Dougeather Forever + One

Happy Nature

2012-01-16T21:37:00.000-08:00

Earlier this month we had an amazingly warm January day. We took advantage of it by going on a deliciously sunny hike just south of town. These are picture of when we let Caitlin stretch her legs and walk around. It was so fun to catch a glimpse of spring and play in nature, as advertised by Caitlin's rear jean pocket.

It wasn't until this afternoon that we got the slightest bit of snow. We didn't get much more than this, but it was fun to be out in the snow fall.

Saying goodbye to Grandma Flandro

2012-01-05T20:44:00.000-08:00

Grandma Flandro

My Grandma passed away three days before Christmas, and two years after my Grandpa passed away. Grandma thrived to be with people and serve them. Those two years without Grandpa were unusually difficult, as being alone with much less to do was a much harder pill to swallow than the dozens of organized little pills she had to take every day.

Both Aunt Marion's and Grandpa's passing were somewhat sweet because we knew they were freed from their physical sufferings. Grandma's passing is sweet, however, because we know she is reunited with Marion, Grandpa, her parents, her siblings, and that enormous network of friends she formed while here on earth. I can only imagine how happy she must be.

Thanks to great road conditions, we were able to drive to Utah and attend the funeral. It was so good to say goodbye to Grandma and to see her children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and friends. For those of you who were unable to come, I thought I would include some pictures of the funeral. Thank you Robyn, Adam, and Allison for e-mailing your memories of Grandma. I read them to the family, and they were very much enjoyed and appreciated!

Grandma's pretty casket

Uncle Dave with his kids

Mom

The Harris, Milocco, and Johnson families

We were impressed with the beautiful family luncheon the Relief Society prepared. I think Grandma would have been so touched!

Grandma and Grandpa's graves.

November and December Update

2011-12-07T15:19:00.000-08:00

I feel as though I have been lagging in the blog department. Although I don't normally have a whole lot to blog about, it is a good way to bridge the geographical gaps in my family and to keep them up to date. And yes, this includes a lot of material of Caitlin for Grandma Huff's sake (:

November came and went in a flash, but was filled with great Thanksgiving family time, enjoyable weather, and our second wedding anniversary. Besides spending some great time with Pam and Matt and their family during Thanksgiving, we also got to meet a new member of Mike and Sage's family, still yet to be named. She is such a pretty little GIRL and we are so happy for them!

For our anniversary, we had a fun day of trying to coordinate plans without spoiling our surprises. Doug ended up driving us clear out to Eaton for a light dinner, knowing that my surprise required our appetites. He took me to Victoria's Tiny Tea Room owing to my latest reading streak of books that took place in England during the Victorian Era. We came home to a two layer cake that was the same as one of the layers of our wedding cake (thanks again Heidi for the recipe)!

December has hit us a little rough, not only with icy snows and temperatures, but with bits of unwelcome news that is making Doug a little less happy. First of all, none of his letters of recommendation have yet been submitted to the two PhD programs he's applying to (the deadline is Dec. 13th). Second of all, after finally getting a hold of his boss, he found out that due to an extensive budget and hiring system, it would be nearly impossible for him to become more than a part time employee. He'll just have to continue picking up shifts, which has been working fairly well, though isn't super reliable.

Though things seem unpromising at the moment, we are sure that everything will work out. We'll just have to pray and wait. Meanwhile, we have already been greatly blessed with tender mercies from our Heavenly Father, including happy things we received in the mail, an amazing landlord who gave us a Christmas reduction on rent, and most importantly, blessings of peace, comfort, and love.

Anyway, here are the pictures and videos you have been waiting for...

Caitlin all dressed up at the Tea Room.

(We still don't know how to get pictures off of our phones, so this will have to suffice for now)

Mommy all dressed up.

Our scrumptious "24 Carrot" Cake

Bowling the day after Thanksgiving

Caitlin playing with her toys. She is starting to get the concept of play, which can keep her busy for fairly long periods of time.

Birthday Balloons

2011-11-12T22:24:00.000-08:00

Heather and I were just digging through old pictures and stumbled upon this gem.

This is Caitlin on the morning of her first birthday. My mom would always fill my room up with balloons on my birthday, and I wanted Caitlin to wake up to the same little thrill. There are so many things about this picture that capture her personality that I had to put it up.

Thanks to all of you who in any way at all contributed to this special day! We have tons of other pictures and even some videos yet to be posted. But of them all, this is my favorite.

Baby Steps

2011-11-02T19:41:00.000-07:00

Here are some videos we took of Caitlin, Wednesday before bed. I think that we can officially say she not only took her first steps, but is starting to walk. She is still very cautious though, and will promptly plop down at the slightest wobble.

Untitled from Dougeather on Vimeo.

We're so proud of her!

Taco to Go!

2011-10-23T15:27:00.000-07:00

Caitlin was a hoot at the Halloween party. She didn't seem to mind the meal on her back and crawled all over the place. I will post a little clip of her crawling around. She was a taco, Doug was a Mexicano, and I was salsa verde. (luckily we don't have a picture of my costume as it was thrown together in 2 minutes).
I made the mistake of telling Doug Saturday morning that I was going to make the cupcakes, as it then took several trips to the store and a few hours to complete. It was a great creative outlet and fun to see them come to life, so to speak. We are glad we did it! Here are a few pictures Doug of them. They were gone in minutes (:

We salvaged the rest of the tomatoes after the first frost. Caitlin took liberties to savor one last tomato.

My favorite trees! This is most likely an autumn purple ash. The leaves first turn yellow, then a vibrant maroon.

Toppin' the 'Tooth

2011-10-09T20:20:00.001-07:00

Recently, we took a hike up Horsetooth Mountain, the local peculiar rock formation outside of town. Look it up on Wikipedia, if you have nothing else to do. I imagine you have.

Caitlin on the way up, taking a tiny nap.

For just a little one-year-old, she is turning out to be a good little hiker.

Pretty careful, though.

Summit push!

And then once we came down Caitlin fell asleep in her little backpack. We set her down in the shade and waited for her to take her nap. When she woke up, we found the following:

That's an imprint from the edge of the backpack she fell asleep on.

Hardly even cried. I almost wanted to. :-) She puts up with a lot.

1 Year Old!!!

2011-10-05T11:25:00.000-07:00

Our little one is growing up, and it is soooo fun! Although she refuses to say words in their context (you know she knows it, and you know she can say it), she has kept plenty busy re-arranging my cookbooks, the shoe closet, the rag and cooking utensil drawers, and playing with her toys. I love holding her hand and letting her walk walk walk. If you could ask her what her favorite things are she would probably say Daddy's guitar, edges*, books, food, dirt clods and pebbles, Elmo's phone and phone like things, and the song Jesus Wants Me for a Sunbeam.

We looked back at some pictures over this past year and have found that although she is the same baby, she sure has grown into a pretty little pre-toddler.

We Love you Caitlin!!!!

* Edges: the point at which a surface material changes, such as the edge of the lawn, curbs, railroad ties, carpet vs hard floor, etc. She'll just want to go back and forth, up and down, or weave along the edge.

Where's Caitlin's Tongue?

2011-09-27T15:06:00.001-07:00

Language Skills We've Been Trying For Months to Teach Our Daughter with Little Notable Success:

Ma-ma
Da-da
Cait-lin
Gramma
Grampa
Ba-Ba
Nana
Hot
Milk (with sign)
Food (with sign)
Diaper (with sign)
All gone (with sign)
Please back down from the fireplace (with face)
Please exercise caution (in Russian)
More
Nap
Lovies
Kisses
Hugs
Kindly stop screaming at pitches reserved for dog whistles and volumes for rocket engines

Language Skills That Our Daughter Spontaneously Developed All By Herself:

"Where's Caitlin's TONGUE?"

Our Cornucopia!!!

2011-08-23T11:23:00.000-07:00

Garden Box- Beginning of August

We built Sam and Perry a garden box late in May. We planted a few tiny starts, transplanted a few perennial herbs, and planted the rest with seed. It has been so fun to see the seeds sprout and the tiny tomato starts grow, grow, and grow! You will note that the tomato cages support the bottom third of the plants, which we then supplemented with these 6' tall pole things. The Zucchini is spilling over the sides and producing nicely; the bush cucumber vines are producing a few cucs and starting to trail along the back side; the row of lettuce has been especially useful and sweet for the past couple of months; and my nasturtium are very lush and the cilantro is powerfully flavorful; and the mint, tarragon, oregano, and thyme are taking root and really filling in.

There were a few things that didn't produce as well as we would have hoped: the radishes grew large but didn't produce a bulb, the watermelon is only now beginning to blossom, the carrots are sitting in the shade and not really producing carrots, the green beans were sparse, and the green onions couldn't compete with its neighbors. We will have to try some new things next year to see what would be the most productive and beneficial for the garden and the dinner plate. A good patch of basil is definitely on next year's list.

Garden Box- Beginning of June

Garden Box- Mid August

On another note, Caitlin is officially crawling!!!! She is also able to pull herself up on things and can walk quite well with the help of our hands or a baby walker. I think her crawl is so cute! I will have to post videos later.

Summer Catch-up

2011-08-02T11:21:00.000-07:00

I apologize for being so behind on the blog this summer. The below pictures are a good summary of what we've been up to this summer. We've been loving the warm weather, the oodles of family, and chances to enjoy the great outdoors.

Water Fun

Fun at the cabin

Playing on the banks of the Poudre.

Spending quality time with Uncle Sean and my family.

Doug's latest and greatest job: driving the Kona Shave-Ice truck. Here he is parked at a sports park greeting this particular wave of customers.

Fourth of July in Old Town Fort Collins.

A three dimensional graph I made for the food Doug would need on his high adventure backpacking trip in the Wind River Mountains.

From the pictures he took, the scenery in Wind Rivers was breathtaking.

Squinty Ba-Ba in Mirror Land

2011-07-06T16:37:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone! Sorry it's been forever since we posted anything. Things are going great in Colorado. I've got a job interview or two coming up, one of which is at the hospital (thanks Sage). Our move to Gramma and Grampa's place has been especially good for Caitlin, who has inherited lots more toys and about 3,000 more square feet to roll around in.

Here is another cute but longer video of her.

Caitlin's new little exersaucer has a fun little mirror toy, and she likes to get real close and talk to herself. The exersaucer is borrowed... thanks again Sage :-) More videos to come once we get them figured out!

Happy Father's Day!

2011-06-18T22:34:00.000-07:00

For all of the wonderful fathers in our family, we want to wish you a happy Father's Day!!!!!

Catydid with Dad on Palmer Trail.

Dad and Grandpa Pierce working on the garden box. Details and pictures to come.

Grandpa Huff giving all of the grandpa-love he can during their brief layover at DIA.

And to all of these remarkable men, we offer a little card, chock full of crinkles, folds and scrunches of love.

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY!!!!!

Why do we even get toys for her?

2011-05-16T07:47:00.000-07:00

I mean, seriously. Sometimes, if she's not playing with her paper towel tube, it's only because she's playing with her shoe, a plastic cup, or a pool ball.

We love her all the same :-)

Three Videos

2011-05-10T08:20:00.000-07:00

We've entered the Vlog-o-sphere, having figured out how to reliably get good videos on our blog! They're of Caitlin, naturally. Enjoy!

She's getting pretty good at solving little problems that come her way. The very very end is my favorite.

This was taken a couple months ago, but she's still not always keen about tummy time. Here she's showing off how she learned to thwart it by sticking out her leading leg and tucking her contralateral arm. Then we thought we'd try plopping her face-down like a little pink pancake, and that didn't work too well either. She's closer to running marathons than she is to crawling.

Here's me having a lot of fun at my daughter's expense. My favorite is when she expresses her agreement at the very end. Thanks to Heather for being such a great videographer!

Watermelons and Blueberries

2011-05-06T07:54:00.000-07:00

Here she's wearing, for the FIRST time, a little dress we got at DI when we found out we were having a girl. I think after a while the giant watermelon facial attacks started annoying her, but she liked it overall. We loved it, so get ready for more!

These next couple pictures, though a little blurry, show Caitlin at one of her favorite times of day: right after breakfast, when we let her chew on the spoon. She can chew like no one's business. This was one of the first times she had blueberries, and a lot of them even got inside her mouth.

Look at that looooooooong torso. I think we're going to have a tall little girl, here.

Garden of Sea Anemones

2011-04-30T22:06:00.000-07:00

Spring is slowly inching its way in with the celebratory ground breaking of what I like to call garden anemones. These UGO's (unidentifiable growing objects) poke through the soil and wave their tentacles so as to say "We're coming!"

It has been great having a camera with a good macro setting. I am now able to take my favorite kinds of pictures again. Enjoy!
(In fact, I thought I had lost some of my other nature shots, but just realized they still exist. You may check them out at https://picasaweb.google.com/heather.huff.albums.).

Doug's note: This next picture is one Heather took last spring. We wish it looked like this in Rexburg now! These are apricot blossoms. We know this tree well, and returned last fall with a tarp and bags to harvest loads of fruit. :-) I love this shot, so I thought I'd include it.

Flower Tricks, Lemon Licks, and Sunday Pics

2011-04-28T09:18:00.000-07:00

For this, our 100th Dougeather Forever blog post, I decided to depart from the norm and write about Caitlin. I thought maybe I'd include some pictures, too, just to spice things up a bit.

First item: Local flora. Caitlin is following in her daddy's footsteps and forming close bonds with dandelions. Here she displays proudly the first of the season.

Yum. Looks like she's following in Mommy's footsteps, too.

Second item: Cuteness. She's really, really cute. Here are some pictures to validate this rhetoric:

She rubs her eyes a lot when she's sleepy, and here she actually fell asleep mid-rub. :-)

Third: lemons. I always thought babies, when exposed to lemons for the first time, were supposed to make odious faces of sheer disgust that cruel adults find hilarious, as shown by this video. I was all geared up to have a little chuckle at Caitlin's first big, face-crunching, lip-sucking scowl when Heather finally let her try one, and here's what we got instead:

Did you see how she just shoved it in her little mouth? Twice? Only her. :-)

Fruit

2011-04-21T11:23:00.001-07:00

Baby's first melon encounter: the only elope she'll ever know.

If apples lie awake in fear of juicers, Caitlin can make them run screaming into the streets.

I have a hard time not thinking about Gollum when I see this picture.

More Pictures for the Grandmas

2011-04-21T10:11:00.001-07:00

Digital photography sure makes it easy to dote on your daughter. :-) Plus we really have little else to take pictures of.

Graduation Part II

2011-04-16T11:54:00.000-07:00

Now that Doug is graduated, he gets to be Mr. Mommy while I go to work full time. It has been such a joy to see Caitlin and Doug spending time together and really having a good time. Yesterday, I came home from work to this very endearing scene in our living room. A big blanket fort was set up in our tiny living room, and Doug and Caitlin were doing something underneath (: I peeked inside to find Caitlin SITTING UP ON THE FLOOR while Doug fed her. They were having a blast!

Doug, thanks for being such a terrific Daddy!

Graduation!!!!

2011-04-16T11:22:00.000-07:00

Winter of 2011 - my 13th semester of college and the semester I finally graduated!

It sure feels good. Mom and Dad drove up from Fort Collins and got to be here for the whole thing. These pictures aren't in any particular order and were taken by both Heather and Dad.

Here I am getting psyched up to walk. This is the convocation ceremony for the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, where I received a BS in Biology with an emphasis in neuroscience.

Here's a picture Dad took of President Clark projected on the big screen. This man was the dean of the Harvard Business School before he was "hired" by the First Presidency to be the president of BYU-Idaho. He's got a look of steel.

Back in our little downtown compartment, opening a gift from Mom and Dad. Thanks guys! We loved and are still so grateful for all the support we received from both sides of our family.

Caitlin liked the rose, and I liked the hakulei that Heather made for me.

Dad and me. :-)

This picture and the one beneath were taken at the brand new auditorium building on campus. Called the BYU-Idaho Center, it's comparable in size to the Conference Center and can hold about 15,000 people! I'm glad it took me 6+ years to get this far since I could graduate in the completed building.

This is the commencement, when all the graduates stood up to "get" their degrees.

And this is at the convocation for the College of Language and Letters, where I received a BS in English with an emphasis in professional writing. That was a fun, nearly recreational degree to earn, vastly different from the grueling, soul-consuming effort my biology degree demanded.

I was WAY surprised to find Jordan, my best friend from like 7th grade, in Rexburg at the convocation!!! He was here for his sister's graduation; I've always wanted him to see this place.

Gramma and Grampa with Caitlin at the banquet earlier that evening. As long as Caitlin had a candy wrapper to chew on, and as long as there was no scary applause of any kind, she was happy. Thanks again for coming Mom and Dad!

Sitting Up... (Part Deux)

2011-04-14T08:30:00.001-07:00

Actually, I just got her to sit up pretty well thanks to the breakfast distraction.

She sat up nicely for the whole meal, which consisted of 1/4 cup of oatmeal, 1 1/2 scoops of formula, and 1 3/4 oz prune mash mixed with lots of water. That much food for a six-month-old one hour after a generous helping of Mama. This little girl has clearly inherited her Daddy's resting metabolic rate.

Sitting up...

2011-04-14T08:05:00.000-07:00

We're getting there. She's a really good sitter given a squishy soft place for her bum and the proper motivation. We're still working on sitting on the floor, but even semi-slouchy she looked so cute I had to take some pictures.

Latest pictures

2011-04-07T08:27:00.000-07:00

We have been very busy, and lack time to post a good blog. Until we do have that time, however, and actually have something to write about, here are some pictures for your enjoyment (:

The only truly warm day we have had in the past 6 months.

Doug at the annual NILC conference at Weber State.

Rag curls.

Planting shrubs in Grandma's yard.

Caitlin showing off her asparagus stains.

Slinky!!!!

Caitlin got six pink sprinkles on her six month/ half birthday.

Cute

Very Cute

Super Cute!

SIX MONTHS!

2011-03-23T14:50:00.000-07:00

At exactly this time (3:56 PM), our precious little daughter Caitlin Heather Pierce turned SIX months old! Naturally, we're pretty excited about this.

Some of her major accomplishments in the first six months of life:

1. Rolling from her back to her belly
2. Rolling from her belly to her back
3. Rolling from her belly to her back and back to her belly
4. Rolling from her back to her belly and back to her back
5. Rolling halfway around when Daddy is trying to change her toxic little diaper
6. Holding her head up, looking around, and laughing at lots and lots of little things like silly faces and spatulas
7. Getting really ticklish on her shoulders, knees, and back
8. Screaming at pitches normally reserved for dog whistles and at volumes normally reserved for hurricanes
9. Smiling and getting TONS of compliments for it
10. Being called the Gerber Baby three times in fewer than three weeks by different people
11. Making lots and lots of friends everywhere she goes
12. Eating solid foods - as solid as rice and oatmeal paste mixed with formula and apple juice can be
13. Chomping on sippy cups more than ever technically sipping on sippy cups
14. Blowing more raspberries than Oregon could grow in a year
15. Reclaiming Mommy and Daddy's wild hearts from the second she was born
16. Laughing in her sleep (really cute, although only Heather has witnessed this)
17. Sleeping the whole night through since she was born, only needing to wake up 2 or 3 times to eat (on average)
18. Playing lots of music by smacking her ltitle toys over and over again, making us laugh the whole time through
19. Achieving the unfortunate stage where diapers begin to smell quite sour
20. Culturing a sophisticated taste for good music (Mozart, Mormon Tabernacle Choir, the Bee Gees) and good literature (the Scriptures, Harold and the Purple Crayon, Daddy's biochemistry textbook)
21. Taking lots and lots of stroller rides, even when sane Idahoans don't go outside without snow shovels, ice picks, and four wheel drive
22. Learning to reach out and grab things, and especially learning how to play with slinkies and other great little toys we've received from many of you (thanks again!)
23. Developing a nightly thrill-a-minute happy-go-lucky playtime fun streak approximately seven minutes before she absolutely has to go to bed
24. Experimenting with all kinds of different textures and sucking on evey blanket she owns
25. Discovering the simple pleasures of sucking on her toes all day long
26. Being, far more often than not, a remarkably well-mannered, curious little baby girl with a sweet, sweet, SWEET personality

We love you, little baby girl! Happy six months!!!

Our Little Eskimo

2011-03-20T21:59:00.000-07:00

Home and Garden Trade Show

2011-03-20T18:51:00.000-07:00

My company had a booth at the Idaho Falls annual home and garden show. I helped man the company booth on Saturday and brought Caitlin and Doug along with me. Doug and Caitlin had so much fun exploring everything there and trying new things. It made my day just having them pop by here and there with some different story or discovery.

Here is our booth. They had to build it in a day and take it down in a matter of hours. It turned out really nice with the water feature and a splash of pre-seasonal color I acquired.

They had a really fun cook-off with several events throughout the day. We crossed our fingers that we could sub in as judges, and finally got asked to help. Here Doug is very serious about his Jell-o salad judging. Unfortunately this entry doesn't please his palate.
Trying out corvettes with Daddy.

Doug fulfilled one of his lifelong goals to try these contraptions. What a riot!

Birthday Weekend

2011-02-28T19:52:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday Doug!!!!

We celebrated Doug's birthday by taking a little trip to UofU. Doug applied to their Neuroscience PhD program, and was invited to interview. Doug had a fabulous experience and felt that all 9 + of his interviews/meetings with professors went very well. We were impressed by their program and from my personal observation, I feel that it is a really good fit for Doug (and that he would be a really good fit for them).

Besides having a terrific interview, Doug got treated to dinners, lunches, lodging, and a day of snowboarding -Doug's new favorite sport. I can't think of a better way to celebrate his birthday.

Doug sporting his new sweater vest for the occasion. He looks like a professor already (: Caitlin and I got to tag along for the occasion. Here is Caitlin chilling in the hotel room.

After the interview, we had a little time to drive around and look at the neighborhoods. With the help of directions from my Dad, we were able to visit the same "duck pond church" my family used to walk to. This is really a hidden historical treasure of the Yalecrest district.

We then got to visit with some family, who all happened to be at Grandma's the same weekend. It was fun to see Jenny and Annika, Aunt Joan and Uncle Dave. Cailtin loves being held, and enjoyed being held by her adoring Aunty Alli, Uncle Sean, and Great Grandma. Below are pictures of Caitlin being entertained by pianist Alli, and Caitlin meeting her second cousin Annika.

Simply Elegant Wedding Dress for sale

2011-02-15T14:33:00.000-08:00

So I decided to sell my wedding dress since the chances are slim that any of my daughters will be the exact same height and size that I was. I also decided it wasn't worth the stress of preserving it, knowing that it will get stains from simply being stored and moved around. I loved my dress and it was perfect for me, and I hope it will be perfect for someone else too. These kinds of dresses are hard to come by.

Dress info:
-two piece
-satin
-petal sleeves
-back zips up
-square neck
-Clean, pressed, and ready to go [you may wonder after seeing the beach pictures, but yes, it's dry cleaned and spot free (except some tiny smudges on the very ends of the hem did not come out)].
-Dress is size 6, I'm 5'3"
-I'm selling it for $65.00

Bundle of Joy

2011-01-31T21:31:00.000-08:00

Here are a couple of videos we have been hoping to show. Caitlin was just barely chuckling when we saw everyone at Christmas. Recently she has laughed more and more, and it simply melts our hearts!!!! We know that there are a few of you waiting to see these, so click on the YouTube links to enjoy!

Belly Laughs : We had a very busy weekend and got a little behind on C's sleep schedule. On Sunday evening, she was too tired to put herself to sleep. After about 40 minutes of crying, we let her join us at the dinner table. She then began to belly laugh at Doug for no reason. Here we were able to catch a bit of it on camera. We love our little girl! (On a side note, we found that putting her on her stomach (which she normally hates) helps her to fall asleep when she is too tired to fall asleep any other way).

Little Laughs

7,000,000 Pictures for the Grandmas...

2011-01-23T13:58:00.000-08:00

...all from the last month or two. I remember when we used to take lots of nice shots of lots of different things. It seems our subject scope has narrowed somewhat since last September. Perhaps, because we're so much less mobile now, we just take pictures of whatever happens to be nearby.

There's something about this picture that I really like.

At exactly four months old, now is the perfect time for Caitlin to begin complimenting her meals with balsamic vinaigrette. She prefers light, although she'll take regular in a pinch.

One of our more productive tummy times.

This is when she rolled over for the first time!

One day when Heather was at work, poor little Caitlin just couldn't calm down, so I decided to bundle her up and take her for a walk to help her fall asleep. I turned around for one second, and when I looked back, this is what I saw.

We love this little girl so much!

Green Dress and a Giraffe

2011-01-17T19:37:00.000-08:00

As the title implies...

Our happy holidays

2011-01-09T12:18:00.000-08:00

We had a great time over the holidays with both sides of the family. We spent the week before christmas with Heather's family, and the week after with Doug's family. There were many things to see and do, yet plenty of relaxing downtime during which we could just be with everyone. Thanks for the wonderful memories everyone!

The annual Cowboy Poetry night at the Hoopernacle. This has actually become a family tradition ever since we discovered this several years ago. A Hooper resident acquired a used Organ from the Lincoln Center in NYC and assembled it in his barn. Every Christmas season he puts on multiple concerts with various guests. We like to go on cowboy poetry night (the cowboy poet is hilarious!). Unfortunately, the original cowboy poet Don Kennington has since retired. But the back-ups this year were still entertaining. Doug LOVED it, to say the least.

This was a live nativity. A guide led us to each station where actors performed and sang. The costumes, live animals, and the way everything was portrayed was superb!
Caitlin on Christmas morning.

Some of the little cousins-Noah, Eli, and Caitlin- on my side of the family.
Christmas morning, opening presents (:

Mom and Dad got us a very nice stroller. It won't be long before Caitlin can go on walks with me. I can't wait!!!!
We let Caitlin suck on an apple during take-off and landing to keep her happy. She loved it!
Doug's hometown was gorgeous with mild temperatures and sunny days. We definitely got to take advantage of it. This was during a nature walk we took in the bottom lands. The kids (and adults) couldn't get enough of the thin ice. They poke, probed, and even played bocce ball with rocks.

Girl cousins chillin' at Grandma and Grandpa's house.

"Stayin awake, Stayin awake"

2010-12-14T21:38:00.000-08:00

For our ward talent show, Doug re-wrote the words to "Stayin Alive" by the Bee Gees and we put on a family disco number called "Stayin' awake, stayin' awake." It was pretty fun to put together. As you can see, we scrounged up a pretty sweet costume for Doug. Luckily we had these brown polyester pants I was about to get rid of.
Catydid had a pretty sweet outfit for the occasion too.
I have such a stylin' husband! Ow Ow!

Note from the stylin' husband:

The lyrics are a work in progress, and Heather helped a lot :-) Choreography and costume design inspired by this video. You know you want to see it. Go on, watch it. And sing along.

Well, you can TELL by the silly way we talk

Got a baby now! Bounce when when we walk!

Cryin' loud and diapers warm-

904 since she was born

And now it's all right

It's okay

Won't have it no other way

And you can try

To understand

That baby girl's effect on man!

Chorus:

Whether you're a father or whether you're a mother

you're stayin' awake! Stayin' awake!

Feel my back is breakin', n 'partment walls are shakin'

And you're stayin' awake! Stayin' awake!

Wah! Wah! Wah! Wah! Stayin' awake! Stayin' awake!

Wah! Wah! Wah! Wah! Stayin awaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaake!

(And she's a cryin'!)

Well SHE can yell and she can cry

And she does both - can't pacify.

Got FRILLY socks and purple shoes

And a poopy dress we can't reuse.

And now it's all right,

It's okay,

Hates the bottle anyway!

And you can try

To understand

The Dr. Seuss effect on man!

-repeat chorus-

Yule Ball

2010-12-14T07:22:00.000-08:00

After seeing a poster advertising a Jane Austen yule ball, Doug proposed we attend. Doug also thought he would be supporting his English department by going. With baby in tow, we went to the practice rehearsals and learned several regency dances. On the night of the ball, we had about 20 minutes to get ready and find Doug an outfit. I'm pretty proud with what we came up with! We were a little nervous about leaving Catydid with babysitters since she refuses the bottle, but we were able to put her down for the night before leaving and she did just fine.

We got to the ball and were impressed with the elegant decorations, the live string quartet, clever card tables (with directions of how to play whist) and draw-your-date's profile booths set up in the back. There were well over 200 people in attendance, all with great costumes. We had a really good time, and Doug managed to only pull a few "I've got sooooo much muhnay" comments. We all got a little lost in the dances towards the beginning, but eventually everyone caught on and the dance lines looked pretty impressive.
We brought our trial video camera along to capture a bit of the ball. Click on the link to check it out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jzDqlWuKMwY

And for kicks: a picture of my husband and daughter who were simply exhausted by the end of the day. Doug is definitely ready for this semester to be over!

Straight Out the 70s Vault

2010-12-05T21:12:00.000-08:00

Does anyone know how we can find a better camcorder?

We got this one at Walmart and are now a little surprised to find ourselves watching our old family movies out of the late 70s and early 80s. We tried to get a good video or two of her doing her little morning routine before she gets out of bed in the morning. These stunning instances of high quality cinematography are probably the best we can do. If you mute the audio they feel even more authentically vintage.

Oh well. Hope you enjoy our first videoblogs.

Happy Holidays

2010-11-27T22:39:00.000-08:00

Quality time with Auntie Allie.

Since Doug was a kid he's always loved stopping at the occasional llama ranch. This one was on our way home from the mountains (Christmas tree in tow).

Our little eskimo baby in her brand new super-cheap-after-listening-to-the-sales-spiel-and-signing-some-forms snow suit. It's perfect for the winter here. she'll get lots of good use out of it, probably until June.

Caitlin LOVES bath time, and so do we. :-)

Due to the large amounts of homework, etc. that Doug has, we decided to stick around the house for Thanksgiving. Luckily, my sister Allison rode a shuttle all the way up to enjoy the Thanksgiving weekend with us. We cooked and ate a lot of food with some neighbors on Thanksgiving day, and cut down and decorated a little doug fir from a nearby forest on Friday. Doug made lots of progress on grad school applications while Alli and I enjoyed watching some Jane Austen, sewing, and playing with Caitlin. Though cold and very icy and white, it was an enjoyable holiday filled with little memories.

Caitlin my junior

2010-11-27T22:25:00.000-08:00

As Doug was digging around for old papers he needs for a class, he found this baby picture of me. I was surprised to see how much Caitlin looks like me. I still think she is a good mix of Doug and I, but every now and again, I feel like I am holding another me.

Caitlin

Doug's San Diego Trip and What He Left Behind

2010-11-21T10:42:00.000-08:00

I tore myself away from all of the above and went to San Diego with a few other students and a professor for a Society for Neuroscience conference. Really the only pictures I have to share are from the temple, which is breathtaking and located right next to the freeway.

Caught It!

2010-11-08T15:43:00.001-08:00

This morning we finally caught Caitlin's smile on Camera. It is so fun to see her personality unveil itself more each week. We sure love this cuddly little girl.

Latest pictures

2010-11-04T19:10:00.001-07:00

We promise that there will be more to Dougeather than baby pictures. But, while we have them, we may as well share them, right?

An attempt to capture her rather new art of smiling... more to come.

I try to go with her flow as much as possible, and when she's asleep I let her sleep, even if it means leaving her in the baby bjorn after a walk.
Now that she is more alert of her surroundings, I thought I would take advantage of our still gorgeous weather and take her on a nature walk. Here Caitlin encounters a spruce tree, a purple smoke-tree, and rose hips.

Another attempt to capture her smile. Almost.

Doug is very proud of her belly button (:
Caitlin goes to church on Halloween.
Caitlin in style- a la pink!

2010-11-01T23:45:00.000-07:00

Cute little baby pictures... who wouldn't want more?

Mommy and Daddy were having more fun with the flowers than Caitlin was.

She'd better not need Daddy's glasses.

Here's another good one - previously unposted, I hope - of her in her blessing dress.

Us on a little hike in Teton National Park....

...with Gramma and Grampa Pierce, all the way from Colorado! It was SO good to have them visiting us for the weekend. We had a great time and miss them still.

The colors were really coming alive up there.

My dad took this shot of the world famous dirty old barn. :-) It may now be hanging on their living room wall.

Mommy doing what Mommy does best - communing with nature and doing ab work outs at the same time.

Beauty Shots

2010-10-25T21:19:00.000-07:00

To start things off, here's some old and entirely unrelated-to-Caitlin pictures that I took while watching the sunrise at Laie Point (about a 10 minute walk from Heather's parents' house in Hawaii). I forgot all about these.

And THESE pictures are some that Heather took of our little angel. We've taken to calling these her "beauty shots," even though ANY picture of this little girl is beautiful (even when she's crying, as you can see below. She's getting rather practiced at crying.) I love these pictures. Any of these will make a great ice-breaking conversation starter with her prom date.

(This is actually Caitlin sneezing)

These pictures are maybe two and a half or three weeks old now, and already she looks bigger. She's even outgrown my thigh... it's amazing to think she's already as tall as Uncle Matt hopes to be someday.

One Month Old

2010-10-24T17:58:00.000-07:00

For four weeks we have gotten to know Caitlin a little better. Though she has yet to become truly social, she is becoming more and more alert of herself and her surroundings. She is a very happy little girl that loves to soak in the world around her. She is fairly easy to read and easy to please, which makes me feel like a pretty good mommy. However, if she is tired or gassy, she has a healthy sturdy cry to let us know about it.

Over these few short weeks, she has made known some notable likes and dislikes.

Since day 2, Caitie (sp?) does her best to shake off accessory clothing such as hats, socks, and hand covers. Her long feet and fingers make it especially hard to keep little socks and mitts on, much to her satisfaction. Caitlin prefers to be free! (This means no swaddles for Caitlin-except in the case of her snuggie, where her arms are more or less unbound). Due to free hands, Caitlin woke up one morning with a bad scratch on her cheek. I immediately trimmed her fingernails, only to find moments later two more scratches on the same cheek, forming a bold letter "K". Luckily I don't believe in signs, otherwise I would have assumed she was insisting her name be spelled with a K rather than a C.

Caitlin loves to be held and cuddled. This makes doing homework or work a little tricky, but there is nothing like holding her close while she snuggles her head on your shoulder.

We thought it was beginners luck at first, but Caitlin is proving herself a very good night sleeper. About 10:00 or 11:00, when she falls asleep after a feeding, we put her in her snuggy and take her to bed. She will stir two times in the night to be fed, but always falls back into a deep sleep which she won't snap out of until 9:00 in the morning. Like a teenager, she loves her sleep, and goes through a really cute hour-long stint of stretching, yawning, and grunting before she actually wakes up.

A beautiful baby quilt came in the mail from Grandma Porter that is perfect for tummy-time. She lifts her head and looks around when she's on my shoulder, but she really doesn't like to be on her tummy (a work in progress).

On a statistical side-note, as of one week ago, Cailtin weighed 9 lbs 8 oz and measured 22 inches long. The fact that she's in the 95th percentile for height also means that she's only in the 25th percentile for weight, but her healthy appetite (somewhere in the neighborhood of eleven feedings daily) will help her catch up pretty quickly.

Blessing Day

2010-10-11T09:53:00.001-07:00

Caitlin was blessed in church yesterday by her Daddy, Grandpa, and several of Daddy's friends. Caitlin was so precious in her blessing dress, made by my Mom for the special occasion. As Doug and I held our peaceful little daughter during the opening Hymn, we were overcome with the feeling that we were holding a literal angel of our Heavenly Father. She slept comfortably while Doug gave her a very tender blessing. We felt so much peace and joy during sacrament meeting, and I am so grateful to not only be member of the Church, but to have my little family also be members of the Church. What a blessing the Gospel has been to us.

Caitlin Heather

I love how this picture captures the color of her hair.

A full shot of her dress. Thanks Mom for all of your hard work and help! She was beautiful.

Caitlin and Doug chilling out after church.

Family In Town

2010-10-07T15:40:00.000-07:00

It is a rare occasion to have family visit Rexburg (: Caitlin managed to pull off several guests, however. The weather was unusually warm and still, making our humble apartment very stuffy and undesirable. But our good guests put up with it all and enjoyed meeting Caitlin and visiting Rexburg. Grandma Flandro even made the trek up two flights of stairs several times to hold her Great Granddaughter.

Gleaning red potatoes before Priesthood Session.

Caitlin meets Auntie Alli.
Great-Grandma Flandro loved holding Caitlin. Caitlin was such a good baby for her and would gaze up at her forever.
Caitlin meets Uncle Sean.
The classic four generation picture. Caitlin, myself, my mom, and my mom's mom.

Daddy Doug

2010-10-04T10:41:00.000-07:00

Doug has been an incredible Daddy to little Caitlin, and continues to be a remarkable husband to me. I will never forget the support and companion he was to me while I labored in the Hospital. He remained calm the entire time, and breathed through every contraction with me. He knew exactly what to do, or exactly what not to do, as we progressed through each level of labor. The nurses rarely intervened as they later commented on how well "we had it." I couldn't have wanted anyone but Doug with me.
When Caitlin was born, he was able to be with her during immediate medical procedures. After checking on me to make sure I was okay (I was pretty out of it by then), he carefully picked Caitlin up and held her for the first hour of her life until I was conscious enough to feed her. Caitlin didn't cry at all but simply looked up at Doug the entire time. Thank you Doug for being there for her! He continued to be a good daddy by doing everything for her while I was still regaining my ability to move. His love and care for her and for me was so tender. Now that I'm not lupy and am able to think clearly again, I want to thank you Doug for everything you did and sacrificed for us while in the Hospital.

Below are some pictures of Daddy Doug. I think they do a good job of expressing Doug's tender yet early fatherhood.

My mom and I came home one evening to this Kodak moment.

Her first thorough bath.
Doug's first time holdng Caitlin! The nurse was kind enough to take a picture of it for me.
After the doctors cleared meconium out of Caitlin's throat and lungs, they simply left without a word. Here Doug tentatively takes his first quiet look at his daughter and takes her little hand. He stayed right there by her side from there on out. I am so glad he was there for her after all of those procedures. I love you Doug!

Katydid Comes Home!

2010-09-28T13:49:00.000-07:00

We came home from the hospital and brought our little Katydid along the day before yesterday. since then we've had a wonderful time getting to know her, sleep with her, stay up late with her, try out our new Diaper Champ, and letting her lie around in her nothings thanks to our sauna of an apartment. Grandma's being here has helped a lot, and our ward is probably the most supportive group of people ever assembled.

Speaking of the ward, her baby blessing will be on October 10th at 1:30. Anyone and everyone who can make it is welcome!

Grandma Huff and Mommy made a cake and I borrowed a match from our neighbors, so we could throw a birthday party! Little one slept right through it, naturally, but we had a delicious time.

Here she is at home in her new little nest!

Getting one of her first burps in her own little living room.

Our amazing neighbors Tyler and Tashina Seaman decorated our door for us! They are great.

Caitlin's first time in her new car seat, courtesy the Pierce Family (thank you!!!). As you can see, she really enjoyed herself. :-) She actually had a great ride home, and didn't at all. She's a smooth traveler.
Sorry these pictures are in reverse chronological order.

Caitlin Heather Is Finally Here! (part 10)

2010-09-28T13:20:00.000-07:00

Here's a lot more pictures of sleepy Caitlin. :-) I'm sure you all wanted to see more.

Sleepy Caitlin with Grandma Huff.

Sleepy Caitlin with Scruffy Daddy

Caitlin Heather Is Finally Here! (part 9)

2010-09-26T20:29:00.000-07:00

She's so small!

If a lot of these pictures, among the last couple dozen we took at the hospital, all look similar, it's because a newborn doesn't really do a lot besides wiggle around, yawn, sleep, and eat. But she's just SO cute when she does things that I can't help but drain camera batteries.

This one, above, is one of my favorites.

Except maybe for right HERE, in the above picture, I see a whole lot more of Heather in her than I do myself. I mean, Mommy IS her middle name :-)

Caitlin Heather Is Finally Here! (part 8)

2010-09-25T14:26:00.000-07:00

One of my VERY favorites :-)

Another of my favorites.

The three (THREE!) of us with one of the doctors, Dr. Meredith, who delivered Caitlin.

She was born at 8-1 and dropped to 7-9. Not too shabby, and she really likes to eat.

Another greeeeeaaaat big yawn-a-roo :-)

It feels good to name her, but boy was it hard to do. In the couple of hours since we decided on it, though, we've said it a bunch and haven't gotten tired of it (thankfully).

And Her Name Is...

2010-09-25T13:25:00.001-07:00

Caitlin Heather Pierce.

Welcome to life, sweetheart.

The story of her name is simple. We both thought of her middle name while we were in the hospital, without even talking to each other about it. I knew from the moment I first met her that Cleo wasn't going to fit after all, but Heather had already begun to think about it before she could even hold her. This little one is such a carbon copy of Mommy, and Mommy did so much to get her here, that naming the one for the other just felt right.

Once we had her middle name we wrestled with the first for a couple days, until last night at midnight. I was pushing her around in the hallway and staring at her and wondering what to call her. More than anything we needed a name that fit her personality, which (forgive me for saying something that every new parent undoubtedly says) was SO unique, so DIFFERENT and personal. We love her personality, and we knew that nothing we had thought of so far would get it just right. Then Caitlin fell out of the sky and landed in my head, and while I wasn't too convinced at first, Heather liked it right off. We played around with it for a few hours, and then just felt it was the one.

Caitlin Heather Pierce. I can't get enough of it.

Little One Is Finally Here! (part 7)

2010-09-25T11:18:00.000-07:00

She likes her little sucky wucky nucky nucky :-)

This is the first tummy time she ever had. the funny thing was I'm not sure she liked it she was squeaking and crying so much, but when I looked I saw THIS little face!!

She is now nursing just fine, for the most part, and Mommy is feeling better and better. We especialy love our handy little Boppy pillow.

Little One Is Finally Here! (part 6)

2010-09-25T06:58:00.001-07:00

I like these two that show her seeing her little reflection for the first time :-)

So this last picture here is the very first one taken of her. After the operation the nurses had to whisk her away for all kinds of cleaning and suction in the NICU. They literally passed her from the operating table through a window to some nurses on the other side, so it took maybe fifteen minutes (tops, thankfully) until she could meet her anxious little family. I stood looking through the window, trying to see her, and she seemed so far away and surrounded by strangers. That was hard for me, especially when I had just barely caught a glimpse of her right when she was born, plus I was worried for Heather.

Little One Is Finally Here! (part 5)

2010-09-24T19:44:00.001-07:00

This is a yawn... makes me sleepy just dreaming of it :-)

I wasn't going to post this picture because I think I look kind of silly, but I did anyway because Heather looks great! She is really recovering nicely, due entirely to everyone's prayers. We love you!

She thinks she has a pretty funny daddy :-)

No name yet... stay tuned.

Little One Is Finally Here! (part 4)

2010-09-24T19:23:00.000-07:00

CUTE!
She's a keeper :-)

Big klonky feet look familiar?

Little One Is Finally Here! (part 3)

2010-09-24T18:25:00.000-07:00

Me, maybe seven minutes after she was born, still far too nervous to pick her up.

Little One getting ready to eat a big hearty breakfast!
No bald baby here!
Heather on the phone with Grandma and Grandpa Huff.
This lasted maybe two and a half seconds.
This is one of my favorite pictures, but my absolute favorite is the very top one on the second post (below)
Dr. Meredith took this shot. He's great.

Right after she was born, before poor sweet Heather got to meet her, I had one of the nurses take a couple pictures of me holding her, and when she was gone I bugged one of the doctors who delivered her to take one too.

Little One Is Finally Here! (part 2)

2010-09-24T13:24:00.000-07:00

We'll be in the hospital probably until Sunday. Thank you for the love, prayers, constant support, and flowers!

Little One Is Finally Here! (part 1)

2010-09-24T13:07:00.000-07:00

This picture (above) was when she saw Daddy for the first time!

So far, she likes rocking chairs, belly rubs, and "I Am A Child of God." She also likes eating and only cries when she wants to be held.

This is when Mommy got to see and hold her for the first time!

There has never been a sweeter little baby girl!

She was 8 lb 1 oz, 20 1/2 inches long, born at 3:56 on 23 September 2010. She turned pink right away and cried even before the cord was cut. The birth story itself is a little difficult to talk about, so I'll just say that Heather did magnificently, better than anyone could have been expected to do. Our little one was delivered via c-section because the doctors were worried about her heart rate during the prolonged second stage of labor, so now both mommy and baby are resting as much as they can. I've changed a few diapers by this point and am getting tolerably decent at it, but my swaddling skills are remedial at best.

Her name is currently under reconsideration, but we'll have it figured out by the end of today. We had been planning on naming her Rosemary Cleo Pierce, and although we were both pretty much in love with that name we wanted to wait until we met her face to face before settling on any name at all. We are glad we did, because now that we have been around this unique little spirit since yesterday evening she's let so much of her personality shine through that we know her well enough to know she's not at all a Rosemary Cleo. We don't know what she is yet, but we'll let you know later today. I'm fairly sure we've settled on a new middle name, and it's quite a special one to me. We are so, so in love with her.

Huckleberry Hounding

2010-09-18T08:19:00.000-07:00

We took our neighbors huckleberry picking in the Yellowstone backcountry for FHE a couple weeks ago. Heather took some great pictures.

This was the sunset over Grassy Lake Reservoir, one of our favorite secret places.

This is clearly a very boring post. I'm sorry. Don't look at it.

I think I'm just excited for our little baby ________ ____ Pierce to come, and I'm trying to fill the time any way I can.

Nice Sunday Pictures

2010-09-17T15:17:00.000-07:00

Induction Pizza

2010-09-17T14:23:00.000-07:00

So, the due date rolled around yesterday, rolling out again without a little newborn in sight.

True to form, Heather has been doing her research. She found a wide array of labor-inducing techniques, all of which we have been putting to the test. A good vigorous gallop, for example, dancing, and talking to the baby. Maybe we'll go out and pull some weeds. Pineapples and spicy foods don't really seem to do the trick. But a restaraunt in Georgia serves a special eggplant parmesan that they claim induced labor on 300 separate occasions.

According to scientific research into the dish, the properties of oregano and basil contribute to the onset of labor more than those of the actual eggplant. So, bereft of eggplant but having pesto and dried basil and oregano (which was worked generously into the crust and sprinkled on top), she made the following Induction Pesto Pizza, pictured here.

Guess we'll see how it works out. Presto, Pesto!

Pregnant in the Parks

2010-09-05T22:33:00.000-07:00

Last June, we decided to splurge on an annual pass to our nation's beautiful national parks. In doing so, we were given a little card that gets us in for free to any park in the system for a whole solid year.

The following is a brief photographic essay we've compiled. Join us as we explore a fascinating and heretofore unexamined topic: Pregnant in the Parks. We also hope you enjoy seeing the documented growth of Heather as we go along.

Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah - 24 weeks

Zion National Park, Utah - 24 1/2 weeks

Yosemite National Park, California - 29 weeks

Arches National Park, Utah - 33 weeks

Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado - 35 weeks

Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming - 38 1/2 weeks

Dragging Our Apartment up to Code

2010-09-05T21:41:00.000-07:00

So when we moved back to Rexburg, we had the rare opportunity to sit down with the owners of our building and complain about our horrible carpet.

Actually, in Heather's case, we gently informed them as to how badly we needed a new carpet. In hindsight, I complained, but as charitably as the circumstances rendered possible. But our preliminary cross-examinations nevertheless consisted mostly of them telling us how much they'd prefer to simply shampoo the old carpet and us pointing to grease stains from 1967 and insisting that they put in new carpet. In vain we explained how even after a shower the bottoms of our feet would turn black just from walking around in our home. Even the fact that we'd have a new baby soon and preferred that she not be perpetually coated in dust like some kind of archaeological discovery did little to sway their opinion. In fact, all hope seemed lost until we brought out the big guns: a simply nauseating tangle of dust and silt and grime and hair that we vacuumed straight out of our carpet when it was presumably at its cleanest. One of the owners couldn't even bring herself to look at it.

Victory! They promised us new carpet! And not only that, but they fixed our leaking sink, screwed our cabinetry back into the wall, gave us some window screens, and even installed a toilet paper holder. Our place is feeling more and more inviting with all of these little niceties, and especially with Heather's curtains and quilt and pillow cases that she's sewing (stay tuned).

And then the carpet man came and took his measurements, and the next morning I woke up early and tossed all of our possessions into the hallway and began to RIP out the old carpet! Part of going with the lowest bidder apparently means that you yourself get to remove all the old stuff, but it was not so much a chore as it was an incomprehensible joy, at least during the rare moments when I could summon breath out of the dust and poison that filled the air. I found underneath, to my amazement, that our floorboards were wonderfully intact with one minor gaping hole, and I even managed to screw down some squeaky spots before the new carpet went down.

Here's some pictures, if you've actually read this far.

This modern art is just a quick example of the greasy nasty stains upon which we carried out our daily lives. It wouldn't be THAT bad if it weren't for the fact that the carpet was seriously as old as the hills, and many, many, many apocryphal renters had left their mark on it.

Here's some of the sandy dirt we found all the way under the pad!

Heather actually drew a little picture in it with her

finger (not shown). We couldn't believe it.

The underside of the old carpet... a medley of mysterious stains

I hadn't the stomach to imagine. We can't show

this picture to anyone else in our building, but aren't

YOU glad you checked our blog today?

Almost done, and getting ready for the blessed new stuff to come in...

...and voila! We feel so much better, and our home feels
seven billion times cozier and cleaner. There's honestly nowhere
else in town we'd rather be than right here.

An Anthropological Study

2010-08-28T08:53:00.000-07:00

Doug's brother in law lent us his gorilla suit for the sole purpose of performing an anthropological experiment in Yellowstone. However, it was sheer providence that we happened to have the gorilla suit in the car while we were in Rocky Mountain National Park. It was also sheer providence that those dear to us happened to be in the car as well (including Doug's Mom, my brother Sean, and our niece Mattie). The decision was unanimous and we decided to begin our study a few weeks early in a sister national park.

The study

Question: How many cars will stop en mass for the purpose of catching a glimpse of what appears to be a smidgen of wildlife?

Background: We have been held up in national park traffic due to a minor speck in the distance. When we ask what it is, and people say it is a bear, we too will stop and borrow a pair of binoculars to still only see a faint speck somewhat moving. And yet we are still satisfied knowing we most likely saw a bear.

Hypothesis: a goodly number will stop for anything dark and fuzzy looking.

Experiment: Have Doug put on a gorilla suit and position himself a distance off a quiet part of a national park road. Have an assistant park to the side of the road and look towards Doug with a camera. Take note of how many people follow suit.

Results:

Analysis: Sure enough, we got a goodly number of people to stop and peer into the forest, wondering if it was a black bear behind the rock. There was a stir of excitement and a wave of camera flashes each time a tuft of black would emerge from behind the large boulder.

Eventually, people caught on as they saw that the black bear was wearing flip flops and had a white shirt poking out around the neck. Also, Doug noticed through his eye hole that a man had parked in the middle of the road, put on his hazards, and was getting out of his car to get a closer look. For fear of causing accidents or traffic, the experiment drew to a close as the gorilla head came off and everyone was notified that it was an experiment. Most people were satisfied with the experience and took joy knowing they participated in a harmless experiment, though a few were put-off knowing that they were fooled into a trick.

Conclusion: Hypothesis is true! A goodly number of people will stop for anything black and fuzzy looking.

Heather by Design

2010-08-28T08:01:00.000-07:00

One of my responsibilities at work, besides designing landscapes, is to take beauty shots of the work we do to put on our website. Earlier this week I went around to several clients during a calm evening and took some pictures. It was very rewarding to see my designs installed and doing favorably well. It has been a great year for Outback Landscape, and we have really been able to put in some fun projects. I think everyone at work feels happy and accomplished!

I love this picture! It just makes you want to sit in one of those chairs all evening.

These ponds were installed while I was in Los Angeles. It was a complete transformation of a backyard that was in need of a new retaining wall and something to do with the dirt field in the back half of their yard. This is what we came up with.
Doug loved this project and didn't want to leave it... it was just so soothing.
Here is Doug who kindly took the role of talking to the owners so I could take pictures. The owners are really happy with their yard. You can also see the retaining wall that replaced a not so lasting wooden one. I personally can't wait for the plants fill in, and for more trees and shrubs to be planted.
The picture below is not a beauty shot, but it is a project currently going in that I designed. I really like this waterfeature. They had an extra boulder with a very unique shape. We decided to drill it and make a pondless waterfeature out of it. I am so glad we did because it looks outstanding right there at their entrance. We have yet to put the rocks around the base, plant the plants, and spread bark. I will definitely have to come back to this project in a year and see how things are doing.

Double Arch

2010-08-12T08:19:00.000-07:00

Heather and I stopped for a few hours in Arches, one of the nation's more eccentric national park, on the way to Colorado. I was excited to take her there, since nothing really hits the same spot inside me as an arch. Call me a sentimentalist.

Yeah, I've always loved Arches National Park, but somehow until this trip I've never climbed up to Double Arch. I've wanted to forever thanks to the opening scenes of Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, but never realized how close it is to the road. Turns out it's as accessible to 8-month pregnant women as it is to whip-wielding "obtainers of rare antiquities."

I really like this unusually filtered panoramic. It belongs in a museum!

All 2 and 8/9ths of us.

Family Cabin 2010

2010-08-11T22:39:00.001-07:00

The entire Pierce family gathered to the cabin for our annual family reunion. This little cabin is so perfect: small, remote, rustic, and surrounded by Rocky Mountain nature. It is perfect for a reunion with small kids that can romp free and play together in the stream and in the woods while the adults play game after game and eat tons of food.

The Porter cabin.

If you look closely, you can see the new stairway the men installed and the widened stream-bed. Looks awesome guys!

When everyone else left, Doug and I found a perfect little tree and planted it in honor of our new little marriage. It is a transplant, so hopefully it survives. If you happen to be up at the cabin, could you please water and dung it? (it is southeast from the deck and overlooks the meadow).

A little nature class I put together for the kids. We went on a nature walk afterwords to test their remembrance. They are all so smart and all passed!

Telling stories to the kids in the cabin.

1,100 miles later

2010-08-11T21:23:00.000-07:00

After a sleepless night, Doug and I set off for a 20 hour two day car ride to Colorado. We stopped at a little campground off I-70 for a 4 hour nap when it began to rain (we didn't have time or patience to put up the rain-fly). So we got a nice early start the next day, giving us a little extra time to swing by Moab and Arches national park! Though it was nice to take several stops and enjoy the scenery, we were glad to arrive in Fort Collins Saturday night. The next day we enjoyed a huge family reunion/90th birthday party for Grandma Porter.

We got to walk over to Double Arch and the Windows. We have a lot more pictures of arches and I feel like it deserves a complete post in and of itself.

It was here at arches that I got my first case of cankleitis. I looked down and was shocked to see my feet so puffy. They remained swollen for the next few days, but went down again as soon as we got to the cabin (to be covered in a later post).
Doug was such a good driver and let me chill out in the passenger seat all but 40 minutes of the entire trip. Thanks Doug!
Doug together at last with his nieces and nephews.
Grandma Porter walking in on her very own surprise party! It was the first time Doug had ever seen Nana cry.

Monterey

2010-07-25T21:44:00.000-07:00

The marina, in breath-taking panoramic.

Doug had the opportunity to see some Steinbeck sites while on our trip in Monterey. This little abode is the very place where Steinbeck wrote The Pearl and parts of something else. (Doug's note: Steinbeck is among my most favorite authors, so going to Monterey was, for me, little short of a pilgrimage. Heather is notably less impressed with his work, having read only The Pearl and hated every word of it, but she was good enough to take some pictures of me here, where he wrote, and elsewhere, where he lived. We've edited out the drool.)

Here's the house he lived in for a few months, which is now the admin building at the Monterey International Institute. The other picture (two above), showing where he wrote, is now the security shack. I think one of my favorite things was just seeing the tree that he saw and the bench where maybe he sat and the walls he lived in and the roof he slept under. I've now rambled too long.

This is Ha-Jyn, my first cousin once removed. I think this captures her sweet little face pretty well.
Due to El Nino, there were masses of sea lions hanging out at the Monterey wharf. We loved seeing these playful sea mammals in action and in such ludicrous numbers. Thanks Catherine for showing us around your neck of the bay!

Point Lobos State Park

2010-07-25T20:52:00.000-07:00

We went to Monterrey and Carmel last weekend with Heather's parents, both professional vacationers. This place is Point Lobos State Park, where Heather's cousin Cat took us for an afternoon.

In Which Yosemite is Bidden Farewell

2010-07-09T22:36:00.000-07:00

The amazing El Capitan over the Merced River. That water was barely on the cold side of frozen, but I still got a little swim (not shown here) :-)

Bridal Veil Falls at dusk.

Here's us at Gaylor Lakes. Notice the warm, tropical California weather :-)

Upper Yosemite Falls, and us.

Mirror Lake is nothing short of a natural water park for kids. We want to take our family here in a few years, when we've got a half dozen or so little ones. The water isn't more than a few feet deep, except for right where you want to jump off the rocks where it's deeper. There's beaches, shade trees, and super fat, greedy squirrels, too. Fun!

In Which Our Roots Grow Deeper

2010-07-09T22:18:00.000-07:00

All my life I've wanted to see the Giant Sequoias, and so has Heather, and when we finally got there the things were just too BIG to even capture on camera unless they were fallen down or all burnt up, like these.
Me inside a TREE that had fallen over and was decaying from the inside out.

Our whole little family entirely dwarfed by the root system of a toppled tree. This might be a good time to mention that, according to the NPS, the Giant Sequoias are not the tallest nor the oldest trees, but by VOLUME--sheer volume--they are the largest organisms ever to live on the planet. To look at a tree like this is to look at something completely alien, and yet softies like me find themselves bonding with them in unexpected ways. :-)

Maybe we can find a good picture of one. For now, check out this link, courtesy of Arnold Schwarzenegger and the State of California: http://www.netstate.com/states/symb/trees/ca_redwood.htm

Heather sent me to collect pine cones one morning and I got in a bit of a scrape.

In Which Yosemite is Introduced

2010-07-09T21:51:00.000-07:00

All the campsites were full to bursting at Yosemite last weekend, even the super inconvenient primitive one that we had woken up at 2:00 AM and driven all morning to reach before anyone else. Fortunately we ran into a fire crewman who gave us mysterious treasure map directions to a hidden campsite just outside park boundaries.

He swore us to secrecy and specifically told us to not "post it on the internet or anything." So here it is on the internet, but the directions will go with us to the grave. We figure you're a safe crowd, anyway.

Breathtaking view as we enter Yosemite Valley. You can see El Capitan on the left, Bridal Veil Falls in the middle, and Half Dome waaaay in the back between the two.

Our top-secret camp site, with absolutely no neighbors at all. Thanks for the tent everyone!

Our site had its own private waterfall right next to it. It actually ran into a stream that we drove across (below) and from there down another waterfall into a little pool with brook trout in it.

Here's me pretending I'm driving in a truck commercial.

The "road" to get to our little spot was 30 minutes at least off the highway in Yosemite and was seriously among the worst roads I've driven on.

My Sister Allison

2010-06-23T12:44:00.000-07:00

I had no idea that these awesome pictures were taken (no doubt by my Dad) of my sister Allison for graduation. Our end of the island is really out in the boondocks, so the High School is combined with the Intermediate school. Allison patiently worked her way through all 6 years of Kahuku without any significant changes of scenery. To make things even harder, her graduating class was lacking the solid group of motivated, achieving students that often frequent graduating classes at Kahuku. But she survived senioritis and did it!

Allison is such a good person and is always kind to others. She became an only child when I left for college 8 years ago, but did such a good job of adapting to her new circumstances. Luckily she has a small group of friends that have been loyal all eight of those years. Alli has also been very self motivated to make the most of her education and opportunities in High School. It will be fun to see her blossom at BYU-Provo when her opportunities will expand.

Congratulations Allison!

(Alli you are such a beach babe! Your hair looks like the sand, your eyes look like the ocean, and your tan looks like the sun! Love it!)

Getting around

2010-06-16T12:45:00.001-07:00

Besides our little neck of the woods, we try to get out on the weekends and explore. These pictures represent two weekends.
Doug at the Chinese Theater with one of his favorite actors of all time.

Santa Monica Pier.
The beach right at Santa Monica Pier. The next weekend we discovered smaller beaches in Malibu that had free parking (you just park along PCH) and solitude.
A very cool climbing tree along Escondido falls hike.
Doug snapped this photo of me which revealed a side of me I never knew. I certainly don't feel this big! In my mind I am still the same old me, and feel very small. I am getting used to the fact that people know right off the bat that I am indeed quite pregnant.

I got a pool pass to the public pool for better exercise. There, fellow water walkers (i.e. a host of Iranian Grandmas with shower caps and water noodles) asked how far along I was, congratulated me, and said I was beautiful! I suppose I am a unique addition to the pool, but to my surprise I feel absolutely non-pregnant in water! I swam freestyle for 40 minutes and water walked for 20 and my pulse never got above 108 bpm. Out of water, however, I do notice unhappy feet and legs after a long walk. I am so grateful for my pool pass!

We have also noticed a much bigger baby that not only kicks, but now moves! All in all, things are going very well.

Campus

2010-06-16T12:34:00.001-07:00

Doug spends most of the day working away in one little corner of campus. Earlier this week he got to see other parts of campus for the first time. There are some very beautiful buildings and landscaped quads.

We came across this tribute which I believe my Dad will appreciate. The "Westwood Wizard" passed away and is obviously revered by many on campus and in the community.

2010-06-16T11:40:00.000-07:00

We live in a very unique neighborhood here in this city. Between a few large and busy roads, this network of small residential streets is very much hidden from noise, tourists, traffic, and gettoism. Built mainly in the 1930s, these homes are much smaller than the neighboring mansions of the rich and famous, and yet are super maintained and surrounded by incredible landscapes. I wondered at the care and architecture of each home and landscape, and how much emphasis and money people put into them. The result is a quaint and cozy, yet breathtaking neighborhood. Somewhat to my dismay, I discovered the reason: the home value for these smallish homes (about average 2,000 square feet) is anywhere from 600,000-2,000,000! As fun as it is to be living here temporarily, it seems impossible to ever afford living in such a place.

Keep your eye on the post as I will switch out the pictures with new ones. There are just too many homes, styles, and plants to include all in one post.

There is no architectural monotony in this neighborhood. There seems to be a little bit of everything: tudor, stucco/ southwest mission style, colonial, New England cottage look, Stucco/ European look, etc., etc. I'm still trying to wrap my mind around the above picture's style... English cottage meets medieval castle?
I absolutely love bougainvillea when it's used architecturally like this.
The plant palette range is incredible. There are some very tropical looking yards like this while a home nextdoor might have a picket fence lined with roses, boxwood hedges, and hydrangea.
Even the driveways are immaculate. Here is a driveway of pavers and lawn.
And then, there is the little cottage out back that we call home. These beautiful lilies bloom all at once every week for a few days, then close up shop for a few days. It makes for quite a welcoming show.

Beautiful Zion

2010-06-03T10:23:00.000-07:00

After a good visit to Bryce, we drove to Zion National Park. Because it was Memorial Day weekend, we were one of thousands of visitors: quite the contrast from Bryce. We really enjoyed it, and still managed to find some quiet little retreats. We had time to go through the main canyon and stop at most stops along the way. We hiked to the upper emerald pool, and walked past lush hanging gardens to the foot of the narrows. Zions was beautiful!

Thanks again everyone for my chacos! I am using them a lot already this summer.
A preggy shot (:
When I think of Zions, I think of sheer red rock cliffs and bright green trees. Sure enough, the trees were greener than ever.
These tiny little tree frogs send the loudest little croaks that resound through the canyon.

Keep to the bottoms

2010-06-03T09:54:00.000-07:00

We had a good day to explore more of Bryce. We did the queens garden hike, which takes you to the bottom of the canyon and around hundreds of hoodoos. I could spend the whole visit in Bryce down in hoodooville. However, as I have acquired a fear of heights over the past few years, there were a few too many aspects of Bryce that proved quite a challenge. But without too much hyperventilating, we did it and we felt great! Thank you Doug for being so patient with me (:

There were many plants that amazed us with their endurance and growth. This Bristlecone pine is stalwartly growing on one of the furthest edges of the pink shelf. On the horizon is Arizona.

Doug with one of his absolutely favorite formations: the arch.
One of the many 'breathtaking' views I tended to avoid.
A bridge formation.
This is an example of the stunning trails that meander through the canyon bottoms.