It's been six months now

Sophia turned six months old on Tuesday of this week. She is such a special little girl and she is doing so much for a six-month old. This post counts as our celebration of our little Sophia Lou and all that she can do.

She is such a helper when she eats these days, she always wants to grab the spoon and do it herself. She loves it when we give her rice cereal for dinner.

She has gotten really quick in her crawling as well, we have to keep a good eye on her all the time. Especially around boxes, which are currently everywhere in our apartment, because she likes to pull herself up to them to see what's inside. This usually results either in her pulling out all of the contents or her falling backwards, hopefully not into other boxes.

She changed her mind about bathing recently as well. When she was only a few months old, she hated every second of taking a bath. She would scream from the moment we put her into the water until we had her all snug and warm in her clothes again. Now it's the very opposite of that. She loves playing in the bath. But as soon as it's time to get that diaper back on, she is rolled on her belly crawling away as fast as she can.

We're so excited for every change this girl makes. Even though some of them are tough to handle at times. It's hard to believe six months have gone by already with this little munchkin in our lives. But I can't imagine life without her now.

Here are a few of the pictures we've taken recently. The ones in her bright green room are from yesterday while we had a daddy/daughter day and the ones outside are from last weekend when all three of us went out to enjoy the great weather. Enjoy:

Bored Employee?

So, I reached into a bag of animal crackers and this is what I found...




I KNOW! Can you believe it? Some employee must have been pretty bored!? It is rather funny though!

Friends!

(Annie Writes)
Sorry, I sometimes forget to write that I'm talking...

So, last night I was able to talk with Jordon for a while! I love talking to friends! I remember when I was young, probably middle school and High school age, I would talk on the phone for hours! I don't even remember what I would talk about. I just remember it was so fun! Now days I don't really get time to just talk to anyone I want. I miss the days of no worries! (Well, almost no worries!)

Anyways, Jordon has been my best friend since we were little kids (We weren't really best friends I guess until about 4th 5th or 6th grade, but we were still friends). She is so awesome! Jordon has been there for me every time I need her. I love that we've had a friendship that has lasted! It's really hard for me to see some of my other friends drifting away after being so close to them for so many years!
I MISS FRIENDS...
Not just friends, but good friends, the kind that make you want to be around them and hear about everything that is happening to them, the kind that feel more like family!

I can't wait to be back down in the Richfield area, and I think it has something to do with the fact that I call it HOME! I feel that I will be able to have some of my friends back, and I feel that I will be able to meet new people and make friends with them! Not to mention the fact that my sister Jessica and I are really close these days! I can't wait to have her around to share stories, dreams, fears,... whatever she will. Those of you who know me know that Jessica and I did not get along very well growing up, but once she moved out we were able to bond a little better. Now that we both teach 6th grade (she also teaches 7th) we are able to talk about and laugh at all of the things that happen to teachers! Jessica is great! She is an amazing big sister!

Okay, I'm off my soap box! I just love all of you guys that have been so good to me! I miss you!

Everyone who visits "HOME" has to stop by and see me! And if you don't (shaking my fist like Homer Simpson)!

Love Annie (I know I'm random, that's just the way my thoughts go!)

Some more firsts for my little girl

Sophie Lou has been doing so many new things all the time the past few weeks. After getting her first tooth on a Sunday, her second tooth began to break through on a Wednesday. Now both her bottom teeth in the front are through and cute as ever.


And she's learned how to get around really well with her crawling. Good enough that she is getting into everything and anything that she's not supposed to. She prefers papers and electronics most but if those aren't available she likes anything on the floor that probably shouldn't be within reach of a baby.


Yesterday she pulled herself up to a box and stood up to it on her own. And recently "mama" has become her favorite thing to say. She usually uses it more when she wants something and isn't getting what she wants.

On the down side, she caught her first real bad cold this week, too. Her nose is running like a hose and it makes her cough - especially at night. She has been a real trooper dealing with her cold on top of teething pains and the rough tumbles that accompany her new fascination with pulling herself up to things.

Work, house, vacation - in that order

As Annie said in the previous post, I did get a job with the Richfield Reaper, and I will be starting soon. I am the new general reporter (making three writers who comprise the editorial staff at the paper). And I did go down that way to check out a house to rent that I had called about on Monday.

It's an old brick house on the north end of Austin. It has two bedrooms, and the weirdest toilet/closet space I have ever seen (it brings new meaning to the term "water closet"). It is an older home with some antique doors and higher ceilings. The square footage is a little bit smaller than our apartment we're in now, but what is lacking in footage is more than made up for in the spacious garage in the back and the nice empty field to the side of the house.

I don't have any pictures at the moment of the house, I forgot the camera in my haste to get Sophie to the babysitter and get on my way in the morning. But it's probably better as the landlords were still putting some finishing touches on a few things to make it look nice.

One thing Annie will surely miss is the closet space we are losing. The house doesn't really have too much of that, and what it has is pretty spread out throughout the house. For all of the hanger space we require we may have to get creative.

But even more exciting than getting a house to rent is the trip to Hawaii any mentioned. We're going to Oahu (that's the island where Waikiki, Honolulu, Pearl Harbor, the Laei temple and the multicultural center are all located). We're taking off from SLC Int'l. on the morning of June 3 and won't be back until sometime late on the June 10 or early June 11.

Richfield

So, Chad got a job in Richfield after all... I say it's because we had so many people praying for us (well, for Chad to find a job/ not move out of state!)
Starting in just a couple of weeks he will be a reporter for the Richfield Reaper! He is such a good writer and I'm so proud of him! Today he is looking at a house that we hope to rent! If all goes well, we'll be down there by June! (But then we're going to Hawaii for a week!!!)

As for me!? I'm not sure yet. I applied for a job with the district, but I missed the teaching pool deadline by 2 1/2 days! (Chad found out he got the job on Friday at 2:00 and the pool closed at 12:00 noon). If I can't get a teaching job I will probably substitute... wa wa wa (not a cry a wah).

I know that we are being blessed and so far everything is just falling into place for us, I'm so grateful to my Heavenly Father and I'm so grateful I have such a wonderful little family!

Don't forget to come visit us in Monroe!

Annie

Graduation Pictures

Chad is the one who graduated, but Sophia looked so cute so we took a ton of pics of her! Here they are! (Annie)


This picture is one of my favorites by far! I love close up pictures, but I also think I did a pretty good job at picking a cute angle!


She is so precious! We love her so much! She looks so innocent too! (Trust me, she's going to tear my house apart as soon as she can walk!)

I know this isn't the best quality for a picture, but isn't she cute!?
This is the picture we gave to Chad's mom for Mother's Day! I just can't get enough of her!

You thought maybe I had disappeared? + A list of firsts

Only having the interent at school makes updating the blog sometimes near impossible. That's an excuse. Take it for what it's worth. But now school is done, however, I don't have the internet (or at least this slice of internet) available at work, so I will try to be as frequent as I am given chance.

I am stil going to fill in Christmas and Sophie's blessing where they go, but beyond that, just know she's growing like big growing weed with the spring. She is currently five and a half months and her first little tooth poked through her gums last night. It was just another in a laundry list of incredible things she has accomplished over the past month or so.

In case you're wondering, here's my recollection of that list (which I might update after Annie tells me everything I forgot):

Taking assisted steps, which I may have already mentioned.

Rolling over.

Her feet don't really fit into most of her shoes anymore.

Got her first nasty virus.

More rolling over.

Holding herself up on her hands and knees.

The cutest little laugh.

Decided she loves toys.

Eating rice cereal.

Her dark hair fell out and is growing in thick and blonde. Right now it looks like a baby chicken.

Annie and I love our little Sophie Lou, even though we had no idea her ornery spells over the past few weeks were caused by her poor gums aching from pushing teeth. If we had only known and given her some Tylenol every now and then.

As for Annie and I, we're still just obsessed with Sophie. But we do have lives as well. I graduated from UVSC at the end of April with a B.S. degree in Communication and am currently in the market for any jobs in the surrounding states that have anything to do with journalism. Until then, I am still plugging away at the Financial Aid Office at UVSC until the end of May.

Annie is finishing out her second year of teaching and is anxiously waiting for me to finally get a job so she knows whether she will get her wish of getting to retire her teaching attire to be a mommy full time. We both have our fingers crossed. I have sent applications to places in Utah, Colorado, Arizona, Wyoming, Montana, California, New York, Washington State and Minnesota. Hopefully one of them decides they like me.

Wish us luck.