Happy 4th of July!

Our family spent the morning of the 4th of July with Jake's side of the family in Moroni, UT. I was somewhat disappointed Connor wasn't more excited for the parade. Lately, all he can talk about are cars and trucks. I think the heat made him too tired. He mostly just wanted to be held. Later that day we drove up to the Uinta Mountains where my mom's side of the family was having their family reunion at my great-grandfather's ranch. Here are a few pictures from the parade. I'll post pictures from the rest of our trip soon.

Four Months Along...Already?!

It amazes me how fast my second pregnancy has gone by. I'm grateful to be in my 2nd trimester and no longer feel that extreme fatigue and annoying nauseousness that I did in the 1st trimester. I am, however, shocked at how quickly I've aquired this baby bump and how quickly I've felt the baby move. It's as if my body said, "You've been through this before, we'll just speed the process up for you." Hopefully, that means this baby will come a bit early. We have an appointment scheduled at the end of July to find out whether we're having a boy or a girl. Jake and I think we're having a girl, but we wouldn't mind having another boy since we already have everything we'd need. I'm sure either way, we'll need suggestions for baby names, so we'll keep you all updated.

We Love the Pool!

Anyone who lives in Nevada in the summertime knows the only thing you can do with children in this extreme heat is go swimming. Luckily, Connor loves the water. We found this great pool that is very toddler friendly. It reminds me of the beach since it gradually gets deeper, rather than just having a few steps for kids to play on. Connor enjoys running around in the 1 ft deep water, splashing and blowing bubbles. He even has a little swim diaper tan line!

Say "Cheese!" - What is up with this face?

We're not too sure why Connor always pulls this face when we take a picture of him. Our digital camera has a tiny red flashing light that comes on right before you take the picture to help reduce red eye, so maybe he's squinting from that light? Here are a few pictures I've found over the last few months of this famous face. Jake and I can't help but laugh every time we look at them.

My Beautiful Wife

I wanted to surprise my wife by writing a special note to her for her birthday, and since she is by far one of the most intelligent people I know, I knew she would catch me and wouldn't be surprised if I tried to do this on her birthday. So I decided the best way to surprise her would be to put this on here a week after her birthday (at least thats what I am telling myself). I wanted to let Emily know how much I Love Her! I couldn't have asked for a better wife. She loves me for who I am (many of you understand that isn't the easiest thing in the world to do) and I am a better person because of her. Just so you understand how supportive and loving she is, we have been married for 2 1/2 years. In that time we have moved 3 times, she has birthed 1 son, we have 1 more on the way, and she passed the CPA exam in her spare time. The best part is that she still loves me. I Love Her with all my heart and couldn't ask for a better friend, wife, mother, to raise a family and go through life with!

Happy Birthday To Me!

Today I turned 25! Wow, does time fly. I found this picture of me when I was about 3 months old and thought I'd post it. I think we now know where Connor gets his fat cheeks from :) Overall I had a really great birthday. Thanks to my wonderful husband, family and friends for making it so special!

First Doctor's Visit

Last Friday we were able to go to the doctor's for the first time, hear the baby's heartbeat, and see him/her on the ultrasound machine. You probably can't tell from the grainy picture above, but we were able to see arms and legs and fingers and toes! The doctor confirmed that the due date is December the 20th. We're very excited and will keep you all updated once we find out in July whether we're having a boy or a girl.

Weekend Trip

For Memorial Day weekend, we were able to drive up to central Utah to visit family. Although we were shocked that gas cost us over $100, we had a great time and it was really nice to see everyone. Connor enjoyed the extra attention and a big yard to run around in. My brother Erik and his wife Natalie were in able to drive down from Logan to see us too! I didn't see much of my husband though over the weekend. He was up on the mountain fishing most of the time. He had a great time and even caught 30-40 fish in one afternoon! Yum!

Connor is Walking!

Connor has been walking for a few weeks now and we finally were able to get a decent video of him. We promise his head doesn't wobble this much all of the time. Jake asked Connor if he wanted the camera, and he was just nodding "yes" :) When I sent this video to my parents my mom said, "His head is too big! He can't balance it when he's walking!" She was relieved when I told her what he was doing. Enjoy!

Snow Canyon Hike

Last Saturday, we decided to drive up to St. George and go on a short hike at Snow Canyon. What a beautiful time of year! The colors of the desert flowers were amazing! Growing up in the east, I'm somewhat embarrassed to say, that I didn't even know cacti had blossoms. Unfortunately, during our hike, Connor wasn't happy for too long in our little backpack carrier. We had to stop and let him crawl around a bit, and most of the time he rode on our shoulders. He seemed to really enjoy climbing up this small hill; he may even have a future hobby in rock climbing!

Connor enjoying his shadow...

Oh, Did I Tell You?

For those of you who don't already know, yes we are pregnant with Baby Blackham #2! I'm about 7 weeks along with a scheduled due date of December 20th. Jake and I are both very excited, even though this wasn't planned; we're starting to wonder if ANY of our pregnancies will be planned...Oh well! It looks like Connor and the new baby will be about 21 months apart, which I hear isn't horrible. For all of you mom's out there with children close in age, any advice?

Thanks for all of your love and support! Now, I think I'm going to take a nap before Connor wakes up.

Mother's Day Album

This year for Mother's day for Connor's grandma's, I decided to make an album of the first year of Connor's life. Thought I share the finished, electronic version with you all!

Young Women's Activity

For our Young Women's activity last Wednesday, we took a trip up to St. George to a bridal boutique. The boutique sells trendy, modest prom dresses. They learned the importance of dressing modestly and how to wear dresses that are flattering for their body types. Then, the girls were able to have a mini fashion show and try on a few of their dresses. Of course they made their leaders, Rachel and me, try on a dress as well. We had SO much fun!!!

Rachel and me modeling our prom dresses....just about everywhere we go, people either mistake us for one another or ask us if we are sisters. Our own children have even gotten us mixed up. I guess what they say is true, everyone has a twin!

Mesquite Days Parade

On Saturday, our family attended the Mesquite Days Parade. Connor had fun watching Jake chase after all of the candy being thrown from the floats. Sometimes I feel like Jake is more of a kid than Connor!

Congratulations Natalie!

I just wanted to let my little sister know how excited I am that she decided to serve a mission for our church. She's been called to serve in the Utah Salt Lake City South Mission and will leave for the MTC on July 9th. Yeah!!!

12 Month Checkup

Connor and I went to the doctor's this morning for his 12 month checkup. I was surprised to see that he has lost weight since he's been crawling; is that normal? He now weighs 24.8 lbs (60th percentile) is 30 1/2 inches long (80th percentile) and I can't remember how big his head measured, but the doctor said it was off the charts...aka "huge melon" as Jake calls it. He did fairly well with the shots this time. It sure will be nice to be done with vaccinations for a while once he turns two, although I think I get more nervous about it than Connor does.

Congratulations!

I would just like to congratulate Jake along with the Nevada State Bank softball team for winning the 2008 Mesquite Men's Softball League Championship on Wednesday night. Way to go guys!!!

Connor's First Birthday!

Today our little boy turned one! Can you believe it?! We actually did most of our celebrating a few days early since Jake's side of the family came to visit over the weekend. Connor LOVED opening all of his presents. He got several toys, books, clothes, and a new pair of shoes. Aunt Lucy even gave him his very first cell phone (her old one). He was SO excited!

Of course we couldn't end the day without giving Connor his first piece of cake. He wasn't too sure what to do with it at first. He basically just ended up scraping off the frosting and squishing it between his fingers.

Go Carts and Bowling

Jake's parents and sisters came to visit us this weekend. We had so much fun racing go carts and bowling.

As you can see, Connor kept trying to chase the bowling balls down the lanes. I'm sure he would have gotten a strike if we let him.

Happy Birthday, Jake!

I couldn't resist posting this baby picture of Jake (I think Connor looks a lot like him). Today, our own April fool turned 29! Hope you have a great day!