Sunday

Sunday was Brooklyn's blessing day. In the circle were my uncles Tracy and Roger, my cousin Stuart, Jason's cousins Jerry and Ryan, and his dad and brother, Justin. Jason gave her a very neat blessing and Brooklyn is a very special girl. She was blessed in the same dress I was blessed in 26 years ago. It was made for me by my mom's good friend, Becky Conley. Brooklyn and Grandma had an extended photo session and I couldn't narrow it down to just one, so I apologize ahead of time for the following bombardment of baby girl pictures. Some of the pictures are a little fuzzy because Brooklyn was being very active and I think the swing was moving a little bit too.

The whole dress.

Happy girl!

Yukkin' it up with Grandma.

Princess Peanut

That's all folks!

On Sunday evening we went to Justin and Jennifer's house for dinner. There, we introduced Brooklyn to her cousin, Katelyn. They had seen each other around before but had never really gotten to talk. They are about 5 months apart in age so I'm sure they'll be great friends at family reunions.

Look at the baby!

Smile for the camera! (Sticking out your tongue is also an acceptable alternative.)

Mom and her girl

Jason's parents and Luann left this morning before we were even awake. They were great houseguests and it was wonderful to spend time with them. Overall, it was a fantastically exhausting weekend!

Saturday

Saturday morning we went to Costco to stock up on some things. There isn't a Costco in Snowflake, AZ where Jason is from so whenever his parents come to visit, a trip to Costco is included. Then Jason watched the BYU/Utah game with Brooklyn and his parents while Luann and I talked and made snacks in the kitchen. Brooklyn "cheered" quite a bit during the game which led to a big BYU win!! Yeah!!! After a post-game nap, we went to the Training Table for dinner and then over to Justin and Jennifer's house. Jason's parents recently took a trip to Hong Kong where his dad served his mission in the 60s. They told us all about it while passing around pictures. We also ate pummelos which are kind of like a large grapefruit but drier and sweeter. Jason's dad ate them almost every day on his mission and they were very good. We loved hearing about their trip, but Jason, Brooklyn, and I had to leave early to work on the aforementioned Spanish paper. At least it's finally done!

Jennifer, Justin, pictures and pummelo peels

Jason's cousin, Jerry, and his family came too.

Friday

On Friday we all went up to Salt Lake to meet Justin & Jennifer (Jason's brother and sister-in-law) and their kids (Brandon, Lindsey, and Katelyn) for lunch at Cafe Rio. Luann had never had the Cafe Rio experience - a Utah must. We were happy to introduce her to its divinity. Then we all went to the Clark Planetarium at the Gateway Mall and Grandpa Maner treated us to an Imax movie about sea monsters. It was very good and Brooklyn's first trip to a movie theater! I'm happy to report that she was very well-behaved.

The glasses didn't stay on the kids for very long. 3-D is scary when you're only 4 and 2 years old! After the movie, we stopped by Ikea, a new furniture store in Draper. I know that doesn't sound too thrilling, but it really is a fun place to go. Here are Grandma, Brandon, and Grandpa enjoying some cool chairs:

We finished everything off with a hot bowl of chili and corn bread at our house. It was a great day.

Turkeyday

We had Thanksgiving dinner with Jason's extended family at a stake center. Everyone brings a dish so nobody gets stuck with all of the cooking! It was fun to see everybody, although I still don't know a lot of people's names. It is hard to get to know the names of over 60 cousins and all their kids! We stayed for quite a while after the meal and talked, played games, and ate pie. What a day!

We all enjoyed the candy/nut cups that Jason's sister, Luann, brought.

Brooklyn is very full after cleaning that plate!

Brooklyn's cousin, Brandon, and Grandpa Maner as almost-twins!

It was fun to have Grandma and Grandpa Maner and Aunt Luann stay at our house for the entire weekend! We finally got to have a real visit with them and it was very nice.


After dinner, we all went back to our house to watch a movie and eat snacks. We watched "Derby Stallion" which had very little to do with a derby or a stallion. I wouldn't recommend it. At least Brooklyn had a fun time being passed around between so many people who love her!

Wednesday

So much blog-worthy stuff has happened this weekend! I guess I will just take you through it day by day. On Wednesday, Jason and I worked on his Spanish paper which was turned in this morning. I guess that wasn't very exciting. Then I went shopping for clothes because we are both a little bit more... um... voluptuous than we previously have been and wanted something to wear to Thanksgiving. I just grabbed a bunch of stuff that I thought might work because I didn't have time to try it on. I now have to return about two bags of clothes. At least we both found something that worked. That afternoon, my grandma, uncle & aunt (Roger & Sue) and cousin, Krista, came over to meet Brooklyn. I can't believe I didn't get pictures of that. Roger once again tried to convince us to change Brooklyn's name to Ponte, which is Italian for bridge. Something about her Italian heritage and a famous architectural structure... you figure it out. He also said that Brooklyn is cuter in person than in her pictures. I guess she's not very photogenic. And Grandma said that she thought Brooklyn's hair would be curly but not "as bad" as mine. That is a direct quote. Brooklyn was very mellow for her visit with him. The silly face-making was kept to a minimum and she mostly just slept. She hasn't been feeling very well so that could have been why. We'll have to make sure she's a little more exciting for their next visit.

The Blessed Child

Brooklyn slept from midnight until 7:15 this morning. I had to look twice at the clock to make sure it was really that late. Just thought I'd let you share in the joy! =)

Movin' On Up

This is a picture of Brooklyn wearing her last Newborn-sized diaper. I got a little misty-eyed as I put that HUMONGOUS Size 1 diaper on my tiny baby girl. Can't they just stay little forever? Oh, and just so you know, I do realize that most people would not consider this to be a blog-worthy event. I just wanted an excuse to take a picture of her cute little belly!

Daddy's New Calling

Today was Brooklyn's first time wearing a dress! It was a little big on her - especially her tights. In fact, our Sunday School class decided that they weren't "tights" at all but rather called them "loosies." They are so clever. =)

Last night we got a call from our new bishopric asking us to come to a meeting this morning at 8:45. They asked Jason to be the new ward missionary. He was sustained and set apart today and got a very nice blessing. Apparently there has not been a missionary program in this ward for a while. The ward mission leader is also new and Jason is the only ward missionary. So they have their work cut out for them! I barely caught Jason still in his church clothes after we got home. The tie had already been removed. I guess he will have to get used to being dressed up again now that he is a missionary!

Tonight Jason's cousin, Ryan, came over with his new wife, Heather. They wanted to see the baby and she actually behaved pretty well for them. That's a first for Brooklyn - she generally likes to scream and give a very bad impression to whomever comes to see her. I forgot to take pictures. I guess I am still learning how to be a good blogger. Overall, it was a very full and productive day. I think we are all tired, especially those of us who were up from 4 to 6 am and had to get up at 7:15 to get ready... Brooklyn's still figuring out the difference between night and day I think. At least she slept through Sacrament meeting and Sunday School. And it's a good thing she's so cute!

Just for Aunt Katy

My sister requested more videos of Brooklyn because she hasn't met her in person yet. Well, that has turned out to be a very difficult request! I don't know if I am just technologically challenged or if there is something wrong with our camera/computer, but this is the only video I have gotten to upload out of the 5 I have taken in the past few days. Some of the other ones were a lot cuter, but I'm not going to be picky. This one worked! And she does show off some of her famous silly faces in it. Enjoy, Aunt Katy!