Katie's Christmas

Christmas morning was all about Katie. Actually, it was afternoon when we opened presents. We are enjoying the last few years when we can sleep in without kids banging on our door with excitement at 5am.

It's fun to have a child to share the Christmas with, even though she had no clue what was happening, nor did she care.

We hosted Christmas dinner with the Popes, Castles, and Worthens. Followed by, you guessed it, a movie at the theater. I brought the ham, potatoes, yams, jello, and decorated the table. We had leftovers for a few days. It was a happy day.

3 Months

Katie turned 3 months old on December 20th. She is sporting her hat made by our friend MaryEllen who was baptized a year ago.

Graham Cracker Houses

We made gingerbread houses at the Umblebees Christmas party. It has become a tradition to make these each year. Jonathan's house was an abstract work of art that defies description. My house was titled "Santa's Vacation Home" in Florida. I attempted to make palm trees from M&Ms and tootsie rolls.

ThankFULL

We celebrated Thanksgiving with our friends the Castles (who hosted), Andersons, and Worthens. We had a lot of good food followed up with a movie at the nearby theater. Good friends, food, and fun...we have a lot to be thankful for!

Halloween

We went to the ward Halloween party. Jonathan dressed up as a vampire in his dracula cape and passed out candy in his plastic skull from school. There were a number of kids who wouldn't take candy from him. I even overheard a child say "That vampire has shiny teeth (braces). That's really scary. " He won the scariest costume award.

I dressed Katie in a Halloween orange jumper which made her look like a boy.

On Halloween we were invited to a party hosted by the Andersons. We had dinner and dressed up like characters from Clue. We played a creative "live" version of the game. Jonathan was Kernel Mustard and I was Miss White.

Blessing Day

We blessed Katie in Utah on November 9th. It was such a special day, especially to watch Jonathan give her a name and a blessing. It was a moment I hope to never forget. The blessing itself was beautiful. We were surrounded by our family and friends.

Both of her Grandpas were in the priesthood circle, and her blessing dress was given to us by Grandma Sykes.

We had a HUGE potluck lunch at the Overson home which, of course, included a lot of happy conversation and laughter. Great Grandma Layne was able to come to the blessing. The pictures we have of her and Katie are priceless.

We visited with Great Grandma and Grandpa Sykes at their home in American Fork. Again, a moment I'll never forget. Priceless photos for her baby album.

Katie is the first grandchild on my side of the family and #20 in the Overson family. Thank you to everyone who came to her blessing. We are so thankful that our family is forever!

Movies

I'm still working on getting a higher quality slideshow. This will have to do for now.

Katie's Birth

She is already three months old, but for those of you interested in her birth, continue to read. No disclaimer needed. Although I'm a nurse and enjoy describing medical procedures in great detail, it was a relatively boring delivery from a medical standpoint. (Not that I'm complaining.)

My doctor decided to induce me for a number of reasons, including a low amniotic fluid level. Katie was born on September 20th, about 20 hours after they started me on IV pitocin. Once my labor "Kicked In" (actual medical term used by my nurses) it was a quick labor of only 5 hours.

It was a happy labor and delivery. Probably because I got an epidural. The greatest invention known to mankind. I only hope I get one in time with my next babies. I guess I should learn hypnobirthing just in case, but I'll probably save hypnosis for the rest of parenthood, like when she is a teenager.

Katie weighed 7 pounds 11 ounces. 20.5 inches long. She was born at Cambridge Hospital, a few blocks from Harvard University. Jonathan and I love being parents. We knew we would, but she has exceeded our expectations.

What a blessing to be sealed together as a family and have those blessings fill our lives with such happiness. Life can't get much better than that!

Its Here!

Thanks for visiting our little corner in cyberspace. I've finally created a blog. Hallelujah! Our computer was starting to show signs a major meltdown, so we backed up all our important files, wiped the hard drive clean, and reinstalled everything. (Remind me to become close friends with an IT geek.) Needless to say, its here and available for friends and family to get updates on Katie (Yes, I know that's the only reason anyone is interested in our blog!)

My life is not particularly interesting, however, I often surprise myself when I look back and see the cumulative events of the past year and realize how incredibly blessed I am.
Plus, I like to follow other blogs, especially friends I don't see very often. It reminds me of getting Christmas cards with cute photos and newsletters, anytime I want.
I love technology....and yet I hate it. Grrrrrr.

Due to a crashed computer, this blog is still under construction. Our beloved computer probably has a virus like the rest of the family. We'll all be feeling better shortly!