Part 3...Las Vegas Baby!

April 28th, 2007

We all piled into the Dodge Durango that David had rented for the trip and headed for Vegas! We left early (5:20am to be exact) so that it would be easier for Nolan since he would still want to sleep and so would the rest of us really. Kenny and David chatted pretty much the whole 5 hours-as they do whenever they are together I've come to learn, while the "Girls" snacked, slept and played with Nolan. We got to Vegas about noon just in time for Val, Matt & Naomi to get back from the Triathlon that Val had raced in earlier that morning which was the reason that we all gathered in Vegas.

It was so fun to see the two cousins interact-Nolan hadn't really spent much time with other kids at this point-but he was sure curious about Naomi. We were sharing a room with Matt and Val; David, Debbie, Allyson and Brittany were in the room next to us. When it finally came time for naps for both kids and especially Val, little Naomi just had too many people to watch instead of sleep and so finally she ended up taking her nap at "Grandma's place" so that poor Val could try to get a power nap in. Which was completely fine by them and they had a lot of fun with her.

Before the naps we went to Applebee's for lunch-Val's parents Edward and Connie were there as well-it was really fun to see them again. While at lunch Nolan started getting fussy and this was before we had tried too many finger foods with him-so Matt and Val introduced us to Naomi's "puffs" and Nolan has become a huge fan of them ever since then. However, in a moment of curiosity, or incredible talent he decided to "amuse" us with a magic trick. It went a little something like this: Debbie was holding him, he spotted Allyson's french fries resting nicely on a checkered red/white paper liner on her plate and he thought it would be amazing to see what they looked like in her lap....viola!! Fries in lap and all over table...adults scrambling to clean it up...Me embarrassed & now walking Nolan outside for a "breather"...now do you see the magic trick? Nolan wanted to get out of that booth and go outside....Nolan got it. Amazing.

After the fun at the restaurant we went to visit Cousin Angie, and her two boys Carter and Jensen-we had a really nice visit and got to play with Carter for a while and chat with Angie. I got to hold little Jensen, and I was amazed to be reminded how small newborn babies are and he was still around 8 or 9lbs (I think).. Nolan was 6lbs when he came home from the hospital but they both felt so tiny. They all were doing well and getting ready to move in August for more school as well-so we were really glad to get to see them before they move farther away.

Later that night we went to the Buffet at Palace Station and had a pretty good meal and had fun watching the babies smile at each other. They seemed to be getting along quite well...little did we know what was about to follow. After dinner Val and I wanted to get the kids back to the hotel to get to bed so Kenny volunteered to drive us in the Durango while the rest went with Matt to tour down the strip and stop at the Excalibur hotel for Princess Brittany.

*Before we left the Palace Station...happy little campers

We loaded the kids up and decided to take the drive down the strip as well on the way back to the hotel. The kids both watched with wide eyes at all of the lights and were happy and cheerful...until we reached the end of the strip when it got dark outside and their sleepiness started to settle in. Naomi started to whimper softly so Val started to sing to her...wasn't seeming to help and she was getting a bit louder to compete with the singing...Nolan was starting to get a little unsure about the noises that were coming out of little Naomi and he starting to fuss and whimper as well. Now it is hard to imagine the next 15 mins unless you were lucky enough to be there, but just give it a try. Both babies are wailing...I mean wailing...both Moms are trying-in vain-to calm her child by singing and reassuring...just as it starts to calm one of the babies, the other one starts up again and restarts the other one and it just gets worse and worse, and Kenny is trying to get to the hotel as safely and quickly as possible all the while trying not to laugh since it was only okay to laugh at the situation for the first 5 mins, but has now been instructed by Echo that "IT IS NOT FUNNY-THEY ARE REALLY SCARED!" and this whole thing finally culminates at the parking lot of the hotel when we get each child out of their car seat and into their respective Mommy's arms...and then we are met with smiles and sniffles. Insane....but now that I look back at it, I guess it was kinda funny.

Well I've done so much typing I'd better quickly get on with the rest of the trip. Sunday morning we decided to take the kids (and Brittany of course) swimming in the hotel pool. It was Nolan's first time so it had to be well documented. He loved it, and started kicking his feet before they hit the water. We played and played and by the end of time in the pool he was just kicked back on my shoulder sucking on his fingers and lounging in the "waves".

After the swim we put the cousins in the tub together and got them all cleaned up and ready to head for home.

It was a great trip and we made some really fun memories. Thanks to Val for being such a trooper and racing in the triathlon that brought the family together!

April 2007 Part 2

Okay Folks, Here's part 2 of April as promised.

On Tues. April 23rd we had our first family portraits taken. We picked the 11am slot to hopefully fit it in between naps or eating and we ended up quite successful. We had a pretty good time, our photographer wasn't the greatest-but thankfully Nolan was a very cooperative subject. Here is a few of some of the photos that we liked. We ordered quite a few, but the funniest thing was that my Mom went ahead and pretty much ordered every portrait taken (we had a $2.99 per sheet deal) except like 4 poses. Ha ha! What a proud 1st time Grandma!

Awww...what a good looking group!

This is definitely a favorite!

One more...cause they don't get much cuter than this!


Now on to BYU Graduation!! Friday April 27th, 11am

David, Debbie and Brittany drove down yet again to Utah for the occasion and stayed with us which is always fun because we get so much more visiting time in. The last time that they had seen Nolan was in January for his blessing and he was a much more active and funny boy now! It was great to watch him interact with everyone and share his happy personality. We were excited about Graduation-but more for Allyson's sake than for Kenny's. Again this graduation would take place and we'd take all of the pictures and go through the motions, but Kenny would be back to school or in the lab the following Monday. Someday I hope, for my husband's sake, that he'll actually feel the accomplishment and have a week or two off from being the hardest working guy I know. I'd love to see him do nothing for a week but mountain bike, workout on his Bowflex and hang out with Nolan and I....hmm maybe someday.

Despite this, Graduation was really fun! It was great to have Allyson and Kenny in the same department and be able to see them both walk at the same ceremony. Brittany even did quite well when the crowd cheered, better than Nolan did-however he was sound asleep when a loud group sounded off and totally un-nerved him. But when the surrounding people saw his reaction they warned us when they were about to cheer for their graduate...which was very considerate I thought. After the ceremony we attended the department lunch and chatted with some of their professors, it was fun to meet the people that you hear about often-especially when they are all dressed up in their regalia as well. We took some fun pictures so here are a few.

Allyson, Prof. Chin Yo Lin and Kenny

The 3 Graduates of 2007!

David and Debbie are so proud! :)

This is how Grandma Debbie got Nolan to be happy during the last part of Graduation...she tickle, tickle, tickled his back!! Obviously it worked!

Well, apparently I've met my allowed photo MB size for the eBlogger website, so I guess there will be a part 3 for April of 2007!

To be continued....

April 2007 (Part 1....Busy Month)

Nolan is 7 Months Old!

For the Spring session of Conference we had a great visit with a whole bunch of Aunts, Uncles, Grandparents and Cousins from Kenny's side of the Family. The Blatters from California, the Kurtzes from Richland, Wa and Grandma Jean and Grandpa Norm Wing, and Debbie and Brittany all came to SLC for Conference weekend. Allyson, Kenny, Nolan and I drove up to their SLC hotel to hang out and play for the evening. It was so fun to see everyone and show off our boy-Kenny couldn't have been a prouder Papa that night. Nolan was up to the performance and as you can see in these pictures. He had a great time bonding with his extended family members. Nolan also started making his "Lil Monster Noises" as we call them on Sunday during conference...not sure what inspired them but they are noises that he still makes to this day. They are hard to imitate, it's something that he does in the back of his throat and it usually indicates that he is having a good time. Grandma Debbie, Allyson and Brittany were present to hear them with us...hopefully a fun memory for them as well.

We also spent some time getting to know his Great-Grandma & Grandpa Farnworth-we have visited about once a week and Nolan has gone from being a little unsure about Grandpa and his noises, to (as of the date of this writing June 21st) just smiling or chuckling at Grandpa's growls or yelps as he reaches out to pat him on the face.

Then (April 12) Now (June 8)

Easter Surprises!! Sunday, April 8th, 2007
The Easter Bunny was pretty good to our little one this year. He brought Nolan a little red wagon full of fun toys including his stacker rings....but he saved the candy for Mom & Dad. We got dressed up for church and enjoyed a nice Easter dinner at the Whittaker's house in Springville. Grandma Kenna had an extra special surprise-she'd gotten Nolan a walker/activity center which she had kept a secret for 2 whole weeks! -(Side Note: This was pretty impressive because when it comes to a new thing that Grandma has bought for Nolan, usually it is in his hands the next day or sooner!) He also enjoyed his first Jello Jiggler Easter eggs while the rest of us colored the traditional ones. What a great First Easter! We all had a great time!

We took a trip up to the cabin in Mount Pleasant on April 14th and Nolan had his first ride in an Argo (a 6-wheeled ATV) and surprised us all with a super chatty session during a movie that evening that culminated in him repeatedly saying "Da, da, da, da, da, da".

I must admit, I teared up a little-not because he said Dada first...just because it was made me so happy to have Kenny and my family present for what would become his first words.

Nolan cut his first tooth-the lower front left on Sunday, April 15th. I noticed it when we were getting ready for bed and he was trying to bite on my fingers since that has always been his favorite teething toy. I was surprised to feel something sharp in there!

On Tues. the 17th we went to Allyson's figure skating debut (or final as she called it) and Nolan eagerly watched as I held both him and the video camera in the same arm while I was trying to accurately record the whole performance for her posterity...hope they don't mind a few wiggles in the tape!

Well that will wrap up the first part of April. We had so much happen that I thought it deserved at least two posts to fit everything in.

So on the next posting I'll talk about our first family photos, Kenny & Allyson's Graduation at BYU, our Merrell family trip to Las Vegas to visit with Matt, Val and Naomi, and Nolan's first time in a swimming pool...and this all took place in the last week or so of April! What a crazy, fun month!

March 2007

Nolan is 6 Mos Old!

March was a very exciting month for our family-especially for Nolan. He had even more firsts to enjoy! We began learning how much of a social boy Nolan was going to be. Giggles weren't too hard to come by and he was pretty smiley when encouraged just slightly. He was also a lot more agreable to playing on his tummy and willing to lift his head and watch people or toys for longer periods of time. But that was only the beginning of the firsts he would accomplish by the end of the month.

On Thursday March 8th,we started him on his first solid foods after finally getting the okay from his doctor. Watery rice cereal was first on the menu, and as you can see in the pictures he knew what he was supposed to do, however the cereal was definitely something new....

We also started to teach him how to drink out of a regular cup (which he prefers) and a sippy cup. He started grabbing his toes on March 10th, and then he started to sit up by himself on Monday, March 19th and then wonder of wonders...he rolled over for the first while we were hanging out with Jason and Alannah at our house. He was reaching for his toy dump truck that his Grandma Merrell had given him for Christmas and rolled over to grab it. Of course he was as suprised as we were and then stared at amazement when the 4 adults started cheering and clapping. That is a funny thing about being a parent...getting so excited about something that will just become common activity in the upcoming weeks ahead.

February 2007 Update

Nolan is 5 Months Old!

February brought lots of firsts for Nolan. The weather was really mild so it brought his first stroller ride and lots of walks with Mom. Because of the stroller walks he wore his first sunglasses and hats. We debuted his first Levis and made his first trip with all of the Whittaker family to Chuck-A-Rama for Echo's 26th birthday-where he was very interested in the birthday balloons.

He also had his first experience in Grandma Whittaker's highchair, and continued to thrill us with giggles and smiles.

But the most important first was the addition of his Johnny-jump-up to his playtime. He knew what to do with it from the moment that we put him in-despite the fact that he was still just a bit small enough to have to be padded in with blankets. This jumper would soon become his favorite passtime and easiest way to show off those powerful legs!

We celebrated his first Valentines Day with a quiet (well almost) dinner with Mom & Dad at home and a new stuffed black Valentine puppy from Grandma Whittaker and a cute card and "candy money" from Grandma Merrell.

Then before we knew it February was over and here came March.

January 2007 Update

January 2007

Nolan is 4 mos old!

Here are some highlights from this month:

*Nolan is getting the RSV shots-which are not very fun, but is very healthy and growing well.

*FIRST GIGGLES! Jan. 18th @ 11:20pm Kenny is playing with Nolan in his crib while Echo is getting ready for bed and gets and urgent call to grab the camera and "Get in here!" Nolan graces us with his first giggles at his blue musical bedtime bear while Echo records the whole thing with a mouth full of toothpaste!

*Nolan is 13lbs & 24" long on Jan 19th. He is smiling more for pictures and can sit up while Kenny balances him in his hand.

*Nolan received his name and a blessing from his Dad at our ward in Orem on Jan. 28th @11:30am. He wore a new church outfit complete with a tie & vest and was surrounded with some pretty good looking men as well. The Whittaker family in Utah as well as the Merrells from WA, & AZ came to celebrate. We also had Great Grandma & Grandpa Farnworth, Aunt Merle & Uncle Gary, Troy, Jill & Brandon & our friends Mandy & Steve & Jonah Forsey. After the blessing we had a yummy potato bar lunch and desserts and enjoyed visiting with each other. Nolan however was completely exhausted from being in the spotlight and slept through the entire lunch!



*Nolan also started sleeping in his big crib instead of his bassinet in Mom & Dad's room on the 29th.

Nolan's personality really started coming out in January and we were constantly trying to get smiles and the much anticipated giggles out of him. That's when we realized just how "silly" being a parent can make you!

Our First Posting...

October 18, 2006

Hello Everyone!

We have so enjoyed being updated from the Blog that Matthew and Val keep on their little family, especially the growth and development of little Naomi, so we were inspired to start our own!

Our lives have been full of exciting and new changes over the past year-but within the last 4 weeks everything has come to have a whole new meaning. We are now the proud parents of a perfect little boy who couldn't wait his 40 weeks to be born and decided to come early...7 weeks and 2 days early! I had enjoyed a wonderful pregnancy with no problems and minimal discomfort...(well I was getting there-lots of heartburn and wondering how my belly was going to grow for another 8 weeks)! I want to first post basically a copy of an email that we sent out to family and friends that re-lives & explains the first week or so of Nolan's life. It had some information that we'd like to remember and look back on in a few months with amazement that we've come so far!

September 18, 2006-(Excerpt from Email)
I started having contractions on Wednesday the 13th and I was sent to the hospital where they admitted me and gave me medications (Magnesium Sulfate) to relax my muscles and stop the contractions. Following a blessing from Kenny and our friend Steve, the contractions immediately stopped and by 10am Friday the 15th they had taken me off of the medications.

However now I was looking at a stay of at least two weeks in the hospital on complete bed rest to try to stall the delivery. The doctors wanted a minimum of 48 hours for the steroids injections I had received to help Nolan's lungs develop, just in case he could not wait two weeks. Everything looked to be going as planned until I was getting ready for bed on Friday the 15th and at 11:30pm my water broke and it was apparent that this little boy was being born sooner than later!

Our delivery team was excellent-and by team I mean about 3 nurses, 3 Doctors, and about 5 other Neonatal specialists-it was quite a full room! After about 12 hours of labor, Nolan was born at 11:05am on Sept. 16th and instantly started to make little whimpering cries-which was music to our ears since we had been prepared to expect the worst.

Despite all of the quick attention from the nurses and respiratory therepists, he held Kenny's finger as soon as he could get near him. He was all swaddled up and shown to me for about 30 seconds and then the whole crew including his Dad took him down to the NICU for the rest of his testing and leads. The whole thing happened really quickly and we were really blessed to have so many people to help him and that his Dad was able to be with him so closely. He was put on a C-PAP machine which put positive pressure in his lungs to ease his breathing and also had IVs and monitoring leads applied. After I was all taken care of, Kenny wheeled me down the hall to see my beautiful baby boy. It was the most wonderful day of our lives and every day has been such a joy and relief since. Nolan is now in the brand new NICU at Timpanogos Hospital and is the first baby in his super high tech isolette bed. He is such a joy and the toughest little fighter we'll ever know.

Everyday he makes huge progress that the Neonatal Doctors tell us is remarkable. He's been off of his C-PAP machine since last Sunday (9/17/06), which made it possible for us to hold him for the first time. He has been getting tube feedings (through his nose) since Sunday, had his IV removed Thursday and has been nursing well since Wednesday. He has actually gained a little more than a half-pound and is increasing his feeding amounts everyday. It may seem like small little accomplishments by normal standards, but for a child that was born so early-he is the champion of the NICU and we couldn't be prouder. We look forward to the days ahead and hope to be taking him home soon.