Greetings to All! It has been a very long time since we posted last and we apologize. Raising a little girl and school have taken up a lot of our time and unfortunately some things get put aside that shouldn't. Our resolution for the year is to post on a regular basis.
Makenna is 19 months now and quite the handful. She is walking all over the house and climbing everywhere she cannot walk. She is still just a petite little girl, but a very healthy one at that. She talks our ears off and learns new words everyday.
Alannah continues to be a homemaker and mother and is the glue that holds Jason's brain and life together. Each day she continues making our house into a home, which isn't easy on a students salary.
Jason is still in school, slowly chipping away at his Criminal Justice degree. He is currently in the Police Academy and will be graduating in May. Hopefully he will be finishing his bachelors this fall and finding a job as a Police Officer soon after.
Well just a small update for now, we will be posting more soon. Pictures are on the way and many more stories of our little one's adventures. Thanks for reading.
Sunday, January 2, 2011
Saturday, October 24, 2009
Makenna's Photo Shoot
Hello Everyone! It has been awhile since we last posted, parenting takes up a lot of your time. Who would have known? Anyways back when Makenna was about 3 weeks old, Alannah's awesome cousin Jocelin, as a baby shower present came to our house and took pictures of our little princess! So we are proud to present Makenna's first Photo Shoot!
Once again to see a bigger version click Makenna's First Photo Shoot
We are so thankful to Jocelin and as always she did an excellent job. Please take a chance to check out her blog and more of her great work at Photography by Jocelin. And thanks again to her.
We will blog again real soon and give a better update of how things are going. Thanks for staying tuned.
Once again to see a bigger version click Makenna's First Photo Shoot
We are so thankful to Jocelin and as always she did an excellent job. Please take a chance to check out her blog and more of her great work at Photography by Jocelin. And thanks again to her.
We will blog again real soon and give a better update of how things are going. Thanks for staying tuned.
Monday, August 17, 2009
Our First Six Weeks of Parenthood
Greetings to all! It has been a very eventful first six weeks of parenthood. When we last posted Makenna was just a day old on Saturday July 4. We were released Sunday afternoon after Makenna'
s bilirubin was tested, which was found to be high. When we arrived at home a set of billi lights were waiting for us to setup to begin the long process of getting her levels under control. She spent the first week of her life, which was very hard for Mommy and Daddy. They first started us out with a billi-bed and blanket. After a few days, her levels kept rising and they took the bed and gave us a suitcase that had billi lights that was supposed to work better. Her levels peaked at 18 and then fell to 13 after a couple of days. We took Makenna off the lights and levels
started to climb again which we were assured was normal. Sure enough they fell to normal levels and the doctor said we were in the clear. As you can see she got sick of the lights after a while, and started to get a little attitude! (Whittaker Sign)
After she was cleared by the doctor, we packed up and headed to the cabin to get away from the heat and spend some time alone as a family for the first time. We didn't get a whole lot accomplished, just a lot of relaxing and trying to get into a routine with Makenna. Daddy's favorite activity was napping with his little lady.
We spent 11 days at the cabin total, including the 24th of July holiday when the Whittaker's came up with our Aunt Marni and Cousin Shiloh. We enjoyed the holiday weekend and the help from the family. We spent a lot of time going through clothes trying to find some that fit her. We ha
d a lot of clothes that were 0-3 months, but were all to big. The only size that she fits in right now is newborn. Mommy had lots of fun dressing her up and trying them on. Aunt Tristy had bought her a special 24 of July outfit, but it was too big so we had to put this bib on her since it was the most patriotic piece of clothing that would fit her. Shiloh had brought her little puppy Kado, and he fell in love with Makenna. He would not leave her alone, he had to watch over her, kiss her and became quite concerned when she would cry.
Makenna wasn't quite sure what to think about his kisses though. On the other hand, Beagsley, Lance and Heidi's dog, doesn't really have any interest in the babies, either Makenna or his little sister Maggie. They take attention away from him and that bothers him. He sniffs every once in a while, but mainly keeps to himself.
We finally came home on Sunday the 26 and were happy to finally start creating a daily routine at home. For Jason's birthday, we celebrated at home and then went to the Texas Roadhouse for dinner. Later that week, we had a group of our friends come over to the house to celebrate Jason's
26th birthday, and to meet our little girl. Jason had to go back to work on August 3, which was very hard to do after having an entire month off of work. But, it's worth it to provide for his girls and keep Momma at home with baby. So now we are just enjoying being parents and our daughter is very easy to care for and laid back, as you can see. We are going to try harder to blog more often, but it has been difficult to find time when your exhausted and always busy. Thanks again for checking in on our little family. Until next time...Bye-Bye.
s bilirubin was tested, which was found to be high. When we arrived at home a set of billi lights were waiting for us to setup to begin the long process of getting her levels under control. She spent the first week of her life, which was very hard for Mommy and Daddy. They first started us out with a billi-bed and blanket. After a few days, her levels kept rising and they took the bed and gave us a suitcase that had billi lights that was supposed to work better. Her levels peaked at 18 and then fell to 13 after a couple of days. We took Makenna off the lights and levels
started to climb again which we were assured was normal. Sure enough they fell to normal levels and the doctor said we were in the clear. As you can see she got sick of the lights after a while, and started to get a little attitude! (Whittaker Sign)After she was cleared by the doctor, we packed up and headed to the cabin to get away from the heat and spend some time alone as a family for the first time. We didn't get a whole lot accomplished, just a lot of relaxing and trying to get into a routine with Makenna. Daddy's favorite activity was napping with his little lady.
We spent 11 days at the cabin total, including the 24th of July holiday when the Whittaker's came up with our Aunt Marni and Cousin Shiloh. We enjoyed the holiday weekend and the help from the family. We spent a lot of time going through clothes trying to find some that fit her. We ha
d a lot of clothes that were 0-3 months, but were all to big. The only size that she fits in right now is newborn. Mommy had lots of fun dressing her up and trying them on. Aunt Tristy had bought her a special 24 of July outfit, but it was too big so we had to put this bib on her since it was the most patriotic piece of clothing that would fit her. Shiloh had brought her little puppy Kado, and he fell in love with Makenna. He would not leave her alone, he had to watch over her, kiss her and became quite concerned when she would cry.
Makenna wasn't quite sure what to think about his kisses though. On the other hand, Beagsley, Lance and Heidi's dog, doesn't really have any interest in the babies, either Makenna or his little sister Maggie. They take attention away from him and that bothers him. He sniffs every once in a while, but mainly keeps to himself.We finally came home on Sunday the 26 and were happy to finally start creating a daily routine at home. For Jason's birthday, we celebrated at home and then went to the Texas Roadhouse for dinner. Later that week, we had a group of our friends come over to the house to celebrate Jason's
26th birthday, and to meet our little girl. Jason had to go back to work on August 3, which was very hard to do after having an entire month off of work. But, it's worth it to provide for his girls and keep Momma at home with baby. So now we are just enjoying being parents and our daughter is very easy to care for and laid back, as you can see. We are going to try harder to blog more often, but it has been difficult to find time when your exhausted and always busy. Thanks again for checking in on our little family. Until next time...Bye-Bye.
Saturday, July 4, 2009
The Pigeon Has Landed!!!
Greetings to all! We are very proud to introduce, Makenna Marie Whittaker! She made her way into our lives yesterday, July 3, 2009 at around 6:30 p.m. After about 2.5 hours of pushing she felt it was time to meet her Mommy and Daddy. She is 6lbs 13oz, and 18.5 in long, with lots of hair. The color has yet to be determined, although. It appeared to be black, but after a bath it looks more brunette with blonde highlights. She very beautiful and loves to hear the sound of her Daddy's voice. We are all pretty tired, so rather than continue to blog I'll get to the Important stuff...THE PICTURES!
Here is some video of when they were cleaning her up!
And heres another slideshow from Flickr with lots more pictures!
If you want to see the bigger slideshow click on Bigger Slideshow
We are now going to try to get some rest today, feel free to call, we'd love to hear from all of you! We will blog again as soon as Jason can!
Here is some video of when they were cleaning her up!
And heres another slideshow from Flickr with lots more pictures!
If you want to see the bigger slideshow click on Bigger Slideshow
We are now going to try to get some rest today, feel free to call, we'd love to hear from all of you! We will blog again as soon as Jason can!
Friday, July 3, 2009
She's Almost Here!!
This weekend is the Fourth of July, and Jason's family was going to the cabin for the festivities that ensue in Mt. Pleasant. With us being 3 weeks away from our due date we were a little hesitant of getting very far from the hospital. But with Jason having Friday off for the holiday, Thursday night we decided we would spend 2 nights at the cabin and then come back to town to BBQ with Alannah's family Saturday afternoon. So yesterday we packed up and headed to the cabin! We were just getting settled in and watching a movie until the rest of the family arrived, when Alannah started having really strong contractions like never before. Our doctor took us of medication that was controlling her Braxton-Hicks on Friday the 26th of June, and told us when she decides to come, we'll let her. So needless to say these new, never before experienced contractions were quite a surprise. So Jason packed everything back up into the car, along with Alannah and we headed to town. We passed Lance, Heidi and Maggie as they were coming into the Association Property, and minutes later Kenna, Sand, and Grandma Farnworth on the highway.
We arrived at the hospital around 9:00 p.m. only to find out Alannah was dilated to 1.5cm which was the same on Monday at our baby doc appointment. So they said they would observe us for an hour and check again. Our doctor, Dr. Anderson happened to be at the hospital with another delivery, and stopped by to check in. He checked Alannah again to find we were dilated to 2cm. He informed us if in another couple of hours if we had progressed, he was admitting us. Sure enough around 1:00 a.m. they admitted us, and started Alannah's epidural and Oxytocin drip to help with dilation.
After little to no sleep, Alannah was checked this morning at 5:00 a.m. with no progress. Around 8:00 a.m. Dr. Anderson stopped by again and found Alannah to be 3cm, and decided it was time to break her water!!! So now we are patiently waiting, and are expecting to have our little girl today!! Stay tuned and Jason will post again and hopefully have some pictures up! Take care!
We arrived at the hospital around 9:00 p.m. only to find out Alannah was dilated to 1.5cm which was the same on Monday at our baby doc appointment. So they said they would observe us for an hour and check again. Our doctor, Dr. Anderson happened to be at the hospital with another delivery, and stopped by to check in. He checked Alannah again to find we were dilated to 2cm. He informed us if in another couple of hours if we had progressed, he was admitting us. Sure enough around 1:00 a.m. they admitted us, and started Alannah's epidural and Oxytocin drip to help with dilation.
After little to no sleep, Alannah was checked this morning at 5:00 a.m. with no progress. Around 8:00 a.m. Dr. Anderson stopped by again and found Alannah to be 3cm, and decided it was time to break her water!!! So now we are patiently waiting, and are expecting to have our little girl today!! Stay tuned and Jason will post again and hopefully have some pictures up! Take care!
Let's Catch Up!
Hello Everyone! It has been awhile since our last blog, and a lot has happened. First, we finished moving in to our new home in Springville. Echo's family came out from Wisconsin and stayed with us for a little over a week. While here they blessed Audrey, and spent long needed time with our family. Audrey is an adorable girl with wild hair and her Uncle Jason is smitten with her. Nolan is getting bigger and bigger by the day, and is learning more and more by the minute. He is a very smart little guy and very inquisitive, always asking "What's that?" We were very happy to have them. Echo was a godsend. Since Alannah had to quit her job and go on modified bed rest, Echo was a great help around the house. I don't know how she does it. It's har enough taking care of a baby, but a toddler, a husband, a brother and an expectant mother! WOW! We appreciated everything she did for us and miss them very much.
Our little miss personality, Maggie, is doing very well. We're told the nights are getting easier, and we have begun to see her eyes more and more. The first couple of weeks, she was quite the tease with her little eyes. It could be that she realizes how strange our family is or she is just a flirt. But occasionally she would peak through her eyelids to see if it was safe to come out, then quickly close them when she realized the craziness of all of us. She is a little bundle of personality. We recomend taking a look over to Lance and Heidi's blog to see all of the great and funny pictures of Maggie.
Our little miss personality, Maggie, is doing very well. We're told the nights are getting easier, and we have begun to see her eyes more and more. The first couple of weeks, she was quite the tease with her little eyes. It could be that she realizes how strange our family is or she is just a flirt. But occasionally she would peak through her eyelids to see if it was safe to come out, then quickly close them when she realized the craziness of all of us. She is a little bundle of personality. We recomend taking a look over to Lance and Heidi's blog to see all of the great and funny pictures of Maggie.
Thursday, May 14, 2009
Did you say HOMEOWNER?!
Hello everyone! Sorry it has been awhile, but we have been kind of busy. First off, we have been continuing to prepare to the arrival of our little girl Makenna! Our due date continues to be the 24th of July, and it is getting closer. Alannah's belly is continuing to grow, and also beginning to contract on a daily basis. (Don't worry they are just Braxton Hicks) (HOPEFULLY) We have had some recent requests from followers who want to see a recent shot of Alannah's belly. We have been trying to take as many as we can, or as many as Alannah will allow Jason to take, and here is one from today. She is very beautiful. If anyone sees or talks to her please do Jason a favor and tell her how pretty she is. Alannah is getting tired of the insensitive jerks who think it's nice to tell her she looks like she's having twins. I have to assure them that the doctor sees only one baby, and that he says she is the normal size for how far along she is. BUTTHEADS! Unfortunately it is getting harder for her to see her feet. Jason has become a pro at tying another person's shoes.Dateline Wisconsin...Audrey Echo Merrell was born on April 30, 2009. She is a very healthy
little girl, and according to Echo, Girls are easier than Boys...So far. They have been home almost 2 weeks now and things are going well. Nolan is a great helper and also thinks it's funny when Audrey makes use of her diaper. ;) Grandma Kenna arrived last Friday, and has been enjoying every minute of it. She is a great help, and a great playmate for Nolan. Also we would like to wish her a HAPPY BIRTHDAY today! We love her and appreciate all she does for our family. Grandma is scheduled to come home on Saturday the 16. I am sure she will be very sad to leave, however there is a great surprise waiting for her when she gets home.
Dateline Utah...Maggie Sophia Whittaker arrived into this world on Tuesday, May 12, at 1:57 AM. She was 8lbs-10oz. and measured 21 inches long. She is also a very beautiful girl, and she has her Daddy wrapped around her long little finger. As of today Heidi is still in the hospital with Maggie, and are scheduled to come home tomorrow, I believe. So Grandma Whittaker has another bundle of joy waiting for her when she arrives home.
In other news, Jason and Alannah bought a house on their third Anniversary, May 13, 2009. They will be living in Springville in their 4 Bedroom, 2 Bath, 2-Car Garage, and 1 Office home. We are extremely excited since it has been such a long and arduous process. Interestingly enough this house was one of the first homes we looked at, and at the time it was too much money. After looking for many months our Realtor called us and told us that the price had dropped. Feeling bold we offered $8,000 less than what they were asking and were turned down. We figured "Oh well" and kept looking. A week later they called us and told us they would take our offer and pay $4,500 in closing costs. It just goes to show that banks are in too deep with this current market, and people who have saved are at a great position to buy a home. We get our keys tomorrow and will begin the process of cleaning and also painting Makenna's room. Hopefully by next week or weekend we will start moving. So if any of you get bored, give us a call, we could use the help. :) I didn't want to upload to many photos, so once again I have decided to use my handy Flickr account to show a slide show.
If these pictures are too small, click on the link to take you to the full size pics on our Flickr page.
Jason and Alannah's New House
As always thanks for tuning in to see what's happening in our lives. As you can see by our "Blogs We Follow" section we are finding more and more people to stay connected with. If you have a blog and wouldn't mind us taking a peek, please email us or post it in a comment. If not, comment and let us know how things are in your life. Thanks again and we'll shall try to blog soon, that is after we get moved into our place.
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