"Hat!"

Kate not only tolerates hats, she loves them. And why wouldn't she? Hats are just cool, especially for the hairgrowth-challenged... babies and men alike.

We're thankful for Las Vegas

Nice clean family fun in Las Vegas - if there is such a thing. We found all kinds of fun free stuff to do on our limited budget over Thanksgiving weekend. Here are some of the highlight pictures. Just because we know you want to ask - no we didn't gamble (not even a penny), yes we saw about three Elvi (plural of Elvis), and even with all the bright lights Kate slept really well in the bathtub.


Family photo inside the "Wynn." It's a gorgeous new hotel named after Steve Wynn, who owns most of the nice casinos in Las Vegas.

Here's Kate tracting in Las Vegas knocking on the door of her uncle (Elder Thurber) whom she has never met. And of course we made sure that we didn't accidently run into him.


Evidence that this was indeed Clint's apartment - a note to his mission president!


The glazed, I've-been-awake for-eight-hours-straight look from Kate. She was really good on our trip even though her regimented nap schedule was out of whack. This is at the Arby's near Clint's apartment while we waited for him to vacate the premises.


Clint's car. This means that we were actually no more than 30 feet from Clint at this point. It was such an adrenaline rush to be just outside his apartment while he was there. We felt so sneaky.


Chubby face.


Kept kept saying "peaze" for our food, so like any good parents, we gave her a lime slice, which she ate grimacing like this with each taste.


The Bellagio water show. The only genuinely classy thing in Las Vegas.


Mirage volcano show. Kate was scared by the loud thunderings and flashes of fire. She was burying her head on Jen's shoulder - so sweet.


Even as Kate wore down she was really pleasant. This shot was taken close to the flamingos at the Flamingo. Like the lions at the MGM Grand, she said "baaaa" to the pink flamingos.


The two prettiest girls I know. That's the New York New York in the background.

Addendum:
Scott meant to include this picture too. Here Kate is watching the fish at an aquarium in Caesar's Palace. She got really excited every time a new fish swam by.

*Don't miss the new videos of Kate posted below.

Final Grade In!!!

We proudly announce Marleen's final grade for Health & Aging Processes. Marleen took the final exam in this class on September 25, and the final exam grade was posted quickly thereafter, as previously noted. We then began our vigil, awaiting her grade for the class. No news. Days turned into a week, and Marleen decided to quit checking every hour (watched pot never boils, etc.). One week turned into two weeks, then three. The fingernails of everybody in the family were bitten way down, except Camille's (nail job, unsanitary) and Austin's (he forgot). Marleen started calling the home study office, but always got put off, although in a nice BYU sort of way: "Don't worry, I e-mailed the professor again today." "Can I talk to him?" "No, that isn't done here." "Can I talk to the director?" "No, he isn't in on weekdays." "Can I talk to your supervisor?" "That's me, girl." Also, several by-pass calls directly to the professor himself. No movement. No sound. No sign of life, but there was definitely somebody in that room. Finally decided not to prod the beast, so she went back to her seat and waited, a nervous wreck. Four weeks, nothing. Then, on the fifth day of the fifth week, also Kate's birthday, the phone rang at the office. Devereaux said Marleen is on the line. I am in the middle of a conference call, convened by me, 11 participants from China, Panama, Houston and New York, four separate countries, could I get back to her? Nope, had to be now. What is it dear? I got my grade, want to guess? Why don't you just tell me -- it's been so long that I no longer have an opinion. A! 97! I sank to the floor in disbelief, a drunken stupor of unmitigated joy that our little family of seven had been blessed with one more 97. Not sure when my client finally hung up the phone.

Talk, Laugh, Dance

Scott and I compiled a bunch of video clips, mostly of Kate talking, and edited them down to the movie below. Sadly, we were unable to capture her saying all the words we wanted because she tends to clam up as soon as she spots the camera. We had to split our movie into three parts to upload it onto the blog because the file size was too large, although the movie is only 4 1/2 minutes long. Anyway, we tried to make the clips good and short so it would be action-packed! If that's possible for a home movie.





Also, here is a family picture that was taken a couple of months ago.

The Bee, the Beekeepers, and a Baby Birthday Bash

To continue our tradition of family-themed Halloween costumes, we were beekeepers this year to go with Kate's bee costume. Scott made the hats and did all the grunt work, but I was the one who ended up with the cool rubber boots - hardly seems fair.

We've posted plenty of pictures of Kate in her Halloween costume already, but no videos of her telling us what she's supposed to be:



So Kate turned one on Thursday (November 1st). I was kind of excited that we made it through the whole first year without ruining or breaking her. Parenting is so overwhelming that sometimes you just have to revel in the small victories. :)

Warning: If parental gushing makes you nauseous, you may want to skip down to the next paragraph. In one year Kate has gone from being a tiny helpless newborn to a little girl with tons of personality who plays little jokes on us and has the sweetest little speaking voice. People (okay, grandparents) have been asking us lately how many words she can say, so I wrote down as many as I could think of that she says regularly and came up with 18, plus a handful of animal sounds. We will try to document more of her little voice on video. On her birthday I thought a lot about how exactly one year ago Scott and I got to see her sweet face for the first time and spend a couple of hours alone with her in the hospital delivery room right after she was born, and what a touching time that was for us. I feel so blessed to have such a sweet little girl who is so funny and cuddly and thrilled about life. I never imagined I could love a little person this much.

Last night we had a birthday party for Kate, but it was really for us. :) I kind of wanted to invite everyone we know, but alas, we are still bound by the constraints of apartment life. There were 14 adults and several babies present (including us) and we were definitely maxing out our space with that crowd. We ate dinner and birthday cake, and we played some classic children's party games - drop the clothespins in the jar, pin the tail on the donkey, and pinata smashing. We had a great time and hope everyone else did too.

Here is Kate pre-cake...

...and post-cake. She ate the whole piece, and we're pretty sure that what wasn't eaten was absorbed through her skin. She made quite a display of squealing with delight and threw some grunts and snorts in the mix. We should have dressed her as a pig for Halloween. In fact, she even licked the high chair tray when the cake was all gone.

A group shot of most of the guests.

So Scott drilled a hole in the ceiling of our apartment building hallway and installed a hook for the pinata. (Does that make us bad tenants?) Here I am, about to make a fool of myself while Scott jerks the pinata up and down. This pinata was homemade (by Scott, who else?) and reinforced with duct tape, so at the end we had to resort to beating on it sans blindfolds to get it to break open.
*I'm holding the bat that way on purpose, just in case you were questioning me.

Cute donkey, huh? Scott made this poster as well. (It sounds like I didn't do anything, but I was busy wrapping presents and making all the food.)

Our cute little friend Ashley was more excited about Kate's presents than she was. Notice the gently restraining parental hand on her shoulder.

Thanks to all who came, especially those who travelled up from Provo to celebrate with us.

Fall Hodgepodge

Here are some random pictures from the last couple of weeks.

Today was Page's baby shower at a cute boutique/restaurant called Dear Lizzie's, and it was so fun to see my friends that live in Provo! Plus Page makes a super cute pregnant gal. We can't wait to meet Baby Carson.


We had our annual Swendsen family pumpkin carving contest last Sunday. I don't think I'm winning any prizes with my stenciled ghost, but I'll be okay.

Scott did this maple leaf freehand and it turned out great.

Kate and Reese wore their costumes to the pumpkin carving extravaganza. Reese made such a cute strawberry - we loved the hat in particular.

So Kate and I went to Gardner Village for a playgroup this week and we loved it so much that we went back today with Scott. It is this old historical "village" in West Jordan that's done up really cute and they go all-out for fall, complete with many life-size witch displays. Lots of people come in costume, as did Kate.
Here she is on the lap of one of the witches.

Nothing like a little Halloween bathroom humor. ("Where is that awful smell coming from...?")

Grandma bought Kate this adorable winter coat which she recently debuted.

A hat that Rick Otto left for Kate after his med school interview last week. She actually plays with it a lot - thanks, Rick!

What Would Jeezey Do?

Let the records show that Kate now refers to Jesus as "Jeezey," an affectionate nickname which, I imagine, is popular in the 'hood.

Houston trip

So last weekend Kate and I took off for a few days to Houston to see the family while Scott stayed home studying for his test and eating all the leftovers I had provided for him. (Call me an enabler.) It was so fun to see the family and to watch them play with Kate, and "Grandma and Grandpa" were very generous as always (as was Camille - thanks for the jeans!) and showed us a great time. But we missed Scott, of course. Kate was ecstatic when we got back and she saw him at the airport. By the way, how can a little baby be so discerning about who's funny and who isn't? I mean, adults know that Scott's a pretty funny guy, but Kate figured out early on that he's the funny one and she laughs expectantly every time he's nearby. It really is cute to watch, and I'm not TOO jealous.

Anyway, a few highlights of our trip included shopping for Kate, great restaurants, a trip to the Oil Ranch, and dinner with Dan, Heather, and the boys. I was particularly impressed with the Oil Ranch - every little kid who goes there is sure to have a blast.


The pumpkin patch at the Oil Ranch.

Kate selected this pumpkin from the bunch.

Buyer's remorse?

I was thrilled that they allowed Kate to do her own pony ride, with me following next to the horse, of course. So fun.

So at the Oil Ranch they take you on this hay ride where you get to stop and feed the cows. They are HUGE. They stick their heads right in and seriously invade your personal space, as seen below.

Kate accidentally stuck her fist up a cow's nostril and was very startled. Here she is seeking refuge after the unfortunate bovine snot incident.

Being silly with a straw. By the way, Kate LOVES her Aunt Christine.


And her Uncle Austin. Check out that bed head (on Kate)!

When Dan and Heather came over we did a little early birthday celebration for the soon-to-be one-year-old.

It was a dream come true.

This one's a little embarrassing.

Here's a family picture for the ward directory. Not everyone was excited about dressing up for it, as you can see.

Thanks for the great time, guys! We can't wait til Christmas.

Sampling

We had a fun time with the Swendsens in town this weekend, and Kate and Reese spent some quality time together. Below is a sampling, but for a full account of their escapades, go here.

Marleen's Report Card

Marleen's final exam grade for "Health and Aging" just came in, good result as you can see. Since all the kids' report cards are accessible to their parents, it's only fair that Mom's college report card be published for all the world to see. This wasn't a statistics class, but a quick course in statistics is in order here, given the odd juxtaposition of grades. The chances that any two consecutive grades, on a scale of 1 to 100, would be the same are 1 in 10,000. Not good, but fortunes have been made on slimmer odds. The chances, however, that all six grades would be the same are 100 to the sixth power, which is 1 trillion, a number so large that only the U.S. government has any idea what it means. This being BYU, we can only call this a miracle of the highest order, and be thankful that the six identical lotto balls popping out of the swirling hopper showed 97 instead of 7. Other less pious folk would unpolitely refer to this statistical anomaly in the context of my recent rantings about the statistics of evolutionary theory -- I prefer to think of it as intelligent design. Around here, our solution is to throw a party, which means that Camille and Austin go to homecoming (Austin's limo got cancelled, he is reduced to begging a ride just like going to seminary), Marleen and Christine go to Dallas, and Dad fertilizes the lawn.

P.S. Betting is now open on Marleen's grade for the course, which should be published shortly. Before you throw all your money away betting the obvious, keep in mind that the chances of a 97 are no better than the chances of a 7. In predicting the next step in a statistical progression, the results of previous coin tosses are irrelevant.

The parental paparazzi will never leave this girl alone...

This is my "thrilled to be a mom" picture. On Saturday it was raining/snowing, thus the hood for Kate. You can also see my new bangs in this picture, which I'm having a really hard time styling. The stylist told me I have the most strong-willed hair she'd ever seen - now I know why it never seems to do what I want!

Check out that plump little face.

Here's a good look at the top teeth or "train tracks." Poor little hick child.

Scott made this amazing poster for his grown-up science fair where he presented his summer research. The guy next to him is the doctor who "directed" the research, but don't be fooled - Scott did it all. The doctor just showed up to take some of the credit.

An umbrella and a rubber ducky - what else do you need to weather a rainstorm?

I decided against posting a crawling video because they're all too boring, but here's an action shot which also illustrates one of the hazards of mobility. Don't ask what the white stuff is.

Chocolate face.

Kate and her cousin Reese. I'm seeing lots of mischief-making in their future together...

Sour face after sucking on a plum.

Here's a look at the haircut. I cried when I was driving home but I'm gradually coming to terms with the bangs.