curtiss & ginger

FIVE MONTHS

2012-02-10T17:05:00.000-08:00

This sweet face is now 5 months old!

I cannot kiss these big cheeks of his enough.

A little kid (about 5 years old) was looking at Parker the other day and said, "Why are his cheeks soooo HUGE!?!" hahaha.

We just love our chubby faced lil guy!

At 5 months:

-You are just about sitting up on your own! You last for about 30 seconds but then you see us get excited about what you are accomplishing and your whole body gets excited and you tip right over! I think you are so so close to you being able to sit up perfectly on your own.

-You refuse to lay down in any of your chairs, you make sure you are leaned forward in a more sitting up position.

First pic we got of you sitting up completely on your own!

-You still LOVE bath time! The other day I was trying to push back your feeding a little so I could get dinner finished. You were hungry and started to cry pretty hard so I got you naked, put you in your blue tub and had you sit there while I hurried and finished. You were content as can be sitting naked in your tub, knowing you were about to have a bath!

-You smile all the time and you are laughing more and more!

-I love that you will smile at complete strangers too. The other day some girls were just saying "Heyyyyyy" and smiling really big at you and you giggled and giggled like it was the funniest thing you'd ever seen. I LOVED it!

-You LOVE Dad! As soon as he comes home you often yell and talk and you will twist your head as far around as possible just to get a glimpse of him.

-You love to be on your feet and "stand" as much as possible.

-You are getting so much personality and we are LOVING to see more and more of your sweetness!

-You are starting to grab at things more and more. If I have anything in my hand you immediately grab at it at try to put it in your mouth.
-If my hair is in your arms reach you will grab it and hold on as tight as you can! I am constantly pulling my hair out of your fingers.

We are so in love with you our sweet Parker!

silly boy

2012-02-06T17:51:00.000-08:00

This boys new favorite things is to shake his head back and forth as if saying no to us.

It never gets old :)

Probably one of the cutest things about him right now.

Among a million other things! :)

We just can't get enough of this sweet lil one!

Obsession

2012-01-31T15:01:00.001-08:00

Last night Curtiss said to me, "if you weren't my wife and I saw how many pictures you put up of Parker (on facebook, blog, instagram, and texting to people) and how much you said things like 'he is sooo perfect!' or 'cutest little boy ever!' I would make fun of you". Haha!

He thinks I'm a little crazy with how obsessed I am with this cute boy of ours.

I disagree. I just cannot get enough of my Parker boy! He seriously makes me so happy and I am completely in love with everything about him! :)

Curtiss can keep making fun of me :)

Bumbo

2012-01-27T04:17:00.001-08:00

Last weekend we finally got Parker a bumbo. He looks so big to me when he's sitting in it. Especially looking at a book! Have I told you how much he loves when we read to him??? He just gets mesmerized by all the colors and pictures. I love just laying on the floor with him to read a book, over and over again. :) The pictures of him in the bumbo looking at that book just make me smile. I love my sweet, happy boy!! He is perfection to me. I think he is getting pretty close to sitting up on his own..such a big boy! :)

Bath time is the best time

2012-01-27T04:04:00.001-08:00

Parker just LOVES bath time. I love bath time too cause he just looks so dang cute in the tub! :) He is always so smiley and happy to be sittin in his personal jacuzzi.

Happy Sumo

2012-01-26T21:42:00.001-08:00

Can I just tell you how much I love sushi?!? I think I have been convincing Curtiss for almost 3 years to take me and we finally went! Haha Twice in one month actually! For my birthday :) I am happy to announce that Curtiss loved happy sumo! He didn't get sushi and didn't even love mine, but he loved his entree and that's good enough for me! I think Parker loved Happy Sumo too.. And all the lights around Riverwoods.

broken

2012-01-23T17:35:00.000-08:00

A couple weeks after Parker was born Curtiss was playing in a flag football game and broke his finger.

Of course he did.

He just can't go too long without breaking something!

You remember this?? (haha..I'm so glad his nose is not deformed! lol)

The story of how he broke it is not even that exciting.

He actually hates the story.

He tried to grab someone's flag and his finger got wrapped around it somehow.

That's it.

Such a sad way to break a bone..so undramatic.

Oh well.

A couple trips to the Dr.'s, a specialist, surgery and a couple thousand dollars later (ugh!) his finger is as good new!

He had pins put into his finger and they knocked him out for the surgery.

When Parker and I went to the room after he was done I asked him how he was and he said to me,

"Ging, I feel soooooo good! I asked them to give me more of these drugs but they said no! Ging, you need to steal some for me. Get me some!"

Hahaha... he has NO memory of telling me that.

Matching finger cast and blanket! :)

Heres to hoping that we can go a FULL year without any major accidents or medical expenses! :)

I'm hoping our kids aren't as accident prone as us!

We have both knocked our 2 front teeth out & broken multiple bones!

Good luck kids! :)

4 months!

2012-01-14T06:07:00.001-08:00

Happy 4 months to my perfect little guy!!
You have brought so much happiness into our lives and we just keep loving you more and more!
You continue to get more fun as you become more interactive and we can start to see more of your cute personality.

At 4 months:
-you continue to be your happy, easy going self. You are pretty mellow- just like dad!
-when you get really excited you kick your legs like crazy!
-you have learned how to blow bubbles :) and you love to copy us doing it to you! It's a new favorite past time of ours.
-you notice when you are left in a room alone. You will just yell and "talk" real loud until someone comes back in.
-you love when we read books to you and you just stare wide eyed and grab at the pages.
-although your jumper is still pretty big you are content as can be in it and are starting to figure it out.
-you love your play mat and have figured out how to make the music play. That was one of dads proudest moments! :)
-you started shaking your head back and forth so so fast as if you were saying "no" and you smile while doing it. Maybe one of the cutest things ever!
-your giggles still melt our hearts.

4 month stats:
Weight: 13.9 lbs (23rd%)
You must carry a lot of that in your cheeks!
Height: 26 inches (80th%)
Head: 42cm (43rd%)

Still talk and skinny!?!

We love you Parker boy and feel so blessed you are ours!

Prayers for baby Bauer!

2012-01-07T22:55:00.001-08:00

I am trying to find any and every way to spread the message to everyone to pray for our sweet friends, the Thuesons.

Kelsie and I gave birth to our precious boys on the same day, at the some hospital just a few hours apart. They are amazing parents and anyone who has seen them with their sweet boy knows that. They glow with joy of parenthood and it is obvious how proud they are of little Bauer. He is such a sweet boy and just melts your heart.

They recently found out that their 4 month old baby boy has cancer. He had his first round of chemo today.. They said he "took it like a champ". They are being very positive and strong.

I know Heavenly Father is helping them and will continue to but they need all the prayers they can get.

Please please pray for them!!
Cade, Kelsie & baby Bauer.

I believe in the power of prayer and I believe in miracles.

Thanksgiving!

2012-01-06T12:09:00.000-08:00

Love my matching flannel boys! :)

Thanksgiving wouldn't be Thanksgiving without some football watching.

At lease that's what Curtiss says.

The FIRST of MANY times these 2 boys will be watching football together :)

My darling Mom with cute lil Trey.

Grandma Hendriksen just loving Parker :)

After we had stuffed our faces and Parker was exhausted from they day.

Aunt Tell and Uncle Aust

Thanksgiving was great this year!

We spent the day with my family and went to a church for dinner with my dad's side.

We played in the gym and ran around kicking balls, throwing them at each other and just playing.

I am so excited for Parker to get bigger and be able to play and run around with all 7 of my nephews :)

It was a a fun day and nice to just be together and enjoy each other.

We stopped by Grandma & Grandpa Smith's for a quick visit on our way home.

I wish we had Thanksgiving more often because I always need the reminder to open my eyes and recognize all that I have.

This Thanksgiving I am most grateful for our precious little baby boy.

I am thankful for Curtiss for the great dad and example he is (and will be) to Parker.

3 MONTHS!

2011-12-13T07:26:00.000-08:00

At 3 months:
-He recognizes people more and more and he will watch me from across the room.
-Finally gaining some weight! woo hoo!
-Has 2 perfectly cute chins! :)
-Still just a smiley lil guy. A few times in church when he is just awake he will look around and coo and smile at whoever will smile back at him. I love it!
-He LOVES being on his changing table. I don't know what it is but almost immediately when he is laid down he will start smiling so much.
-He is griping onto things, like my hair, phone cord, shirts etc.
-He has become clockwork to us and very predictable. So nice! (Thank you, Babywise!)
-He sleeps about 9 hours through the night and it is so great. (He does wake up maybe a couple of times just to be given back his binky or wrapped back up tight and he passes right back out. We can pretty much do that in our sleep now so that doesn't really count to me as waking up :) )
-He is getting really good at holding your neck up. When we burp you, you hold your neck up and get mad cause you just want to be eating. haha. Sometime you head butt us when your neck gives out.

-He giggled for the first time last night!!! It was the best thing ever!!!! Curtiss was tickling and playing with him and he just laughed and laughed!! Curtiss and I were in heaven, sweetest thing ever! :)

Parker, you just keep getting cuter and more fun!

You have given us a reason to be a little better and try a little harder.

We are so thankful you are ours, forever!

We were talking last night about how there is nothing better than coming home to our happy boy after a long day. TJ always said that to me, that parenting is hard and has challenges, but when you see your baby smile it is the best thing in the world. Couldn't agree more, brother.

Happy 3 months Parker boy!

2 MONTHS!

2011-12-12T16:40:00.000-08:00

Happy 2 months to my precious boy!

I cannot believe how much faster time is flying now that you are here with us!

We have just enjoyed every second with you and love you more than we knew was possible.

Here are a few things to remember about you at 2 months:
-You are quite the happy boy and smiling more and more! We LOVE that about you!
-You gained some weight...but apparently you are still our lil shrimp! You were in the 3% for weight and we started supplementing you with formula.
-You started sleeping pretty good through the night at about 8 weeks. (Thanks!)
-You always look to any light and just smile so big! I think you are talking to your angel friends that are visiting you :)
-You still love being in the bath tub and could stay there allllll day.
-You still roll over and we are amazed at how strong your tiny little body is.
-You giggled in your sleep SO loud while I was holding you (Nov. 7th) and it made my whole day! Can't wait till you start to giggle on purpose :)

We love you so much and love to watch you grow and change each day!

Happy 2 months my Parker boy!

MY FAMILY

2011-11-07T17:36:00.001-08:00

The very talented Kara Simmons took family/newborn pictures for us a few weeks back.

Parker was 2 weeks old.

She did such a great job!

Love love love them.

Thank you again, Kara!

Here are a few (okay..more than a few) of my favorites:

Love love my boys.

to the birthday boy.

2011-11-03T15:28:00.001-07:00

Did you know Curtiss' birthday was 4 days after Parker was born??

Yeah, I almost forgot too!! (haha jk)

I should have planned better and gotten him things early since I knew our baby boy would be coming so close to his bday.

Maybe one day he'll forgive me for neglecting him.

At least Parker gave him a card. :)

We actually just went to dinner a bunch of times to celebrate before Parker came.
I made him one of his favorite breakfast - blueberry muffins!
So I think he forgave me ;)

His family came over that night with homemade cafe rio to celebrate his birthday.
It was great for Curtiss to get that extra attention since we were all so excited about our new baby boy, especially me! :)

Curtiss did say that Parker was his all time favorite birthday present though.

It was a different (in a good way) birthday celebration for us both!
Just LOVE my boys!
I am so grateful they are mine.
I love seeing Curtiss as a Dad and I love how much he loves our little boy.
I couldn't be happier to celebrate my two boys in the same month from here on out!

Halloween

2011-11-01T03:08:00.000-07:00

Halloween 2011 was for sure my most fun halloween yet!

I have a feeling most holiday's are going to be so much more fun now that we have Parker in our lives!

It was just so fun to dress him up and see how cute he looked in his lil football jersey!

We found him a Detroit Lions jersey from Build a Bear! (Thanks Tara for the idea!!)

He and Curtiss we're matching and I was a football. haha.

He looked ADORABLE!!

When his outfit first came in the mail I got so excited I hurried and put it on him...it was bad timing on my part cause he was hungry so he just started crying.

I had to hurry and get some pics!

Well right after I took the pics I realized that he had peed and it went down his back and onto me!

We went to our ward trunk or treat and on Halloween we had dinner with TJ & Tara.

My mom took me to lunch and we went to Thanksgiving Point and walked around.

It was a great Halloween. :)

Visitors

2011-10-27T07:45:00.001-07:00

While we were at the hospital we appreciated so much all the visitors that we had!

I loved to see how many people came to meet our little man and I love looking at all the pics of him with family and friends.

My parents with their 8th grandson! :)

Baby Brock with his newest cousin.

(I'm bummed this is the only pic I got of Dez & Seth- it doesn't even really count!)

Trey is just the sweetest!

He is so loving!

He always wants to love and hug all the time.

Our oldest nephew Easton.

Uncles Brian & Austin with a very excited first time grandma!! :)

Aunt Telley!

TJ, Tara, Ty & Levi.

Excited cousin, Levi :)

Grandpa Smith. (Papi)

Our friend Cade with his baby boy Bauer.

Kels & I with out handsome boys!

Natalie :)

Cousin Cole :)

We really appreciated everyone who took the time to come and visit!

(even the ones I didn't get pics with! Sorry if I didn't!) :)

Thanks for making time for us and welcoming our boy!

rolling over!

2011-10-25T08:27:00.000-07:00

Parker rolled over!!

The other day (Oct. 17th) I realized that I had never really given him any "tummy time" so I decided I should start.

The first time I laid him down he just LOVED it and he pretty much cuddled the ground..

like this:

(yes, his diaper is huge on his tiny little bum and chicken legs!) haha :)

and like this:

A few hours later I decided to try again to see if he would actually lift up his head or anything.

To my surprise he rolled over!!

He did it over and over again.

For some reason he was not happy about being on his belly :)

So proud of our strong boy! :)

He has rolled over again since then, but it is kinda hit or miss.

The fact that he rolled over is a HUGE blessing to me.

A tender mercy, really.

I am going back to work in a few weeks and I am quite emotional about it.

One of the biggest things is how afraid I am about missing all of his "firsts".

Just thinking about leaving him I really get so sad, it just breaks my heart.

It will all be worth it and blah blah blah, I know... it still does not make it easier for me to leave him.

Anyways, I am so grateful that I got to see him roll over instead of having to hear about it from someone else.

Another cool thing is that Curtiss walked in the door right as I was recording him.

We were very proud parents! :)

Now I am just hoping for a big smile!!!

St. George in Aug

2011-10-19T10:49:00.000-07:00

It's hard to believe it, but we did still have lives before Parker came. :)

Here are a few things that happened shortly before he was here.

Curtiss passed this very stressful test (series 65) that he had been studying for like crazy!

He is now a financial planner and works as one for Net Worth Advisory Group in Sandy.

SO SO proud of him.

To celebrate we ate Cafe Rio, got us a dozen Krispy Kremes and headed of to St. George with The Allen's. (my oldest sis, her hubby and 5 boys).

It was a ton of fun!

I'm pretty sure Curtiss and I ate THE WHOLE BOX of donuts!

Sickening.

Originally I thought we would take them with us to St. George, but they didn't survive the drive.

At least I was pregnant and had an excuse... :)

How cute is he in that hat?!?!?

Peyton and his cute smile.

Climbing around the red rocks.

He most definitely had just picked his nose...haha... so funny.

(Dez, don't be mad I posted that! I thought it was cute! :) )

St. George is not complete without the tandem!

Thanks for a fun time, Allen's!

1 month!

2011-10-09T22:23:00.001-07:00

Happy 1 month to our sweet baby boy!!

How did a month go by so quick?!?

Makes me sad.

Please slow down time.

His first month with us has been so great!

Challenging, but great!

We love our lil guy so much!

We are trying to soak up every second.

It has been one of the greatest months of our lives.

LOVE LOVE LOVE my little family.

At one month Parker:

-Is wide eyed. He loves to open his eyes huge and just stare :)

-Toots all the time. I love it and think they are cute. :)

-Is the biggest snuggle bug. It is my most favorite thing ever ever ever!

-Makes the funniest noise when he's grumpy. I'm not sure how to describe it except like he is gargling with his mouth closed. So cute!

-Has a new found love with his swing.

-Is still loving his "bink" as Curtiss calls it.

-Has dark peach fuzz on his shoulders :)

-Gets the hiccups all the time...just like he did in my belly!

1 month old today!!

We love our Parker man so much!

He LOVES to sleep with his hands behind his head...ahhh... he just makes me melt.

See what I mean??

He loves to cuddle.

I love love love his little arm hugging his dad.

Makes me so happy!

more pics :)

2011-10-04T17:33:00.000-07:00

Just a bunch of random pictures of all the fun I get to have with my boy all day!

I just can't seem to get enough pictures of this tiny, handsome boy of mine!

He really loved his first bath, he melted into the corner and just about fell asleep.

Just can't get enough of these cheeks of his!!

LOVE THEM!

When we went to his 2 week appointment there was an older couple sitting there, as I walked passed she whispered loudly to her husband, "Look! That baby is frowning!"

I just smiled at her, but I wanted to explain that he wasn't frowning...he's cheeks are just so heavy that they hang and make him look like he's frowning. haha.

When we go on walks they bounce up and down!

SO FUNNY! :)

COUSINS!!

Parker: 3 weeks

Levi: 3 months

Brock: 5 months

These boys are going to be the best of cousins!

I love how close they are in age, so fun!

First time wearing shoes :)

My poor little guy..he gets very confused sometimes when Curtiss holds him. haha.

He is such a snuggler.

I LOVE LOVE LOVE it!!

I could just hold him all day and not do a thing!

(Sometimes I do just that, okay, most days that's all I do.)

Wide awake and ready for a morning walk and looking so handsome in his new shirt.

(Thanks again Shayley, he look so cute in it!)

My happy boy :)

He looks so big in this pic to me :(

4 generations of Curtiss'

At Parker's 2 week appointment we learned he had lost more weight (ugh!).

-He was 7 lbs. 1 oz.

-9% for weight (yikes!)

-77% for height

Tall and skinny?!?! Who's baby is this???

I have been pretty stressed about his weight, but I think he's eating more and getting bigger, I hope so!!!

PICS

2011-10-03T18:51:00.000-07:00

The day Parker was born some of our good friends, Cade & Kelsey had their little boy at the same hospital just hours earlier. During our whole pregnancies Kels and I would joke about this happening and we can't believe it really did!

Our other really good friend (and amazing photographer) Kara Simmons was at the hospital taking pictures for them and so of course she came to say hi and ended up taking pictures for us too! It was so much fun to have her there! She was running in between rooms and she even stayed till past 1am to get some of these pics! SO SO nice! All of the following pics are ones she took and I am seriously so happy we have them, I get emotional just looking at them. I just love them! She did such a good job, we can't thank her enough!! Enjoy the picture overload! :)

HE'S HERE!

2011-09-20T11:20:00.000-07:00

Our perfect baby boy is here!!

Parker Curtiss Smith

9/9/11

10:37 pm

7lbs 9oz.

20.5 inches long

We are so so so in love.

I think we have both been surprised by how much love we have for him.

Of course we knew we would love our son,

but I don't think we knew how much love we had to give him.

It's like I had a whole separate place in my heart that had never been used before and it opened up when our little guy came to us.

My first time holding him :) :)

I could not believe he is OURS!!

Curtiss holding his son for the first time.

One of the most perfect moments in my life.

I fell in love with Curtiss all over again and felt so grateful to him for giving me the gift of being a mom.

I love my boys.

I will save my very long labor story for my journal and share the condensed version here.

I was scheduled to be induced on 9/9/11 at 2:15pm.

Things started at around 3:30pm.

The Dr. broke my water at 6:00pm.

Epidural (aka HEAVEN) at 6:20

Parker arrived at 10:37pm.

Labor was WAY different than I thought it was going to be.

I think all the horror stories had me so scared and so the fact that I enjoyed most of it was such a surprise.

I loved having that time with Curtiss while we anxiously waited for our son.

I appreciated how hard it was for him to see me in so much pain and adored that he kept repeating whatever the nurse would tell me to do.

I am grateful he held my hand the whole time.

(well almost the whole time...he had to sit down a few times because he started to get light headed. haha)

Waiting for the action to start!

We had a couple of scares with Parkers heart beat dropping and staying low for longer periods of time than normal.

I had the best nurse ever who helped me to stay calm and relax even though it was one of the scariest moments ever.

We are so so grateful for our Dr.'s and nurses and for all they did to help make sure our boy arrived healthy.

We are more importantly grateful to our Heavenly Father for our perfect little gift.

I had no idea that having our son home would fill our house with so much love.

I love to see Curtiss hold this tiny boy of ours and just stare at him.

I love that as soon as he gets home he takes him from me to hold him and lay with him on his chest.

I love that Curtiss is already pretending that Parker likes football and "bonds" with him while watching some games. haha :)

I love these two boys more than anything and I am so so so grateful that they are forever mine.

I am completely obsessed with all his hair!!

Please oh please stay hair and don't go away.

I love his chubby little cheeks, his big brown eyes and all that fuzzy hair.

We didn't officially decide on his name until the 11th so his name tag was blank for a while. (Sheesh..hopefully next time I don't have such a hard time committing!)

Napping with my newborn :)

I am so so happy I had my camera so close so I could get this shot!

This was for real his reaction to seeing what baby's first poops look like!

hahahaha...

All dressed and ready to go home!!

So exciting!

The first few days home I could not even hardly talk or think about this sweet baby of mine without crying.

Curtiss got some good laughs out of it because it really was pathetic!

I'm glad all my hormones are somewhat back to normal so I'm not such a crazy person! :)

We are all doing great and so so happy!

I love my little family!

Baby shower and more :)

2011-09-07T20:31:00.000-07:00

We were way too spoiled by so many people. I can't say thank you enough!

It is so fun to see how much people love this lil baby boy of ours that we haven't even met yet :)

I did not do a good job at taking many pictures at all of my showers.

My grandma, Levi and I at my family shower :)

Yes, I got a beautiful cold sore that took up half my chin... this kid is stressing me out already!

Pretty sisters :)

I'm bummed I didn't get a pic of all my sisters at the shower!

They did SO much for me!

The shower was a lot of fun and the food was delish!!

I have known all these girls for most my life!

I love life-long friends :)

Cute Trey with the chocolate mustaches Dez made..haha..he is so cute :)

All my amazing Buckle friends :)

I have the best co-workers ever!

I got some of THE cutest baby clothes and enough mula for my stroller and car seat!

Ahhh...so spoiled.

Curtiss' family shower was a ton of fun too!

I was actually pretty sick that whole day so I was pretty out of it and really bummed that I didn't even take ONE picture. ugh.

Our boy will be the first grandson for them and it is so fun how excited everyone is!

His aunt made this cute lil diaper cake and it is the only picture of anything from the shower.

We are now just in the waiting game stage.

This picture Dezi made couldn't be more perfect for my stage right now :)

I am 39 weeks and and really trying to just be patient :)

We really just want to meet him already!!! :) :)

At my last appointment I was dilated to a 3.5 and still 80% effaced.

Tomorrow we will see if anything is progressing...I am hoping so!

Maybe he is waiting till we decide on a name to come??

Seriously we still can't commit.

(mostly me. I am having a hard time naming this child of mine that I have not seen.)

I can't believe it is finally coming to a close...it is so weird how the days go slow but the months go so fast.

I really have been so blessed to be able to continue working full time and for feeling great almost my whole pregnancy.

We got his room painted and Curtiss did a great job and I love just having a fresh paint job!

We did a neutral color and I love it!

I'll post some after pics after I get the wall decor up that I want :)

(yeah, I know it will be after baby is here, but oh well!)

His room is still a work in progress but here is the dresser that my parents gave us a long time ago that I decided to use as his changing table, so I had to paint it blue of course! :)

Got my toes done by a good friend and I of course had to do BLUE in honor our lil guy :)

(and although it looks like my feet are swollen they really aren't, I have naturally chubby feet! haha..It's a good thing I didn't get any swelling cause then they would be out of control chubby!)

39 week pic!

(can you tell what my favorite maternity shirt is ? :) )

Come on baby boy...we are all patiently waiting to meet you!!!!

Please don't make us wait too much longer! :)

Catch up

2011-08-24T09:11:00.000-07:00

A few months back there was a big convention at the Grand America for financial planners.

Curtiss was not officially a financial planner yet since he was still finishing up school and studying.

He applied for a scholarship that they offered to a certain amount of potential financial planners so that they could be able to attend.

He got the scholarship and was able to attend the full convention and got a free night stay at Little America!

I am so proud of him for always working so hard!

Of course I took advantage of this and made sure I got a night off of work to go spend time with him.

It was so much fun :)

If you know us, then you know that we LOVE any little get-away possible.

Even though we were just in Salt Lake it was still so much fun :)

I though our room was just GORGEOUS!

So cute and vintage looking.

A couple months after that I won a free night stay at the Radisson Hotel in Salt Lake City with a delicious breakfast buffet included!

I was SO SO happy when I won, you would have thought I won a million dollars!

It was such a good time and fun to have just another little get-away.

We had a suite with a separate room with the TV - Curtiss loved that!

While we were in Salt Lake we decided we needed to finally go to Red Iguana together since we always hear so many people talk about it.

It was yummers!

Mexican is normally my favorite food ever, but since I have been pregnant it has gone way down on my favorite list, so I'm sure if we go back when I'm not pregnant I'll love it even more!

The next morning we went to the Farmers Market in Salt Lake and bought a huge bag of delicious cherry's and walked around.

It was a perfect little trip :)

My mom's side of the family had a little get together a while back too.

It was so much fun to see everyone, enjoy my Abuelita's DELICIOUS cooking and play ponchados.

Grandma & Grandpa Smith took us all to the Rodeo for Austin's birthday.

It was my 2nd time going and I think they are so much fun!

Never would have thought that I would enjoy a rodeo, but I love it!

It was a fun time with the Smith family :)

As far as baby update we are getting so close it is crazy!

Here I am at 36 weeks!

I am now 37 weeks and I can't believe it is coming so quick!

I have such a combination of emotions.

Nervous. Excited. Anxious. Scared.

Just about everything you can feel, I think I am feeling.

I have been really lucky pretty much my whole pregnancy.

I've had a few rough days where I didn't feel so good but I really can't complain.

At my 36 week appointment my Dr. said I am dilated to a 2 and 80% effaced.

She told us to "be ready starting tonight up until your due date for him to come."

That really freaked Curtiss out! haha... It was pretty funny because I think we hadn't really given much thought of him coming before his due date until our Dr. said that.

I have my next appointment tomorrow so we'll see if anything has changed.

The last of Hawaii...

2011-08-11T17:27:00.000-07:00

Grandpa Smith actually served an LDS mission in Hawaii and on Sunday we got to go to church at the same building he had been to.

The building behind us was actually the mission home back in the day. (I believe)

I just LOVE how close Curtiss is with his sister, Telley.

It reminds me of TJ and I.

I just love to see a protective older brother who would do anything for his little sister, so this pic just makes me smile.

They actually took a picture in this exact same spot years back on their last trip to Hawaii with Grandma and Grandpa Smith.

Aren't they cute???

I just love him so much :)

3 of the NICEST people in the world :)

Later that day we went to a memorial place called The Punch Bowl.

Pretty lookout at the Punch Bowl

and the boys and their tattoos :)

The next morning we got up bright and early so the boys could go surfing.

Curtiss is probably saying something about how he is a pro surfer and I better get this on film...haha :)

Getting instructions before getting in the water.

They did a really good job out there and had tons of fun!

Us girls got to sit back, watch the boys, and just enjoy each others company.

My pregnant self really enjoyed just sitting back and relaxing :)

On our way to North Shore we just HAD to stop at DOLE to enjoy some ice cream again....MMMMM...

North Shore is seriously SOO gorgeous....

We had SO SO SO SO much fun at this spot!!

We got thrown around by these waves SO bad and it was so much fun!

It was the PERFECT spot!

One of the best things about this spot was how into it Carolyn got!

She was having the time of her life and screaming and laughing SO hard!

It was SO much fun!

We had sand stuck in every inch of our body and I'm pretty sure it took us days to get it all out- so worth it though!

Last stop before we went to the airport:

Pearl Harbor.

Half of my belly in this picture is baby, the other half shows you how much we ate this trip!

We got spoiled and went to so many yummy dinners, had lots of ice cream, treats and ate way too much!

Curtiss really enjoyed himself at Pearl Harbor :)

We peeled like we had never peeled before, but it was so worth it!

Can you see how big of chunks his skin peeled off?!?!

I actually really enjoyed helping get off the dead skin, is that gross? :)

We had the time of our lives!!!

We will never forget this trip.

It was perfect timing in so many ways.

We loved every second of it!

Thank you so much for the memories Grandma & Grandpa Smith!

We love you!

Continued...

2011-08-07T21:49:00.000-07:00

Our 3rd day in Hawaii we went to the North Shore and explored for the perfect spot to spend the day.

It is SOO incredible there! I loved everything about it!

While we were finding the best spot we came across Turtle Bay where they have these HUGE turtles that just hang out.

Apparently you have to be like 6 feet away from the turtles because right before I took this pic some lady came running over, blowing a whistle at Curtiss telling him to back away.

Hahaha...what a rebel.

Curtiss and his mom when we finally picked the spot to spend the day :)

We road some waves on the boogy board, got thrown around by the waves and just enjoyed the sun!

We also buried Cam in the sand, I let them bury me too and I actually thought it felt sooo good being covered and not frying from the sun.

On the way home we stopped at the Dole Plantation and enjoyed us some of the most delicious pineapple ice cream ever!!! MMMM...it was so good!!! My mouth is watering just thinking about it. We had such a good time just laughing, hanging out together and soaking up the sun.

The next day we got up bright and early and headed for Hunauma Bay to do some snorkeling!

Once again, it was just BEAUTIFUL there!!

Uncle Ken and I :)

Lookin great in all our snorkeling gear! :)

It took me a while to get into snorkeling because first of all we picked a pretty shallow spot to snorkel and my belly kept dragging across the bottom :)

When we finally found the perfect spot to snorkel I loved it!

(even though my pregnant self is very out of shape!)

Curtiss really loved it and I thought he looked pretty darn cute with all his gear on :)

Bri climbed up this cool tree and hung out up there for a bit.

Could it be anymore beautiful?!?!?!

I seriously LOVED the scenery!

After snorkeling we headed over to see some blow holes.

It was pretty sweet to see how high the water would shoot up.

It started raining while we were there and within minutes it stopped.

That happened to us quite a few times while we were there and usually it felt SOOO good because the blazing sun and we would get a perfect mist of rain to cool us off.

View from behind the blow holes and one of my most favorite pics of the trip.

Isn't Grandpa Smith so cute? :)

We ended the night with a nice family dinner and enjoyed the scenery from behind our hotel.

Hawaii continued...

2011-07-28T17:13:00.001-07:00

Looking fabulous on our way to check out the beach one morning.

The scenery around our hotel was incredible.

On our way to the Polynesian Cultural Center we stopped to take some pics of how beautiful and green it was!

Telley, Aust, and Curtiss :)

Sisters! :)

The whole group!

The 2 Curtiss' :)

The boys went on a hunt behind all these trees.

They found some coconuts growing and Bri tried to break one open, but I think it was moldy or something.

The Temple.

One of the most GORGEOUS views ever.

I loved it.

2 of the kindest people I've met.

Grandma & Grandpa Smith.

Tree climber at the PCC.

Some of the entertainment.

It was seriously SOO hot while we were watching, good thing it was so good! :)

Just about to start the Luau.

The food was yummers!!

I probably enjoyed the pineapple more than I ever had in my life.

SO SO GOOD!

Imitating the statues....

Day 2 was a very fun filled day!!

I didn't realize how many pictures I had until just barely and I have only hit on the first 2 days of Hawaii...so much more to come!

Hawaii

2011-07-21T21:19:00.000-07:00

Last month Curtiss' grandparents took us on an amazing trip to Hawaii!

It was AMAZING!!!!!

We had the best time ever.

It was perfect to be with family.

It was perfect to be on a vacation and not worry about a thing.

It was perfect in every way possible.

The 6 hour flight actually flew by thanks to naps, books, movies, games and TV shows we could choose from.

We landed at about 3pm and went straight to the hotel Hale Koa, which is located right on Waikiki Beach...AMAZING!!

We then met up with the whole family where Grandma & Grandpa Smith took us to a nice dinner at a restaurant in the hotel we stayed in.

It was YUMMY!

I tried Poi bread for the first time.

The view from dinner was gorgeous since we were sitting outside enjoying the perfect weather.

After dinner we hurried to the beach so we could watch the sunset.

It was BEAUTIFUL.

Just thinking about it makes me want to go back now to that exact moment.

Curtiss played football with his dad and siblings while I sat with his mom and chatted.

It was perfect to just enjoy each other in paradise.

Curtiss even got a little crazy and showed us his Elaine Dance moves!! haha :)

Our first day in Hawaii was perfect!

Lots more from Hawaii coming soon!

babies, babies

2011-07-10T17:23:00.000-07:00

April 14th, 2011 my oldest sister Dezi and her husband, Seth, welcomed their 5th boy to their family!

Can you believe it??? 5 BOYS!!!

I am obsessed with every single one of them.

Here is Brock just getting ready to go home :)

Look how handsome he is in his cute lil church clothes!!

I just LOVE him!

I think I need a matching tie for our lil one when he gets here :)

We went over to their house for his baby blessing.

It was a perfect day!

I LOVE family time :)

Especially with my (now 7) amazing nephews to hang out with we are always laughing and having a good time!

Easton looking so adorable in his cute new glasses :)

We sung happy birthday to Cole!

He LOVES aunt "Banana"!

She just moved to NY and we MISS HER SO MUCH already!

Curtiss trying to help Ty jump on the tramp :)

My Dad is just so cute with all his grandsons!

He deserves to have all these boys to play around with since he had to deal with 5 daughters ;)

After Brock was about 2 months old he got really sick.

I am really bad with all the medical and technical stuff, but basically he had a terrible infection and had to get surgery and all these sad IV's and tests done.

It really is a long story, but I really shouldn't even try to explain it.

Long story short:

I am so grateful he is his happy, healthy self again!

I am grateful for the Priesthood.

I am grateful for modern medicine.

I am so thankful to have him as my perfect little nephew!

Isn't this picture the sweetest thing ever?!?!

It makes me melt.

Speaking of nephews....I now have my 7th nephew!!

Yes, 7 nephews and still no nieces.

Our baby with be grandson #8 :)

This is the latest addition to our family!

TJ & Tara welcomed Levi Troy on July 7th! :)

Isn't he precious?!?!

Oh my gosh I am obsessed.

Life is great :)

I am just about 31 weeks now and time just seems to be FLYING.

9 weeks left!!!

CRAZYNESS!

It's all really exciting and scary at the same time!

We really cannot wait to meet out little guy!

I find myself getting really nervous about all the unknown but I could not be more grateful for the blessing being pregnant has been to us so far.

I am so grateful for Curtiss for how amazing he has been to me.

I really have had a very easy pregnancy so far and I am SO grateful for that!

I still have my days where I am uncomfortable, emotional and just not the most fun to be around and Curtiss just smiles and listens to me and helps me to remember what a blessing this whole experience is to our family.

He always tells me he loves my belly.

I still get SO excited every time I can feel him move and at nights Curtiss and I look at my stomach move all over the place.

We still cannot figure out a name!

I don't know how people decide cause I swear it is going to give us both a heart attack!

Hopefully within the next 9 weeks we can decide on something! :)