The Three Virgins

Stroller dilemma

2011-01-17T20:35:00.000-08:00

So I need some advice. I'm trying to decide what to do about a stroller once the baby comes. I really wanted to get a "Sit N Stand" and have been looking at them, but they're a little bulky and I'm just not sure how much I would use it. I like that it would fit two kids and that I could just put the infant carseat in as well. For those of you who have dealt with this dilemma and have figured something out I would love to hear your thoughts!

Update...Finally!

2010-09-18T20:20:00.000-07:00

So I obviously haven't posted anything in a really long time, so I guess it's time for an update. This picture is of Russell on his first day of SCHOOL! I made him take a first day of school picture- I guess it's the mom in me. It was an interesting chain of events, but basically he was taken off the waiting list for the BYU MPA program on about Aug.1 and school started Aug.31. It is crazy how much our plans have changed in the past few weeks, but we're excited to be on our way with this new adventure. Russell is loving school and it's going well. He's not working so it is nice to actually get to see him and to have some balance in our life.

The second big change in our little family, is that we're having another baby in February!! We both thought that it would be a boy, but we were wrong! We're having another girl and are so excited about it. It will be such a blast to have two girls in a row! We haven't decided on a name yet which is really weird for us because with Brooklynn we knew her name right away. Each pregnancy is different I guess!

I could write for hours about everything Brookie is doing and all the cute stories, but for now I'll just give a little update on how she's doing. She is so much fun and just loves life! She is talking like crazy and is always asking me questions and showing me things out the window while we drive. We took her to the farm at Thanksgiving Point and she absolutely loved it! She loves farm animals so she was in heaven. She loved riding the ponies =). She is my little adventure girl- she makes everything so fun. She's excited about being a big sister and always kisses my tummy and says "hi" to the "mimi" (her word for baby). She's so sweet and affectionate and is always hugging and kissing us. She also loves Jesus and the temple. The third picture of her is at the temple a few weeks ago. There are some fountains there that she loves and while we were sitting by one and she was puting her hand in, she fell in! It was hallarious- she was completely soaked. I felt kind of bad since were on temple grounds, but it was really entertaining! She's still really little- she's still not quite 20 pounds!! Needless to say I am trying to fatten her up. She had heavy whipping cream on her cereal today, plus peaches and cream this morning =) What a life! I love being a mom so much! I can't imagine how I'll stand having two cute little girls! I feel like I'll burst already so hopefully I can handle all the love =)

Carl and Alisa's Wedding!

2010-04-29T09:10:00.000-07:00

So we took a trip to Kentucky for Carl and Alisa's wedding! Alisa is from there so we all made the trek! It was so beautiful and green there! It also seemed super hot because of the humidity. It's amazing how much of a difference it makes! It was fun to be with all of Russell's family and the wedding was beautiful. We are excited to have Alisa in the family- she is the sweetest girl and we love her! It was awesome because my dad lives in Indiana so after the wedding, my dad picked Brookie and I up and we spent the rest of the week with him and his family. It was great to see them too!

Easter and Conference

2010-04-29T09:02:00.000-07:00

Time for an update! This year was our first time since we've been married, watching conference at home with just us. Russell's brother Carl and his fiancee at the time (now wife) came from BYU-I for the weekend. His brother Keith who lives here spent the weekend with us as well. It was fun to be the hosts and to just hang out and watch conference. We also had a little easter egg hunt for Brookie which was way cute. I put little bunny crackers and blueberries inside of the eggs for her to find. She doesn't know what she's missing yet so she was happy!

Photo shoot!

2010-03-20T21:46:00.000-07:00

So I pretend like I'm a photographer sometimes even though I am still far from that, and so I made Brooklynn and two of my sisters my subjects this week. Since it was so nice this past week we went to the park a ton and what better place to get cute pictures of kids? There were a few pictures that turned out well. My favorite is the close up of Brooklynn by the swing. I love her little pouty face =). The picture is perfect...including the cheese cracker crumbs all over her face and the booger in her nose, right? That's how it should be for a kid! =) Brooklynn discovered the joy of digging in sand and dirt this week and I don't think life will ever be the same again! She loves it so much. Dirt and sand keep falling out of her pants and diaper when I go to change her- she goes to town when she finds a pile of dirt! Two of my sisters got to come visit for spring break and we have LOVED having them here. Brooklynn has been in heaven having "big sisters" around and they have helped me a ton! Aren't they all such gorgeous girls!?

Sledding!!!

2010-03-12T14:35:00.000-08:00

Here are some pictures from when we went sledding last week. Brookie loves the cold and she was so happy to be playing in snow! She's tougher than I am when it comes to being cold. My favorite part was her puffy snow suit =)

Time for a post!!!

2010-03-11T15:23:00.000-08:00

I feel like such a dweeb. I realized for the first time today since I've started this blog over a year ago, that people comment on blogs! I just read all my comments that I never knew I had and it was exciting. I could definitely have more fun with this whole blogging thing if I know I have the possibility of getting comments! Haha. I am so blog illiterate, but that's ok because I'm learning =). Now that it's been like 3 months since I've posted anything, I figure the suspense of what's been going on in our lives is too much to bear so I guess I could write a little something. Brooklynn is almost 15 months and is such a little wild woman! I love it because she just loves to play and explore and make messes. I really don't mind because I like seeing these good developmental milestones and plus I just think kids should be able to make messes and enjoy their world. She keeps me on my toes though, that's for sure. She is walking, running, and even talking. She can say "Jesus" really clearly which is so sweet. She loves to walk down the halls of church and find all the pictures of Jesus and then wave at him and say "hi Jesus!" She can say a few other words too and will mimic almost any animal sound. I'm slowly weaning her and she is doing really well! I didn't want to traumatize her so I am dropping one feeding per month and that has seemed to be a good pace for both of us. As for Russell, he is waiting to hear back from BYU about grad school (I'm waiting just as anxiously!!). He applied for the MPA program and we should know in the next week. Hopefully it will work out! Oh, last friday we took Brookie sledding for the first time and it was so fun! She looked like a little oompa loompa in her snow suit. I just love that baby! We have been taking walks on nice days and she will just sit down on the ground and start eating leaves and sticks if I don't intervene. She loves playing outside and exploring. I'm really excited for spring and summer so that we can be warm while exploring and playing! She doesn't seem to mind the cold but I do! Anyways, that's our update. Here are a bunch of pictures too. Now if you comment I'll actually read them!! haha!

Christmas Tree!!!

2009-12-03T12:30:00.000-08:00

So we bought our first family Christmas tree! We've never actually bought one, and never had one so early either! We got it the day after Christmas which I think we'll always do because it's so fun having it early. We had to get a short one so that Brookie wouldn't pull it down on herself or play with ornaments, but we love it!! It's the perfect tree. That's half the fun of finding a tree is finding the one that feels like it grew just for your house =). It smells so good and has really helped me get into the Christmas spirit! It's amazing how having a tree helps you feel it! Anyways, I'll post more pictures once we decorate it which should be tonight!

Thanksgiving!

2009-12-03T12:26:00.000-08:00

We had a good Thanksgiving at my Gma and Gmpa's house! My cousin Benjamin is 4 months old and brookie is almost a year old and they are the same size! Hallarious! Don't you love their cute little Thanksgiving bibs?!

2009-12-03T12:22:00.000-08:00

So my brother Austin got home from his mission a few weeks ago and he got to come visit! It was so fun to see him! Him and Brooklynn became buddies right off the bat. We had a fun week visiting family in Utah and hanging out.

2009-11-12T20:54:00.000-08:00

The first picture is of Brookie at the Bean Museum on Monday night. We went there for family night to the reptile show. She got to pet a box turtle, an iguana and a boa constrictor!!! She loved it!Brookie loves cups and sippies so much! The other day she just picked up her sippy and started drinking it all by herself. If I tried to help her tip it back she would shake her head and pull her sippy away from me. It was way cute. There's nothing like watching your little baby get big and want to do big girl things!

HALLOWEEN!!!!

2009-11-01T20:22:00.000-08:00

We had a really fun Halloween. We took Brookie trick or treating for a few minutes and she had the whole 'grab the candy out of the bucket' thing down! She was a puppy and Russell and I were dog catchers =). Russell's name was "Will Getcha" and mine was "Kay Nine." Haha!

2009-10-29T11:32:00.000-07:00

Funny story: On Saturday I was out and while I was gone, Russell decided it would be a good time to give Brookie a haircut. Apparently he had her in the high chair and when he started to cut her hair, she started freaking out. She was wiggling her head around and crying so he had to improvise. He just pulled her hair up straight in the air and cut. When I came home Brookie was asleep. He didn't say anything about the experience. When she woke up I looked at her and said "what happened to your hair?!" That's when he confessed... I have been teasing him constantly since =). Pretty good stuff! Haha! She's lucky she's just a baby and I'm lucky her hair grows fast!

2009-10-29T11:09:00.000-07:00

On Monday for Family Night we went to the park and raked leaves, then jumped in them! Brookie loves leaves so this was a perfect activity=). It was really fun playing in the leaves together and it was a good thing we played outside because it was freezing on Tuesday!

2009-10-07T12:33:00.000-07:00

Brookie's arrival marked 5 generations on my mom's side! Here is the 5 generation picture- pretty amazing!

Crawling baby!!

2009-10-07T12:23:00.000-07:00

Brookie is almost 10 months and is a little crawler. She only weighs 14.5 lbs so she is still little, so it looks so funny to see her crawl. She looks like a little bear cub =). She is so much fun and is all about exploring everything she can. She also loves to pull herself up on furniture and I always find her peeping over the edge of her crib when she doesn't wanna take a nap =). Man, being a mom is the best! Oh, her hair is also super long now as you can tell from the pigtail picture!! I had to do it!

8 months of bliss

2009-08-22T12:13:00.001-07:00

These are some of our latest photos of Brooklynn and our family.

2009-07-19T19:22:00.000-07:00

Can you tell we are obsessed?

2009-07-19T19:18:00.001-07:00

More pictures.

2009-07-19T19:07:00.000-07:00

So it has been a long while since we updated our blog. Brookie is now just over seven months old and is doing great. She is the joy of our lives and makes each day exciting. She is sitting up on her own really well now. She loves to stand (with our help)and bounce. She is on a good sleep schedule sleeping about 10-11 hours a night and then one short and one long nap every day. She is still small for her age but is completely healthy. In fact she has never really gotten sick, even this last week when almost the entire immediate and extended family were throwing up. We love her and love seeing her grow older. She also has her two bottom teeth and we had to cut her bangs because they were getting in her eyes.

CUTENESS!!

2009-04-06T15:27:00.000-07:00

It's been so long since I've put up any pictures of cute little Brookie. She is growing so much and her personality is cuter every day! She is smiling and giggling all the time now and it completely melts my heart!

Bathtime

2009-02-22T21:28:00.000-08:00

Brooklynn hated her first bath in the real bathtub, but as you can see in the picture of her second bath, she's pretty happy about it. It was so cute because she was smiling really big during it and just loving the warm water. Her smile melts me dang it!

Blessing Day!

2009-02-22T21:17:00.001-08:00

Brooklynn was blessed by her dad on Feb. 15. My mom made the dress in about 2 days and it turned out so perfect! She couldn't come for the blessing but it was really special to have a dress made by her for Brooklynn. We'll pass it on for each of our future daughters. It was a really great day. Brooklynn woke up early in a really good mood and just seemed excited. I think she knew it was a special day. Russell's parents came from Maryland so that was great too! Russell gave her a really sweet blessing and it was just an overall great day.

CUTENESS!!

2009-02-05T22:56:00.001-08:00

On Saturday I took Brookie to get her picture taken. She was in the best mood all day and was being so sweet and cute. The second we got to the place she started crying and wanting to eat and take a nap. She was bawling the whole time we were there so I was a little stressed about getting any good pictures. Luckily she's adorable no matter what so there are still some good ones =)

2009-02-05T12:16:00.000-08:00

And Mom too!

2009-02-01T22:46:00.000-08:00

Wow mom, nice hair!!! That's intense!

Me and Dad

2009-01-23T15:04:00.000-08:00

Bathtime!

2009-01-23T14:59:00.000-08:00

So this is Brooklynn during bathtime. She doesn't like getting her body washed, but she LOVES having her hair washed. She almost falls asleep every time. It's adorable. Her hair is usually straight but after her bath it's sort of fluffy and curly.

Cutest baby ever!

2009-01-23T14:50:00.000-08:00

I got a picture of her smiling in her sleep! So precious! I love this outfit...the pants are huge on her but I love it.

Random Pictures

2009-01-15T19:39:00.000-08:00

One Month Old

2009-01-14T16:56:00.000-08:00

On Tuesday Jan. 13 Brooklynn hit the one month mark! She is doing so well in every way! She has even started sleeping through the night (if you consider 5 hours a full night's sleep) which is amazing! I'm a spoiled mama! She is eating well and is growing well. She is just so sweet and content. She is easy to soothe and is just an overall happy baby. I can hardly stand how much I love her and I let her know it! I think Russell would say the same thing. Now that Russell is back into school and work, Brooklynn and I hang out together all day every day. I think I have the better end of the deal!

Brooklynn's First Trip

2009-01-14T16:53:00.000-08:00

This past weekend my dad and brother Tyson came into town so we all headed to Logan to see my grandparents. Brooklynn was spoiled with all the people holding her and loving her. My dad (grandpa) was so sweet with her and held her for hours on end so that I could get some sleep. Brooklynn got to meet all of my dad's side of the family so it was great. They are the best.

Five Generations!

2009-01-14T16:51:00.002-08:00

On Jan. 6 Brooklynn met her only Great Great Grandma still living, Grandma Child-Park. How cool to have five generations! We're going to take a five generation picture when my mom comes back into town. So cool!

My Little Black Dress

2009-01-14T16:51:00.001-08:00

My Favorite Things

2009-01-14T16:48:00.000-08:00

Brooklynn loves to suck on our fingers for comfort. Sometimes when she's freaking out Russell's job is to calm her down by giving her his pinkie. One night we were having storytime and Brooklynn was sucking on Russell's finger and holding onto his fingers all at the same time. It was so sweet!

The Headband

2009-01-14T16:41:00.001-08:00

Before Brooklynn was born I made some head bands for her with detachable bows and flowers so that we can mix and match. Well, her head is really small compared with the bows and flowers I made. My friend Mindy got married on Jan. 3 and we went to her reception so of course I had to get Brooklynn dressed up. The only matching headband had a huge flower almost the size of her head. Russell couldn't believe it, but I had to put it on her. It was so cute and funny. Russell kept joking that she was going to have back problems for the rest of her life because of the weight of it. I swore I'd never put massive bows on my children, but I just couldn't resist. I'll admit it was pretty rediculous but she makes anything cute so it's ok.

Happy New Year!

2009-01-14T16:39:00.000-08:00

Brooklynn partied the night away playing games with friends and family. Happy New Year everyone!

Baby's First Christmas

2009-01-14T16:34:00.000-08:00

I think Brooklynn is already getting into the excitment of Christmas morning because she didn't seem to want to sleep on Christmas eve =). Of course once it was time to open presents she fell asleep! We had Christmas at Great Grandma and Grandpa Smart's house. It was a really fun day. Brooklynn got a bouncy seat from Santa! I got my Christmas present early though because all I wanted for Christmas was Brooklynn. She's such an awesome baby!

Grandma's Surprise Visit

2009-01-14T16:30:00.000-08:00

A week after Brooklynn was born, my mom surprised us and flew in to help for a few days. It was awesome to have her. Brooklynn loves her! It's so weird to call my parents grandparents! They just don't seem grandparent-ish. Grandma is so intuitive and taught us a bunch of techniques to help take care of Brookie better. It was SO great to have her here and we want her to come back!

Our baby is here!

2009-01-14T16:16:00.000-08:00

Now that Brooklynn is born we are finally motivated enough to start a blog! Plus now I am home so I can work on it more easily. Since our baby girl came a month ago, we'll backtrack a little to get the history. Brooklynn Noelle Virgin was born at 12:23 pm on December 13, 2008 at American Fork Hospital in Utah. She weighed 5 lbs. 13 oz. and was 17 inches long. She was born with so much darj brown cute hair! She is absolutely gorgeous and so sweet! We've never been happier...seriously. It sounds so cheesy but when it's real you can't believe how amazing it feels to finally have your baby! Russell and I both said how excited we were to be parents before she came, but it's so much better than we imagined or expected. I started having contractions around 2:30 am on December 13. They were really managable until about 9:30 when we got to the hospital and then they became more intense. I went from a three to a seven in one hour. Half an hour later or so I was ready to start pushing. Between ten and twenty minutes later she was out. Russell got to deliver her and cut the cord, as well as give her her first bath. Everything went so well and she is so healthy. We just feel really blessed to have had things go so well.