EASTER 2011

HAPPY EASTER!  I have always LOVED Easter, it is by far one of my favorite holidays. I remember as a kid, my brother and I going on an easter egg hunt all across our 1 acre property and then riding our bikes all around our small town on a treasure hunt, going from clue to clue to find our easter baskets. We had soooo much fun!! I have looked forward to continuing that tradition with my own kids for years and years. This year however, Easter was a bit different for us. Last year, during my pregnancy, we had planned on having Waylon here with us this year to hunt for eggs and receive an easter basket with goodies, but life decided to take a major detour for us. We had planned to go to his rock and take him an easter egg, but we determined that because of the weather conditions in that area, we probably wouldn't have been able to get up the mountain. So instead of doing that, we were able to spend time with our immediate family, share in a spiritual moment and just be grateful for our savior and the possibility of eternal families. We believe one day we will be with Waylon again. We thought of you so much today son. This year, I also couldn't help but think of the cute little dresses that miss Madison will be wearing next year as she hunts for eggs and goodies. I got a feeling that she wanted to be a part of our Easter "this" year too though, so I decided that since she couldn't wear an easter dress just yet......she could be an EGG!! The outfit fit her little shape just perfectly. Chris had so much fun painting her!! It was definitely an Easter we will never forget. I love my family!! xoxo 

MARCH FOR BABIES T-SHIRTS

I received the proof today for the T-shirts I had ordered for the March For Babies Walk. I think they look great!! I will have them available to pick up the morning of the walk so we can all wear them for the event. I just want to thank everyone who has already signed up to walk with us and also those who have donated. THANK YOU!! It means so much to me to have the love and support of a great family and friends. I know Waylon would be so proud of us for trying to make a difference. Just a reminder and a few details about the walk: If you haven't signed up to walk with the team yet, it is not too late....you can sign up pretty much until right before the walk. Make sure every person, over age 5, that is planning on walking, is signed up seperately!! The people that put on the walk just ask that we do this so that they know how much food they need to get and to get a rough estimate on how many people they will have attending. So, if you do still sign up, just know that won't be able to get anymore T-shirts ordered, as they take a while to print and ship. The walk will be a lot of fun! They are having a free breakfast, games, prize drawings, live music, face painting, a juggler and a balloon artist! Plus....you get to walk 3 miles and burn off the free breakfast calories!! ha ha  I think it will be a great family event. I look forward to seeing everyone!! Again, thank you, thank you for your support and donations. Remember.....no pressure......but if you can, please help us reach our team goal of $100. We are half way there, all you have to do is click here!! Or....there is a link on the sidebar. XOXO

FAMILY BBQ

Ok, so Chris and I have been wanting to do this since last summer. We never got the chance to have everyone over to our new home for a BBQ before we lost Waylon, so now that the weather is getting a lot better, we would love it if everyone would join us for a family BBQ at the Stagge Ranch!! It has been a loooooonnnnngggg time since we have seen everyone and we are so grateful for all of the love and support you have given us over the last 10 months. We miss everyone soooo much!! This is our way of saying THANK YOU!! The BBQ will be held at 2:00 pm on May 14, 2011. We have a huge yard, so bring any games you would want to play outside, bring some camp chairs to sit in (we only have about 8), bring all of your kiddos (yes we are fine with the littlest ones now too :), and come hungry!! Chris and I will provide all the meat (hamburgers & hotdogs) and the buns and drinks. If everyone could bring a side to share, we would greatly appreciate it. We hope EVERYONE will be able to make it, but we realize that schedules don't always mesh, so if you can't make it that's ok, no worries. Please RSVP by no later than May 12th so that we know how much food to get. We are so excited to see everyone!! We love you all so much. xoxo

WALK WITH ME

Ok family, I need your help. I have registered to walk in the 2011 March Of Dimes, March For Babies. It is 3 mile walk to support this amazing organization. Funds raised in March for Babies support research and programs that help moms have full-term pregnancies and babies begin healthy lives. And they will be used to bring comfort and information to families with a baby in newborn intensive care. I have started a "Family Team" called "Team Waylon". We will be walking in honor of Waylon on Saturday May 7, 2011 starting at 10:00 am, registration however begins at 9:00 am. The walk is held at the Layton Commons Park, 437 North Wasatch Drive, Layton, UT 84041. There is a map link on the site. So....this walk is free, however I set a goal for my team to try and raise $100.00. I figure if I can find 10 people to walk with me and each of them donated $10.00 then we would reach our goal!! I know this is a lot to ask, and you don't have to do it if you don't want to. I know that times are tight right now, and every little bit counts. I would still love to have you walk with me, even if you can't donate a penny. I am in the process of getting matching T-shirts for everyone, so if you're planning on doing this with me, let me know so I can get you a T-shirt, if you want one. There are 2 options. The first is just a plain black one with the March of Dimes logo and says Family Team, they are $6.50-$9.00 each depending on size needed and quantity ordered.....or we could go with a more personalized option of having shirts designed, but they would run about $15.00 each. I am leaning toward the cheaper option. I know this is kind of short notice, but the shirts can take a bit of time to come in, so I need you to let me know before this Saturday, April 16, 2011. That's when I will be placing the order. All the information for the walk and more about what March of Dimes does can be found at my team page TEAM WAYLON. Please, if you want to do this with me, go to my team page and click on "join this team". There are other options too, if you can't make it to the walk, but still want to support Team Waylon and the March of Dimes, then you are more than welcome to donate. Every penny makes a difference. Even if you can't donate yourself, you can give the website information to anyone whom you think would want to and they can then donate. There is also a button on my sidebar that will allow you to go directly to the team page and/or donate. Please don't feel obligated though, I NEVER want our family to feel obligated. This is just a cause that speaks dearly to my heart. I unfortuantely have learned that there are so many different things that can threaten the lives of babies. This organization is trying to make a difference by doing research to prevent these things and helping families with sick babies. I have wondered for almost 10 months now.....why? Why could no one see that there was a problem with Waylon's umbilical cord. What if there was a way to start seeing problems like these on ultrasound or something? Could that have saved his life? I will always wish that something could have been done. Although I will never get him back, maybe by doing my little part in helping the March of Dimes they can eventually come up with a way to save babies with those kind of problems, and sooooo many others. It really is a miracle when a baby is born healthy, considering everything that can go wrong. Wow, I sound like a spokesperson, don't I? This will be a fun family event to do together. I hope you will join me. Chris and I love each and every one of you. We look forward to seeing you soon. xoxo

I NEED YOUR HELP

I have been trying to choose a newborn photographer since I was pregnant with Waylon. I thought I had it narrowed down to one for sure last summer, but I keep revisiting another one's website and re-evaluating my decision. So.....I need your help to choose one. I never got a chance to book a session with one of them last year, and I'm pretty sure you have to book them way beforehand to ensure that you get a spot. So, if you have a minute, look at each one of their websites and tell me which one you think is better. Be honest. Which one would you choose?Ok so first go to Jen Faucet Photography , go to enter website, then click on portrait gallery, select {fresh} newborns and peruse. :)  Then go to Brittany G Photography and click enter website, then galleries, then newborns. Oh my goodness right!! This is why I'm having such a HARD time choosing between them. There is also one other one that is way cute too, so for a third option go to Amber Togisala Photography, click on galleries, then babies & children. I love the pic with the saddle!! Ok, now that you have seen all three, which one???? HELP!!! Leave me a comment and tell me which one you would pick. Thanks for your help everyone!! I can't wait to have these done. Photos are so important to me. I always look back and wish I had taken more. They are something that is worth the cost to me. xoxo   :) 

I {heart} CARHARTT

I just had to share a post on the cutest little girl clothes I have ever seen!! I am just going crazy here wanting to dress Madison. Chris and I were at Cal Ranch the other day and noticed their huge supply of Carhartt clothes for babies. We had bought a few things last year for Waylon, but they didn't have very much of a selection. So I was way surprised to see that they had sooooo much more this year, especially for girls!! Lucky me right. So, I got on their website to see what else they may have and holy manolly they have a ton of stuff that is so stinkin adorable.....eeeeekkk!! (that was a squeal of excitement) I am just gushing over here. Check out these outfits, I am going to have to restrain myself I think, or we'll go broke for sure. She is going to look so darn cute!! Hurry up little girl, momma's very impatient. :) These are only a few of the things I found on there. They have lots of little boy stuff too. To check it out, go to http://www.carhartt.com/ and look under the kid's tab at the top. Happy shopping!!

98 DAYS TO GO

Woo Hoo! I've made it down to the double digits. Madison will be here in 98 days!! Not that I'm counting that closely or anything. (wink wink) In some ways this pregnancy is going faster now that I know "who" exactly is coming. I can make preparations, decorate the nursery and go shopping. Yiipppeee!! Starting at the end of this month, at 27 weeks I will be going in every 2 weeks for appointments and then at 33 weeks we will start the weekly visits to do non-stress tests. Those few things should make it feel like its going faster too. However, sometimes I look at the days left and think, you have got to be kidding me, 98 more days. I have been pregnant for FOREVER!! I'm not even sure I remember what it feels like to "not" be pregnant. Good thing I love every second of it huh. Yes, even the morning sickness and siatica pain, even the difficulty tying my shoes, the nosebleeds, the trouble sleeping, the absentmindedness and the exhaustion. There are so many weird things that happen. I know I am counting down minute by minute, but it's not because I hate being pregnant, it's because I just want my little one HERE safe in my arms. My arms have ached to hold my baby for months and months and I can hardly wait to feel that feeling again. Hurry up little Madison, get cookin in there!! Momma will see you soon little girl. In the meantime, keep kicking me as much as possible, I don't mind one bit. :)  Here are the latest bump pictures, in order, from weeks 21, 22, 23 and 24!! Enjoy!!  

OUR LONG LOST BLOG....FOUND

For some reason I was bound and determined to locate our old blog that I started in 2008 tonight. Well, I finally found the darn thing and decided that it was not worth finding afterall. ha ha  I hadn't done much to it and none of the posts really mattered to me anymore, so I guess I will just continue from here. It turns out it was under a different Google account though, which is apparently why I couldn't find it. I am such a nerd!! Anyway, it had been bugging me for quite some time now and now I can rest easy that it is no longer lost. Now it's time for bed. :) YAWN!!