GD with diet. I'll keep ya posted. I meet with my Diabetes Specialist tomorrow and then another follow up appt with my doctor on Tuesday. I can't believe I'm already going in every 2 weeks! Time is flying by!

More at Lake Powell

Lataun, Mia, and Jan tubing at Lake Powell.

Aahh...Tagg jumpin!

I love this picture of my nieces, Indee and Haddi. It was so fun watching them jump off the rocks, tube, knee board, and ski for the first time.

Lataun and Mia soaking up the sun! Mia was giggling the whole time - it was so cute!

Sicilee and Kimbri - they are my nieces and are the same age. They're getting so big, so fast.

I love this picture too. Tagg practing for next year - our baby will be 9 months old.

Lake Powell

Tagg and I went to Lake Powell with Tagg's brother, Chad, sister, Kami, and parents. Monte and his family, a friend of Chad & Lataun's, also went. It was so much fun! The weather was nice too. It wasn't too hot, and the water was pretty nice. I couldn't do much, just sit in the boat and the beach, or float around since I was 6 1/2 months pregnant. I would go again in a heartbeat though. There were lots of fun and crazy things that happened. To start off, Jan and Jerry's boat only ran for about 30 minutes. So, us four had to hop between Chad, Monte, and John's boat the rest of the week. That first day, Tagg, Jan, and I decided to take a break from the boat rides and stay with the "beach" stuff, and we got hit with a wind storm! Sand and water was blowing every where, and we were trying to hold on to life jackets, towels, floaties, and anything else that was left with us on this rock. Needless to say, John and Kami were the only one's that came to our rescue! Thanks again by the way. :o) Other things that happened were: ~Chad's boat ran out of gas, twice and Monte had to pull him to the dock.

~Tagg getting teased by everyone for not jumping...I mean, for getting attacked by crows the day before we left, while climbing a 300 foot tower!

~Losing each other while going to Rainbow Bridge. We just couldn't all seem to stay together. :o)

~Watching Jerry Cliff dive, instead of jumping and convincing Jan to finally jump too.

~Waiting for our room's AC to finally kick in.

~Jan's snoring - no worries, I found the highest decibel ear plugs for Tagg and I to wear each night. We love you Jan, but we gotta get our ZZZZ's

~ Going to Safeway to buy Apple Juice and Milk with 5 young girls.

~ Getting hit on by a drunk guy at 6 1/2 months pregnant. And then he asked me for money and kept telling me "you're welcome" and I would ask for what? And he said, "for my people that created this place for you to come enjoy." Yeah, he was VERY drunk!

~ Jerry promising that he pushed 85 for gas and not 87...but he got charged the 87 price, not the 85. Hmm...I dunno Jerr - computers don't lie. ;o)

All and all it was a great trip! What week are we going next year?

To hear or not to hear?

This is the device that was surgically insterted into my dad's head, permanently. The part with the Electronics Housing and magnet (the two circles) sit a couple inches above his ear. Then the 16 Electodes are wired into the Cochlea, which is in the very inner ear.

This is the attachment that you actually see. He got this in Black so it's less noticeable. So, the white and orange part is what rests on his ear. The piece right after the hook thing is the computer, amazing huh! Then the lower part of it is the battery, which only lasts 17 hours and is $150 just for one. They gave him 4 that he rotates and are rechargeable, but they only last about a year. Anyway, then the orange circle piece is what sticks onto the outside of his head. It is magnetic and sticks to the magnet that is inside the device that was put into his skull. If he takes that magnet piece off his head, he can't hear and once he puts it back in place, the sound is back. Pretty amazing!

This is my dad, my sister Jalyce (14), my sister Jamie (17), and my mom.

To hear or not to hear? That was the question running through our mind on Tuesday, June 17th. This was the day the doctors called "Hook-up Day". To us, this meant whether or not my dad's world would change for the better or worse. Well, after four long weeks of waiting, they finally "turned on" Dad's Cochlear Implant device. At first, he said that everyone sounded very robotic. But then, after about 10 minutes, he recognized Mom's voice. Yes...Dad could finally HEAR!! How truly amazing this was for him and our family! He still has quite a long road ahead of him, more check ups and tests, but the great news was that he could hear us talk. It has been so much fun seeing him be able to hear again and to see what he can hear right now and what he can't. Surprisingly, he cannot hear the T.V. right now, but he did hear his pill drop on the floor. At dinner that night, he was tapping his fork on his plate, just to hear it again. He crinkled up a paper, just to hear it again. When he went to wash his hands after being able to hear, and heard nothing, but then after about 15 seconds, he heard the water running. Fifteen seconds was all it took for his brain to remember what it sounded like. So, he turned off the water and back on again to see if he heard it instantly, or if it would take it a few seconds to register again. So, he turned it on and instantly heard it. The brain is truly amazing. The doctors say it will take a little longer before he can hear the T.V. because there is so much going on and it's not constant. If he were to watch a familiar actor talk or a familiar movie, he may be able to pick up on that. They say after about 2 months of adjusting the device, he'll hear the max that he can. We're so excited and so very thankful that he was given this second opportunity to hear again. It's a miracle and we thank our Heavenly Father for blessing my Dad, and for the technology advancements we have today. We've been so blessed these last six months, I can't even describe my feelings and gratitude. Oh, and my dad is able to hear people talk on the phone, the land line is a lot better and clearer, but this is very exciting! Even when he had his hearing aides, he wasn't able to hear very well on the phone. Dad said that he is able to hear clearer than he ever had with hearing aides, isn't that awesome! His quality of hearing has already improved and it's only been a few days, and is only going to improve! HOORAY for second chances!!