Thank you John at Hazen for such beautiful pictures of our baby!

Beautiful Ava

St. George

For our Valentines weekend Jay took Ava and I to St. George for some relaxation and to see the Parade of Homes. Since we have been together (almost 5 years) we have never missed a St. George Parade of Homes and I really needed to get out of the house and feel like myself again. While we were down there we got to hang out with some of our friends, tour the amazing homes and just relax. One of the homes we walked through is 15,000 sq. ft. with basketball court, racquetball court, rock climbing wall (my fav.) a putting green and a gym just in the basement. They have the coolest pool with hot tubs in caves and slides. The house was crazy. It is for sale for 3 million if any of you are interested! There of course were gorgeous homes with amazing views and features in the homes. I absolutely love to go to the Parade of Homes. I love to look at all the floor plans, walk through them, see how they are decorated, and imagine if it were my house what I would do differently. 

Ava did amazing. I have to admit I was a little nervous to go on vacation already with her but she was nothing but an angle. And Jay, he has been such a big help from the beginning and our vacation was no different. I just want to tell Jay how thankful I am for all his help from day one of having Ava, I truly couldn't do it without him and am so grateful for all his love and support. I love going to St. George because it's where I met Jay and fell in love with him, and every time we go back it brings back all the memories of when we were dating and falling in love with each other. I am so glad Jay is my husband and the one I get to spend the rest of my life with. I couldn't imagine spending it with anyone else. He not only makes me so happy and laugh all the time but he has given me a beautiful home, life, and now a daughter. I love you Jay!

Ava's first roadtrip. She didn't last very long at the Parade of Homes!

Ava's first roadtrip. She didn't last very long at the Parade of Homes.

Introducing...

We would love to welcome into this world, Ava Ann Ackett. 

She was born 11 days early (thank goodness) on January 31 at 7:41 pm. Ava was 20 3/4in. long and weighed in at a remarkable 8lbs. 10 oz. She is such a sweetheart. What an amazing adventure Jay and I have gone through and are about to have. Full of so many emotions I won't even begin to describe. Well here she is...

We're going home!

He is already wrapped around her finger

I survived my first night home!

My first pose

First Bath

The Girls of the house

Baby Showers

I really have the greatest family and friends. I was thrown 2 showers at work (one from the day crew and one from the night crew, pics are from my night crew) and a family and friend shower (the first 3 photos). I had such a fun time at all the showers! Everyone thank you for your gifts and love. It doesn't go unnoticed.

The last belly shot (36 wks.)

Is anybody there?

The Girls I work with

"The Crew"

Tag Fever...

I was reading my friends blog and saw this tag with an invite to all to fill it out. And since not a whole lot has been going on (except for today, but thats a later blog) I though it would be fun to do. So here we go...

5 Things I was doing 10 years ago...
1. I had also been driving for 4 months!
2. Early morning cheer practice!!!
3. Cheering at games!!! (my life was cheer for a while there)
4. Whitewater Rafting.
5. Scoping out the hot boys because I could finally date!!!

5 Things on my "to do list" today...
1. Go to a neighborhood baby shower
2. Take a nap (has been a must lately)
3. Go to work
4. Focus on not passing out from working "so hard"
5. Hang out with the hubby and pups

5 Snacks I Love...
Yikes this is limiting...
1. Popcorn
2. Rice Crispy Treats
3. Chips and salsa
4. Chocolate
5. Sherbet

5 Things I would do if I was a billionaire...
1. Pay off all our bills and live debt free forever!
2. Help my family with any of there bills so we could all play anytime we wanted
3. Travel the world!!!
4. Give to Charity
5. Invest

5 Friends that I will tag...
I think I will send this out to everyone as well. I like reading what people think.

New Year's Resolutions...

Jay and I had a great New Years Eve. I worked most of the day (not the great part). But after was fun. On our way home from the evening we were discussing our 2008 and the New Year. Over all 2008 was very eventful for us aside from what was going on in the world and the economy. There were a few things that had happened that were not the greatest but they were very big events non the less. Here is a brief recap of our year (in no particular order)...

- We went on a cruise to the Caribbean

- We became pregnant

- I went on a great Girls Trip

- We went on a fun family river trip

- Jay ran the St. George Marathon (again)

- We built a house and moved in

- We bought our new truck

- Jay's brother died (the not so happy event)

- I lasted a year in a job that was not the river (big accomplishment)

- Jay received a new job

- I graduated from College (well technically the end of '07 but still)

While Jay and I were talking he asked me if I had any New Years Resolutions. As I thought about it I realized I never really had resolutions, just things I thought would be fun to do but didn't have to do if I didn't want to. So this year I figured I would turn those into my resolutions. So here I am sharing with you my New Years Resolution...

- To finish a half marathon (the longest running race I have ever done is a 10k so this is sort of a big deal. Note: I hate running)

- To get close to if not back to my pre-preggo weight by the end of the year

- To learn as much as I can about our new baby

- To start saving some money (which will be interesting to do with the new addition)

- To work on our food storage and 72 hr. kits

- To work on our family history

I know some of these sound silly, but these were some of the things I want to work on this year. Well I hope you all had a great 2008 and a wonderful new year to come! Enjoy every moment!