10 months!

Grace is 10 months old now so I thought I would update you all on her life.

• She weighs 24 pounds and is 30 inches long
• She is crawling, everywhere
• She is pulling herself up to standing in her crib and on some of her larger toys
• She has 3 teeth and working on the 4th
• Her hair is getting long and thick. I can get it in a little ponytail on the top of her head.
• She LOVES table food. Eggo waffles and mashed potatoes are her favorite
• She loves to talk and babble all the time
• She loves to look at herself
• She crosses her ankles whenever she is sitting
• She loves to snuggle with stuffed animals
• She's a great sleeper. 11-12 hours per night and 2 good naps during the day.
• She can't get enough of her daddy right now
• She recently learned to clap and does it whenever she is happy

Grace is such a happy and well-behaved baby. We can take virtually anywhere and know that she'll be just fine. She is growing way too fast, but we love every second of it.

Here's a video of her clapping and talking jibberish.

MinExpo 2008

It seems like every time I try to post something I get interrupted, so today this is the #1 thing on my "to do" list. Back in September Justin had the opportunity to help with his company's participation in the MinExpo at the Las Vegas Convention Center. Out of thousands of employees he was one of only a handful that was able to be involved in the entire thing. So, 5 days after I got back from this trip with the girls the three of us piled in the truck and headed west. It was a long drive, but Grace was such a trooper. The first day she did awesome and slept a lot. The second day we decided to prop up the DVD player and let her watch some Baby Einstein videos. It worked like a charm and we had a very happy traveler. We stopped at Hoover Dam as we got into Nevada and did a little sight seeing. Justin had to go to work that night setting up Bucyrus' "booth" at the expo so Grace and I explored the hotel while he got some rest before his all nighter began. Justin worked hard all week, which left Grace and I to hang out by ourselves. We did a lot of lounging by the pool, shopping, and checking out all the free attractions on the Strip. My parents flew out from Oregon for the weekend to go to the Las Vegas Temple. My mother-in-law came down from Utah to spend the day at the Temple with us and my brother-in-law, Brandon, drove up from Mesa to be our babysitter. The next week we were able to spend some time at the Expo checking out all the enormous mining equipment. You wouldn't believe how massive that stuff is. Grace was such a good baby the entire trip, but she had a difficult time sleeping at night. She would wake up every few hours and would only go back to sleep if she had a bottle. The first night we were back home she fell right to sleep in her own crib without making a peep. I guess she just wanted her own bed. It was a fun trip, but we were totally ready to be home again.

we let Grace play in the pool after our first day of driving and she loved it

a couple of photo opps at the Hoover Dam

checking out the local attractions :)


lounging by the pool

With my parents at the Sirens of TI show at Treasure Island. If you haven't seen, don't be too disappointed. It's definitely a PG-13 kind of show... not for the little ones.


Justin's mom with Donny and Marie


We couldn't pass up the opportunity to take a picture of Cindy in front of Harrah's with the entertainment in the background. She had no idea they were there.


The whole gang at the Temple


Grace with her uncles (AKA: babysitters). Thanks guys!


Grace being Elvis


The lady in the background was mad at us because this souvenier shop apparently has a "no cameras" policy. Oops.

Cindy at the Expo in front of one of the HUGE dump trucks that haul the coal around the mine

This is me standing next to the wheel of one of those dump trucks

The second day of the Expo Justin was able to be out at the NASCAR track with a bunch of Bucyrus customers for the Richard Petty Driving Experience. Only the customers were able to drive, but Justin got to do a ride-a-long.

Part of Bucyrus' "booth"

One of the security guards they hired... yeah, I'm pretty sure she's just a stripper

We have a ton more pictures from this trip, but quite frankly I'm a little tired of this post. Koodos to those of you who stuck it out all the way to the end.

Crawling

Grace is officially on the move. She started crawling Saturday night and is getting better at it everyday. I guess this means I'm going to have to be much more careful of what I leave lying in her path. She's already figured out how to pull the magazines off of the coffee table and she is trying so hard to pull herself up on everything. She's growing up so fast and I can't believe that she'll be 10 months old on Monday. Time goes by way too fast when you have a baby at home.

Naptime Project

I had seen these cute burp cloths at a couple different craft fairs and thought I would attempt to make them. They were actually really easy to do and I used scrap fabric I already had. I was able to whip both of them out in about half an hour. I think they turned out pretty cute, and it's an inexpensive way to put a little personality on those boring burp cloths.

Tagged... again

Dallas tagged me this time. I had to take pictures of the following:

1. kitchen sink

2. my favorite room

3. my fridge

4. closet

5. laundry room

6. self

7. kids

8. dream vacation

9. favorite shoes

10. bathroom

With NO Cleaning!

My sink, with baby bottles to be washed. The story of my life!

We spend most of our time in the family room, but Grace's room is the only one in the house that is finished so it's my favorite.

You can't really tell from this photo that we need groceries.














This is our entry closet. We have GREAT storage in this house so all of our closets look like this... half full.















I had to take 2 pictures of the laundry room because it's only as wide as one machine and they face eachother. Lame, I know. This is my least favorite room in the house based on functionality. Oh, and did you notice the lovely overspray on our cabinets from when we textured the walls? Someday I'm going to have a GIANT laundry/mud room. Someday.










Me.










My kiddo being being cute.










Ahh, shoes. My fave church shoes, flip flops, casual and comfy, and my "hooker" boots.










I really don't know what to say about this photo. I tried my best to get a shot of the entire room without my flash being in the mirror. And yes, you are seeing this right. The bathroom has lavender cabinets, floral wallpaper, and royal blue tile. Oh, and what you can't see is that the backsplash has lighthouses on it. What can I say? The house was a freaking steal! We do have plans to remodel. We are definitely NOT leaving it this way. I just keep the door closed for now.

Okay, here's the people I'm tagging: Hilary, Krisha, Jamie, and Lisa
Sorry if you hate being tagged, but I'm trying to mix it up a little.