Baby Blessing

We blessed Graham the first weekend in August at my brother's ward in Salt Lake. It was a special day, and we really appreciated Lowe and Michelle hosting the affair. Lowe makes a great bishop! One of the things from the baby blessing that stands out in my mind was that Graham would be blessed to appreciate the differences of others and to love them; to have charity. I look forward to seeing Graham grow and having him in our lives. We love our little baby!

With Uncle Jordan who came from I.F. with Julie and kids. Looks like he's ready for another one! LOL

Graham is wearing the only "blessing outfit" that any of our kids has worn. I'll admit that in the past I felt they seemed a little too Catholic for my taste. I guess ten years after coming home from Italy the effect is wearing off. Nothing wrong with a little rite and ritual in good measure, I always say. Anyway, he looked adorable. He was especially chubby when we put on his cap and fastened the strap under his double chin, but he didn't stay happy in it long enough for a good photo.

Chloe, Cecily and Emma

Precious.

Even though this happened 7 weeks ago, Parker just came by the computer, saw this picture, and started hammering me with questions about how many brownies Emma got on this day, and at what time she consumed them. Honestly! Kids and sugar!

Julie and Holly lunch prepping. It's lovely to be with sisters.

Michelle, Julie, Holly and Mom . . . and Emerson's head.

Steve, Chloe, Jordan, Holly, Maia (who was unbelievably cute and entertaining).

Newborn pics

My friend, and very talented photographer Melanie, took some great pictures of Graham at 3 weeks. She also took darling photos of the kids, but they won't load on - too many MBs. Someone with more computer savvy could figure it out, I'm sure. This picture makes me realize how huge my baby has gotten. Look at his tiny newborn-ness.

melaniesmithphotography.com

A Visit from Uncle Tom

Todd's brother Tom came to visit with his family in the beginning of July. Katie and Kellen were lots of fun to play with, and Truman decided Aunt Jeni was his new best friend. Honestly. He wanted her to get him dressed and one morning he sat outside her door waiting for her to wake up and come out. When they were leaving, he said, "I want the nice mom to come back!"
Thanks for coming guys, and we all hope you'll come back. Swingtime! Since Todd was away on business, and I was still in recovery/survival mode, we didn't offer much in the way of exciting entertainment: the park, the pool, and Shakey's Pizza.

Last week of May

I never posted these photos from the end of May. Parker's pre-school graduation was very cute. His teacher, Miss Michelle, is a wonder. She used to teach high school dance, so their programs are always really fun to watch.

Brynn, Porter, Calie, Jacob, Cami, Mae and Parker; Harry was having a hard night and sat with the audience. This was a great class of kids, and they were together for two years.

"You've Got a Friend in Me" (Disney theme)

Big finish: Brynn stoically danced on, minus a partner.

When Miss Michelle invited anyone to join in the chicken dance up front, Truman was on his feet and heading for the 'stage' before she finished talking!

Way to go, Parker! You've grown and changed so much in the past two years!

There were three age divisions for the gunny-sack races, and it was an Everett sweep. Emma had an impressive win against all the older boys, and Truman wasn't about to let the family down!

My ward gave me a baby shower and replenished the "boy closet". These were some women who stuck around to visit afterwards. It was a lot of fun.

Lovely spread.

Memorial Weekend we drove over to Long Beach to visit the gravesites of my grandparents, great-grandparents and uncle. I told the kids a little bit about my Grandma Cole as we drove over. I always remember going to the cemetary for Memorial Day growing up and wanted to pass on the tradition. I think it's important for our kids to know that there is a reason for the holiday beyond a bbq. We put a flag on my grandpa's grave because he was a WWII veteran.

Welcome Graham!

We had a new arrival on Saturday, June 6th. Graham Ryan Everett was born at 11:14 pm, weighed 6.8 lbs and is 20.5 inches. His delivery was on the quick side, as we got to the hospital at 10:00 pm. I had been having contractions off and on, throughout the evening as Todd and I went out to dinner with some friends, took the baby-sitter home, and started watching a movie on tv. It wasn't until 9:30 that I really got convinced that I was in serious labor. I just kept thinking that the contractions would stop, since that had been the pattern for the previous week. Luckily, we delivered at our local (tiny) hospital, so we didn't have far to go.
It was such a relief to have our baby here, safe and sound! The delivery was a little frightening because the cord was wrapped really tightly around his neck twice. But, after a minute or two, he was crying with the best of them and is just perfect.
Todd went back home around 2:00 a.m. and had big news to share with the kids when they woke up Sunday morning! ("The stork came during the night!" j/k)

The kids came to see me and Graham right after church on Sunday afternoon. Pretty impressive that Todd got them up and ready for our 8:30 church after his long night.

Truman was so cute with the baby. He has been looking forward to this for a long time, and was very interested in helping to get Graham's room ready along with his clothes and diapers. He loves to hold Graham whenever he gets the chance. In fact, tonight, as we were tucking him in, he was crying because "I didn't get to hold the baby tonight!" He often walks into my room and asks, "Where's my baby?" When he is talking to Graham, he always addresses him as baby Graham. "Hi, baby Graham!"

That's all I have time for tonight!

Third Weekend in May

Todd planned a hike at Zion's with his brother and some friends, and my mother-in-law was kind enough to offer to have him bring the kids, too! They spent a hot afternoon on the "red rocks" on Friday and did lots of climbing. James (son of Todd's co-worker, Mike) Jacob, Emma, Parker and Truman.

Truman being spotted by Mike.

Second Weekend in May

This year Truman was included in our ward's Fathers and Sons campout. The boys had a grand, old time overnighting with Todd. And Emma and I lived it up by renting a video, eating out and painting our toenails together. We also took our time browsing at the library and really stocked up on books without Truman to hurry us along.