Letting the Spitting and Chewing Begin

Annalee has found that she has extra saliva and has really enjoyed spitting it, making bubbles, and just letting it run down her chin. I keep telling her that proper girls don't do that, but she finds it very fascinating. And so yes, it means that ALL things are finding their way to her mouth. Even the "stinger" of her little bug. I sure hope she doesn't think she can put a real stinger in her mouth. Check out her manipulation of her lips so she can fit the foot in her mouth.

I'm sure in the next month or so we will post about a little tooth:)

Fourth of July Trip

She is soooo cute!

I was crazy again and decided I could take my four month baby on a 12 hour car ride by myself to Arizona. SHE WAS PERFECT! Kenny had to work and I had just finished the school year so it was party time. We drove to Eagar, helped my mom move (I think we were more in the way), painted and cleaned my Grandma's house, and enjoyed the Fourth of July.

Most of you know the Fourth of July is my second favorite holiday...it really is Christmas in summer for me. The parade was great, the luncheon was wonderful complete with the traditional homemade rootbeer, and the fireworks were impressive. We didn't make it to the rodeo cause I was exhausted. It was so great to see so much family and even some friends. I sure miss Arizona and all my family there, but it is nice to be home in Wyoming!

Here are a few pictures of Annalee...thanks to Adrian Nef. I think he took over 200, but I haven't got them all yet...I'm telling you she is perfect. Everyone that comes in contact with her says she is the happiest baby and absolutely beautiful, she is an angel.

Growing up I always loved sitting on my Grandma's front porch and watch the people drive up and down the road, in fact I think most of the Eagar's do (we get it from Grandma and Grandpa)...Annalee insisted on sitting out there at least twice a day - here is proof!

Serioulsy life doesn't get any better than this!

Who Honk Me and Raising Hands

Yeah it's summer time! I am so glad to be done with work until August 10th! Annalee even let me sleep in until 6:15 this morning...I love summer. I've been busy packing up the "renter house" and finishing school. We will be headed to Arizona in a couple of days to spend some time with Michelle and the boys before they leave, help my mom move into her new house that she grew up in (we are all so excited for her to be in Grandma/Grandpa's house), and of course attend the 4th of July activities.

I just want to thank Aunt Whitney for being the best live-in-nanny in the whole world. It was so nice having her watch Annalee while I had to work. They are so close and I know they will have a special bond FOREVER. We both love you Aunt Whit!

It has been different having Kenny work four days out of town. He sure does love his little girl! This picture is horrible of us all, don't ask! We don't have many pictures of all of us...hopefully that changes.

And now the bragging corner...yes, I've become one of THOSE MOMS! Annalee is the most perfect baby, she really is. She weighs 16 pounds and is 25 inches long and she is only four months. Our Doctor told us that she is a very good looking baby and that her attention span is far above her age...I'm telling you she is brilliant. She loves to study the world and read books. The other day we were on the side of the road feeding her and big trucks were driving by, I was telling her that if you move your arm up and down the truck drivers will honk. I showed her how to do it and she did it once by herself...of course I know she had no idea what she was doing but I can't wait until all these trucks start honking at me and it's because she is in the back seat moving her arm up and down. (who honk me...those...{inside joke}) The pictures don't do her justice but here are a few...

Annalee loves to hold her arm straight up in the air. I have even caught her doing this when she is sleeping. If you try to put it down she throws it right back up. I think she is just learning how to behave for school...I like to ask her is she has a question...she just smiles and keeps her hand in the air. It's really funny.

Welcome Summer!

So obviously it has been awhile since I've posted. Things have been good and busy...as it is for everyone. We moved out of our house, which was actually really sad, moved into a renter, and are still in the process of seeing what will be best for a new home. Kenny has been working four / tens in Evanston so that has been a little hard on our family. I only have two and a half weeks of school and can't wait for it to be done!

Annalee is getting so big. She looks and acts like a 5-7 month old instead of 3 months old. Oh great, does that mean she will be acting like she is 16 when she is only 12! She recognizes who people are now and she smiles ALL the time. She has found that she can make noises and I have to admit that I think they are sooo cute. She is getting into a great routine and sleeps pretty good at night. I couldn't have a better baby. I took her to an after school meeting and one of the guy teachers (we all know guys don't really care that much about cute babies) said to me that she was the most perfect baby he has seen and that she should be the next gerber baby. I was a proud mom! I was laying down with her and noticed how huge her belly is!

We are going to Bear Lake this weekend so I had to try on her swimsuit.

I love her!

Jazz Moving Easter Wedding

Where do I begin. This past month has been a whirlwind...really it has. I'm sure I will forget a lot of things, but I only have a second to post before Annalee wakes up.

Annalee went to her first Utah Jazz game. The tickets to the game were a stocking stuffer and we have been looking forward to going for four months. Unfortunetly Kenny had to work (more on this later), so Whitney stepped in and went with us. Annalee had a cute pink Utah jazz sweater...of course!We had a lot of fun and I'm sure Annalee is going to be a ball player:)

So Kenny applied to be a police officer in Evanston Wyoming. Of course "with the market the way that it is", a lot of people applied. After a long month of PT testing, interviews, and background checks, Kenny was hired!!! This is something he has always wanted to do. We were so blessed for him to get the job. In fact I think I was so excited about it that I lost track of what the reality of it meant. He was to start right away and I still had my contract to finish with my school...so that meant a lot of time apart. Then what would we do with our house? Where would we live in Evanston? What would I do about my job? Could we afford to live off Kenny's salary alone? Well...here is the short of what happened and it happened QUICKLY.

Whitney and I were driving home one day and I saw a house that had flyers about their home being for sale. I had Whitney hurry and jump out and get a flyer so I could see what the house was going for. We called the realtor, who was out on vacation, so we talked to one of his co-workers. We ended up meeting with this realtor and put our house up for sale. We were busy cleaning, painting, and getting the house ready to hopefully be shown to some clients. For any of you who have lived in a house for awhile while it has been for sale I don't know how you do it...I was exhausted from just trying to keep it clean. Well in three days we had our first customers and they made an offer on the house. After some negotiations, it was a done deal and we are under contract and plan to close on the house on April 28th. We now have to pack up and move into an apartment in two weeks! Now I'm even more exhausted thinking about it!! We have looked at a few homes in Evanston, but nothing has captured both our eyes...stay tuned, the adventure of buying a house is going to be a big one!

Then Shane got married. Whitney, Annalee, and I made the treck to Eagar. Wow that was fun...a ten hour drive with a little baby. Well I made the drive back to Utah by myself with Annalee. The 10 hour drive became a 16 hour drive. Talk about some mom and baby bonding time in the back of the car on the side of the road in the middle of nowhere! Shane's wedding was great and we love Jennifer. They both looked so beautiful. It was great to be with family! We love and miss you all already.

Meeting Granny and Papa Slade.

Meeting Uncle Derek!

The new couple! Aren't they beautiful people! This was the dinner the night before the wedding.

As if the wedding wasn't enough..it was Easter. YEAH Annalee's first Easter. You can tell how excited she is to be coloring Easter eggs. Maybe next year!

Okay Noah was hilarious with Annalee. He kept playing with her, checking on her, and even gave her a bath. I gave him the special duty of "babysitter", for a little boy he was the BEST babysitter ever. This is him taking pictures of Annalee...yes he did this one by himself. Look how happy Annalee is to be playing with him, but don't ask me what face he is pulling. Not only is he a good babysitter, he is a great photographer. This kid has a big future!

Although my mom is pulling a funny face in this picture. She was absolutely stunning at the wedding. She had the cutest brown polk-a-dot dress. So did Tammi, so we had them take a picture together. My mother is beautiful!

It was nice having Spring Break and now I must return to work. I think it is going to be harder on me then it was to go back to work before Spring Break. I don't know what it is, but I love this girl more and more...for you mothers that have ever rocked your child and just gazed in amazement during the entire time your child is taking a nap you know what I mean. It doesn't get any better. Stay tuned for more adventures. They are sure to come. I love it. Love it all!

Kenny's Birthday, Trip to Phoenix, and 1 Month Old!

We have been busy. I'm just going to touch on a few highlights and post pictures. I know you want to look at the pictures more anyway!

*Last Friday (3/13) was Kenny's birthday. He spent the day snowboarding with his friend and brother and then we went to dinner with his family. It was a lot of fun. We love you Kenny and hope you had a great birthday! You are amazing in every way. See Whitney's blog for pictures of the night (sorry I don't have them!) http://www.whitneyleeslade.blogspot.com/ Actually see Whitney's blogs for a lot of great pictures that I don't have!

*Saturday morning we flew out to Phoenix to visit family. It was WONDERFUL. Annalee did great on the plane ride, but is having some troubles getting back into her schedule. Here are just 5 things from the trip to Phoenix:
1. Annalee meeting all her Slade side Aunts, Uncles, and cousins - minus Derek :(
2. Annalee meeting Grandma Smith and other Aunts, Uncles, and cousins from Kendra's family

3. Eating a lot of great food
4. The weather...we didn't have to bundle Annalee up...it was sooo nice!

5. Getting to spend time with Kenny, it seems when we are home we are both so busy.

*Annalee is a month old. She has changed so much. I love her, I love her, I love her. Whitney and her friend Adrian were here yesterday and so we used his nice camera to take a ton of pictures. Here are just a few. Enjoy.

Annalee is now three and a half weeks old. Time is flying by and she has changed so much. One of Whitney's friends is coming to take pictures of her tomorrow so I will make sure I post them so you can all see how much she has changed...but for now these are some of the pictures I have of her. Notice in the picture with the hands her cute braclet. I love dressing her up!