Happy Birthday, Ellie!

It happened.  She made it.  She survived.  She's one and I can't believe it!  It's strange how quickly it came and also how long it seemed to get here.  When she was first born I would get up five, maybe six times a night and because I was becoming delirious with my lack of sleep, I started to think that this was my life and I would be doing this for the next 18 years.  Slowly but surely, she started progressing by sleeping through the night, rolling over, then crawling, and now walking.  She's also become quite talkative in her young age.  She says the usual dadda and momma, but she also says bigger words like cheese and juice and can kind of count to five.  I love to hear her talk.  I guess there are so many things that I can say about her and I'm sure no one has four hours to read a blog post, so instead I will post some fun pictures from her party, and also the 12 pictures I love most that represent the 12 months we have had her so far.  But I would like to thank all of our family and friends who have not only supported Hubert and me so much, but have also loved Ellie.  We appreciate it more than we can say.

Party Pictures

The birthday girl

Ellie and Guy

Jake and Milo Baxter

The Meese twins, Graham and Harrison

Ellie and Aunt Ashley

Daintily demolishing her cake

Confusingly opening presents

Again, the birthday girl

Her life, so far

Meeting each other for the first time

Taking a nap with dad at the hospital

Her first day home, finally

Being with Grandma Kami

Being with Grandma Natasha and Grandpa Gonzalo, while Isaac slept

Smiling with Grandpa Steele

Conquering the boppy

Relaxing

Laughing at her crazy mom

Loving the camera

Posing

Smiling with her momma

I turn my back for one second

WARNING: SOMEWHAT GRAPHIC IMAGE

I walked out of the bathroom for one second and this is what I returned to find.

As soon as I took this picture, my phone rang and I left for another second, only to discover this when I came back

I thought I had a few more years

So long, old friend

Today I say goodbye to Coke, my loyal and trusted friend.  You never left me in my times of need and never disappointed.  I have loved every minute we have spent together, especially when I would take that first sip.  I didn't matter if you were in a bottle or cup, it was always satisfying, welcoming, and even warm, as if I was a child nestling in  your plastic bosom.  You never criticized me when I would drink one, possibly two, or regularly three of you during the day.  Do you remember those moments, Coke, when we would laugh together?  When after the morning of my wedding day, there you were sitting on my kitchen counter, congratulating me on my recent nuptials?  Or how about that time when Hubert and I were out eating Chinese food and when he said a funny joke I laughed and then took a sip from your frosty glass?  Or what about all those times when I would sneak next door during one of the many weekend Logan trips Jake and Ashley would take and steal a can of you?  Memories.  Will you miss me, Coke?  Will you miss our morning drives to the local Chevron station that had the drive-thru because I was too embarrassed to get out of the car in my pajamas?  Or what about the others that will be hurt by our break-up?  There's Heather, the girl at the gas station.  I know she'll miss our morning, afternoon, and sometimes evening encounters.  Do you remember that hysterical conversation we had that one time when she said, "That will be $1.30," and I replied, "Oh, you're prices have gone up?"  And she then ended this humorous exchange with, "Yes, it used to be $1.20 and now it's $1.30."  Just thinking about it makes me laugh.  Oh, why are we breaking up, you ask?  Well, Coke, there are a few reasons.  First, we have been together for so long, I feel like I know nothing else.  I often see people drinking a see-through liquid they describe as "water."  I find that fascinating because I only thought water was for bathing or the liquid that falls from the sky during a storm.  The second reason is when you are over a dollar a pop (pun intended) it really adds up.  And third, I have so many times heard doctors, health reports, and news stories talk about how you can add weight onto the human body.  Add weight?  All this time I thought because the label said  that there was no fat that it would actually help me lose weight.  Who would have thought that calories are the real culprit?  So, so long, Coke.  I'll miss you, but I'm sure that one day we will meet again.  We always do.

The Ferocious Baby

As the ability to move around grows stronger for Ellie, so, it seems, do other "powers."  Sure, she's cute with all that hair, those eyes, chubby cheeks, etc., etc., but do we really know the real Eliana Steele Anasco?  I thought I did, that is, until the other night.

Exhibit A:

At first glance, she looks sweet, doesn't she?  But if you take a closer look, there's something going on behind those eyes, something not quite right.

Exhibit B:

And then she attacks!  Hubert is useless against her and her ferocious licking of his face.  As you can see, he seems to be passed out.  That must be from the cheddar cheese crunchies she ate only moments before.  Even the strongest man is powerless against that breath.  But even throughout this attack, she never takes her eyes off of me.  It's as if she's sizing me up.

Exhibit C:

And before I know it she's on top of me and I'm down for the count.  Who would have known that those chubby thighs could wrap so tightly around me?  Hopefully next time, I'll be better prepared.

Exhibit D:

And finally, she takes over the camera only to show her sinister smile.  She knows that if she can defeat her parents, she can defeat anyone.  So beware, friends, family, and even strangers.  If she's strong enough to take down her own loving parents, who knows what she's capable of? 

10 Years Come and Gone

On Saturday I had the opportunity to attend my 10 year high school reunion and I have to be honest, I was a little skeptical.  So skeptical that I bought my ticket the last day you could buy them because I just wasn't sure about the whole thing, but I was proven wrong and was so glad that I went.  Sure, the $25 I paid for the "dinner" that was provided made me a little bit angry when I realized I could have gotten the same amount of food at Taco Bell for $4 and it probably would have been better and the location of the place it was held could not have been further away, but at least they served ice cold water, oh, and lemonade.  Delicious.  But despite all of that, I caught up with great friends that I have missed over the years and got some really great pictures.

This is my good friend, Bonnie Yarbrough Wangsgard.  I was so happy to see her and catch up with she and her husband, who we also went high school with us and is currently in medical school on Las Vegas.

And this is her husband, Mark, who was the chair for my other friend, Tyler King.  Things never change.

Cheryl, Becca, Me, Bonnie, and Alysia.  Aren't we a good-looking bunch of broads?

And finally, the motley crew.  I love these girls but I have to say that Annie, the cute girl to my right, said the funniest thing.  She said, and I quote, "When I was dating Tom, I 'nutted' a cow." I'm still not sure what that means, but it almost had me on the floor laughing.

So, hopefully I will see you guys during the next ten years, but if not, I'll see you in 2018!  Oh, and to Cheryl and Becca, you can't get rid of me and I'm sure I'll see you next week.

Happy Birthdays!

This week, both my mom and oldest brother, Josh, have a birthday so I thought I would do a little post with some fun pictures of my mom with her favorite (and only) daughter and my brother with his favorite (and only) sister.  So Happy Birthday!  I hope that this birthday is a good one.

This picture was taken in Buffalo, NY where I went to spend a couple of weeks with my mom the summer before my senior year of high school.  We had a really great time and I'm so glad I went.

Even though Josh and I are nine years apart, he was always playing with me and was such a great big brother.

Before my mom and dad had kids, my mother was a beautiful ballerina.  Fortunately, my mother is still beautiful, unfortunately, while in college, she suffered from an injury and was unable to continue to dance.  Do you want to know what else in unfortunate?  A daughter with two left feet.  But she didn't care and offered to choreograph the Nut Cracker play that I was in in elementary school.  This picture was actually in the paper.  Yeah, you know it's a small town when the elementary school in Altus, Oklahoma gets their picture in the paper.

Because my ballet skills were questionable, I decided to try sports because that was what my brothers did and I faired much better.  And even though all of my brothers played with me, Josh would always help me when I asked, especially when it came to softball.  I remember he would hardly ever miss a game that I played and it meant so much to look into those stands and see his bleached, feathered hair.

Ah yes, my high school graduation.  All I can really say about that is it was a questionable day considering how many U's I had to make up in order to graduate.  But it was so great to have my mom there cheering for me.

And finally, this is my favorite picture of Josh and me and not because it was in the paper and not because we were in Japan, but because it reminds me of how much fun we had when we were little and how much I miss it.

Happy birthday, you two.  I hope that these few pictures brought back some fun memories and put a smile on your faces.  I love you both and hope you each have a fun and happy day.

Why do I keep doing this to myself?

Yesterday, I ran the Provo Canyon 1/2 Marathon and I have to say that it was not the easiest thing I have ever done, but after 2 1/2 hours of running (and sometimes walking), sore hips, knees, and calves, I finished and the best part was that I wasn't last!  Luckily, I was able to run with my really good friend, Amber Eggett, who is an amazing runner, and she was so nice to stay with me for the first few miles, but I knew that she could go so much faster without me, so I let her go and didn't see her again until the finish line, which was 30 minutes after she finished.  

Funny story, I had to take my glasses off during the race because they slide off my face when I sweat and because of that, everything was blurry. As I got closer to the finish line I could see families lined up and I could hear people cheering, so I thought I was almost there and I looked up and saw who I thought was my dad.  Because of that, I started waving my arms wildly, running really fast towards him with a gigantic smile, and when I got there I realized this man was in fact, not my father and I had just made a fool of myself while wasting valuable energy.  And the cherry on top of that fabulous story came when the finish line was a half mile away.  Stupid bad vision.

But anyway, I was so happy to see my family at the finish line cheering for me, but what really made the race all worth it was this awesome t-shirt.

A Great Visit #2

This week, we had the opportunity to have my Grandparents, Ellie's Great-Grandparents, come and visit and I have to say that I love it when they come to see us.  They have served several missions around the world, but we were fortunate enough to have them close to us during their last mission because it was at the Joseph Smith Memorial Building.  Unfortunately, since they were released, which was a few years ago, we haven't had the chance to see them as much as we would like to because they live in California, so when we do we really cherish those moments.  Also, I have to brag because I think my Grandparents are the coolest people in the world.  For their 80th birthdays, which are days apart, they went skydiving and put it on their Christmas cards and I can't think of a cooler Christmas card.

We love you, Grandma and Grandpa Day!

A Great Visit

A couple of weeks ago, we had the wonderful opportunity to have my mom and Michele visit us and it was so much fun.  It was only the second time my mom had seen Ellie since she was born because she lives in Kansas and it was the first time for Michele, but that didn't matter to Ellie.  She went right to them like she had been seeing them every day since the day she was born and I have to say that it made me so happy because Ellie doesn't do that with a lot of people and I really wanted them to have a nice visit.  But I just wanted to thank both of them for coming and spending time with us because it was so great and we missed them so much when they left. And also, we took a three generation picture with my mom that was a little surreal at the moment because I couldn't believe that I was part of a picture that included my mother, me, and my daughter instead of how it has been my whole life which is my grandmother, mother, and me.  But it was a great time and I hope they can come back soon, and so does Ellie.  We Love You!