Joe's Graduation!! He's a Registered Radiology Techonologist!!

The long awaited day finally approached! And all three of us were excited!! After having to complete 1170 clinical  hours (many of those commuting 1.5 hrs one way), along with full time classes, we were so ready to be DONE. But it has been a fantastic experience. And now Joe has a career that he can honestly say he enjoys. That was so important to me when we were discussing his schooling. I just wanted him to have a job that he loved and didn't dread going to work for. I have heard of so many people hating their job and dreading to go to work. I can't imagine doing 30 plus years of that. We pray that this remains a good fit and that we can now find a full time job for him, and a very part time job for me. YAH!! 

He graduated from the program with a 4.0 GPA!! What a stud!

Our graduate that we are so proud of!!

So excited of my Hubby!

Addie was amazing! She had a cold and everything! But she was still smiley, happy, and such an angel. I was a little nervous being by myself with her, in the bleachers, and trying to get photos as well. I couldn't have asked for a better evening.

Joe with his classmates. They all had Radiation Warning sign on their caps. It made it easy to point them out.

They were the last group to be called, but he finally got his diploma!!

Walking out with a huge smile of relief.

Proud of Daddy!! She went through a total of 14 months of this program too! I really wanted a graduation outfit for her, but there were done to be found...

She is so tired, what a sweetie!

He also took his National Registry test the following Monday May 19th, and he passed!! He got an 85! So job well done! It's a hard test, (having taken it myself) and a few of the prior class didn't pass, so he studied really hard. Congratulations Joseph Johnson, RT (R) (ARRT), his official signature!

Miss Silky

So we have heard a lot of people caution us about having a cat when Addie was born. And although I admit I have heard of the same old wive's tales, I researched it out. And there are no worries about us. She is fantastic with Addie and Addie loves feeling her fur. Most of the time she also gets a handful of hair pulled out too. And Silky doesn't flench. However, I do admit we have talked about giving her to Joe's brother Phil just because she is always meowing. It drives us nuts and getting after her only increases the loudness. Phil's cat just died of what I think was breast cancer. Poor little thing, so Phil is lonely now and I think would adore her. 

But then there are times that Silky just wins me over and I can't imagine her not being there....

Addie is around 2 mos here. This picture cracks me up. Addie was having fun with Silky smelling her face, tickling her with her whiskers. She would shriek and squeal with delight.

Silky LOVES laying on blankets or towels. And if she can, she will get inside them too. Can you see her peeking out?

This is a recent picture of Addie 5 mos with Silky demanding attention too. 

And this was taken our first night from the hospital after Addie was born. And there is Silky, always wanting to be close. She was gentle with Addie from the beginning.

Wicked!!

Joe surprised me with Wicked tickets, and you can imagine how excited I was!! He got a crazy good deal. We noticed the people one row in front of us paid twice as much!! I have been waiting for 10 years to see this play. I tried to see it when it came to Salt Lake quite a few years ago, but they were sold out. And then it was in Boise and the timing was so off....So finally!! The stars aligned for us to go to Boise to see it ;0)

We took Addie to see her Grandma Sally and Uncle Phil for the first time. The photos haven't been downloaded yet. But they seemed to really enjoy her, especially Sally. Sally has the most expressive face, next to Joe's, that I have ever seen. Addie immediately erupted into smiles.  I think she is a big fan. 

Lucky for us, they were willing to watch Addie while Joe and I went on our first official date since we had Addie. It was so nice to be together. We missed Addie, but we are used to being away from her all day when we work that we weren't panicking every hour. And this gave them more time to bond.

Us anticipating the start of the play. This is the dragon.

Here is the map of OZ. 

The play was fantastic. We both enjoyed it a lot. I have to say that Glinda stole the show! She was hillarious and had a such a great voice. We also enjoyed Elphaba too, but I was shocked to love Glinda more.

Thank you, Joe, for this wonderful time!! Love you tons and tons!

Visiting Grandma Sally and Uncle Phil

We were finally able to go to Nampa and visit Addie's Grandma Sally and Uncle Phil. Now she has met all of her immediate family! She did really well, and really got some laughs with Grandma.They all say she has a lot of Grandpa Chucky in her (Sally's Dad). 

I believe this was Phil's first time holding a baby. He did so great!!

Grandma Sally has a bad back, but that didn't stop her playing with Addie.

Practicing "Raspberries" with Grandma.

They baby sat Addie while Mom and Dad went on a date to see the Broadway Play "Wicked"!

Easter Time!!

Easter was on April 20th and we decided to go to Arimo for the weekend. That Saturday was my brother Kevin's birthday and we thought it would be fun to see the family. With Joe's graduation coming closer and hoping that we will find a full time job for him, we might be ending up moving further than desired. So we are making the most of these days and hope we might be surprised to stay close!

We enjoyed being with Rachel and Kevin's family and Mom and Dad. They are always so fun and excited to see us. We get pretty spoiled there.We joined them in the community Egg Hunt. It was a beautiful day, but a little bit windy. Addie and I decided to leave early and take a walk home. Boy, she is getting really big! It was a fun day. Rachel made an AMAZING Nutella frosting with chocolate drizzles cake for Kevin, YUMMY!! Kevin treated us all to homemade grilled steak, onions, mushrooms, peppers, cheese....yummy Philadelphia subs, so delicious.

Easter time arrived and the Easter Bunny paid us a visit. All of the kids were excited about the toys and candy, especially to hunt for their baskets and the egg hunt. I also made her an Easter Dress, headband and diaper cover. It's been fun figuring out this outfit and putting it together. She doesn't like headbands very much though.We have some pictures of Addie with her Easter bunny basket, bunny ears, and a toy cow (so cute).  However, I haven't downloaded them yet.

We went to church that morning, and then enjoyed the Easter fun afterwards. Grandma and Grandpa Neibaur came for Easter Dinner. It was so nice to see them again, and this was their first time to see Adaline. Grandma is pretty excited about Addie being named after her Great Grandmother (Adaline) and Mother (Mabel). After dinner we read the "12 days of Easter" each taking turns reading the scriptures and sharing the object in the egg. Afterwards, Grandpa shared his testimony and Kevin did as well. It was a wonderful experience and just made Easter perfect.

Four Generation Neibaur picture.

Back Row: Mom, Joe and Me
Front Row: Grandpa, Grandma, and Addie

Adaline is four months old now. She is just so much fun and full of smiles and giggles. Seriously, I don't know if I have ever met such a smiling baby. We always get comments about it and Betty who is our daycare lady says she is always happy and never has a bad day. She loves to watch her.

Addie coloring Easter Eggs with her cousins.

Sunday, Addie with her Easter Basket and Sunday Dress made by Mommy.

And we had to put on the bunny ears.

She is so cute! She really likes to be on her tummy now.

Her Stats:

• Height: 26 in 94th percentile
• Weight: 17 lbs 2 oz 98th percentile

She had her 4 month vaccinations. Once again, she handled them like a champ! This time I had Joe with me. He helped out with the shots while I talked with Dr Lyons about ultrasound questions. He said she kind of noticed the first shot, got a perplexed look with the second. And then the third shot she finally started to cry. But he picked her up and she stopped immediately. I came in the room and she started to smile. She is one tough cookie!!

Milestones:

• She is rolling around all of the time. But she hasn't really traveled far. She just goes back and forth in one spot, which is plenty enough distance for me right now ;0)
• She has increased her appetite. It seems like she eats around 32 oz a day. 
• She has less fussy days. I am not sure if that's because we are able to read her signs/cries better. Or if it's because she is in daycare 3 days a week. But she is AMAZING! "knock on wood", but she hasn't waken up in the middle of the night for 4 weeks now...WOW!!

Addie has really started to enjoy tummy time. She rolls from her back to her tummy, and then the next minute she is back to her back. She is always surprising us what position she will be in next. She is also really enjoying looking at details, such as the inside of a rattle, or touching the textures of her blankets.

She has started to enjoy her hands and feet more. I LOVE her feet....

Cute lil' piggies.

This cute outfit was given by my Aunt Betty Jo. I thought it was so cute! 

We went to Twin Falls with Joe for his classes. We have been doing that since Addie was 2 months old. She does so well. This picture is at Costco, with my wrap to hold Addie. She is getting too big now. It barely holds her in.

We went swimming for the first time April 12th. We went to Americinn and enjoyed their pools. I think she had fun. She relaxes a lot in the water and just likes to "chill".This robe and slippers were given by Mark Johnson.

Her new swimsuit!! We have a Steve Hebdon reunion planned for this July at Bear Lake....We are so excited!! It might be a nightmare with the sand and a 7 month old, but for now we are excited!!

And Addie is excited too!

Swimming Time!!

We decided to enjoy a weekend and go swimming! Joe and I love to swim, and so we have missed it a lot. We were able to go to the Amerinn here in Hailey. I think that she enjoyed it. She just relaxed and sat in the water. She has never splashed, but she also doesn't cry during bath time either. So, hopefully when she gets a little bit older she will play more. 

We put her in the swimming pool first, which was pretty mild in temperature. We then held her in the shower so she could get used to the warmer water in the hot pools. Once again, she just chilled there too. We just dipped her in it once in a while, not wanting her to get too hot. We had a lot of fun and we will see if we have a water baby!

3 months old, Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Happy St. Patty's Day!! Our little Irish Princess. Her Great Grandpa "Chucky" Francis Loyd was the first of his family born in America. They came from Ireland.

This has probably been my favorite month with Addie. She is so grown up and full of personality. I love her smiles and giggles. I love talking with her and hearing all the stories she has to share. I love her falling asleep in my arms. Last month it seemed like a fight to get her to take a nap, and sometimes still is. I often think it was due to her growing so much. No doubt she was having growing pains.

 Her stats:

• 25.5 in
• 15 lbs 8 oz

Milestones:

• She has started to have formula supplemented into her diet, and she has handled it like a champ. She is so easy going that it makes life so easy for us.
• She is filling up her clothes, and we will soon have to start wearing 6-9 month old clothes. She has already worn an dress that Grandma Hebdon gave her that is 6-9 month. 
• We used to swaddle her when she went down to sleep. She would stretch and move her arms so much that it would wake her up. But just recently we started putting her down without swaddling her, and she stays asleep. Which makes it easier to put her down without waking her up to swaddle. She likes to sleep with her arms up by her head, and at times finds her little fist or thumb to find comfort. She is such a cutie to watch fall asleep.She is learning to fall asleep on her own too.
• She is starting to want to sit up. When we lay her on her back, she grunts as she tries to sit up by herself. I imagine that she will be doing so soon.
• She loves to stand up with help. She is always straightening her legs, trying to force us to let her stand up. 
• She can hold the rattle with her right hand and switch it over to her left hand. Already mastering the hand/eye coordination which makes daddy excited with ideas of baseball.
• When I put my hands or feet up against her, she can push off and start a basic crawl. It makes me laugh with all the noises she makes when she is straining to move. 

March 21-22 Grandpa Gary Johnson (from LaGrande, OR) and Uncle Mark Johnson (from Seattle, WA) came to visit Addie for the first time. It was so fun to watch these two with this baby girl. They have always had boys in their family, so they were excited to have a girl. Grandpa Johnson has had a lot of surgeries and has a hard time getting up and down, but in the morning he was on his knees playing with her and getting a lot of giggles. So CUTE! The outfit was given to her by Uncle Mark. He bought a 6-9 mo outfit and couldn't believe that it already fit perfectly. She is growing so fast!

Addie in a dress my mom made for me when I was 3 months. 

I am so sad to think about going back to work. I was lucky enough to get time off until March 24th. But I am dreading the day. I really do miss ultrasound. But working 4 days a week for 11 hrs including travel, it's going to be hard. She will be barely waking up in the mornings, and by the time I get home she will be going to bed soon. I am glad that I get 3 days off a week though. I will watch her on Fridays. The lady we had set up day care with up had moved to Jerome without telling us. We found out the week before they moved because the Relief Society President came to visit us and asked what we had planned. What a shock! But we have found a place that my doctor recommended and feel pretty good about it. So we are hoping everything will go well there. It's Aunt Betty's Sunshine Group in Bellevue, just 3 miles south of Hailey.

Adaline Mabel Johnson's Blessing

We wanted to bless Adaline the first weekend of February, but all three of us got sick just before then. And maybe it was a good thing we didn't do it then, or maybe if we had kept to the plan a disaster would have been diverted. Either way....unfortunately my dad fell down and broke his femur that Sunday. He was going to "half-mast" his neighbor Tudd's flag, who had passed away earlier that day. My mom and dad are pretty close to their neighbors and he wanted to show his respect. He was climbing the drift and fell hard. Kevin helped him get into his truck and they headed to the ER. They admitted him and performed an emergency surgery that night. He stayed a couple of nights and then went into rehabilitation where he did a lot of physical therapy. He is quite a trooper!! Kevin stayed many nights with him, mom visited during the days, and Stephanie visited them for awhile as well. I wish that we would have been in a better situation to come and visit.

So we decided to bless her March 2nd in Arimo. It was so special to have our loved ones with us. We are so glad that everyone made it. It was the first time Adaline met her great Grandma Hebdon and also Stephanie's family. She loves everyone and smiles big. Joe performed the ordinance. All who came were: Grandpa Steven Hebdon, Grandma Linda Hebdon, Great Grandma Sarah Hebdon, Stephanie and Jeff Bare (and their kids Jared, Aimee, Alyssa, Jenna), Kevin and Rachel Hebdon (and their kids Adam, Benjamin, and Caleb), Uncle Brent and Aunt Tarynn Neibaur (and their kids Keegan, Triana, and Vinson). It was a wonderful experience and Adaline was so well behaved. I even got up to share my testimony with her in my arms and she was an angel. We couldn't have asked for a better day. We hope to have her meet her Great Grandma and Grandpa Neibaur this spring.

Four Generations: Grandpa Hebdon, Mommy, Adaline, and Great Grandma Hebdon

The whole clan: Top: Jared, Kevin, Rachel, Stephanie, Jeff, Daddy
Middle: Grandpa, Grandma, Grandma Sarah, Adaline, Mommy
Bottom: Jenna, Caleb, Aimee, Alyssa, Benjamin, and Adam

I made Adaline's dress. It was layers and layers of lace. I couldn't find a pattern that worked so I grabbed a dress that fit her and made up my own pattern. It was a little bit interesting, but I am glad that I did it. I also crocheted her blessing blanket. Many hours entailed and I would do it again. She is a sweetheart and has brought so much love and joy into our home already. We couldn't have asked for a sweeter girl. Love you Adaline!!