Happy Happy! Merry Merry!

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas. We sure did. It was so much fun this year now that Iris is old enough to open presents. She still doesn't get the whole Santa thing, but she had fun ripping open the presents. Santa brought her a fish this year, which she was really excited about. She calls it "pish" while doing the sign for fish, so I guess that's it's name for now. She had fun opening all of Donevan's presents too.


I love this hat that Aunt Allison made for Donevan. She also made a really cute tutu for Iris but I haven't got any photos of it yet.


She loves working on things. Fixing things or "helping" us fix things. So she really loved this little toolbox/workbench with all the tools.

Here is a cute picture of the loves of my life.

Donevan has been so smiley lately. He just gets this huge grin on his cute little face. I love it!


It was finally a nice enough day to get out and play in the snow. Iris loved it so much, I had to drag her screaming into the house when it was getting dark.


I said she likes helping whenever we are working on anything. Here she is "helping" Evan when he was hooking up our dishwasher. She's even got the plumber's crack going on.



Here are few just really cute pics that I had to share with everyone. I can't get enough of the kiss face and Iris looked so cute in the little present shirt that Grandma Jessie made for her.

A Few Firsts and Other Cuteness

We took the kids to the Sacramento Zoo last week. Iris LOVED it. She loves animals. She especially liked the monkeys. But she was really intrigued by the flamingos. She'd never seen or heard anything like them. They sounded like really loud geese.


She thought this was pretty funny, playing peekaboo through this little hole. Our cute little joey.


This is how Donevan enjoyed the zoo. He slept the whole time. What a handsome boy. I can't believe he already a month old. Those 4 weeks went by really fast. He is growing so quickly. Before I know it he'll be walking and talking like Iris.

.
You can see how big her eyes were looking at the flamingos

I finally broke down and trimmed Iris' hair for the first time. I didn't do the best job, but it's out of her eyes now. It doesn't look too bad.


It is finally long enough to put in pigtails. Just when I thought she couldn't get any cuter...

She looks pretty cute in cowboy boots and her Ariel jammies too.

Happy First Birthday Brett!

Today is my nephew Brett's first birthday. I can't believe he is that old already. I've actually never met him, but he sure is a cute boy going by all the pictures I've seen of him. I have sympathy for the kid, being the third child. I know how you feel Buddy. I hope he had a good first birthday. Wish I was there to celebrate with him.

Happy Birthday Sadie!

Yesterday was my good friend Sadie's birthday. (this girl) We've been friends since I moved to Alamo in Kindergarten. (schnuckles) I remember getting on the bus with her and the Wilson's at Logan's. (SKS club) We've been through a lot of rough times together. (Barbara and Louise) But all those tough times made us even better friends. (SUPERSTARS!!) I could go on and on (nice cheetohs!) about all the inside jokes Sadie and I have together, (be back in a shake) but I really just want to wish her a happy belated birthday. (Well, see ya later.) Love you Sades! HA!

Happy Thanksgiving

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving. We had a wonderful dinner with Evan's family. I was successful with cooking the monster turkey that was so recently eating all our chicken feed. It was delicious. I was a little nervous about being in charge of cooking the bird, but it turned out great. Hope you all had an enjoyable day.

Kiss Face...

I pulled out the pictures of when Iris was born and found that picture I knew I had of her kiss face. And I also found the one of her right after her bath in the hospital. Also very similar to the one of Donevan. Fun stuff!

Iris

Donevan

Iris

Donevan

Party! Party!

Since the holidays are right around the corner, we know many of you are considering family portraits. Well, we have a way for you to get those portraits for free!

Host a Photography Party!

Receive free photos for yourself and your guests get a discounted rate.
For hosting a Photography Party you will receive:
No sitting Fee
30 minute photo session
2-8x10’s and 1-11x14
High resolution cd of all photos
Copy release letter so you can print as many photos as you like.

How it works:
As host, you invite at least 4 other individuals or families.
These guests pay a small sitting fee and are designated a time slot for their photo session.
They come and enjoy snacks and drinks and have their portraits taken professionally.

For the $125 sitting fee that is paid by the guest they will receive:
30 minute photo session
High resolution cd of all photos
Copy release letter to allow them to print as many photos as they like.

Photos can be outdoors or we bring the studio to your home!
A fun way to save money on portraits and have a party at the same time!

Please contact us and we can book your party now!

Filling my shoes...

I've mentioned before that Iris has a thing for shoes... but now she loves getting my shoes and putting them on and walking around. She is actually pretty good at walking in them. She thinks she is pretty hot stuff. And you can tell that we take a lot of pictures of her because she has started grinning at the camera and saying cheese whenever we go to take a picture.

New Stats

Donevan had his two week check-up and has gained back his birth weight plus 7 oz so he is now 7 lbs 14 oz and also grew half an inch putting him at 21 inches. The doctor said he is very healthy. Last night he decided that since he slept most of the day, he would be awake during the night. Not so much fun, but I can't really complain, he is such a good baby. I'm just glad that he is healthy and happy.

I have a picture of Iris that is almost identical to this one. I love the kiss faces.

Happy Anniversary!

Today is our 4th anniversary. So I am going to take this time to tell you all why I love Evan so much.

1. He is the hardest working person I know. Being self employed has put a lot of pressure on the both of us to do our part. I thank Evan for always doing more than his part. He is always going above and beyond and always has the best ideas for how to better our business.

2. He is so smart. Like I said before, he is always coming up with new ways to better our situation. I admire the way his mind works. I know he gets frustrated with me sometimes for not coming up with new ideas and I am working on that, but his ideas are always so great.

3. He is an amazing dad. He has been great with Iris and I can see the love he has for Donevan. He is always concerned for their health and well-being. It's obvious to see how much Iris loves her Daddy.

4. He is handy. The home we live in is the way it is because of him. He has put so much work into the home and yard. He has made it a place we love to be. I am thankful that he has the talent and knowledge of how to fix things.

5. He loves the outdoors. Some of my favorite memories of us involve being outside. Camping and fishing and just going for walks.

6. He loves animals. I have always been a big animal lover and I am thankful that he loves them as much as me. Our 2 dogs, 2 cats, goat, chickens etc. I'm sure appreciate his love as well. I always wanted lots of animals and I am grateful that he is willing to get them for me.

7. He is strong spiritually. He is close to the Lord and understands the need to keep the Lord a part of our home. I am so very grateful to be able to spend the rest of eternity with him.

8. He is so caring. Helping other people is something that comes naturally to him. He is always thinking of others.

9. He is very prompt. My biggest pet peeve is tardiness. I can't stand when people are late. I believe is a total disrespect of other people's time. So I am very grateful that Evan shares my value of time and is always on time if not early.

10. He is completely devoted. When he starts something he puts his whole heart into it. Whether it's a project around the house or the care of a family member, he gives it his all.

These are just a few of the reasons, but I just wanted everyone to know that I love this man and look forward to making so many more wonderful memories with him.

Happy Anniversary Evan! I love you with all my heart and am so blessed to have you in my life.

The highly anticipated photos!!

Here are a few of my favorites from the big day.

Ready to have the baby. Waiting is the hardest part. We went in at 5:00am and by the time I got all hooked up to the machines and iv's it was about 6:00. My doctor broke my water at about 7:30. I started getting really bad contractions and the epidural came at about 10:30. After that I got a little rest and about 12:15 I could feel really strong pressure like he was halfway out already. The doctor came in and said I could go ahead and push. Two big pushes and his head was out.

Another two pushes and he was here. It went so fast. At 12:31 we welcomed Donevan into the world. He was happy and healthy and started eating right away. I felt great. Tore a tiny bit, but not enough to need stitches. I haven't really been too sore. I guess the body heals faster with the second. Now if I can just get rid of the belly!

Love at first sight.

The adoring parents.

Our first family photo. Iris didn't really want to be around me. She didn't like all the weird things coming out of my arm, and the different place we were in.


Aren't those the cutest little feet you've ever seen?


My handsome little man.


Iris was so funny when she was looking through the window at the nursery. She would smash her face up against it and just laugh. What a goofball!



After his first bath.


The homecoming!