It's a...

Well we had our ultrasound on Wednesday and found out the gender of our baby. However, with a little smirk on my face I'll leave it to your ability to distinguish an ultrasound picture to figure it out.





Tee hee!!! His very first nudey pictures! Just wait til his first date, you can rest assured that this and the oncoming bathtub pictures will be brought out!!

We also took family pictures on Saturday and I think that my nerves will return to normal sometime next week. We actually had several turn out really cute. But any mom who has ever taken family pictures with an almost 2 year (especially a rather rambunctious one) knows it can take it's toll on mommy. Thank goodness for digital cameras where we can erase all the ones with me fighting with her!!

Even a princess can be a pirate sometimes!!

Getting ready for pictures with her hair in curlers, she decided to "drink" my candle. (Not while it was lit.) By the time I got it away from her it had left a little mustache. I think she looks like the joker.

"I'm so funny!"

The Polar Express

Yesterday, we had the fantastic opportunity to head up to Williams to take a ride on the Polar Express. We ended up with more excitement than we bargained for, but with the Randall clan when is that new? We got to our hotel about 6:15 pm and hurried to get changed so we could be to the Train Depot in time to grab a bite to eat before departing for the North Pole at 8. As I said, when do plans ever turn out right? Gracie was very grumpy and not terribly happy about getting dressed or taking pics. This should have been my first clue. The camera hog didn't want the spotlight? As you can see she was not happy about posing.

Well, we hurried to the car and I (of course) forgot something in the hotel room UPSTAIRS! So I rushed back to get it and returned to find that Gracie had thrown up all over. And I mean ALL OVER!! She was covered, the car seat was covered, her coat was covered. So with another mad dash up to the room for clean jammies, a quick wipe down of the seat, and a loan of cousin Max's spare jacket we were on our way again, certain that it was only from gagging on mucus. We made it to the restaurant by 7:10 and thought we might just have enough time to eat and still make it since we were just across the courtyard from the train. We ordered and waited and waited and waited some more. At this point this pregnant mama was hungry and grumpy and getting more so by the minute! The waitress finally brought out my food, just in time for another projectile vomit from Gracie. (By the way, Yes, part of my food was covered in Gracie puke!!!) Fighting hysteria, I dragged Gracie to the bathroom and wiped her only pair of clean clothes down with a paper towel and tried to remember why we had thought this would be fun. Needless to say, by the time I had disposed of the larger chunks of throw up from Gracie and my clothes, I had only enough time to have the waitress put my remaining food (thank you Vicki for cleaning off the vomit covered section) into a doggie bag and run for the train. Gratefully, the train ride was uneventful puking wise and Gracie had a total blast seeing Santa!! I cheered up and we settled in to enjoy the ride.

Getting ready to board, (that's my uneaten dinner in Monti's hand) And trying to keep warm!!

Gracie was so excited to be on a CHOO CHOO! She just climbed all over trying to get different views of the passing countryside. And of course getting to sit by "Natah" was an added bonus. As you can see she seemed to be feeling better and really had fun.

"Hi Auntie Tracie!!"

As you can also see, a little bit of cocoa and a cookie in mommy's empty tummy helped settle me down too. Singing Christmas carols got us all in better spirits and got us ready for the BIG moment!

You should have seen Gracie dance a jig when Santa came walking into our car. She stood up on her daddy's lap and waved and cheered and kept telling us over and over "Santa! Santa!!" When he got to Gracie the delay on my camera kicked in and I only snapped one after he had given her the bell! But she was so precious!! No shyness, no crying just complete and utter adoration! She took her bell and said thank you and then just gawked as he handed the other kids their bells.

"Bye, Bye Santa! Love you!" and that's a direct quote.

All in all, even with the chaos, the puking (including all night after getting back to the hotel), the not eating from noon til 10:30, the late night run to the laundromat that ended up being closed, it was a pretty nice weekend. We got to spend a lot of quality time with people we love and see the Big Guy himself. Believe it or not it really got the Christmas spirit ignited in me and got me ready for the oncoming season, with all its chaotic fun and trauma. We love Christmas and our little Gracie is teaching us how much more we can get out of it with her in our lives!! Merry Christmas!

Thanksgiving

Our family had the opportunity to spend Thanksgiving with both of our families. First, we went over to Grandma and Grandpa Stewarts house and had a wonderful Thanksgiving lunch with all of those Stewart cousins. It was fun to watch Gracie discover all the new tastes of Thanksgiving. Although this was her 2nd Turkey Day, last year (with only 2 teeth) she didn't really eat much more than potatoes and gravy. This year she was initiated into the all of the fabulous tastes of the holidays!!

I think her favorite was pie!! She couldn't keep her little fingers out of them and spent more than a few minutes in time out for digging in whole pies. It was pretty cute, even of I had to be the mean mommy and tell her no.

After dinner with the Stewarts we headed over for the evening with the Randall's. Again Gracie had a blast playing with all of her cousins. However, it had been a rather eventful day and (without a nap) Gracie was rather overwhelmed and grumpy. So we called it a rather early night and headed home with full tummies and thankful hearts for the many blessings that we call family!

Halloween

We had soooo much fun carving pumpkins!! We found a book of Disney princess patterns and of course we had to have it. Our first pumpkin we carved in time for our ward Trunk or Treat on the 25 th. It was ARIEL!!! Then we got a chance to carve Cinderella for our actual Halloween pumpkin. I think Gracie's favorite part was the scooping of the goo. Go Gracie! Mommy hates it.

Gracie was the cutest Flapper you have ever seen! We had a ton of fun curling her hair and dressing her up like a little doll!! There were actually a lot of people who didn't know what she was, but oh well. We thought she looked adorable. Believe it or not she never touched the headpiece. I told her it was a crown and it never left her head!! And it was the cutest thing in the world to hear her say "Tic a tee"!

Busy Week

So, last week was a busy week for us. Consequently, I am only just adding this post! First of all, on the 8th, Monti and I celebrated our 9th wedding anniversary! It seems weird that I'm old enough to have been married for 9 years and at the same time, I can't remember life without Monti. I would be a really rotten wife if I didn't take the time to say what a great hubby I have. He is so sweet and thoughtful and a super great dad. One of my favorite past times is to sit and watch him and Gracie play. She loves her daddy and I love her daddy too. He is truly the love of my life. And I would be a really rotten friend if I didn't say thank you to all my favorite ladies for the gift card they gave us. It made the night absolutely perfect!! You guys are awesome!!






The next thing that happened last week was that we had to put our little puppy Maya down. she had been sick for about a month, having seizures. And finally reached the point on Thursday night that she couldn't eat or drink and couldn't even move. We decided that we couldn't just watch her die of dehydration and that it would be much more humane to let her go with some comfort and peace. Our friend Becca who is a vet tech came and picked her up Saturday night. Then we were able to get her from Becca Sunday morning and we buried her in my mom and dad's backyard. She was a sweet, sweet puppy and we will miss her! Gracie still wanders around the house saying "Maya, Maya?" Then when we tell her Maya had to go bye bye and she cries. And subsequently I cry. It was a hard situation that was made a little better by Becca's kindness. We are so grateful to her.

Dinosaurs!!

My sister got tickets to take her family to see Walking with Dinosaurs. Unfortunately her husband was unable to get out of work at the last minute. However, fortunately that left an unused ticket and they invited Gracie and I to tag along. Gracie absolutely adores her cousins, so an outing with them was cool enough. But the show was incredible. Gracie was absolutely mesmerized by the whole thing. She wasn't even afraid of the T-Rex! Super cool special effects and what other chance do you get to be up close to these awesome animals. We had a BLAST! Thank you Tracie and Rob and kids for inviting us along.

Exciting News!

So Monti and I found out yesterday that we are expecting another baby!! We are so excited and a little bit surprised. We have been going to see a fertility specialist and the doctors had told us that I hadn't and wouldn't ovulate this month. However, we had been praying and fasting along with many of our friends and family and I guess Heavenly Father knows better than those doctors. So here we are with a modern day miracle on our hands! I can't mention this news without telling all of you who fasted and prayed for us, Thank You so much for all of your love and support. You have helped to bring this special gift to our lives. We Love you!! I started all of my medications (Heparin shots twice a day, progesterone cream, Baby Aspirin, Metformin, etc.) last night. Having 4 miscarriages under our belt and only one healthy pregnancy, we are always worried. But we have faith that everything will turn out as the Lord wants it. So keep us in your prayers. We can definitely still use them.

Labor Day

We were able have dinner with Monti's family at his sister Maria's house on Labor Day. We really enjoyed having the opportunity to chat with his siblings and parents and Gracie had an absolute BLAST playing with her cousins. She spent the majority of her time going up and down the stairs over and over again. Her cousin Brianna patiently followed her so I didn't need to worry about her falling.

Gracie's 18 months!

Who doesn't want to see more pictures of the cutest baby ever?! O.K. So I may be a little biased but...I'm a proud mommy. So we had some free pictures coming from Kiddie Kandids and they had to be done before July 31, and Gracie was turning 18 months, so what other excuse did I need to get pictures right? Believe it or not she cried through the whole sitting, but we still ended up with some cute ones!


You have no idea (well some of you may) how hard it is to get an 18 month old to just hold the flower, don't look at it, don't eat it, don't smell it, don't throw it etc. But we finally snapped it really quick and ended up with this darling picture. (It's my favorite one!)



Then we decided looking at the flower was actually pretty darn cute! So...
When Gracie is having a bit of a tantrum,(I know it's impossible to even think of) I can usually get her to calm down by telling her to fold her arms and be reverent. Consequently, we ended up with these two pictures. She even decided to be extra cute in the last one. It's not the BEST picture ever but I couldn't resist how innocent and sweet she looks with her shoulders raised and that cute little impish grin!
AAAH! Love that girl!!

My introduction to the blogging world

O.K., O.K I am now officially a blogger. My friends have been nagging me for months to start a blog and I have been rebelling. I didn't have time, I didn't know how...I had every excuse in the book. Then, my sister Tracie started in on me and resistance was futile. So here it is...The Randall Blog. I will preemptively state that I am not responsible for how long it goes without updates, I'm still working on keeping a steady journal. Since this is so long overdue, I thought I'd start with 2008 in pictures. And since I'm certain noone wants to see me over and over, most of the pictures will be of our adorable daughter Gracie, with Monti and I mixed in here and there. Enjoy!!

Merry Christmas!

Christmas is our favorite time of year, so I had to start here even though it's technically not part of 2008.
Gracie was literally the star of the show! She played the Star of Bethlehem in our family's nativity play.
Santa freaked her out a little, so mommy stayed close by to help out.
Gracie is not a morning person!! Christmas morning was no exception.
Later in the day, she crashed. She always like to snuggle and her good friend Maya is always happy to help!

Happy New Year!

Karaoke with daddy on New Year's Eve.
Banging pots to ring in the New Year!

Higher and Higher

Playing with daddy is one of Gracie's favorite things in the world!

Birthday Princess

Blowing out the candles on her first birthday cake.
She LOVED the presents!

Let them eat cake!

She started out clean...
...but with Gracie it never lasts long.

I think she enjoyed it!