december 18, 2011

Macee was blessed! I'm so grateful that I have a worthy husband, with the desire to raise our children in the gospel. Ben did such an amazing job blessing Macee. The spirit was so strong and it made me even more grateful to be her mother. I can't believe our Father in Heaven trusted me to be Macee's mom, but I wouldn't change it for the world. For journaling purposes, I want to remember who was in the circle. Our little family is so blessed to have a lot of support: Grandpa Ashdown, Grandpa Harding, her uncle Brady and Carston and Grandpa-greats: Ashdown, Wallerstein and Harding. Sunday mornings are always crazy. Why would the morning of Macee's blessing be any less than crazy? She decided she needed to take a nap 45 minutes before church. I had to wake her up to get her ready, hoping that she'd fall back asleep for her blessing. If anyone knows Macee, it's obvious that this girl does not like being woken up from her naps! It can totally ruin her entire day. Which it did in this case. She screamed and screamed when we got to church. I was in the foyer praying so hard that she would calm down for the blessing. My prayers were answered. Macee was a good little thing as she talked and looked around at all the men staring down on her during the blessing. No screaming. Even though she was lying on her back, which is also not her favorite thing. The Lord really does answer our prayers. This was just another testimony to me. I'm so grateful that she was good and Ben was able to listen to the Spirit as he was giving the blessing. We had a fun little get together afterwards where food was obviously involved. Thank you to everyone who came to support us. It was worth the wait to get her to Utah to bless her with a lot of family support.
I forgot the add that Ben's grandma Creamer made this beautiful dress. She is on a mission right now so she wasn't able to see how pretty Macee was in it. This dress will definitely be in the family forever. Hopefully Macee's babies will want to be blessed it in one day.

park city with the girls

Ben and I have been spending the last few weeks in Utah with our families. It has been so fun to see everyone and let everyone get to know Macee. I will have more posts on our trip later. We left home early Thursday morning, right when I got off work. The drive went so well. Macee slept almost the entire drive to St. George. We stopped and rested the night in St. George, let Macee stretch her legs (lets be honest, who would want to drive for hours crunched up in a car seat?), and visited with the grandparents. We left St. George early Friday morning and Macee again did wonderful in the car. I joke that we should just let her live in her car seat in the car. She's a much happier girl driving than she is hanging out with us at home. :) We got to my parents house just in time to say hi and drop off our loads of luggage. Loads is an understatement. It's amazing we fit as much as we did in the car...now just to get it home will be a different story. Anyway. We said our quick hellos and surprised Ben's parents with Macee at their work. Then we were off to play with my girls. I miss these girls so much! It's always so fun to get together with them. We never skip a beat and it still feels like I know as much about their lives as I did in high school. I love them. We went to Jan's husband's cabin in Park City. It was so nice of Spencer to take us there to give us a little quiet getaway. We allowed the boys to come to our girl's night. They weren't invited into our room, but they made their own fun in the rest of the cabin. Sorry hon. I really left him hanging. We got all caught up on our lives and stayed up way too late. Macee was so good and my girls loved meeting her for the first time. We couldn't go to Park City without a shopping trip. Unfortunately, marriage and school causes all of us to be poor, so the shopping trip was just small, nothing like the high school days when my mom would take us up. It was still fun and great to reminisce about our Park City trips we would always take when the outlets were amazing. Here are some darling pictures of the our little trip.

two months

Two months ago, my sweet baby was born. It's amazing to think back at the last two months. Our lives have completely changed for the better. My house may not be clean anymore, I'm tired out of my mind sometimes and I can't remember the last time I ate a warm meal before Macee was in bed. But, we wouldn't change it for the world. Our lives are so much more meaningful and full of unconditional love.

It's been a long while since I've updated about Ben and I. I guess our lives don't seem as important anymore, especially to those who I write the blog for: our family in Utah.

What Ben's been up to. Geez, what hasn't he been up to would be the right question. He's busy with school on two long days, his internship on the other three days of the week, with homework to fill in all of the gaps...especially the gaps during the evening. Elders Quorum meetings take up Wednesday nights and all of Sunday with other days spent coordinating and doing the needed service projects for the ward. Somewhere in between all of this he finds time to be a daddy and a husband. I'm definitely grateful for a husband that is willing to work so hard for our family. He has to make a lot of sacrifices for us and I couldn't do it without him.

I've been busy too...with I don't know what. I don't have a lot of mentionable things going on in my life. It's amazing how much time playing and taking care of Macee consumes during a day. I work two nights a week, trying to catch as much sleep as I can so I can function there for 12 hours. I'm still trying to figure out how to keep up with laundry, dishes and grocery shopping. I just got a serious case of the Christmas spirit. I can't wait until Christmas. My mind has been racing with ideas for presents for our families. During Macee's naps, I've been busy crafting and making things. I can't wait to give them their presents.

Macee, being two months old, has gotten so big. She's smiling and starting to give me little giggles. It is so fun to listen to her talk. She seems so fascinated by her voice. She's a wild girl and doesn't hardly ever hold still. Her legs and arms are always moving. She's able to lift her head and move it to both sides when she's laying on her tummy. She sits up in her bumbo and can usually keep herself pretty entertained there for a while. Also, her newest trick, and possibly the best trick, she's sleeping through the night! Okay, I may be speaking too soon because it's only happened twice while I was at work. But twice is worth a mention.

My grandma and grandpa Ashdown came into town. They are darling with their great grandchildren. Macee is number 38 for them. She's number 108 for their descendants. Quite amazing. Once again, my computer illiterate self can't flip the picture.

Newborn pics

This is for Macee's grandparents. I got them all excited to see Macee's newborn pictures I just got, but I can't figure out the slideshow thing. It's late. I'm tired. Macee will be awake in a few hours. So...I give up for tonight. I will try again tomorrow, hopefully. In the mean time, grandma and grandpa, go to photobucket.com/maceeharding.

random...all about macee again

I initially got on here to update about my grandparent's visit this last week. But, as I was looking through all of my pictures, I realized I haven't shared a lot of them. So we'll recap for a second, then I'll talk about my grandparent's visit.

My dad came down to visit during the weekend that my mom was here. My niece, Harper, came up to join in on the fun. She is so stinking cute with her big blue eyes. Looking at this picture, I can't believe the size difference. Harper is only 6 months older than Macee. Every time Macee is around, Harper pay special attention to her. She's so fascinated with her. This picture is so cute. This is what happens every time these girls get together. It's also cute because my daddy is a grandpa now, holding his two grandbabies. :) I realized that I never posted the picture of the brand new grandma and grandpa Harding. Or did I? I can't remember. Macee is their first grandchild. I think it's been pretty fun for them, even though they live 12 hours away. Okay, that's sometimes a little bit of a touchy subject for our families. I think I took this picture about a week ago. Look how huge she is! She's eleven pounds already. Oh my gosh. Aren't these bouncers supposed to last longer than 2 months? Pretty soon she's going to bounce herself right out of it! She sleeps in this beauty, so her growing better slow down. I'm not ready for the crib yet. That will mean she's a grown girl, away from her mommy's sight. Admire the cute pajamas too. Her bedtime outfits are almost cuter than her daytime ones. So, my grandparent's came to visit...last week. I think. Time flies. I was so excited for them to come meet Macee! I was teasing them, saying that Macee was their new favorite great-granddaughter. I know that they would never pick a favorite. Even if they did, Macee only has like 5 others to compete with. Anyway, I ate my words pretty quick. She turned into a stink and fussed the entire 3 days they were here. I don't think they were too impressed. The poor girl was just getting her very first cold! That's another story for another time. In the end, the cold wasn't fun. I felt helpless, even with my bachelor's degree in mucous and snot. I don't know how to flip pictures, but this one was too sweet not to share. Grandpa finally got her to sleep in his arms. It only lasted for a few minutes, but she was happy. We were glad that these two could come visit. It was so nice of them to make the special trip down for our little girl.

Ben is still as busy as ever. I feel bad for him that he has to have so much going on, missing a lot of Macee's cute little personality as she grows up. School has really picked up, getting ready for finals. (Graduation in May couldn't be here soon enough!) He goes above and beyond in his internship. We're really hoping that will pay off with a job in May. His new calling in the ward also takes a lot of time with Wednesday and Sunday meetings. That one I can't wish to change. The Lord knows what's on Ben's plate, but he still trusted our family with the calling. I have to be grateful for that. Real life for me is about to begin, way too soon. I start back to work tomorrow night. I will be working the night shift, while Ben takes care of Macee. I am grateful to only have to work two 12 hour shifts a week. We're also so grateful that we won't have to give Macee to a babysitter. It will be hard on both of us having a lack of sleep and a busy schedule, but isn't that what having a young baby is all about? Right now, I wouldn't change it for the world. I might change my mind about that when I can't stay awake at work tomorrow night. Just kidding.

our baby is one month old!

Gosh, I am really one of those moms. Macee has taken over my blog! I can't be sorry though, she's our entire world. We love her more and more everyday. I still can't believe how blessed we are to have her in our family. She's a month old already. I wanted to document some of the fun things about her so we'll hopefully never forget them.

she's spending more and more time awake everyday
she's starting to react more when we talk and play with her
she loves her feet and legs rubbed
she is the most cuddly girl I know
laying her our chest or holding her close is the best way to put her to sleep
when we wrap her in her "burrito" to get her ready for bed, her right arm always sneaks up to her face...and that's where it stays until she wakes up
we're some lucky parents because she sleeps really well through the night
she smiles in her sleep all of the time, we're still waiting for her to smile while she's awake
she loves the bath, and we love giving them to her
she gets so mad when we don't hold her when she's awake...maybe she's a little spoiled

My list could honestly go on and on. I have really enjoyed being able to spend everyday with her. I feel like time is just flying by way too fast! It makes me sad that she is growing so fast, but I am still excited for every stage that is ahead of us. I love every little roll on her arms and legs. I love her plump little lips and her bright eyes. And I really love her strawberry blonde hair with little kinky curls. Just look at this precious face.

the hardings are in town!

The Hardings came into town last Saturday. Uncle Joey saw Macee for a day, then went home to go to school. Aunt Crystal is going home tonight and Grandpa and Uncle Carston are coming into town. With all of the comings and goings we've loved having everyone being here to meet Macee. I feel like my life has consisted of staring at Macee all day. I love it, and wouldn't change a thing about it. Well, maybe I could use a little more fresh air during the day, but that will come. I hope that the Hardings are loving my lifestyle of laziness too. :)

Grandma and Grandpa great came into town to visit the Hardings. They're on their mission here, about two hours away from us. Since they haven't seen Peggy and the girls since they've gotten here, this was the perfect opportunity to see everyone. This is a kind of four generation picture. Macee was not a happy girl, so this was the best we got. Macee had her first real bath the other night. She absolutely loved it until she inhaled some water thinking it was food. I loved it too. She was darling.

Ben is such a goof when his sisters come into town. They went swimming last night and had a little photo shoot. Admire his flexibility and manliness.

Macee had her two week appointment yesterday. She's a healthy girl! The pediatrician said that she is the perfect example of a healthy baby, exactly what he loves to see. I only care about her weight, so that's all I remember. She's 9 pounds 8 ounces, in the 95th percentile! She's a chunk and I love it!

our beautiful girl

It's been a week since our beautiful little girl was born. I have been so consumed with everything about her, so I'm grateful for Ben for updating our blog when she was born. He has been such an amazing dad. Macee loves him just as much as he loves her. It is so fun to be able to watch the two of them snuggle and talk to each other. I love my family. Macee is such an amazing baby. I don't know how we got so blessed to have her. She is so calm, hardly ever fussy. There is honestly nothing like the spirit that a newborn brings into the home. She is just growing up too fast. I'm trying to enjoy every second of her. Oh, how I love my little Macee girl. I never knew this much love was possible.

My mom is in town helping me relax with her. I really mean relax. Macee doesn't require a lot of work with how calm she is. It has been so fun for Macee to meet her grandma. I think my mom kind of likes her. We've gotten some darling pictures of her at a week old. I may be biased, but she is just a cutie.

Macee Michele Harding

So Lindsey is resting and I decided to put my first post on this blog. Just wanted everyone to meet little Macee Michele Harding. I feel more excited and happy than I ever have in my life. It was quite the experience, and I loved every minute of it. Our little Macee is the most beautiful thing I have ever seen. I love her so much. I am more in love with Lindsey than I have ever been. It's amazing how such a precious gift from our Heavenly Father can generate so much love so fast. Lindsey and I could not be happier. Welcome to the world Macee, and more importantly, welcome to our family.

Here are all her fun measurements: Born at 4:25. Weight: 8lb 8oz. Length: 20 1/2 in. And she has a good amount of blonde hair!

anticipation

In anticipation for this baby to get here, Ben and I have been working hard at doing whatever we want to do. We figure that doing things like going shooting or going to the temple will be a bit harder with a newborn, so we'll do it all while she's still inside. It's easier to find a babysitter while she's inside. :) After getting the yard and garage straightened up on Saturday, we took a drive out to the "desert". Our main goal may have been to illegally dump some bush trimmings...but we won't talk about that. Ben brought his handgun and we shot a few rounds. He made sure to get some practice at shooting at a target (human in his head) just in case we have an intruder come into the house when the baby is born. I have to tease him about it because it was the funniest thing I have seen in a long time. I wish I would have had it on camera.

One of my few shots.

One of these bullet holes may have been from me. I do doubt it, but I thought I'd show that Ben is a good shot.

Apparently he got the intruder in the head. Bulls-eye!

I've only got 6 more days! Until my due date...

Now that we've got these few things out of the way, I think she could come anytime. Tomorrow sounds nice.

our princess' nursery

 I think that I have gotten the nursery to how I want it for now. The baby will be sleeping in our room for a couple of months when she first gets here, so that's why I'm calling the nursery complete. I will be adding a shelf above the dresser, a cross stitch picture my grandma has made her, and a some pictures of her on the cubby shelf. It should be really cute once those are up! We did the whole thing on a tight budget. I felt like it was a waste of money to spend $250 on a bedding set just so that everything could have a matching theme. Surprisingly, we really didn't spend too much money on it. I was proud of myself. So, I hope you enjoy!

We have SO many blankets. I don't know which ones I'll keep with her crib. I don't think she'll want to use blankets anyways. 

 I made both of those beauties on the glider. The blanket doesn't match, but I worked so hard on it that I had to keep it on the chair. The pillow was a breeze, and it really makes the glider so much more comfortable.

There's not much more in the way of updating our lives. Ben has started his second to last semester of school. Homework keeps him really busy, but I am lucky and still seem to see him a lot. He is really loving school, so I think that's great! This week is my last week of work before I'm taking maternity leave. The hospital has been very good to me, I hope that carries through after the baby is here! We're both trying to grasp the fact that we are going to be parents any day now. Sometimes it just doesn't feel real to me. It's something that we are obviously so excited for, but depending on the day, one or both of us gets overwhelmingly scared and nervous. I know that when she gets here, we'll be just fine! Right?

a small vacation and 36 weeks

I feel so fortunate to have amazing grandparents that are so welcoming to Ben and I. We felt like we needed a small vacation while Ben was on break for school. I know, we were pushing it, leaving the state and taking a 7 hour drive while I was 36 weeks pregnant, but everything turned out just fine! We decided the best place to go was St. George. My mom and dad also drove down just as an added bonus. We were so happy to see family. St. George always consists of the same things, and we love it. We always golf, see a Tuachan play, eat, eat, and eat, swim, visit and relax. We really had a lot of fun.

Ben made me pose in front of the golf cart. I know it's not a gorgeous picture, but this is my belly at 36 weeks. I am still very ready for her to get here.My dad and I usually try to get a daddy/daughter picture. My dad just couldn't get over how big my belly was when we finally saw each other. I am sure it is quite weird to see your daughter so pregnant. I just love this man. I could not have asked for a better dad. This picture was taken after I attempted to tee off. There were two problems with this: I don't have a clue how to swing a golf club properly. I only know how to correct Ben's swing from the cart. :) Next problem, my darn baby girl was totally in the way. It was pretty funny apparently.
Ben and I got to see Little Mermaid at Tuachan. We always have such a good time seeing these plays. The Little Mermaid did not disappoint with all of the special effects.

moments that matter most

Yesterday, and the day before yesterday, were hard days for me. My emotions were so high and it felt as if nothing in this world was going right for me. On Monday night I dropped my fairly new camera. It was on and it hit the tile. Broke the lens. Ben stayed awake an extra couple of hours to see if there was anything he could possibly do to fix it. I layed on the couch and cried. Hormones. Yesterday I went to get my tires rotated and balanced. A 45 minute drive for nothing. They turned me away because the wait would be 3 hours. Very frustrating. I found out my camera would cost me $180 to even begin to repair. I'd be better off buying a brand new one. I searched high and low for Brakes Plus in Chandler. After 20 minutes I found them, just to be turned away again. The wait would also be 3 hours. But I didn't leave Brakes Plus without getting a look that was telling me "you know, those brakes should have been changed last month. I hope you get home safe". I'm sorry that this car doesn't get many days of a break. It's always on the road, that's why it's very hard to get it in here. I decided to end my day there. I can't tell you why those things affected me so much. They seem so small. But I came home, layed in the baby's room to be with all of her things, and cried myself to sleep again. I missed my family. I wish my baby was here now. I needed Ben to just hold me. And honestly, I need to lower my hormones because they've got to be at an unhealthy high. Ben got home to wake me up and hold me to tell me everything would be okay. Poor guy, I'm sure he never knew pregnancy would be this hard on him too.
Last night my cousin showed us an amazing Mormon Message. I would encourage every single one of you to watch it, no matter what you are doing.
lds.org/pages/mormon-messages-gallery?lang=eng#moments-that-matter-most
I was very humbled. These things that were so hard for me to handle are not the things in life that matter most. This life is about the relationships we build. The friendships we keep. Our families knowing that we love and care about them. This life is Ben. It's our new baby. It's about the family decisions that we make, together. It's about the gospel and our Savior. This life is even about the small moments that make us laugh together. It's about the small events, not the major ones. I loved this message. I was something that I needed to hear at that time. I truely am blessed with the things in this life that I have, as well as the things that we do. In fact, I feel like I couldn't be more blessed. The Lord just needed to remind me that it's okay if I broke my camera. It's okay if I didn't get the car fixed. It's okay because I still have a husband that loves me. I still have friends and family that care about me. I still have the gospel to lean on.

she's already got some kissable lips!

I thought I would add this little ultrasound just for fun. If you can tell, my life is already consumed by this baby. See those kissable lips? You can take it or leave it, but I'm pretty sure this little girl has her daddy's big lips! I'm going to take it.

Here's one more of the front of her face. She looks a little squished to me. She's still cute.

baby dresser

One of the great things about moving down here when we did is that my parents were moving at the same time. They're building their new house so all of their things are going into storage. So, Ben and I were lucky enough to "inherit" a lot of the things they just didn't feel was worth keeping in storage. Lucky us! Thanks mom and dad. We took this old dresser that my little brother used and abused for his entire childhood and turned it into a little princess dresser. We may have been a little bit counter-productive taking off the old finish of the dresser. First we used some serious paint remover. That took a lot of scraping and work. After that was done it still needed to be sanded quite a bit. So, we splurged on an electric sander after realizing how hard hand sanding was. Next, I spray painted the entire dresser pink. The pink was a little more bold than I anticipated. I highly recommend spray painting. Easiest thing I've ever done. I forgot to take a picture of just the white paint on the dresser, before I distressed it. Oh well. This is the finished product. The bright pink underneath is quite mild now after distressing it in only a few places. We found those top handles at Hobby Lobby. I really like them. They're quite unique. I spray painted the original handles for the rest of the drawers.This is the first time Ben and I have ever refinished something. It was pretty fun, but kind of a lot of work. But, we'll probably still do it again if the opportunity presents itself. Now I've got to get to decorating the rest of her room. This is definitely not my area of expertise.

happy fourth!

Ben and I always knew that we would completely miss our families and the Plain City celebrations this year. The fourth has always been such a fun holiday for us to spend with our families. We love the parades and especially the park activities. I have done the four wheeler derby with my dad for as long as it has been in Plain City history so I knew right away that's what I would miss most. I just had to keep reminding myself that Ben wouldn't have let me risk our baby's life to do the derby this year, even though I probably would have won because nobody would hit a pregnant woman. Anyway, my dad still did it and I heard it was a blast!

Instead of missing home all day, we spent the entire day with my cousins and their families. It was a good alternative to sitting home. We actually had a lot of fun. Arizona doesn't do day activities at the parks because of the insane heat, so we just made our own fun. We started the morning out relaxing inside, then had a little BBQ with hot dogs. We got to the community pool when it wasn't too busy. I wish I would have taken pictures. I love everything about the pool. I feel buoyant, which is a fabulous change. Ben has the most fun in his life playing with my cousin's little girls. Then to top all of that, it feels fabulous to be in the water with the warm sun. After we were exhausted from the pool, we went home and played some games before we barbequed some hamburgers. What's a holiday without way too much food, huh? After dinner we packed up and got to the park to watch the fireworks. It was an awesome night. The temperature was perfect because of the monsoons coming into town.These are my cousin's darling girls. They adore Ben and Ben adores them. He is so good with them, and actually misses them if he doesn't get to see them every week. I hope that everyone had a great fourth of July! I just love the holiday.

28 weeks

This is my belly in all of it's glory at 28 weeks. September can't come soon enough! Now, I have been very proud of myself for not gorging in fatty foods and completely destroying any sort of healthy diet just because I'm pregnant. I know that would only make losing the baby weight even that much harder when this little girl gets here. Common sense, right? But, to each his own. I'm not going to blame you if you feel like completely breaking every healthy food rule in the book just because you're pregnant. I felt like I needed to post this picture because of a little conversation that I had with Ben the other night. Here's how it went.

Me: *In the sweetest, most innocent voice possible* Do you think I'm kind of a cute pregnant woman?
We all know that every woman wonders this, so don't blame me for asking.
Ben: Yeah
That's it?
Ben: But not for long. You're going to be HUGE!
Me: Silence

Wow, I guess I shouldn't have asked if I didn't want the truth. Maybe I'll start gorging in fatty foods now so he can really appreciate huge.

let life begin

Since we have moved down here to Arizona, I have been unemployed. Well, both of us have been unemployed. But, Ben has an excuse...I guess. :) He's super busy with school and his internship. I have no excuse! I have actually been pretty bored staying home all day, waiting for Ben to get home to give me some company. Now don't get me wrong, I have been able to do some fun things getting ready for this little baby to get here, but bottom line, I'm ready for a schedule. I had a second interview yesterday and got the call last night, I got a job! I can have a schedule now. I can feel accomplished during the day. I can talk to someone other than my dog. Ben is quite excited too because now he won't just have to listen to me babble about what I scrapbooked that day. The hospital that I will be working at is called Arizona Heart Hospital. It's in downtown Phoenix, so about a 30 minute commute for me. The hospital seems really nice, and all of the other respiratory therapist spoke really highly of each other and the hospital. It just seems like a great environment. I will also be able to learn a ton about the heart, since that is the only thing this hospital does. I'm excited! And a little nervous. :) Starting a new job is kinda scary, wouldn't you agree? Oh boy, I better figure out how to be on my feet for 12 hours without letting these ankles swell! I'll figure that out later.

25 weeks

Okay, I must say that you better enjoy this post. I'm not one to take belly shots because I feel like they are very unattractive of me. So, taking a belly shot AND posting it on my blog is a big step. But, since my family and friends are far away now, I feel like I need to keep them a little bit more updated. I finally hit my 25 week mark! I feel like time is slowing down now. I'm getting very antsy for this girl to get here. I have not felt sick since about week 17 and I am just recently starting to feel a little uncomfortable and noticing swollen feet and ankles. So, I feel pretty lucky. These last few weeks have been pretty easy! Our little girl is moving quite a bit more now. It took so long to feel her move because of where her placenta attached, so I was always so nervous about her. I love that I can feel her now. It's very reassuring. Ben felt her for the first time in church yesterday. It was a neat experience for both of us. Now I think that Ben realizes that she is really coming, so he can get excited for her too. I can't wait for her to get here!

maricopa, az

We have a new home! We have finally gotten all settled in to our new place. We're still doing a whole bunch of business stuff to get ready for school and life in Arizona, but I'm not complaining! Once again, we have the greatest families in the world. Both of our parents drove down to help us move. My parents pulled a huge trailer with all of our goods while Ben's parents drove our car down. We're so grateful for all of their help and contributions. We seriously couldn't have done it without them. A lot of people have been asking me to post pictures of the house so this will probably just become a huge picture post. I know that I always like those so I hope it's okay with you! I'll do some explaining along the way.

This is taken from the front door. It's looking into the living room, kitchen, and dining room. That fan you see, it comes in handy. Actually it is our life saver. The kitchen is amazing! I have some loves for it. It has a dishwasher, filtered water from the fridge and a pantry! What more could I ask for? The master bedroom and back porch is right off of the dining room. We love, love, love how open this room is. These pictures do not do this place justice.This is the office. The picture is taken from the living room. The front door is on the left of the picture. The kitchen is to the very right. The right archway leads into the hallway that goes to the spare room, bathroom, nursery, garage and laundry room. This is our bedroom with the ghetto TV hanging on the wall that only works for movies. Whatever it takes to keep the husband happy is what I say. That nice little archway...it goes into the bathroom with a walk-in closet and two sinks. Spoiled.
This is the spare/baby's bathroom. I personally love the colors. That really has nothing to do with the house though. The nursery is going to be in the bedroom right next to this bathroom. I didn't take pictures of it because right now it's in shambles. I have some decorating to do in there! Good thing I have a few months.This is the guest/spare bedroom. It's not pretty, but I had to include it to let all of you know that there is a queen size bed here waiting for you to come visit!
This is the garage. Also nothing really special. We're just ecstatic to have a garage! It's amazing how quick we found things to fill this right up.We went and played some basketball last night in the community center right behind our house. The weather was perfect. Zoe was in heaven because she was on her leash. How much better can it get?It's hard to see, but this is the swimming pool and covered BBQ center with a playground. We've already gotten some good use out of this pool and been sufficiently burned at that. I actually think that I might go swimming tomorrow. Okay, I think that's enough pictures. Don't you think? We're adjusting well down here and already starting to feel like it's home. We don't miss the rainy weather that we hear is going on up there in Utah. Yesterday it was 97 degrees here and we couldn't be happier about that. We definitely miss our families, we're just hoping that they will come visit sometimes. Ben starts school in a week and I think that he couldn't be more ready! He's gotten an amazing internship that is practically in our backyard doing family counseling. He can't wait to start. Both of us are still looking for jobs. We're hopeful that we'll find something soon! But, in the meantime, I've got plenty of time to play with any visitor that would like to get out of the rain. :)