First Bath

She was not really sure whether or not she liked it, but when she saw herself and us in the mirror, she got somewhat distracted. 

She felt much better once she was out of the tub and on daddy's chest. 

They were both exhausted and fell asleep. 

Baby

Well, our little Cassidy Joy was born on November 4th.  What an amazing journey it was from start to finish, or I guess you could say from start to start, since I am now a mother and that's the beginning a whole new journey.  Maternity flew by, which I believe was mostly due to my working full time.  And labor and delivery went better than I could have ever imagined thanks to Hypnobirthing and a lot of support from Jared.  I am still in awe at the power of a woman's body--it truly is a miracle to be able to bring life into this world.

Motherhood has been amazing.  When you are pregnant, it is hard to believe that you could ever love anything so much.  Now, we can't imagine our lives without her! She's got the most fun little personality, is very expressive and spirited in that she knows exactly what she wants and when she wants it.  She'll be turning 6 months this week and I cannot believe that time has gone by that fast! While pregnant I was very worried about being a stay-home-mom.  It just seemed like so much pressure to be great at it.  But since, I have come to realize that it truly is a blessing to spend so much time with a child.  To watch them learn and grow; to help them experience new tastes, textures, and places; to listen to them develop language by making all manner of squeaks, cries, laughs, screeches, and even some kind of noise that I cannot explain that sounds like Golum on Lord of the Rings; to see them progress by rolling and developing motor skills.  There are many that do not get the privilege to stay home--so when I was worried before, now I am grateful for the opportunity.

Personally, I have also grown. Who knew that I would figure out how to take care of a baby?!  The fact that we've gone as long as we have with no major mishaps or trauma is amazing!  A friend at church gave me some of the best advice while I was pregnant that I did not quite understand until know; she said, "Everyone talks about maternal instincts and how they'll kick in once your baby is born and you'll just know what to do.  But really it's more about getting to know your baby.  Once you take the time to get to know her, you'll understand her cues and know what she's telling you."  I have found that to be true--the more I stood back and tried to determine what Cassidy was telling me with her cues, the easier it was to satisfy whatever need she had. Wha-la! Maternal instincts!

I am very excited for summer to finally come.  Cassidy and I have been keeping busy by going walking around the neighborhood with the BOB stroller or baby backpack, but I can't wait for when the trails are clear of snow so I can take her hiking with me.  She already loves the outdoors (but how could she not with Jared and me as parents?).  Most of the time she falls asleep, but likes to look and listen to her surroundings.  She is so much fun; I love having her around.

Here are some of the catch up photos...

Photos from the baby shower Caitlin Hatley and Ashley Mattson threw me in August. It had a great safari theme.

The birth.  She was born at 6:36am on November 4th at Providence Alaska Hospital. 7lbs 11oz; 20.5" long.

The ride home...

Getting used to being in the outside world--she was so sleepy.

Her first doctors appointment was two days after she was born.  She did well, but was totally drained after all the stress of being weighed and checked.

No place better than daddy's warm tummy.  She LOVES tummy time with daddy.

Ok, so I may have woken her up so she would play with me.  Two weeks old.

Spencer Glacier Trip

My dad and Jared got drawn for goat permits by portage. So we took a trip on the train to Spencer Glacier to scout goats. It had been pretty hazy, as the forest fires are raging up north, but as long as we could see the mountain sides, we could spot goats.

We had a great time riding the train and hiking out to the glacier overlook. We camped past the end of the trail pretty close to the glacier in the bottom of a valley where a small creek ran through. We figured the best way to see goats was to hike along the valley floor back as far as we could. Once we set up camp, we hiking back into the valley. We had beautiful views of the glacier and found a huge river that went from the back of the valley where we were trying to go, to the glacier. We hiked along the river. Hard hiking. We hiked back a mile or so with no luck of seeing any goats. Back to camp.

The next day we hiked back into the same area just much further. We had to cross a little cliff that fell straight into the water, and then we found that it continued to narrow and there was no rela way to pass. And so ended our hike, with no success of seeing any goats, and the hope of using Spencer Glacier for the hunt in August, gone. We had to find another way into the area and not to mention find some goats.

We got back on the train early and were able to see Grandview. It was beautiful. I thought driving the Turnigain Arm was pretty, but the train takes you through valleys, past glaciers, and by waterfalls. Things that you don't get to see from the road. I would recommend the train and Spencer Glaicer to tourists and locals. We loved it!!

I know, I'm slow.

So I realized how incredibly slow I am at getting pictures up and posted on here. And now isn't the best time to be noticing this, because I am starting a full time job at Everts Air Cargo on Monday, and just started three classes last sunday!! I'm going to be one busy girl on the week nights!!! Good thing I have time on the weekend to go outside and play!! : ) I am so grateful that Jared has the weekend off. He works night shift so if he didn't, we would never get to see eachother!!

It's also been fun lately because my friend Nichole and I have been quilting and we have all these great ideas and projects we're working on. (Yet another thing I don't have time to do!)

For those of you that aren't on the call-if-jared-gets-drawn-for-anything list, he got drawn for a goat out by spencer glacier with my dad. It's all he talks about and if you're melissa, you know how I feel, since Jed got drawn for a sheep. They talked for an hour about how to kill a sheep, but Jed neglected to tell us that their car got broken into last week!! Priorities, I know!! But, that's what we get for marrying huntin' fools!! Huh, Melis?

That's about all that's new so far I think. I am going to actually try to keep up to date. Our camers needs a new battery so I haven't been able to take any pictures recently. Hopefully I can remember to get one here pretty soon!

Our ring ceremony in Arizona...

After we were married in the temple, we had a ring ceremony in Arizona at my parents new house. We had a lot of help from friends and family for decorations, set up and music. Everything looked perfect.

Around my parents new pool, there was just enough room to set up the chairs. It was a sunny day, but really, really, windy!!

All the girls packed into one bathroom to get ready...

I love these girls!!

The dresses were super cute. Green and brown were my colors and that turned out really cute once all the girls were dressed and ready. The guys looked pretty sharp too. Who knew friends of ours could clean up so well!! : )

This dress was made by my grandma Saraha for my mom at my parents wedding. My mom made it longer and made a few other changes for it to fit me and so I could wear it outside the temple. It is the most beautiful dress I have ever seen. I wish my grandma could have seen me wear it as my mom did.

Jaron Pope, one of Jared's mission companions, was the best man and my maid of honor was my best friend Casey Martinez.

The best men were Barry, David Smith, and my cousin Joseph Lee.

The bridesmaids; Ashley Bixler, Margaret Griffin, and Jaime Martinez.

We had so much fun in Arizona with all the friends and family. We are so blessed to have so many amazing people in our lives all around us.