The Harwood Family

Watch out world...

2011-07-15T05:56:00.001-07:00

The Bulldog is on the move!
Gray started officially crawling this week, and once he started he has not stopped! I seriously can't keep up with this kid! He is nothing like his sister was. I have a feeling that all of the baby proofing stuff I bought when Presley was a baby and never used, will finally make it out of the packages with this one.

Not only is he crawling, but he's pulling himself up on everything, emptying drawers and cupboards, and basically getting into anything he can. Lucky for me, his new found freedom coincides perfectly with Presley's new interest in Barbie, Strawberry shortcake, and Polly Pocket. So basically I get to spend all day keeping track of little tiny shoes!

June Wrap Up

2011-07-09T19:37:00.000-07:00

June was a crazy month for us! I feel like I've spent the last month and a half continually packing, unpacking, and driving. Lots and lots of driving! It has all been worth it though, we have had so much fun. Here is just a little of all the fun we have had...

June started with a nice loooong drive across the country.

And yes, she really wore the mask. I think she has about 5 or 6 different slumber masks now...such a strange child!

When we got to Ohio we had a crazy jam packed week. We celebrated Paigey's birthday at her beautiful ballerina party.

Gray was ridiculously excited about the ballerina wand he got at the party, and still plays with it daily!

Spent a day in Amish country and feeding the animals at Rolling Ranch (pictures to come).

Celebrated Daddy's birthday at the beach in Vermillion on one of the hottest days of the year!

We played and ate ice cream at Grandma and Grandpa's house.

Presley was soooo excited to finally have her Daddy back! They made sure to fit in some quality snuggle and nap time together.

And of course the grand finale of our busy week was the beautiful wedding of one of my very best friends. Congratulations Aileen & Joe!

Presley with the 'princess bride' at the rehearsal dinner.

Presley loved getting ready with the girls at the 'spa' before the wedding. And showing off her arabesque to anyone that would watch!

Then we headed to the church and the kids entertained the rest of the bridal party while we waited for the show to start!

Me and my little flower girl.

Best Friends....still!

I can't even describe how great it was to be with these girls again. I couldn't possibly love them more. I am so glad we are still creating new memories together! Thanks Aileen for the beautiful party and the chance be together. You were a gorgeous bride!

I'm not sure what we are doing, I guess serenading the bride?

Check out the bridal party flash mob too: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6HT379aFWWI

When all the fun of the wedding was finally over we headed down to Raleigh to get settled in there.

We spent the week doing lot's of swimming and relaxing.

Watched Despicable me at the park with cousins!

I love the progression of these pictures. Presley looks very reluctant to share those snacks!

It wouldn't really be a special night for Presley if there wasn't ice cream involved!

A little daddy switching!

That week we also got to celebrate Father's Day!

This chocolate peanut butter cake may look like a lopsided heap of melted chocolate, but let me tell you.... it was TO.DIE.FOR. If I do say so myself!

Presley's daily fashion show attire.

This busy month has been wearing our little bulldog out!

The next week we got BACK in the car and drove BACK to Cleveland for a short weekend. We were lucky enough to be there to celebrate this handsome guys baptism and 8th birthday!

And Rainey & Roo got to spend some more quality time together!

And Gray was just happy to be there.

Totally exhausting, but loads of fun!

Our Fancy Face Turns 3

2011-07-09T09:00:00.001-07:00

As most people know, I live for a good party. But when our summer plans changed at the last minute and I decided to come spend the summer in Raleigh with Travis, the plans for an elaborate 'fancy nancy' birthday party had to be put on hold. Maybe next year.

So for this year we switched gears and opted for a simpler strawberry party. I have to say, for a last minute party, thrown in an apartment that isn't mine, I was very happy with the results. Mostly because we were so blessed to have so many special family members with us that probably couldn't have made it to Idaho! It was very special for Presley to have her cousins from both sides of the family here. That is a special treat that doesn't happen very often for us!

Here are a few highlights from her special day...

The table before the food...
The table after the food...

Pork tenderloin with strawberry sauce, fruit with strawberry dip, rolls with strawberry jam, & strawberry fields salad. (I hope none of our guests have a strawberry allergy)

Strawberry marshmallows, strawberry milkshake whoppers, and strawberry filled candy.

Strawberry topiary.

The cake! Strawberry with lemon curd filling...yum!

Strawberry champagne cupcakes & Strawberry lemonade cupcakes.

Strawberry lemonade.

Treats for our wonderful guests to take home. Strawberry cake pops and strawberry freezer jam.

Welcoming her guests.

The kids had strawberry jam and cream cheese sandwiches. I'm pretty sure Presley ate 27!

"Mom, can we plllleeeassse have the cake now?"

I hope all here wishes come true!

She told me later that eating cake was her favorite part. That's my girl!

After cake, they did some playing. So many kids, such a small apartment! Slightly chaotic!

Gather round, its time for presents!

She asked for a 'Prince Charming' to marry her bride doll! She is kind of obsessed with royalty and I love it!

(and no, I don't know why suddenly everything I type is underlined. And no, I can't seem to turn it off!)

Gotta love the ribbon tug-o-war.

Dr. Presley showed up to open a few more gifts!

Dr. Presley & Nurse Lily. Thanks for the cute costume Mimi & Papa!

Thanks for coming!!

Thanks so much to all of our loved ones that came, especially the ones that made a long drive just to be here for this! It meant so much to Presley and me. And thanks to all the helpers I had setting up and cleaning up!

Happy Birthday Fancy Face! So glad you're mine!

To Blog Again???

2011-07-09T08:59:00.000-07:00

I'm thinking maybe. Let's see how long this lasts...

Thanksgiving

2010-11-28T20:26:00.000-08:00

Presley spent Thanksgiving week busy with preparations...

She was so excited for Thanksgiving to come, but by the time it rolled around the flu bug was starting to set in and she looked like this...

Eventually she cheered up a little, but I didn't quite get the family picture I was hoping for.
Oh well, good enough!

Here's a couple of other cute ones from our fun day at Uncle Marks.

And what would Thanksgiving be without at least one or two food pictures. I tried out a new pie recipe. Pecan on top...

Brownie on the bottom...

YUM!

Remember that cupcake...

2010-11-28T16:25:00.000-08:00

I posted pictures of the cupcake Presley so proudly earned after her dance recital. I thought I better document that she did thoroughly enjoy it!

A Little Bit of Gray...

2010-11-25T21:49:00.001-08:00

This boy is getting so smiley and talkative. I can't get enough him!

Unreal!

2010-11-19T22:07:00.000-08:00

Watch this. It's worth it. And don't skip the ending.

http://www.nzwide.com/swanlake.htm

Prima Ballerina

2010-11-18T19:34:00.001-08:00

Presley had her first little dance show last night! Her studio performed at the festival of trees. She has only been to a few classes so far, so let's just say it was 'interesting.' Hopefully I'll have a video posted later to show what I mean.

She was so excited about it all and I think it turned out to be everything she was hoping for!

She had support from Mimi & Papa.

Even Minnie Mouse came out to cheer her on!
By far the best part of the night for Presley was hanging out in the 'warm up room' backstage. She had so much fun running around and dancing. I'm so glad she has her sweet cousin Adley to enjoy this all with!

Practicing backstage.
Love the eyes. She's spotting already!

She loved that she got to bring her ballerina bear backpack.

She liked posing like this. (The end from her routine.)
Getting set up on stage.
This is how the class ended up doing the entire dance...on their knees...pretty funny!
Heading back to the warm up room.
When I got backstage to pick her up she came running to me and gave me a huge hug and yelled "I DID IT!! Now I get a cupcake!" Although she didn't technically do the dance (you'll see what I mean in the video) I was so proud of her for just going out there by herself and she was so proud of herself she was beaming...
So of course we went and picked up one of these...
and one of these...
and one of these...
oh yeah, and also one of these...
YUM!

And I'll give you one guess where we headed next...

I know, we are so predictable. But what can I say, the girl likes her ice cream!

Pinkalicious

2010-11-18T19:27:00.000-08:00

Pinkalicious cupcakes + Pinkalicious frosting + Pinkalicious milk=

Pinkalicious Puke!!

I thought maybe she was getting sick until I realized she had drank that entire 16 oz container of pink milk in one sitting!! That's like the 'gallon challenge' for toddlers!

Havin' a Ball

2010-11-18T19:23:00.001-08:00

Muscle Man

2010-11-18T19:19:00.001-08:00

This is how we found Grayson sleeping...

Doesn't look real comfortable to me. He looks like one of those bodybuilders that can't put their arms down to at their sides. Apparently his biceps are too big for his body. Little Bulldog!

A Campaign for Travis

2010-11-18T14:17:00.000-08:00

I'm pretty sure windows has started this new marketing campaign just for my husband!

Keeping Busy

2010-10-02T21:36:00.000-07:00

We were so blessed to have my parents here for the past week and a half. They were so much help with everything and it was so much fun to have them here. Here's a glimpse at how we spent the past two weeks...
loving all the attention from Grandma & Grandpa,
dancing with daddy at the farmer's market,

& snuggle time with Grandma.

We had such gorgeous weather lately that we couldn't resist a short trip through Yellowstone. I know I complain a lot about living here, but I have to admit that every time I go to Jackson, the Tetons, or Yellowstone I appreciate living here a little more.
Old faithful. Presley loved the rainbow!
We had to wait a little too long to see old faithful.

This is how Gray spent most of the trip, well except for the night...he was wide awake for that!

Eating popcorn in her "choo-choo train"

Trav found a very retro popcorn maker that we have been having lots of fun with!
Gray spends lots of time like this. Like I've said before, this kid loves his boppy.
Dressing up like Snow White and jumping on the trampoline with Papa.
Talking to Paige on the phone.

Getting beautiful flowers from my mom and dad. Thanks!
Making oragami bunnies and fans at the Community Fest.

Right after his first bath.

Presley helped give Gray his first bath.

My mom and I canned peaches and pears (my first time and she hadn't done it in years). We vowed not to let anyone see our imperfect product, but I decided to sneak in one picture. Lets just say we learned a lot about how to do it differently next time. For example, don't let your huge box of pears sit and turn to mush while you are in the hospital having a baby.
Presley is the best big sister!

And she got to go to the zoo with Grandma and Grandpa and fed the goats. I can't believe it didn't freak her out. This girl is scared of everything, I was so proud of her.

Getting to Know Gray...

2010-10-02T21:14:00.001-07:00

One week old with his doggie.

Well here is a little bit of what we have learned about Gray so far:

-he HATES having his diaper changed

-he loves to sleep on his boppy

-at almost 2 weeks old he has grown 2 inches and gained just over a pound

-he is very well taken care of by his big sister

-he's going to be a binki boy for sure

-he is very un-needy, I'm amazed by how he can just hang out all day wherever I set him

-he has the longest toes and fingers I've ever seen, they make me laugh

-he's a smiler, I know they aren't real social smiles, but I love to see them anyway!

We proudly present...Grayson Holmes Harwood

2010-09-23T12:18:00.001-07:00

Born September 18, 2010
6 lbs 13 oz, 19 in
Welcome to our world baby Gray. We love you.

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

My Presley

2010-09-15T20:34:00.000-07:00

To blog or not to blog?? I really haven't been able to decide if I want to do this blog thing again or not, but with a new little guy on the way I thought maybe I'd give it one more chance. And since the next few months are bound to be filled with way too many pictures and stories about him, I decided I ought to take a minute to focus on the first love of mine and Trav's life. Our little sugar...

Since my camera was in the repair shop for what seemed like forever, you'll have to settle for pictures from my phone. Here's a little bit about our little Presley these days...

~She is potty trained and has been for awhile now but I'm weary of getting too excited about it knowing that lots of kids regress when a new baby comes...so we'll see.

~She can hardly wait to be a big sister. She spends half of her day taking care of her dolls. She puts them in all of baby brother's seats, cradles, cribs, swings, etc. She sings them lullabies, wraps them in blankets, changes their diapers, gives them bottles, and reads them stories. It is my favorite thing to watch. She also talks about baby brother all the time and gives my belly loves. She loves to "listen to baby brother" with her play stethescope.

~When she isn't playing with dolls, she is usually cooking.

~She loves books. Some of her current favorites are Olivia, The Napping House, Chicka Chicka Boom Boom, Angelina, and she has a major obsession with Amelia Bedelia!

~She loves to be outside. Especially to have picnics at the park or watch the neighbor's dog Lulu chase his ball.

~She is all girl. Tutus, necklaces, doing hair and makeup...she loves it all! One of our favorite activities is 'spa night,' when her and I do each other's toe nails. Trav came home from the store tonight and said "She is such a girl. She saw a pair of pink boots at the store tonight and hasn't stopped talking about them since we left the store!"

~She loves to sing and knows a million songs. The chart toppers right now are 'Book of Mormon Stories,' 'Follow the Prophet,' 'My favorite things,' and 'wheels on the bus.'

~My favorite thing about Presley is hearing all the funny phrases and things she says. Some of the best ones lately are "Mom, I'm having a rough day!" "Be careful with me Dad!" "I need that hun." "My toy is not working very well." "That's all we have sweetheart." "You look so beautiful." "Wasn't that nice of me?" "Not in the street hun! I need you to come back over here!" (she yelled this to our neighbor boy when he ran into the street! "Dad, I'm doing laundry...I'm busy!" In public bathrooms she always says really loud "Mom, are your pants clean and dry?" and when I say yes she says "Oh mom, I'm so proud of you!" The other day when I undressed her to get in the shower she started singing "You are my naked, my only naked....please don't take my naked away!" to the tune of 'You are my sunshine.' I don't know how she comes up with some of this stuff. She has also started calling both tigers and lions 'ligers.'

~She sleeps in her big girl bed all by herself and has never once climbed out of bed! This completely shocks me. Even when she fights going to bed she just sits in the bed and screams, but never ever gets off!

~One of my favorite parts of the day is hearing Presley say her prayers. She prays for some of the funniest things; usually random objects that she sees in front of her. Some of the best have been 'Thank you for...' jingle bells, walls, fairies, poops, amelia bedelia, hugs, and princess brides.

~She can identify her shapes, colors, and almost all the letters of the alphabet.

~Some of her other current favorites, loves, and obsessions:

the color pink

sweets! ice cream, smarties, m&ms, whatever!

cheetos

all disney princesses but mostly snow white

minnie mouse

fairies

'princess brides'- weddings

helping daddy wash cars

popcorn

peanut butter toast

playing doctor

We love this girl so much and cannot wait to see her take on her new role as a big sister. I have a feeling she is going to be a natural. She is so caring and nurturing and always wants to take care of people and make them 'feel better.' I couldn't ask for a better little example in my life!

The Streak is Over

2010-05-26T18:09:00.000-07:00

We had a pretty good run. Almost a full 23 months of Presley's life without a doctor visit (besides well-visits) and without any prescription medications. But the lucky streak has finally come to an end. Pres has spent the last three days fighting a high fever and feeling miserable and I finally took her into the doctor. Double ear infection. Yuck! I feel so bad for her but I can't really complain when she almost went a full two years without one, we were lucky! Poor little thing has hardly eaten in days, but is drinking plenty of fluids- thankfully. She's on medication now and hopefully will be back to her cheerful self soon. We have had such gorgeous weather here in Cleveland the last few days, we are just dying to get out and play with cousins! In the mean time, this is how she has been spending her Ohio vacation time...

"Daddy's Dress"

2010-05-25T06:12:00.000-07:00

Just had to post this cute little Presley moment:

When I put this dress on her the other day she kept telling me it was 'Daddy's dress' because it is a polo just like all the shirts he wears! She was insistent about it and told me that over and over and over all day. So funny.

CRAZY!

2010-05-19T21:10:00.000-07:00

That's about the only word I can think of to describe our life lately, but honestly that isn't all that unusual for us. The other day I noticed a blog linked from another friend's site that was titled "Sweet Consistency." I don't know the people and I didn't read the blog, but I couldn't help but think 'Oh, if only I could describe my life like that!' But anyone that knows Travis and I knows 'consistency' is something completely absent from our lives! Maybe one day, when things settle down, I'll change the name of my blog to "Sweet Consistency," but for now I'm thinking of just going with 'CRAZY!'
Sometimes the crazy is fun and exciting and other times its hard and stressful. And each time I hear the new country song by Brice Lee I can't help comparing it to our life...

They called them CRAZY when they started out
said 17's (19) too young to know what loves about...

they've been together 58 years now
thats crazy
he brought home 67 bucks a week
bought a little two bedroom house on maple street
where she blessed him with 6 more mouths to feed
thats crazy
just ask him how he did it
he'll say pull up a seat it'll only take a minute to tell you everything
(chorus)
be a best friend
tell the truth
over use i love you
go to work
do your best
dont out smart your common sense
never let your prayin knees get lazy
and love like crazy
they called him crazy when he quit his job
sellin home computers boy they'll never take off
well he sold his one man shop to microsoft
and they paid like crazy
just ask him how he made it
he'll tell you faith and sweat
and the heart of a faithful woman who never let him forget
(chorus)
be a best friend
tell the truth
over use i love you
go to work
do your best
dont out smart your common sense
never let your prayin knees get lazy
and love like crazy
always treat your woman like a lady
never get to old to call her baby
never let your prayin knees get lazy
and love like crazy
they called him crazy when they started out
they've been together 58 years now
aint that crazy !

Although I can't say we've made it to the 58 years yet (or been paid like crazy!), it gives me a little hope that crazy just might work for us!

Well, now that I went off on a major tangent, what I really wanted to do in this post was to thank my wonderful husband and let him know that I really don't know what I would do without him. He has been left to pick up a lot more than his fair share of the work and burden in our family lately thanks to a pregnancy that does not agree with my body and hormones that aren't handling stress well! I want him to know that I recognize and appreciate all of his extra effort and non-stop hard work. I always tell myself that one day I'll be the strong one and one day I'll support him but it seems to always be the other way around. I love you so much Trav and can't even describe how much I appreciate what you do for your family! One day I will make it up to you, I promise!

I also want to thank all of the other family members that have been such a huge help to us lately! Our crazy life definitely wouldn't work without all of them. I have been so blessed to have Trav's family near by when my own is across the country. They never hesitate to jump in and take care of me and my sweet Presley, especially while Travis has been gone. What would I do without all of this support and help! We love you all!

So maybe one day I'll have my life of 'sweet consistency,' but until then...Thank you to all the people that help me withstand the CRAZY!

Updates!

2010-02-23T13:29:00.000-08:00

I thought I better finally post a little update on what we've been up to...

The most important thing in our life recently is that we got to see and hear baby #2's heartbeat and everything with baby looks great!
With that said, we actually got to see the baby a little sooner than expected due to some complications. A week before my first doctors appointment I had some bleeding and the doctor sent me in for an ultrasound. Turns out I have a "subchronic hematoma." Technically, a Subchorionic Hematoma is a gathering of blood between the membranes of the placenta and the uterus. The nurses described it to me as basically a tear in the placenta. They put me on 'moderate bedrest' as a precaution and to hopefully let the problem heal itself. I went back a week later for another ultrasound and unfortunately the hematoma is still there and still collecting blood, so for the time being I'm just taking it easy and letting Travis take care of pretty much everything else (I really can't complain, its been pretty nice)! And on the upside this means extra ultrasounds and extra peeks at our little one!
I'm pretty sure I made my family pretty nervous when I told them this, so I just wanted everyone to know it really isn't a huge worry and it isn't affecting baby's growth or well being at all. The miscarriage rates are increased, but only very slightly, and as long as I'm careful it can heal itself by about 20 weeks! And don't worry mom and dad...I promise I'm being careful and Trav is taking great care of me.
Other than that, my life has just been a lot of feeling icky and nauseated, but I guess that is life when you're pregnant! I guess feeling as good as a did with Presley for all my pregnancies would be too much to ask! Thank you so much to family and friends that have been so helpful while I've been feeling crappy! It is nice to know Presley will always be taken care of even when I can't do it!
And I can't end this without praising my wonderful husband for all he has been doing. He has been so great. Between school and work he is somehow taking care of the whole house and Presley and me too. He amazes me!

A Valentine From Presley!

2010-02-16T19:10:00.001-08:00

For all you Twighlighters!

2010-01-22T12:50:00.000-08:00

I actually haven't succumbed to the whole twilight thing... but I had to post this for all of you who have. Pretty funny!

Happy New Year!

2010-01-01T16:52:00.000-08:00

Wishing everyone a wonderful 2010!

Here's a little peak at how we spent our first day of the new year...

snow, sledding, hot chocolate, & the buckeyes. Good day.

She was having fun sledding, I swear! Just didn't get a picture of the smiles, maybe I'll post video later to prove it.

Long time, no post!

2009-12-05T20:56:00.000-08:00

My computer has officially given out on me, and getting a post up here with pictures is pretty much impossible until I get it fixed. So if anyone still looks at my blog...sorry! But I did put some more recent pictures up on facebook, so if you are a grandparent or anyone else looking for a Presley fix...check them out there.

Happy Halloween

2009-11-02T10:19:00.000-08:00

Meant to post this on Saturday but of course I forgot! Oh well!

Halloweekend!

2009-11-02T09:51:00.001-08:00

We had such a fun-filled Halloween weekend full of friends and family! And let me tell you, this girl loves a party...

We went to our ward party on friday night and Presley was out of control! She couldn't get enough of watching the older kids play and wandering around the gym 'quacking' at the top of her lungs. She put on her own private costume parade around the building and even won herself the best costume for her age group! She ended the night rolling around on the floor laughing!

We spent the rest of friday night working on this little project. I've been wanting to attempt these cake pops ever since Lexi turned me on to them a few months ago. It was one of those projects that didn't go as smoothly as I pictured, but the end result was pretty cute, and very yummy!

Saturday night the Harwoods and Wilders came by for a quick dinner before we headed out to trick-or-treat!

We got Presley in her costume and she was on a mission. 'Candy, here I come!'

Jaxon, Crew, & Presley snuggled up in the wagon to hit the streets!
Pres is a little protective of her candy.

Checking out her stash!

Saying goodnight to the jack-o-lanterns.

Pumpkin Patch Adventures

2009-10-28T20:26:00.000-07:00

Sorry about the picture overload, but I totally fell in love with the little farm where we went to pick pumpkins. It was just so cute and so fun. Two teenage boys run this whole place with the help of their family members and they have done such a great job, I can't wait to go back next year.

Pres was so excited about the wagon that we couldn't even convince her to get out to pick a pumpkin!

We got to ride a fun train all around the farm and it was so beautiful.

opps

Nice face huh? And yes Jimmy, I'm wearing a puffy vest...get over it!

Pumpkin Carving Fun

2009-10-28T20:12:00.000-07:00

Having a child makes celebrating everything so much more fun! I'm a little obsessed with holidays and family traditions and I love that we are really starting to fall into the groove of being a little family and having our own traditions. Chilli and pumpkin carving family night was a blast! I couldn't convince Presley to stick her hand into the gooey pumpkin guts, but she still had fun watching Daddy work.

Presley liked her finished jack-o-lantern...
...but as you can see, it was getting a little late...
...and this explains why we didn't get a family picture with all of the completed pumpkins!
...somebody was ready for bed!

So here is a slightly blurry picture of Trav's finished product.
Presley and I did our pumpkins old school, no stencils or designs, just went at it with a knife!
We'll have to get a picture of them all lit on Halloween.

Flea Market

2009-10-20T19:18:00.001-07:00

I know I've posted a lot of random videos lately, but I couldn't help myself from adding just one more. There's really nothing to say about this one, just watch it...

Thanks Lena!

A Little Halloween Preview

2009-10-18T11:42:00.000-07:00

A nurse that my sister-in-law works with (who does great photography on the side) was doing these fun 'mini-session' photo shoots for kids in their Halloween costumes. Lauren set up an appointment for Presley and we just got the pics back. Cassie did such a great job! Can't wait to have her do a full shoot sometime! Here's a little sneak peak of our little trick-or-treating ballerina!

We're Back!

2009-10-17T22:16:00.000-07:00

If you can't tell, I'm sort of over the whole blogging thing. Okay, let's be honest, I was never that into it. But in an attempt to update things, here is a little of what we've been up to.

-We are finally back home in Idaho.
-Yes, we are staying here (for now).
-Presley is FINALLY walking!!
-We are in the midst of the flu. H1N1??? I don't know. But whatever it is, it's not fun. Luckily, I think we are at the tail end!
-Presley turned into a 'little girl' over night. Life is babies, hair, makeup, clothes, necklaces, and purses!
-When she isn't primping she is singing or dancing, usually 'e-i-e-i-o.'
-We are spending most of our time just enjoying being home, relaxing as a family, and finally trying to really 'move' into the house we've technically lived in for over a year and a half!

Special Brownies

2009-10-15T11:50:00.000-07:00

Okay I know I desperately need to post pictures but this just brightened my day. Thanks Sheri.

While I was posting this I got thinking about one of my favorite episodes of Frasier. It just about makes me pee my pants even after seeing it a hundred times. Niles thinks he ate a marijuana laced brownie in an attempt to be rebellious. He doesn't know that his ex-cop father really ate the laced brownie without knowing it and Niles is not really high at all.

Goodbye to my First Love

2009-09-15T06:58:00.000-07:00

It has always been a joke in my family that this scene gives Lexi and I chills (or 'shivers' as keith would say). But he really was my first crush and an amazing dancer. He will be missed.

I can't get this last video to post, but it is my favorite part of the movie so check it out.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yfg97-5uhFQ

Meet Me In St Louie Louie...

2009-07-16T10:23:00.000-07:00

Meet me at the fair! Don't tell me the lights are shinning any place but here. We can dance the hoochie koochie. I will be your tootsie wootsie, if you meet me in St Louie Louie. Meet me at the fair!

Okay, Keith thought Lexi and I were nuts singing that song the whole trip (he thought she made it up!) but we grew up on that movie!

Anyway, we did meet in St Louis and it was lots of fun. After my family visited us here in Little Rock, Presley and I headed to St Louis with my parents to meet Lex and her family that were already there. It was a quick trip but we packed it full of lots of fun and I'm so glad we decided to go. The hotel we stayed at was right across from the arch and the little boys thought it was so cool that they could see it from their bed. Nice find Keith!

First thing in the morning we visited the arch. Most of us headed up to the top (except the scaredy cats). It was really neat and a beautiful view.
This is the boys in the "elevator" to the top. It's more like a tiny capsule than an elevator.

Next we walked around by the river. I loved the atmosphere with the great music in the air and old showboats docked on the banks.

Someone (mom) had the bright idea to rent a bike for the whole family. Lets just say... Never Again! Way more work than we expected. It was still a fun adventure!
Presley was beat and next thing I knew she had decided this would be a good place for a nap! So stinkin cute!
Next we headed to Grant's farm. It was the home of Ulysses Grant and later bought by Anheiser Busch (sp?). We went to just see the budweiser cyldesdales but there was so much more than that. It was really a neat place!

Peacocks are always one of my favorites.
The elephant did this really fun show with all kinds of tricks. So much better than watching them just stand there at the zoo.
And of course the Clydesdales! They were really beautiful and all the kids loved them. We got to pet some of the babies and they were as big as a regular horse!

Oh and I can't forget the boys feeding the goats. It was so sweet to watch them giggle while the goats attacked them for milk. Ty was an expert!
Grandma and Grandpa took the girls on their first Merry go Round ride! So cute!

The highlight of Presley's trip was the adorable cowgirl purse and stuffed pony Grandma and Grandpa got her! She was so excited and cuddled it all day. She is still obsessed with snuggling her pony and even likes to sleep with it!

Visitors in Little Rock!

2009-07-08T21:22:00.000-07:00

We finally got some visitors here in 'the rock' and it was so much fun! Both of our parents along with my sister and her family drove in last week to visit and help celebrate Presley's birthday. It was so exciting to finally have family around again. We were really missing that. Unfortunately Presley cut another tooth and was pretty miserable most of the week. I felt so bad that they didn't get to see her really be herself but by the end of the week she was finally starting to feel better.

Here's just a glimpse into our week...

(Thanks Lex for all the great pics)

We went to the famous Peabody Hotel to watch the ducks swim in the fountain.

The ducks ride the elevator down, parade to music on the red carpet and up the stairs, and swim in the hotel fountain in the lobby.
We had lunch and treats at the Ottenheimer market...my favorite place!
Rode the trolley around town.

And sat in the park.
Aunt Lexi got Presley her first smoothie and she finally got the hang of sucking out of straw. As you can tell she is in love with smoothies! Probably felt good on that sore tooth.
Played at the splash park.
Ate 3 lb steaks at Doe's Place. Incredible.

Went to Hot Springs and climbed hundreds of stairs to the top of the tower!
And of course played with Grandparents! Paige was especially fond of Presley's Mimi.

Independence Day!

2009-07-08T20:47:00.000-07:00

I always loved the 4th of July growing up and I have to admit it was mostly because I liked the new outfits! Now I will forever link the fourth of July to the way I spent it last year...In Labor!

This is how we spent Independence Day 2009...

We took it easy in the morning. Presley was having a rough week because of a new tooth coming in so we just hung out and she napped while I did some last minute preparations for her birthday.
We had a great lunch at the Whole Hog Cafe. Gotta love award winning bbq, ribs, and pulled pork!
The girls found these chairs outside a shop and fell in love...prompting an impromptu photo shoot.

These girls are going to be the best of friends. They are so lucky!

Travis and Keith took a nice relaxing nap together.
Aunt Lexi made the kids these cute buckets of goodies to take to the fireworks. Thanks Auntie!
Presley sweet talked her Mimi and Papa into bringing home one of the cute chairs from the furniture shop we found earlier. She absolutely loves her birthday chair!
We attempted to take a picture of the grandkids...this is what we got.

Family pictures weren't easy either. Between a teething baby and a 'posing' husband.
But we got a few. Thanks Lex.
The 'George'
It was so nice to have both of our families with us in Little Rock!

And Presley was so glad to finally have a whole day with Daddy!
That night we went down town and enjoyed the corn dogs, funnel cakes, fresh squeezed lemonade, symphony concert...
(no I'm not wearing a bandana, its my nursing cover!)
and of course...Fireworks!
It was such a fun day!

Happy Birthday Presley Rain!

2009-07-08T18:05:00.000-07:00

I can't believe my baby girl is one year old already! It feels like she was a newborn just yesterday and like she has been in my life forever all at the same time! I never could have imagined just how much joy this little girl would bring to our life in such a short time. I can hardly wait to see what the future holds for our little butterfly!

Of course, you can't have a birthday without having a party so here are some of the details from the big day...

decorations...
the cake...
more decorations...

sweet Paigey...
a little area for the kids...

the favors (bug catchers full of gummy worms, butterflies, and caterpillars)...
limeade for a hot day...

more of the favors...
butterfly cupcakes for the kids...

and of course, The Birthday Girl!

To my disappointment, Presley had very little interest in her cake and definatley didn't smash it.

But don't worry, the cake did not go to waste. Paige was much more interested in it than she was in her own cake last month!

Presley (and her parents) felt so grateful to have so many of her great family and friends here for the party. We are so blessed that they would go out of their way to make this day special for us.
And thank you to everyone for all the sweet gifts. Presley is in heaven with so many new things to play with and I'm in heaven with all the fun new things to dress her in!

My mom and dad gave Presley and Paige each an American Doll Baby and they both just love them. Especially their eyes.

I had to throw this picture in...Presley asking for a snack (signing) in the middle of her present opening. Apparently she was working so hard she worked up an appetite!

And what would a party be without the food?

Thanks again to everyone who was there and for all the help from our families. We love you all so much and are so grateful that you are all a part of Presley's life.
And thanks to my great sister for being my personal photographer for the day!

I Still Love Cleveland!

2009-05-23T11:03:00.000-07:00

I'm feeling a little bad about posting those videos about Cleveland...so this is to redeem my home town!

2009-05-22T09:28:00.000-07:00

Okay, I'm only posting this for my husband. Everyone knows I spend most of my time complaining about Idaho and gushing over my hometown of Cleveland. Sure, people may call it the 'mistake by the lake' but it is still home and I love it. I thought this might give Trav a good laugh though.

******Disclaimer: I didn't notice until after I posted this that the first video uses the 'f word.' So if you don't want to hear that, skip the first video and just watch the second. So Sorry!**************

2009-04-21T21:52:00.000-07:00

This is for any man that doesn't understand why his wife doesn't get more done during the day. This is what happens when I attempt to pack, pay bills, and entertain an infant at the same time. Fun!

S'more Please!

2009-04-21T21:27:00.001-07:00

If you can't tell, we are really going to miss this house. So, we are trying to enjoy the last days anyway we can.

Having a final bonfire at the fire pit out back.

Presley tried her first s'more and once she got used to it sticking to her lips, she couldn't get enough of it!

Messy s'more face!

Summer begins...but its the end of an era!

2009-04-19T20:00:00.000-07:00

We finally had some nice weather around here and in between everyone packing we were able to enjoy a little bit of it. It sure is strange to say goodbye to the Harwood Home where we have all spent so much wonderful time and made so many unforgettable memories. It feels like we are saying goodbye to an era. Thanks to the Harwoods for all the family dinners, summer cookouts, holidays, parties, always having a place to stay, and so much more.

Here is a few shots of us all enjoying the weather and the last few days in this beautiful house and yard!Her favorite toys are the whisks and measuring cups.
Papa and Reese enjoying the yard for one of the last times.
Lily and Presley rode around in the bike carrier with Justin and they had such a blast. It was one of the cutest things I've ever seen!

She absolutely loved eating outside!

This is total classic Presley, looking annoyed!
Enjoying some of her Easter spoils!
The girls had such a fun time helping Papa with the packing boxes. I'm sure they were a BIG help!

Thank Goodness for Bad Days!?!

2009-04-19T19:52:00.000-07:00

I can't really say that I'm glad for bad days... but it is always nice to have a reminder once in awhile that you have so many great people supporting you. Thank you to all my family and friends, especially an unbelievably wonderful new sister-in-law/best friend that is always there when I need her and a father-in-law that surprised me with these:

Two dozen gorgeous roses! Thanks again. I needed that!

The Easter Bunny Came!

2009-04-18T16:35:00.000-07:00

Err! I hate that pictures post in the opposite order of the way I upload them. Why do I not remember to just upload them backwards! Oh well!

She loves this cute garden toy.

Why did I not get plastic eggs out months ago for her to play with? Who knew they would keep her occupied all day?!

I love Aileen's quote for this picture, "Come on guys, cross your legs, we're trying to take a picture!" -Presley
She loves her big cousin Reese.

Playing with Great Grandma 'Nana'

My favorite!
The Easter bunny was good to her!
Getting ready.
Egg dying party.
Mimi juggling her girls

Daddy's Girl

2009-03-29T09:50:00.000-07:00

Saturdays in our house are 'Daddy's Day.' I run errands on saturday morning or get things done that I need to and Trav and Presley hang out. Last saturday Trav took her to a car show in Pocatello and I thought it was so cute to see them going on a little outing together. I'm so glad he loves being with her so much and doesn't mind giving me plenty of nice breaks! She is always so excited to see him walk in the door. I can already tell I'm going to have a little Daddy's Girl on my hands for a long time!

8 Months Old

2009-03-24T11:56:00.000-07:00

Well, I'm sure no one even checks this anymore since I've been on a blogging hiatus for 4 months (no internet connection makes it tough), but as soon as we get settled in after this whole moving to Arkansas thing I'll be back!

In the mean time, I wanted to just quickly post a couple of Presley's bear pictures at 8 months (since she'll be 9 months in just over a week)!

I just can't even begin to explain the joy that this little girl brings into our lives! And each and every month that goes by she just gets more and more fun. These days her life is all about getting around and exploring. She hasn't quite figured out crawling yet but she is well on her way. She can get to just about any place she wants by rolling or scooting backwards, which has meant the start of lots of babyproofing for me! She is obsessed with her feet and anyone else's feet too. She loves all her books and other toys, but her favorite is my measuring cups-go figure! Anytime she hears the word 'no' she shakes her head back and forth like crazy. This is my absolute favorite and cracks me up but I'm sure I'll one day regret turning the word 'no' into a big joke! It is amazing how this little baby can entertain us for hours on end and it makes me wonder what I ever did without her! Lover her so much!

Just Some Pictures

2008-12-07T19:54:00.001-08:00

As always there is really no theme to this post just an attempt to quickly get some pictures up for the family to see. Sorry, I'm just not a real "blogger."

This is my cutie all bundled up for the cold. I am so glad we haven't had to face the snow yet!

Trav & I just thought she looked so grown up this day. Can't believe that my baby is getting so big! The imagination station on the baby pod is still her favorite toy. These are a few from Thanksgiving. Super low-key and relaxing this year. We celebrated Thanksgiving a couple of weeks early this year when all of Trav's fam was in town. On actual Thanksgiving it was just us and Trav's parents for dinner so we went out and it was fantastic. Best part...no cleanup! Later that night the extended family joined us for a buffet of yummy desserts! She tried her first vegetables on Thanksgiving. It was squash and she wasn't so sure about it on the first bite, but with a little time she decided she's a fan! Watching Daddy's favorite team. Presley met her Great Grandma & Grandpa Harwood for the first time on Thanksgiving. Just another day of playing with Daddy! She's an Ohio girl at heart! I don't know why we take so many pictures when she is sleeping, but this day she fell asleep with toys in her hands and I loved it. When there is no binki around, the fingers are her backup. I love when she plays so hard she falls asleep.

~Blessed~

2008-11-24T13:21:00.000-08:00

With our busy summer and other things going on, we just now got around to finally blessing Presley. I was a little worried about how she would behave during the blessing, being older than most babies at their blessings and quite the talker. But she was an angel as usual! Everything went great and it was such a special day. We were fortunate enough to share the day with Trav's cousin Whitney and her husband Derrek as they blessed their darling little girl Adley. It was so much fun to be with family and friends and eat lots of food! We were so glad that Chad could be in town for the big day but sad as always missing the Noll side of the family. Thanks to the modern technology of "skype" I was able to at least kind of feel like they were a part of the event. Our apologies to them for the view of butts! Thanks so much to everyone that made it and all of the help!

Mimi & Papa, Presley & Us
The fam (it was naptime so it was hard to get a good picture)
All the men.

Whoops! Sorry triple take!
Presley with the Harwood boys.
Caren, Stephanie, Justin, and Lily
Favors

Chad got to meet two of his nieces for the first time, and they loved him!
This is one of my new favorite pictures, the had lots of fun with Uncle Chad. We wish he could be here more often!

I just thought these next ones were funny to see how hard it is to get three babies to cooperate at once!

Presley is so blessed to have girl cousins her age on both sides of the family. Those girls are going to have so much fun together!

The Guests of Honor

2008-11-22T08:43:00.000-08:00

O-H-I-O! Good Luck Buckeyes!

Sooooo much to post...

2008-11-09T14:37:00.000-08:00

I don't even know where to start!

This is back tracking a lot, but a few weeks ago Travis and I celebrated our 5th anniversary!

Then & Now

Wow! Things sure have changed over five years, but it has been a lot of fun along the way. Thanks to Jill & Dan for watching Presley so that we could enjoy a great night out at the Collage. And thanks to Travis for everything! Love you.

For the sake of getting this posted today, I'm not even going to try to get these in any particular order. So bare with me, this is going to be kind of chaotic--Sorry!

Just my cute little girl cuddling with her teddy.
The only way I can get her to enjoy tummy time is to stick a mirror in front of her. She is a little vain.
Love a sleeping baby!
In the funny Halloween outfit my mom got for Paige and Presley. It has a spot to put the baby's picture to look like a jack-o-lantern, but just for fun I put Travis dressed as Dog the Bounty Hunter instead.
How cute are those legs!
More Halloween
She is finally perfecting the art of grabbing and swatting at her toys and is having so much fun with it!

I love that she sleeps with her little hands clasped! Angel.

I hate clipping her nails, hence the big scratch on her cheek!

Another cute Halloween outfit.

We had the chance to go to two great Halloween parties this year that friends put on and had tons of fun! Thanks to everyone who hosted!

Naughty Nun & the Burger King (aka Sky and Jason)

Ty & Lauren were definatly the most daring at the party, wish I could pull that off!

Mr. Clean & a Roaring 20's flapper (aka Justin & Stephanie)
The Stuki's planned some great games for their party stolen straight from the Ellen show. It was so funny. This one is Juno (Meegan) playing the marshmallow game.
Dog & Beth and Ellen & Portia got in on the fun too!
Decorations
The cousins ready for some Trick-or-Treating
More decorations
Cuties
Our costumes for the second party that i ordered were not delivered on time so we had to find a last minute solution. Thanks to Mike and Jenny for letting us use their Dog and Beth costumes! (at least we have costumes ready for next year)
Some friends of Justin's brought over their little boy Tennyson and I think he is such a doll. As you can see from these next pictures he has a little thing for Lily! I love these!

Open mouth and all!

And as always, more pictures napping with Dad.

Laughing with Mimi.

Cute little buddies (Reese & Logan)

We were so lucky to be able to have Uncle Chase come for a visit! This was the first time Presley got to meet my little brother and she loved him! Next weekend she gets to meet Trav's oldest brother for the first time too. Two new Uncles, so exciting!

She can't get enough of her cousin's exersaucer.
Bugging eachother.
Look how fat she's getting. At least she's supporting her team though!
Bugging Lily.

Lily can't figure out why Presley always has a toy on her head!
Dog's softer side.

Thanks for coming Uncle Chase.

More games at the parties!

Okay, my apologies if this post bored everyone to death and was totally chaotic, but at least Grandmas, Grandpas, Aunts, and Uncles get to see a little Presley!

Happy Halloween!

2008-10-31T10:40:00.000-07:00

My mother-in-law found the funniest video for Halloween and I was so excited to post it but for some reason it can't be posted so the best I can do is to post the link. Take the time to check it out though, it's worth it!

The funniest part is how she found this video. She was searching youtube to find a fun video for my 3 year old niece to watch. She typed "children's halloween songs" into the search and this is what it came up with! Too funny!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IOr4vx-35Ks

If you have time, watch some of the related videos, or just search for 'groovin granny.'

My favorites are "I'm too sexy" or the "gazongas" song!

Prayers

2008-10-28T17:49:00.000-07:00

I know I am very very overdue for a Presley post and I promise to get to it as soon as possible, but I wanted to just post this really quickly first.

I just found out that a friend from highschool that was expecting, had her baby this past week at 25 weeks gestation. It seems from their website that things are looking very good for their beautiful daughter Isabelle but I wanted to post the link for anyone that knows Will and Lana Lytwyn and ask all of you to keep them in your prayers. I feel so blessed to have had everything go so smoothly with Presley's birth and my heart breaks for parents that have to go through so much worry and anxiety.

Isabelle Lytwyn

Make Me Laugh Monday

2008-10-20T12:24:00.000-07:00

If you don't already know this about me, I am a sitcom junkie. Last night my dvr happened to record my all time favorite episode of Frasier and I had forgotten just how funny it is. This is an episode I have been telling my mom about for years but she has never seen, so I am mostly posting this for her. If you've never watched Frasier you might not see the humor in it, but oh well, it makes me pee my pants and will probably do the same for my mom, so I'm posting it anyway!

Flashback Friday (Just Pretend its Friday)!

2008-10-11T17:36:00.000-07:00

The most frequently asked question after you have a baby is always "Who do you think she looks the most like?" So I thought I would give everyone a chance to decide for themselves.

The first two are me and the second two are Travis. We think that the second one of me and the second one of Travis both look just like her!

Tagged: Seven Quirks

2008-10-09T12:13:00.000-07:00

I was tagged awhile ago by Jessica to post seven quirks about myself. I've been a little behind in posting, but here it is.

The Rules:
Link the person(s)who tagged you.
Mention the rules on your blog.
Tell about 7 quirks of yours.
Leave a comment on each of the tagged blogger's
blogs letting them know they've been tagged.

1. I have weird texture issues. I don't like the feel of sand and can't stand the feel of popsicle sticks or chalk. They completely freak me out. One day back when I was babysitting I had a day that consisted of playing in a sand box, building crafts with popsicle sticks, and drawing with sidewalk chalk.. it was my worst nightmare!

2. Most of you know I'm obsessed with food, but you may not know that I also have weird food quirks. I have certain ways that I eat everything. I don't like foods mixed together, every item on the plate has to have its own individual taste. Things have to be distributed evenly to each bite (ie the right amount of frosting with every bite of cake). I always, always save a certain bite (the part I want most) for last so it will be the final taste in my mouth (this has caused many fights since Travis always manages to take the exact bite I was saving). Yes, I know, I'm weird!

3. I can't stand anyone or anything touching or even coming close to touching my neck! Don't try, I will hurt you!

4. I'm paranoid. I always have been. I am sure that all the kidnappers and rapists out there really want me (I'm a little full of myself). I hate being home alone. I carry pepper spray all the time and when I walk to my car in parking lots I keep my finger on the trigger. I then look under my car and in the back seat before getting in the car. I make Travis check the house for intruders all the time. I have been known to sleep with '911' dialed on my phone with my finger on the send button. I check behind the shower curtain in any bathroom before I pee to make sure there isn't a crazy person hiding there watching me pee. Okay, as I'm typing all these things I'm realizing just how paranoid I am, so I'm going to stop there!

5. I hate holding hands (the romantic, inter-locking fingers way). Eww, it is making me cringe just to think about it. No, it is not because of the germs (that would be Travis), it is because I hate the feeling of anything between my fingers.

6. I can fit my entire fist in my mouth.

7. I drink an average of 1/2 gallon of milk a day, if not more. Yep Travis and I go through almost a gallon a day, it is crazy. I drink milk like other people drink water.

Well, I'm sure that was all really boring to you but I'm not all that interesting! Scroll down to see pics of Presley (I know that is all you really wanted to see)!

And I tag Lexi, Jenny, and Kecia, Lida, and Chaly (since they are blogging everyday for the month anyway!)

Catching Up With Pictures

2008-10-08T20:19:00.000-07:00

Okay everybody...get ready for picture overload! This is our last few weeks in pictures:

Travis is making up for lost daddy time with lots and lots of naps, cuddles, and playtime. He can't get enough of his baby girl!
Presley has been getting to know her Idaho cousins. Lily and her are so sweet together.

Presley always looks beautiful, even if she is always covered in spit-up!

She thinks her new binki clips are toys!

Lily has the most gorgeous eyelashes. They are amazing!
Ignoring eachother (just like Presley and Paige). By the way, Lily is 2 1/2 months older but my very tall daughter is about to pass her up!

Love this one!
She really has become such a Daddy's girl! It is amazing the way she totally lights up when she sees or hears him. She talks to him for hours and he gets all the laughs!

Just a picture of her crazy morning hair.
I got out the bebe pod to see if Lily likes it because I thought Presley was still too young, but she loves it and cries when I take her out of it. She will spend forever batting at the toy to make it spin.
Don't you just love cuddly jammies!?
More napping.
Papa loves that he has a new cuddle buddy!

Opps!

She still loves to stare at herself in the mirror.

I found her cuddling with her not so cuddly toys. Don't worry, I have since bought her a soft new doll to cuddle.

Okay, these aren't the official 3 month bear pictures (they are coming soon), but they were all just too cute not to post!

As you can see, she hasn't quite caught on to the sitting up thing yet!

Check out the chunky legs!
She was so excited to get her very first dolly! Much softer to cuddle with than rattles!

Tasty Tuesday

2008-10-07T08:47:00.000-07:00

Again, long time since I've done this so I'm going to keep it super simple today. Here it is:

http://www.foodporndaily.com

Click & Enjoy! That is all I have to say!

Make Me Laugh Monday

2008-10-06T18:50:00.000-07:00

Wow, it has been a really long time since I have posted one of these... but I for one really needed a laugh today! This is from an email that my mom sent to me. The email read as follows:

On August 19^th 2007, an oil tanker off the coast of Australia split in two, dumping 20,000 tons of crude oil. A member of the Australian Parliament, Senator Collins, appeared on a TV news interview program to discuss the disaster. This interview is so funny, you’ll swear it must be a “skit.”
Alas. It is very real.

Two Side Notes:

*First, I know this isn't what any of you want to see, so I promise updated pictures very soon!
**Second, I looked into this and it is a skit by an Australian comedy team. Oh well, it is still funny!

Just Hanging Out

2008-09-10T06:38:00.000-07:00