I realized it's been a while since I posted last. Are we surprised? I don't have much to write, but thought I'd post some new pics and maybe a video or two.

Daddy dressed her for a bike ride. He found the box of clothes for when she gets bigger!
Modeling the Halloween outfit from Marmee! It's one of her favorites!

I had surgery on my toe, no toenail anymore!

Mariokart Wii! Emma loves to play with daddy.
Modeling the new bike helmet and headlight. He think's he's sexy..... :)
Emma loves to go for walks and play outside!
Daddy's girl...John Deere tractors and swimming!
Packing for vaca! She wanted to make sure she didn't get left behind.
Daddy's little girl......

Playing in the water in Nana's front yard.

Emma's first birthday! She enjoyed the cake!

A favorite place to play, surprising the things that entertain her!

I hope you enjoyed this visual update! More soon!

Much to tell you since my last post. And more pics if I can figure out how to get them off of my cell phone and video camera.

As I mentioned before, Josh and I went to SLC for our anniversary. We spent several hours at Hogle Zoo where we both felt like little kids running around to see the animals. We were both disappointed when the Zebras were not out (although we felt better about that when a park employee told us he hasn't seen them once in the four years he's been there), and Josh was very disappointed when the rhinos were indoors. It was cold for them. At the end of the day, just before park closing and when there was no line, we got on the train and rode it around the park. We sat in the very back next to one of the employees and he pointed out where to look for everything that everyone else was going to miss. That was fun. After the zoo we went home and got all dressed up and went to dinner on the Roof at Temple Square. Josh decided it was worth it after all. We had a lot of fun. the view was gorgeous and the pianist was amazing. Her tip jar had nothing smaller in it than a $10 bill, and even a few $50 bills! We have never been to dinner somewhere we had to dress up for.

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The next day I helped a friend get ready for her wedding by doing her hair that morning, then a few hours later we joined her family and friends at the temple for the sealing. We had a great experience. Josh and I love going to sealings. After that we went to lunch at the Mayan. Josh had never been there and couldn't believe that they had real live cliff divers and fire dancers IN the restaraunt. The only downside, there was a Beez game and a Real soccer game at the same time, on the same road as the Mayan and we had to drive thru the crowds of both, to get there. Not to mention the fact that we got stuck at a traffic light that wasn't working for fifteen minutes before the cops came to direct traffic. We had lunch at 4:00. (If we had known, we would have gone somewhere else) Shortly thereafter, we made our way to Provo, digesting food as fast as possible so we could have dinner with Tyler and Alex at seven. They fixed a fabulous meal and Alex made a great dessert. We really enjoyed visiting with them. We have missed that since they moved. Tyler entertained us with his wonderful story telling, and Alex showed me the baby's room while Tyler and Josh talked man-stuff. It was a great evening and we hope to be able to do it again soon.

Our last morning of the trip was spent sleeping in till 7:00 and then lying in bed another half hour trying to get back to sleep and wondering why oh why we couldn't sleep longer on vacation! Finally at 7:30 we gave up and started packing up our things. We then went to the visitor's center on Temple Square and had a lovely morning enjoying the Spirit and chatting with the missionaries. Then it was back to Rupert to spend Easter Sunday with Josh's mom and brothers. There we had Emma's first Easter. She had three new dresses as both of her Rupert grandmas and mom had bought her one, and a basketful of candy she couldn't really eat, but made a mess with anyway. It was a great family experience!

When we got home Josh returned to work and school and I started working at a local salon. I really enjoy the atmosphere there. My boss is great and the environment is really laid back and easy-going, but still nice. I only wish we were busier. (My boss and her sister bought the place recently and we are trying to come back from a not so great reputation left by the previous owners.)

A couple of weeks ago my husband and I were talking about summer plans and he suggested surpirsing my mom for Mother's Day. At first I wasn't so sure about the idea as I would have less than ten days to prepare, but at last it was decided and it worked out stupendously! I went to Utah for a hair show which Tori and I attended together, and then I stayed with Dad in Eagle Mountain until my flight left. I got to Texas on Sunday with Emma and aunt Loralynn and uncle Scott picked us up at the airport where I was very embarrassed by my stupidity. (A nice gentlemen offered to help me take all of my bags, and Emma's carseat out to our waiting car. I was so grateful for his generosity - and told him so - until I noticed out of the corner of my eye Uncle Scott slip him a tip as we got into the car. My excuse - they don't have those in Utah!) 

We showed up on Mom's porch glad that the surprise had stayed a surprise, and were greeted by tears, shrieks, and hugs. Emma wasn't sure what to make of it, but Mom didn't scare her too badly. Emma warmed up to her quickly. We were able to spend ten days there. We didn't do much but visit and enjoy each other's company, but it was well worth it and we all had a great time. We did get to have lunch with Zachary at school as he had earned an award, and I was able to take the older kids to Sea World for an evening. (GPS is amazing) The kids had a blast with Emma and she came home with a few new tricks, one of which is growling (thanks Marmee!) which she does non-stop now. She has also enjoyed playing outside which we were able to do a lot of because of the warm weather. Now that we're home, the second the door opens she is running for the porch. 

Josh is happy to have us home (and said so a million times, I'm sure) and was disappointed when he had to go back to work after his long weekend break. 

Today we are cleaning house and making plans for this weekend when Josh's mom, aunt, and grandma will be joining us for Mother's Weekend. We are also looking forward to an upcoming birthday (Emma's), and are planning a whole shload of great things for our baby's first. We do realize this will probably not last another year, or another child, but it's fun while it lasts.  She continues to amaze us by her intelligence and pure sweetness. Not to mention the fact that she is so busy all of the time that we can't keep up with her. I can't believe she is almost a year old, but we are looking forward to this next year and watching her continue to learn and grow and do new things!

Until next time, love to you all and thanks for being a part of our lives!

Here are some random pics of the goings on in our neighborhood.

Hogle Zoo in SLC

More Hogle Zoo
Our new TV
Opening the new tv!

It's been a while since I posted so I thought I'd give you an update...sorry no pictures yet...

There isn't much to report right now, I'm still sitting at home doing nothing but enjoying my time with Emma. My license finally came and now I'm looking for somewhere to work.

Josh is still in school and looking forward to the end of the semester and a break. He is doing well in his classes and is thoroughly enjoying the cadaver lab. He says once you get past the smell it's not too bad. I'm just glad I don't have to go in there. Cats in high school were enough for me! Recently Josh has been shadowing one of his professors at the hospital and has decided that in spite of it all, he still wants to be a physical therapist. Even though that means he's not quite half way done with school.

Emma is growing and surprising us every day. She just took her first steps...walking at nine months old! She is really tall for her age, but very skinny -- no idea where she got that : ) Until she was six months old she was still wearing 3 month old clothing, in the last month she has shot up and is now wearing 12 month old clothing which is baggy, but at least it covers her arms and legs to the wrists and ankles and not slightly above them! She loves to explore and has taken to emptying drawers and cupboards. Her favorites are the dvd's -- they make a cool noise -- and the sandwich baggies in the kitchen. (These I have to watch carefully so she doesn't choke on the plastic) She is cutting all four of her front teeth at the same time. You can imagine how well we are sleeping (or not sleeping, the more correct term) and how fussy and cranky we both get during the day! Since she now has teeth, and since we just bought a bunch more baby food, she has decided that she will no longer eat baby food, she wants the real deal. Hmm...what do to with a cupboard full of baby food. It's a good thing we live in Rexburg, Idaho. It won't be hard to find someone who wants it : )

I have been watching a little boy named Jackson to help with finances. He is 18 months old and a handful, as most kids are at that age. He and Emma get along really well for the most part. His favorite movie is Finding Nemo, so between the two (Emma still loves Cars), we (Josh and I) have gotten to the point that we could quote them both, start to finish, backwards.....When people find out I'm watching another little one they all want to know one thing, "do you still want more?" My answer: "Of course! This is nothing! What's 2 to 11?"

Since we moved into our new apartment, we decided it was time to get our second car fixed so we could drive it again. I was very excited as I have been missing my lovely little red car. Unfortunately, we couldn't find an engine for it. We were told by several people it would be better to just get a new car. I was so sad I almost cried. I love my little red car! Anyway, we started looking for new cars and we found one! It is a Buick Regal. I know, an old people car, but it was in really good condition, excellent price, and had plenty of room in the back seat.........for the carseat of course.......So now I drive a Buick. And to Josh's pleasure, "it has a great sound system for an old fogie car!"

Our tax returns finally came and we were quite pleased so we decided to do something fun, besides just paying the bills. Josh bought me some new clothes (The last clothes I bought were maternity clothes), we both got new shoes (which Josh really needed and I sorta needed), and then we splurged and bought a new TV. We have spent several fifteen minute sessions sitting in front of it and watching nothing but being so thoroughly entertained by its grandeur. We had to rearrange the furniture for it. We were not planning on something so big when we went to the store to buy it. In fact, we spent over an hour pondering the various TV choices in several different sizes (all smaller) and then finally, at the last minute, chose the big one we hadn't even considered, paid for it and got out before we could change our minds. Yesterday I was watching The Office and paused Michael Scott in mid walk. I left the room and came back only to be scared silly because I thought there was a man standing in my living room. Nope, no man, just the TV! Josh had a good laugh. Also, the picture of the Savior we had hanging above our previous TV looked very nice and was all very visually pleasing. Now, with the new TV, we've decided to move it as it would be sacrilage to leave such a miniscule painting of the Savior behind our giant TV.

Let's see, I think that about sums up the goings on around here. We love our new ward and are looking forward to getting callings, although they are difficult to come by in a large ward with no primary or YW/YM programs. We just had our second anniversary. (That's all?! And so much has happened in those two short years). I made a scavenger hunt with ten reasons why I love him and a gift to go along with each one. He ran around the house like a little kid and was so excited when he opened, John Deere fruit snacks, John Deere puzzles, bubbles, The Office DVD game, a very large framed John Deere puzzle (the putting together of said puzzle a whole other story for another day!), and a few other things. The final number ten was supposed to be me singing and playing a song on my guitar that I tried to learn. However, I grossly underestimated the difficulty of the song, so first I played it, then I sang it, and told him to imagine I did them at the same time. I'm glad he doesn't know music because he thought it was great and I was only a little bit embarrassed by my performance. I did promise him that I would keep practicing and try again. Maybe by our next anniversary.

Josh did not give me a gift, but lest you rightly assume that he is really cheap and didn't even buy a card, he is taking me to Salt Lake for the weekend between semesters. We are going to stay in a hotel across the street from the temple. We are going to the temple, Hogle Zoo, and the Mayan for dinner (He wanted to go to the restaurant on top of the building next to the temple, but once again, cheap -- it's $40 a plate -- Yikes!). The Mayan is not fancy, but we always wanted to try it. I will be sad to leave Emma over night, but it will be fun. We will also be attending a friend's wedding. I am going to do her hair for the big day! After that, we will go to Rupert where Emma is staying with mom-in-law and have Easter with them. Over all, he didn't do too bad, considering : )

OK, so maybe there was a lot to write and catch up on...

More big and exciting news as of late, I just graduated from Cosmetology school! Woohoo! It feels good to have accomplished something. Check out mom's blog for pics of that too! Now I just have to pass the test on Monday so I can get my license! Anyone need their hair done?

Moving into our new apartment! Finally! We have loved being with Grandma and Grandpa, but ready for our own place. Here it is! This is the living room if you can't tell. I'll upload more pics when it's all done and put together!

Emma's first airplane ride. She really like watching out the windows. She was a very good baby. We only had problems when it came to diaper changing. She does not like the airplane bathrooms any more than I do!

Here we are at the Alamo. I don't remember what Emma was looking at, but she wouldn't look at the camera. And, notice, flip flops and t-shirt!

Another great event of the Christmas break. Here we are catching a...nope, not a mouse, we're in Texas! It's a lizard in our bedroom! Notice Malika on the floor with the boys while the rest of us girls hang out on the bed : )