Oh What Fun

Christmas was wonderful! Here are the highlights:

Puzzles with Grandma Connie ; DeLiCioUs lasagna and holiday treats ; Bella

crawling!! ; Sister Madi's 20th birthday - dinner at Cheesecake Factory...mmm ; ....


.... Christmas day bike ride in 75 degree weather ; Madi wearing her onsie pajamas I gave

her! haha ; Laughing at Grandma Connie for talking to herself all the time - "Oh

now, let me think...Now I'm gonna do this...Oh don'tcha know" ; Watching Glee with my

awesome sisters Madi and Savanna ; ...
... Universal Studios all day with my sisters, where we got soaked on a ride, then

visited the 'People Dryer', got flipped off by a 10 year old kid, and helped an old lady

put her shoes back on...what FUN we had! ; and last but certainly not least,

spending Christmas with the two loves of my life: Bella and my amazing husband Ty!

Merry Christmas!

Bella makes me so happy!!!

Merry Christmas to all!!

I like it here

Florida, that is. It was in the 80's today. I guess that's not the only reason for liking it here.

The people are so friendly! Anytime I'm in the neighborhood, people wave. I have finally caught on and I wave back. I'm so polite, I know.

Bella loves being mauled every day after 2:30pm (when her 10-year-old Aunt Isabelle comes home from school)...and after 6:10pm (when her Grandpa Rowdy comes home from work)...and every few hours by her daddy who gets to see her as he pleases! Ty really likes that. So Bella stays happy.

Bella has only been in my life for 7 months now, but it feels like she's always been here. I can't believe I ever lived without her! She has 2 bottom teeth and now the 2 top teeth are pushing their way through. Bella doesn't appreciate those things and neither do I! Besides the disruption they are to sleep, she likes to grind them, and it's like nails on a chalk board for me! EEK!!! I get chills just typing about it.

Christmas is around the corner and it's hard to feel like it's that time already - especially without cold weather to prove it. I've been playing Christmas songs on the piano...and frankly, I think I'll be dreaming of a white Christmas forever! It's a little weird without the white fluffy stuff.

I miss Utah, and I like it here. I remain conflicted.

Thanksgiving

We spent Thanksgiving at my Grandpa's beach house this year, and it was so fun!

It was a little chilly to swim, but we certainly enjoyed the relaxing atmosphere the beach house has to offer!

Golf cart rides, fishing, and hammock naps were among the usual activities!

Top 5 things I'm thankful for:
1. Bella and Ty
2. My family and friends
3. The beauty of this earth
4. The restored gospel of Jesus Christ
5. My Savior

Palm Trees and Crocs

Wow. We're here. How did this all happen so fast? We were only just TALKING about moving here for fun...and look what happened. If you want something to happen, just talk about it aLOT!

Bella, Ty and I are loving it here!

Bella's favorite new hobbies include bike rides through the neighborhood, trying new baby foods (squash is not on her list of favorites), experimenting with a sippy cup (more like a new chew toy), and rolling around all over the floor. At her 6 month check-up last week, she weighed in at 19.9lbs and was almost 27 inches. She's at the top of her charts and I love all her chunky rollyness! More to love on, right?

Ty's been working from home doing freelance stuff, and the rest of the day works on getting his business going. He officially has a business! It's called pixelMEGA, LLC, and he's working on getting his website up. He loves having the creative freedom to work on his games, and we are incredibly grateful to my parents for allowing us in their home to make this happen!

The Longwood Ward has welcomed us with open arms and I have already met some really awesome people! I've been trying to form some kind of schedule, so in the mornings I bike or jog, sometimes with Bella, and the afternoon usually includes errands with mom, which is always fun. When my sisters come home from school, Bella is entertained with Isabelle (who's always trying to dodge doing homework), and after that, it feels like I never see Bella. Between Ty, my mom, Isabelle, Savanna, and especially my dad, Bella is almost always on someone's hip...And she loves it!

Yesterday there was a shuttle launch, and unfortunately I didn't see it, but Ty said he got a glimpse and that it was one of the most awe inspiring things he had seen in a long time.

Every time we see a lake or puddle of water, we look for an alligator...and so far, no luck.

The neighborhood creatures are awfully friendly...Some deer and big scary birds came up to me while I was jogging and I about peed my pants I was so startled!

We're headed to the beach house for Thanksgiving, and we can't wait. Our good friend Jake is coming out to visit us the week after Thanksgiving, so that will be totally awesome!! Can't wait!

Whelp. That's all.

Almost There

With his 26' Penske Truck and 4 days of driving, Ty made it safely to Florida!! The trip didn't come without it's mishaps, but we'll let Ty tell that story another day :0)

Church members and my family have helped unload everything, and Ty is finally getting settled in. I feel like I'm getting the better end of this deal - when I get to Florida, all of the back breaking work will be done! Woo hoo! THANKS Ty, Mom, and Dad!!!

Bella and I have been in Colorado visiting my dad, cousins and sister Madison the past week. Right now we're in Nebraska (my old stomping grounds), and tonight Bella met her Great-Grandpa Bob and Great-Grandma Marion! They were so cute and protective of her. I had a great drive out with my fabulous 2nd cousin Kerry and I am excited for everyone else I get to see tomorrow! Yay!

Can't wait to get the party started in Florida! There's no turning back now, Mom and Dad!! :0)

Vote for Ty's Game!

Vote for Ty!

He made a game prototype for a competition online, and needs your votes!

Thanks to all for your support!

http://pixelmega.com

My girl...

...is getting her first TOOTH!

That explains why she chews on everything...

I think I called everyone and their grandma to tell them my new discovery. It's not quite breaking the gums, but it's definitely there! AH!

It's kinda weird how a little tooth makes her seem more like a real person now and not just a little baby. She's graduated to the 'baby with a tooth' phase! Boy am I a first time parent, or WHAT!!

The only one?

Car wash. Highly pressurized water hose. Window down. My face.

Am I the only one that does this?

P.S. We're MOVING!

In case you're hearing this for the first time...SURPRISE!!!
WE'RE MOVING TO FLORIDA!

...in 9 days!

Have I packed?

Nope.

Am I excited?

Yep.

Sad, too?

Yep.

I don't know why I'm typing like that. Anyway...

Reason #1 for moving: Why not?
Reason #2: So Ty can jump start his career into video game-making.
Reason #3: Cuz my parental units just can't WAIT to have their daughter living at home again! Duh! Okay, really, the only reason they'll tolerate me again is because I have leverage - That leverage is a little thing I call Bella.

So for now we're going to move in with my parents and see where this takes us!

PS. Ty is entering his most recent game prototype into an online competition, and he will need your votes to make it to the finals! It requires a quick registration (name and a junk email), so be on the look out. I'll post the link as soon as it's ready! Thanks!

Here's our newly squealing Bella.

Fat and Happy

Feelin' perky before she got her shots. Her stats: height - 26.75in (97th percentile) & weight - 15lbs 8oz (75-90th percentile).

The battle wounds...and a smile? Yeah, that was temporary.

FINALLY setting up the crib.

Bella enjoyed the swing and got a little discovery channel lesson in the mating rituals of ducks.

Lovin' the swing!

Bella is so entertaining! We are always amused with what she's doing...folding her body in half and grabbing her feet, drooling, gabbing on and on...it never gets old!

4 Blissful Months

Swimmin' in the ocean!

Grabbin' Daddy's face

Lovin' on those fingers! Mmmm

Bella has 15 Henrie cousins and 3 more to come!! How fun!

My sweet little Bella! She's already 4 months old!!

Last night I finally tried letting Bella sleep through the night and it was a success! I have had her in the same room as me and usually in bed with me, well, cuz I'm lazy, and because I love to snuggle with her. With the help of a good friend, I finally decided to put her in the other room and give her the paci instead of just feeding her in the middle of the night and it was a breeze! I think Bella was ready to sleep through the night a long time ago...me on the other hand...I was takin' my time.

Bella grabs her feet now and it's hilarious! She laughs more willingly, but still makes us work for it. And she still explodes a diaper everyday. Wonderful!

Bella's Blessing!

Congrats to Austin and Krista Westenhofer! What a cute couple!

Takin' a break from the heat...Bella had quite a reaction when I blew in her face!

The Henrie family at Bella's blessing. Thanks to all who could come! We appreciate it!

Four generations!

Bella doesn't think a thing of all this excitement!

What a fun weekend! My mom and grandma came out on Thursday and we have been going 90 miles a minute! Friday we spent all day in Ogden with friends for a wedding... Saturday we shopped til we dropped then drove to Neola... and Sunday we had Bella's blessing, drove home, and spent time with some Alabama friends! We are tired of being crammed in our tiny Jetta, that's for sure!

Bella's blessing was beautiful! Ty did a wonderful job. We were so grateful that most of his family could be there. Most of them had a 4 hour drive with 5 kids in the car. Yikes! It was great to feel that support from them! Bella showed her excitement by exploding her diaper in her beautiful blessing dress. Nice one Bells!

Bella and I leave to Florida again today and we're excited! Grandpa Rowdy and the girls are especially excited!! We will be gone for 10 days and are sad to leave Ty at home all by his lonesome. We will miss him.

Life is good

3 Months old!!!

Wolf Creek, UT for the Henrie family reunion!

Fun Kayaks

Da bella

You can see me taking her picture in her eyes! Cool!

Ty keeping Bella entertained

Chillin' with mommy

All dressed up for the Oquirrh Temple Open House

Beautiful temple!

Evidence we were there.

We have been busy busy the past month! Well, it seems like it...but maybe we're not really that busy. Ty is working on his independent video game called "Cloudee". It's a really clever idea and when he's finished it, I get to be the first to test it out! We love to brainstorm how it will work - maybe the cloud can shade the little people, or maybe it can just rain on everyone. Kinda fun.

I'm loving every minute of being a mom!! This weekend we enjoyed the Henrie family reunion in a huge 8 bedroom house we rented...hot tubbin, hot air balloon watchin (ok, we didn't get up early enough to actually SEE them, but I saw them in my sister-in-law's picture! That counts, right? haha), lots of eating, chatting, walking, games, and relaxing. It was so beautiful where we stayed and it was actually kinda chilly at the lake! We had fun though!!

Bella is making all kindsa noises, smiling and just started laughing. She doesn't do it very often, but when it happens, it's the most adorable thing I've ever heard!!!! We go for walks daily, and she loves that! She looks all around and stares at you just smiling and happy. She gets mad when I stop and talk to all the neighbors though. Poor thing.

Anyway...that's all I know. We're all fat and happy. Can't complain!

Beach Life

We just spent a week at my Grandpa and Grandma's beach house in Florida and had a blast!! So much to tell!! Here are some highlights:

- Bella finally met the rest of the Gaines family!
- We spotted a manatee and actually swam right next to it and pet it in the ocean! Amazing!
- We ate yummy blackened grouper and played Taboo.
- Aunt Tracy told hilarious stories about us all...we laughed a lot!
- We chased crabs with flash lights at night and got eaten alive by bugs.
- We laughed at Grandpa Buddy who couldn't do the tongue twister "One Smart Feller, He felt Smart". Try it!
- We saw a dead baby turtle and many turtle nests.
- We took many hammock naps. Those were Bella's favorite!
- We fished off the dock and caught a couple of fish.
- Ty skim boarded successfully.
- Bella spent most of her time with her Auntie's, Gramma's and Grandpa's in the air conditioned house. She appreciated that.
- We pranked my sister Madison who believed a stranger made eerie noises on her window!
- We kayaked and I saw a shark!
- I faced off with a black snake by the outdoor shower. The snake won. I showered inside.
- We floated and swam in the ocean for hours.
- We took many pictures and made many exciting memories!

2 More Days 'Til Florida!

Bella and I are very excited to be in Florida on Friday to see my family!! ... Especially Bella! :0)

2 Month Stats

Oh to the doctor's we go!!

Length - 23.75in - 90th percentile

Weight - 13lbs 2oz - 95th percentile

She was such a trooper, but I was that nervous, annoying first time mom....taking pictures like the paparazzi and asking 100 times how I could help.

After her shots she was pretty fussy, but all day today she's been great!!

Feelin' good and havin' a ball!