Ellie's Blessing Day

We blessed Ellie Rose at home so that we could have most of our family there. The circle was HUGE-13 priesthood brethren total. It was so wonderful to have everyone there- Ellie was so happy, she was full on grinning the whole blessing- Papa Perry peeked :). Thanks to all who sacrificed to be there! We truly appreciate all the support you all give our little family! "Squinks" in her blessing ensemble
She's such a happy girl!
Grandma with Ellie
The Four Generations- Gramma Perry, Grammy, Mommy, & Ellie

Here's a little snapshot of the family photo shoot- we kept telling Brook to smile for "just a few more pictures, then you can watch Grinch!" and so she kept saying, Cheese... cheese....cheese, then finally after we kept telling her to smile, she just yells at the top of her lungs: CHEESE! CHEESE! CHEESE! Of course all of us couldn't keep from laughing hysterically- it was pretty great. She was so confused that we hadn't heard her saying cheese the whole time! :)

Giving Thanks

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving! We spent the day with the Smith side of the family. Fun was had by all! I'm so thankful for family!

Gramma & Papa Perry dishing up Here's Matt in his "Buffet"/Ping Pong Champion outfit

Ben adding a leaf to the Thankful Tree

The Kiddie Table- Hey Beck and Stace, you finally graduated!

What a feast!

Jen was the Master Planner of the whole event- she did a WONDERFUL job! Thanks Jen for all your hard work- it sure paid off! Love you!

Check it out- I got this award from one of my best friends, Sarah Hrebicek. I guess I'm supposed to tell you 7 things about myself that you may not know, and then nominate 7 people. So here goes:
1. I never left the house without makeup... until my first child. Now I rarely leave the house with makeup!
2. I am afraid of getting my hair cut. I used to cry every time! Now I just wince.
3. I prefer older cars to new cars- new cars drive funny.
4. I secretly pride myself on how much I can eat... sad, I know.
5. I wish I could be more like all the crafty bloggers whose sites I obsess over.
6. As much as I like to think that I am a crafter, I tend to be a craft collector- as in I have all the stuff to craft, but I don't use it nearly as often as I shop for it.
7. Since Brook was born, I have yet to spend a night away from her.

Okay, now for my nominees:
1. Whitney Smith
2. Rachael Smith
3. Jolene Monteath
4. Hailey Frogley
5. Emily Merkley
6. Randi Williamson
7. Meg Capson

But I'm cheating and not doing any of the rest of the requirements! Sorry!

Ellie

Brook Meets Ellie

I may have two thumb suckers on myhands!

Ellie Rose Douglass

This is all I have for now- taken just a few minutes after Ellie was delivered! She came so fast, it was quite a shock! We were at the hospital less than a half hour before she was born! We are all doing well- I will post more pictures later this week.

Ellie Rose Douglass

November 3, 2009

9:55 am

8 lbs 9 oz

21 inches

The ABC's

Take One:

Take Two:

Cookies!

I have such a serious sweet tooth right now, that even though I get so tired and don't want to cook, I bake like a maniac! We just had to have some Halloween themed sugar cookies this year, so I whipped up a batch last night, waited for Dad to get home from class and then we decorated!

Excuse my lack of makeup!
Brook took the decorating VERY seriously....

And the taste tests even more serious!

Ben frosted all our pumpkins- he's a professional!

Here's our spread- Happy Halloween One And All!

Punkin Smiley Faces

This is what Brook calls our Jack O Lanterns! She's so funny! We finally got around to carving some pumpkins for Halloween- six days before the big day!

Here's Brook consulting her designer
Dad's, Mom's, and Brook's

We had a lot of fun!

An Update

First, here's a fat pic of me- this was a week ago. Probably not going to take any more from here on out! I don't want to remember!

Now for the fun stuff- I made a diaper bag this weekend!! I think it turned out so cute! I looked on probably 4 different blogs and took elements from a bunch of DIY bag patterns that I liked and combined them into one super diaper bag! I love it!
Complete with pockets and a zipper closure! Tell me what you think!

The best part? I used a cushion cover I got at IKEA for 50 cents (which included the zipper already sewn in!), an old bedskirt for the liner, and a leftover piece of fabric from my mother in law! Total cost of this project: 50 cents

Having Fun with Crafty Blogs!

Here's my little cheeseball modeling my latest creation from blogland! Isn't she silly?

This is one of those famous "Men's shirt to Toddler dress" redos! However, I actually used a boy's size 8/10 and it worked great! Got it for free at a yard sale and figured it be a perfect practice piece in case I messed up, but it came out pretty darn cute if I say so myself!

(LOVE her "model" pose here... she's actually quite involved in a football game- my child... shocking I know!)

Here's the link to the genius lady who came up with this idea! I changed the straps slightly.

So fun to do! I really recommend trying it!

Favorite Photo of the Week

Daddy & Brookie relaxing on the back porch this past summer

Birthday Post

Just as I started this post, I realized I never even posted about Brook's first birthday! That's over a year ago! And I still don't actually have the pictures from her party in my possession, which is probably why I never posted them! I need to get on that! Anyways, here's a few snapshots of the little cupcake party we had to celebrate our girl! Everyone took a cupcake with a blank canvas and had options to decorate it to fit them! It was pretty fun!

A few party guests and my birthday banner- I made it of scrapbook paper and laminated it! So much faster than sewing one and it lasts just as long- I love it!

The "spread" - I made cupcake pops and forgot to get a better picture than this... yep. They sort of look like a bunch of eyeball things at this angle, but they turned out pretty cute and they are delicious!

The birthday girl munchin on a cupcake

A little decorating of my own. There's an old belly shot for any of you curious to see how huge I am. Multiply that by 12....

Grandma and Aunt Emma with their cupcakes

Neenaw and Grandma Harward enjoying their cupcakes

All in all, everyone had fun and Brook felt special!

And I got to finally throw a party!

Happy 2nd Birthday!

With a new "shoup" (suit) and a "too-toot" (tutu)

Trying Something New

You know how you get up the courage to try something new? Maybe it's wearing a little more jewelry or makeup than you usually do. Or tasting something that smells like it should never be eaten? Or maybe it's a new painting technique that you find at a paint store that seems like it should be adorable?

Today it was the paint technique..... it looks like someone peed on my daughter's wall in perfect 8 inch stripes.

The Vintage Clothespin

One of my best friends, Sarah, has a best friend also who is married to this totally awesome, totally gifted gal who started "The Vintage Clothespin." She does some amazing things and she is having a giveaway! If I win (and I so hope I do!), then I am going to have the hardest time picking! I want the two pairs of booties, because I LOVE booties, but I also am obsessed with wallets! However, I think the booties will win! Just head on over there and see how adorable this stuff is!
Thanks Kristy! Hope we get to meet someday!

How Does 25 Cents Become $17.25?

When you buy a gift card tin at the DI and find gift cards inside that still have a balance! $15 to Target and $2.25 to the movies! Hot Diggity!

Smith Family Reunion 2009 - Wolf Creek, UT

This past weekend was my family reunion- immediate family only- which is getting to be rather large! 24 of us stayed in two condos in Wolf Creek, UT. We had so much fun swimming, playing games, and hanging out! It was just a short weekend, but a much needed vacation and so fun to have EVERYONE together for awhile! These are SOME of my favorite pictures from the trip- there were too many to post all the good ones!

John & Stacy sunbathing

Becky, Jen, & Rach chillin by the lake, or in it I should say!
Berkli & Cami making "pies"- I chose not to sample

Grammy & Brook lounging in the sand

The three in-lawed boys after a long swim!

All the girls except the three babies & Grammy dove in together!

Playing cards with the fam- Whit won this round of Uno if you can't tell

A friendly RELAXED game of raquetball

Nice posture Becky!

After getting hit on the head, I found myself in a precarious position- so did Stacy!

The grandkids opted for Badminton

Brook

The reunion "sickies" - Heather is expecting her first in April and Papa was stung by a bee! His hand swelled up until it looked like a blown up latex glove! Poor Papa!

Eating dinner together is so much fun!

All the grandkids in the matching reunion shirts designed by Stan & John and screen printed by Papa, John, Rach, & Dena! (okay so I only helped a little!)

The Smith Women- a good lookin' bunch if ever I saw it!
Awww, Stan & Whit- how cute! (this is the only pic I got of you Stan... what's up with that?!)

Look at our four little monkeys! They're getting so big!

All the kids wanted in on this action!

Brook & Paul "racing"... she makes you crouch down like that and as soon as your hands touch the pavement, she's off like a shot running for her life! Dirty little cheater!

So glad you could all be there family! We love you! A special thanks to Papa & Grammy for making it happen, as always! You two are the best! Thank you!!!!