Whetton Family

2012-02-15T09:36:00.000-07:00

CoCo continues to get more and more fun as she ages. She is such a happy baby. She is so alert and has been since she was born. My favorite thing when she was just weeks old was watching her little eyes quietly scan the room in the middle of the night. People constantly comment on how observant she is and how she seems much older than 3 months. I think it is partly because she holds her head up so well. At her 2 month appointment Dr. Witt said she holds her head up as well as a 4 month old. She is a strong thing and she is a little wiggle worm! I wouldn't be surprised if she starts crawling and walking early because she just wants to get down and play. She rarely holds still and isn't snuggly anymore unless she is tired, darn it.

CoCo is a great sleeper. She has been since she was about 6 weeks old. She usually only wakes up once or twice at night and will go right back to sleep after eating

CoCo loves her dad. I love watching Russ and CoCo's eyes light up when they see each other after a long day of being apart. She will spot her dad and give him the biggest smile

CoCo loves to be around people and when there are people over or we are at a party, she loves to look around at everyone. She thinks she's a somebody.

Liv and CoCo

She has recently found her hands and has started to grab onto things and put them in her mouth. I was hoping to have a binky girl because you can get rid of the binky as she ages, but coming from our family i'm not surprised that she has found her thumb!

Her stats at her 2 month appointment

Length: 23.95 inches, 96 %

Weight: 10.6 pounds, 49 %

Head: 14.95 inches, 34 %

So basically we've got ourselves a long little CoCo bean.

CoCo's Blessing

2012-01-19T16:45:00.001-07:00

We blessed our CoCo on January 8th. Russ gave a nice blessing and the day couldn't have been more perfect. It was beautiful outside after a snowstorm the day before.

After sacrament meeting this cute older woman told us she and her daughter-in-law took notes during the blessing and she would type it up for us to have. I'm so excited to have this and for CoCo to have it to read when she is older. After the blessing our family and friends joined us for a lunch at my grandma's house. It really was a great day for our little coco bean.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

2012-01-03T20:09:00.000-07:00

I love the holiday season and having CoCo here to celebrate with us made it extra special. My favorite part of the season is getting together with family, we have amazing families! CoCo loved all the parties we went to and she had a hard time sleeping during them, she just didn't want to miss a thing!

At Western Gardens picking out our Christmas tree

Loves to play with her dad

We've had very little snow this year but it made going to Gardener Village very nice

Playing Minute to Win It at the Whetton/White Christmas party

CoCo was giggling hard at these cute girls

Christmas morning with her loot

This year my sisters and I surprised my parents with a couple suites at the Marriott downtown to celebrate Hazel's 1st birthday and celebrate Christmas together as a family. We ate a yummy dinner in the hotel, shed some tears watching a dvd Adair put together in honor of Hazel, walked to Temple Square to see the lights, ate my mom's delicious traditional Oklahoma Brunch, opened presents and ice skated at the Gallivan Center. We had a great time together as a family. This year my parents gave us each snowshoes for Christmas, now if we can just get some snow so we can use them!

All bundled up

The whole gang

Maggie and CoCo. The other day she said to me, "CoCo is going to be my friend forever" Lucky CoCo to have such a sweet cousin!

The girls in our Christmas jammies

CoCo with uncle Greg

Love my sisters!

First Photo Shoot

2012-01-03T15:14:00.001-07:00

Bella Baby did a great job capturing CoCo's beauty during her first photo shoot in the hospital. These are some of my favorites...

The Birth Story

2012-01-03T14:00:00.000-07:00

I started having regular contractions 2 nights before CoCo was born. They woke me up around midnight and were fairly strong, however, I knew they weren't strong enough or close enough together. I was up all night just waiting for them to get stronger, never happened. The following day they continued but weren't regular yet. The next night I woke up around 2 a.m. and they were worse and closer together, about every 7-8 minutes. Russ and I debated whether to go in to the hospital or not and we decided we would go in around 5:00 if they continued. We went in and the nurse checked me and I was only dilated to a 2 and 60% effaced. The baby and I were monitored for an hour and a half and after no progress they told us I was in early labor and sent us home. That day the contractions continued but never grew stronger. The night before she was born is when they really started to increase in intensity. I again awoke in the middle of the night with excruciating pain about every 5 minutes. I thought it was time but fear of being sent home again we waited and timed them for a couple hours before I said enough is enough and we packed the car and headed back to the hospital.

I will never forget the drive there, it was so peaceful (in between the contractions of course) it was snowing hard and Christmas music was playing in the background. I was so excited knowing I was going to meet this baby soon.

Well, we arrived at IMC at around 5:00 am and I was dilated to a 6 or 7 and 100% effaced. I was so relieved I was that far along and wasn't' going to be sent home again. They quickly gave me the epidural which was so nice and I was able to relax and enjoy the labor.

I couldn't stop shivering after the epidural

Russ called our families and told them baby CoCo would be arriving shortly. The nurse had me start pushing around 9:00 a.m. without the doctor there, which made me a bit nervous. She realized the baby was coming very soon and called the doctor. I quit pushing until she arrived. The on call doctor arrived around 9:45 as my OBGYN was out of town, but we loved Dr. Heber, she was great. About 30 minutes of pushing later our daughter arrived safe and sound. I didn't get to hold her right away because she swallowed some fluid during the delivery and they were trying to get it out of her lungs.

They had to call in the NICU nurse to help, this made me very anxious but watching as Russ was right by her side with her made me feel better.

After they got most the fluid out of her lungs Russ brought her to me and I was so relieved she was with us safe and sound. It was a moment I will always remember. I finally got to hold her and I was at peace.

A few family members came into the delivery room anxious to meet CoCo. Then we were wheeled up to our room where we spent the next couple days surrounded by family and friends coming to meet little Cosette. This is one of the greatest blessings and one I am so grateful to have experienced. CoCo brings the sweetest spirit into our home and we couldn't have asked for a more beautiful baby we love her more than anything else!

The happy grandparents

Grandma Holly

Sisters

CoCo's birthday cake from great aunt Carey

Aunt Annie

Grandpa Dave

Uncle Ryan and Markel

Aunt Katie and uncle Greg

Aunt Angie and uncle Colton

Maddie and Carey

Cousins Elsie and Tucker

Sleeping with dad

Getting ready to go home

Our Favorite nurse Jenae, she was so good to us and made our hospital experience a great one! I actually drive past the hospital and miss being there.

Pleased to meet you

2011-11-09T11:40:00.006-07:00

Cosette Copley Whetton

Born November 5, 2011 at 10:13 AM

8 lbs 3 oz 20.5 inches

Meeting her for the first time

She looks just like her dad

Only 6 more weeks!

2011-09-28T23:06:00.004-06:00

I can't believe we only have 6 more weeks until we get to meet our little girl. I am so excited, I feel great and absolutely love being pregnant!
34 weeks

30 weeks

2011-09-11T17:20:00.007-06:00

Here we are at 30 weeks. I'm still feeling good overall, she just likes to kick me in the right ribs-making me very uncomfortable at times. This pregnancy has been going by so fast and I am grateful to have felt so good throughout. I've started going to the doctor every 2 weeks and everything continues to look great, the amniotic fluid is better at around a 10. I love feeling her kick and hiccup, she has the hiccups all the time, at least 3 or 4 times a day. I can't wait to meet her in a short 8 weeks or so!!!

Look Who is Cancer Free!

2011-09-11T17:05:00.000-06:00

My dad is one of the greatest people I know, he may be the greatest! Those of you who know him know how kind, humble, spiritual, and soft spoken he is and not to mention he's a great golfer! For these reasons and many more it was heart wrenching learning he had a high grade bladder cancer a few months ago. The thought of losing him devastated me and I will never forget the day I found out about the cancer, you can't help but think of the worst in these kinds of situations.
After deliberating whether to remove his bladder or try chemo treatments first, my parents and Dr. Matern decided to go with the more conservative route and try the chemo therapy. After 6 weeks of treatments and 6 weeks of waiting while his bladder healed to see if the chemo did it's job I am so happy to announce that it did! They didn't find any new cancer cells in his bladder and he will just have to have maintenance chemo for the next few years. Our family couldn't be happier at the great news, so we had to celebrate! Adair threw my dad a "Cancer free" party, it was so fun celebrating the wonderful news with those I love!
My cute parents

5 Years and Counting!

2011-09-11T16:35:00.017-06:00

I can't believe Russ and I have been married for 5 years already. Each year of marriage just seems to get better and better and we are so looking forward to the next adventure in our lives of being parents! Russ had the night of our anniversary (August 31) all planned out. It was a beautiful night, we walked around the temple then headed up to The Roof, one of our favorite restaurants--Their prime rib, shrimp, salads, soup, and desserts are to die for and it is all you can eat, which was wonderful being pregnant :) It was so great sitting near the window overlooking the Salt Lake temple and amazing sunset. I enjoyed the great conversations we had together and it couldn't have been a better night.

Chocolate decadence... My favorite

When we got home I found this sitting on our table, an exact replica of our wedding cake mini version. The cake was even the exact flavors from our wedding, I loved it!

Car Accidents

2011-09-11T15:56:00.017-06:00

Our poor little Coco bean has now been in 2 car accidents while in utero. The first wasn't a big deal and neither of us felt much impact, it happened a couple months ago, this teenage girl made an illegal U turn on 39th south and she hit my rear bumper.
The next one was a lot scarier. August 27th Russ and I spent the day at IMC. That morning we had a birthing class from 9-1:00, had a yummy lunch at Moochies, then headed up to the U to get football tickets for the Montana State game. On our way at the intersection of 800 south and 500 east a woman heading north on 5th east ran a red light at a fast speed probably 50 mph, as we were approaching the intersection I saw the van in the corner of my eye and then everything happened so quickly. We t-boned her which sent her van almost crashing into Rico restaurant and our car spun around. I will never forget the noise, the smell of the airbags and the impact of the accident, it was so scary. I quickly jumped out of the car and was in pain on the left side of my stomach, I immediately thought of the worst and held my stomach hoping our baby wasn't hurt from the accident.
There were suddenly 4 or 5 fire trucks, 5 ambulances, and many police cars surrounding us. EMT's checked me out and I looked ok but they recommended I go straight to the ER to get the baby checked. They recommended I go by ambulance but my mom was on her way and I figured she could take us. We were headed back to IMC, only this time in not so good of spirits. They checked me in and had me wheel chaired to labor and delivery where they monitored the baby for the next 5 hours. Luckily the baby was fine and it didn't seem to impact her, I went in for a non stress test the following Monday to make sure she was still okay a couple days following the accident. Russ and I are so grateful we are all safe, it could have been a lot worse if we were the ones t-boned by the van, all the people in the other car were taken by ambulance.
This accident has made me a much more cautious driver and I approach intersections with fear, slowing down making sure others are obeying the law.

It's a GIRL!

2011-07-26T10:55:00.010-06:00

We found out May 10th we are having a little girl. We couldn't be happier!
14 weeks

21 weeks

At our ultrasound appointment we found out my fluid is in the low normal range(10) so we had a follow up appointment a month later to check the level again, it was even lower (8.8). My doctor isn't too worried about it, I just need to drink more water. The baby is measuring normal and everything else looks good.I am feeling great so far other than being extremely hot all the time from this 90 plus degree weather. Russ and I love feeling her kick, she is very active at night, it is making this whole thing feel more real to us!
Here is the 24 week baby bump

Coming on or around (hopefully on!) 11-11-2011...

2011-04-20T13:26:00.004-06:00

11 weeks

We are very excited for this new chapter in our lives and can not wait to meet this little one in November. I am 12 weeks along and due 11-11-11. The day Russ and I found out I was pregnant we were thrilled yet very anxious because of our previous miscarriage in December. However, thanks to the EAGeR (the effects of asprin in gestation & reproduction) study I am involved in we were able to have an early ultrasound at 6 weeks to ease our nerves a bit. We saw the tiny little baby that looked more like a pea with a heart beat, we both had tears of joy when we saw and heard that little heartbeat.
6 weeks
4 weeks later on April 14th we had our first prenatal appointment where again we were able to see and hear the heart beat and see that little pea grow and transform into a baby. We wanted to wait until after our first appointment just to get out of the higher likelihood of miscarriage stage to tell everyone, although I did tell my sisters and a couple friends before :)
My family got together to give my dad a priesthood blessing for his surgery that evening so we decided it would be a good time to tell them. I'm so happy we told them that evening, it was a special night witnessing a very nice blessing and presenting my family with some good news that we all needed to hear after a tough week of learning my dad has bladder cancer.
Here is how we told them, we put together an easter basket full of plastic eggs numbered and we had them open them in order. Each egg had one word in it which read: THERE WILL BE A SURPRISE COMING ON: 11-11-11 written on a chocolate egg then the last egg had the picture of the ultrasound in it. Their faces lit up when they opened it, it was so much fun to tell them knowing everything was well with the baby. We told the Whetton's the following Sunday the same way, we drove up to Liberty and put the basket on their front porch and rang the doorbell and ran and hid in the garage, when we heard Janet say coming 11-11-11 we went in and said surprise! Unfortunately, Russ' dad wasn't there when we told them but Janet was so excited she ran to us and gave us both a hug and kiss. We are both so blessed to have great families who love and support us, this baby will be loved by all of them I'm sure.

Overall I've been feeling pretty well. I was very nauseous from week 6 to week 8, but since then the nausea comes and goes and is worse in the evening. Besides that and feeling tired all day I'm feeling well.
We wish we could be patient to wait until the delivery to find out the sex of the baby, that makes the delivery so much more fun! But we are both too impatient and I'm a planner and like to have things ready to go so we will be finding out what we will be having in a few weeks. I think Russ is rooting for a little football player and I honestly don't care as long as they are healthy and well.

4 years together!

2010-08-31T11:59:00.002-06:00

Russ and I were married four years ago. Russ is a very easy and fun guy to be married to and every year together gets better and better. I remember the day so well. It was a warm sunny day (despite the weather report called for rain), we married in the Salt Lake Temple, garden dinner and reception in my grandparent's beautiful yard with our family and friends surrounding us, and our first night at the Grand America Hotel. It was the perfect day.

Lake Powell

2010-08-05T17:04:00.024-06:00

We just returned home from the most fun vacation to Lake Powell. It was my first time going and I am already in love. It was so beautiful and fun to be there with my siblings, we had a great time!

Love to wakeboard!

Me and my nan

I caught us a delicious bass for dinner one night :)

Cliff jumping

Tory and Russ jumping off an extremely high cliff

and this is what happened to Russ...

Will caught on pretty fast

I love my family :)

Bear Lake for the 4th

2010-07-22T23:11:00.010-06:00

We celebrated the 4th of July at Bear Lake this year. I love it there, it is always so relaxing and a fun time to spend with family. It was pretty low key this year, just Russ' immediate family came. Angie introduced us to our new favorite card game, Hand 'n Foot... We love it and have been playing it almost every night since we've been home :)

Bloomington Lake

We did it!!!

2010-04-18T11:42:00.016-06:00

Yesterday Adair and I ran the SLC 1/2 marathon. I finished in 1 hr 44 min, which was 24th in my age group. It was so fun and I felt great the whole time! I think the crowd all along the route and my family waiting for me at the finish line was a huge motivator. This was my first race, but it's not going to be my last!

Last leg of the race

Russ made this clever poster for me, haha

Katie came up from Cedar City to cheer us on, she and my mom made us these cute posters and necklaces

Good job Dairsy, thanks for training with me. I couldn't have done it without your motivation!

V-Day

2010-02-22T20:55:00.007-07:00

Thanks to my mother-in-law Russ and I were able to spend the night in Eden at the Red Moose Lodge on Valentines day. It was a nice little break and so great to spend time together! We relaxed in the Jacuzzi, slept in, went to lunch at The Sonora Grill, and saw Valentines Day. Russ gave me and himself new Blackberry storms, good thing he got himself a gift because all he received from me was a massage.
I woke up to these beautiful gerbera daisies Valentines Day

My birthday

2010-02-22T20:28:00.013-07:00

I just finished two exams today which relieved much anxiety I have been feeling lately. When I wasn't at work or in class, my time was spent at the library for hours on end studying. So, I have a little time to catch up on my blog.
We celebrated my 23rd birthday January 5th by having some tasty sushi at Happy Sumo then a went to cheer on the Jazz from the upper bowl. Russ did very well this year, he spoiled me with a gift card to Forever 21, awesome bubble bath, the movie Mama Mia and breakfast in bed!! I'm a lucky girl to have such a great guy in my life who is so good to me, love him!

Sushi Night

2010-01-03T17:46:00.006-07:00

Russ gave me all the essentials to make sushi for Christmas and last night we decided to try them out. It was a bit time consuming, but we made some pretty tasty california rolls!

Fun times with friends

2010-01-03T17:34:00.005-07:00

The day after Christmas we got together in Midway to spend time with our friends. Josh and Maddi were in town and we all got together at Ralph and Heidi's beautiful home. It was so great to see everyone, we always have fun when we all get together!
Courtney and Haley's adorable baby, Liberty

Adam, Shalise, Courtney, Haley, Josh, Maddi, Russ, Liz

Why I love Christmas...

2009-12-26T15:47:00.045-07:00

My sweet mom makes Christmas so special, especially this year. She made each of us a quilt of our own that I am in love with!

The surprises... We decided my mom needed a quilt of her own, so my sisters and I secretly made one for her

My grandma also surprised all the girls with aprons she made, thanks grandma I love my new apron!

We get new, cute jammies

We get to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ

I get to spend extra time with my cute Russ

The time spent with family

Christmas morning at mom and dad's house

I get to see my adorable neice and nephews get excited about opening and playing with gifts

and sometimes a little overwhelmed!

HaPpY tO yOu!

2009-11-09T19:43:00.011-07:00

Today is Russ' 25th birthday! To celebrate I surprised Russ and took him to Logan for the weekend. It was a nice little get-a-way. We went and saw A Christmas Carol, so good. Went to dinner at Le Nonne, a fantastic authentic Italian restaurant, one of our new favorites. We went hot tubbing at the hotel and slept in until 10:00, which we never get to do. It was a fabulous weekend. I love you sweetie, happy birthday!

I got him Jazz tickets which came with a sweet canvas poster of the tip off

Probably his favorite weekend activity was hunting with Zach and Courtney, this is the pheasant we will be enjoying for dinner tomorrow night, yummy!!!

I LoVe My FaMiLy :)

2009-10-11T14:36:00.020-06:00

I have the best in-laws. I am so lucky to have such a fun family on both sides. It is a rarity to love your in-laws, but I love all of them! We do a lot of fun things together. We recently hiked up to the peak of Ben Lomond, it was beautiful. We also had family pictures taken for the first time since our and Angie and Colton's weddings. I just love when we all get together, there is never dull moment in this family and I love it!

Beautiful Aspen Grove

2009-09-27T21:38:00.013-06:00

My cute mom signed us up for a little marriage getaway to Aspen Grove. The weekend was full of a few wonderful seminars, tennis, ping pong, mini golf, frisbee golf, glow in the dark basketball, a beautiful hike to Stewart Falls, staying up til 2 am with new friends, and dinner in Sundance. It was so great to spend a whole weekend with each other. Thanks mom and dad, we had a great time!

Oktoberfest

2009-09-27T21:25:00.014-06:00

2009-09-18T12:04:00.005-06:00

I've been a terrible blogger lately and because this is really my only form of a journal, I must update at least just for myself. So, we finally sold our house in June and are back on our own again, ahh we love it :) In July we spent the 4th in Park City, just the two of us. The 24th was spent in Bear Lake with the Whettons, we love our annual get away to Bear Lake, it's always a good time! Russ and I also did a little camping this summer. We found a perfect spot up American Fork canyon. Funny story, the last time we went up we were the only ones there and were a bit scared of the unknown in the forest and actually almost left to get a hotel, don't worry we stuck it out and had a great time. We are no longer Wildcats... we are Utes! Well I am anyway, Russ will join me next year. I am LOVING school. I've found a love of learning and just hope that it stays with me the next couple of years! My cute husband planned a fun little weekend to celebrate our 3 years together. We played frisbee golf, ate at our favorite, Tepanyaki, had ice cream by the fountain at Gateway and ended the night staying at Hotel Monaco followed by breakfast at Farmers Market. We are so excited to see what the future brings us. We are very happy and life is good. I just wish I had more time to spend with my husband.

WaLdO tHe WilDcAt...

2009-02-10T17:40:00.014-07:00

A couple weeks ago we went up to Ogden and went out to dinner with my in-laws then to a Weber State basketball game and who did we find? Russ' good friend who is the mascot at the school. If you know him, you know he makes the best mascot ever!
On the train back to Salt Lake

25 things...

2009-01-30T13:29:00.026-07:00

I was recently tagged on facebook to list 25 random things about myself, and thought I haven't posted for a while, this could be a fun one. I know a lot of people have their 100 list, but I just don't think I could come up with 100 interesting things about me. So here goes...

1. My favorite season of all is spring

2. I love to snowboard but want to learn how to ski again- haven't since I was like 5 years old

3. I'm not a picky person and will eat/try almost anything- I love food!
4. I get very bored easily and can't stay at home all day or I go crazy
5. I absolutely love chocolate and eat way too much of it

6. I can't wait to have a baby, but am terrified at the same time- the pregnancy, the labor, the weight gain, a child that is with you forever- kind of freaks me out a bit
7. I love my husband and think he is the most gorgeous guy ever

8. I love to travel and want to tour Europe someday
9. I crave being at the ocean and would love to own a beach house someday

10. I hate being at the mall longer than an hour
11. I love road trips and would actually prefer driving over flying
12. I love my niece and nephews

13. My best friends and the people I have the most fun with are my mom and sisters

14. I got married at the young age of 19, and had a very rough first year of marriage- But love it now
15. I have recently learned to love working out- the treadmill is possibly the greatest invention yet

16. I love children and have been told I am very good with them
17. I love my religion and it brings me much happiness
18. I actually miss being in high school
19. I love haagen-Dazs coffee ice cream and can eat a whole lot of it

20. I love learning new things
21. I have found a true love for reading

22. I obsess over silly things and am a big time worrier- I worry about things I can't control and it drives me and my husband crazy
23. I love living in Utah but want to live in California one day- mainly for the ocean and weather
24. I can't wait to own a home, again

25. I love meeting and learning about new people

So Long Home Abstract...

2009-01-09T10:03:00.003-07:00

Today is my last day at Home Abstract and Title Company. I've been here over 2 years, i've learned a lot and am sad to leave. However, I am excited to start babysitting again, after all that's where my true love is, plus it will be fun to live closer to my family!

LoSt BeT

2009-01-07T10:34:00.007-07:00

Russ and William made a little bet on who would win the sugar bowl. If Utah won Will had to shave his head and if Alabama won Russ had to. Well Utah killed em and I got to do the honors... Go Utes!

OnE yEaR oLdEr

2009-01-07T10:21:00.000-07:00

I love this time of year, it gives me a refreshing feeling knowing I can start over and make new goals for a brand new year. This time of year is especially fun for me because my birthday is just 11 days after Christmas. To celebrate my 22nd birthday my mom, sisters and I went to lunch at Trio and then went to get some tasty treats at Gournamdise Bakery. Later that night Russ and I went on a fun date to Akasaka Sushi and to see Marley and Me, I loved it. My mom and sisters gave me some fun work out accessories and Russ gave me a cute workout outfit and an ipod shuffle. With all that and grandma's treadmill I'm all ready for new years resolution number one-To get in shape!

Thanksgiving in Baker, CA

2008-12-09T16:17:00.003-07:00

My family planned a trip to Irvine, CA for Will's soccer games and I thought, hey since Russ is working that whole weekend I might as well tag along for the Ride. We left Wednesday, November 26Th in my mom's mini van that has nearly 200,000 miles on it, not a good idea.

We stopped in Vegas to split up the drive and stayed at the Venetian. After a fabulous dinner at the Grand Lux Cafe we walked from the North end all the way to the South end of the strip to go see the Human Body Exhibit which was so awesome!

Everything was going great until we were headed to California the next day (Thanksgiving). About 70 miles out of Vegas the car started making a funny noise and was overheating, so we pulled off to the side of the road and weren't sure what to do. Will suggested we say a prayer, and I think that's the reason he was the lucky one who got to skip our lovely Baker Thanksgiving. He called is friend who also was driving and just so happened to be right where we were, right when he asked where they were on their road trip they spotted our broken down van off the side of the road and pulled over to pick Will up; now what are the chances of that?! My mom was very relieved because we ended up missing 2 of the 3 games they played and he is the teams' keeper, so his coach would've been pretty upset if he missed those games.
Getting Fixed

Well my dad called AAA and we were towed to Baker, CA. Luckily the mechanic was open Thanksgiving, I guess when you live where you work you are open everyday of the year. Turns out the water pump was broken and he had to order the part from Barstow and wouldn't be there until the next day, so we were spending Thanksgiving in Baker, CA. If any of you have been there you know there's not much, with the population being a whopping 390! So we checked into the Bun Boy Motel, check in was at the gas station and we knew it was a bad sign when they said, "You have exactly 15 minutes to get a refund if you don't like your room" and a sign on the door that said "Please keep back door shut, snake spotted" It wasn't the best, but we had no other options. After the very tempting offer the mechanic gave us to eat at a community Thanksgiving dinner at a gas station parking lot, we ate our Thanksgiving dinner at Big Boys. Yes, we had hamburgers, fries, and shakes they did however have pumpkin pie so we sort of felt in the spirit of Thanksgiving.
Lovely Baker, CA

Big Boys!

The Room...

We all thought this was so funny... Except Annie!

Hanging out at Alien Fresh Jerky to kill some time...

What a glorious sight... Our running van!

Well 28 hours in Baker (which felt like days) $475.00+ later we were on the road to CA. We had to stop in Barstow, a measly 60 miles out of Baker to eat at In-n-Out and to thank them for our wonderful new water pump!
Go Will!

Swimming

We finally made it to our hotel and were stoked to be at a nice hotel where we could go swimming and hot tubbing! The next morning we headed to Will's final game, which sadly they lost. After we went to Downtown Disney to see their famous Christmas decorations and to see Twilight, second time for me. We went to Newport beach and our favorite restaurant The Crab Cooker. It ended up being a pretty fun trip despite our little detour we had to take there in the middle of our vacation. We all just laughed about it the whole time.
Downtown Disney

tWiLiGhT

2008-11-22T08:05:00.000-07:00

I saw Twilight last night and LOVED it, the characters were exactly the way I pictured them to look like and Edward.... Ahhh I'm so in love!

HaPpY hAlLoWeEn!

2008-11-02T10:49:00.002-07:00

I love Halloween, it is one of my favorite holidays. I think I get it from my mom she goes all out and outdoes herself every year. This year was no exception! She had us all over every Friday night in October for "Freaky Friday" we'd have fun Halloween food and watch spooky movies.
Billy's Birthday party

The mummy hot dogs and bat wing chips and dip

Every Halloween night we go over to my parents house and eat my mom's yummy chili and apple cider and eat lots of candy Halloween candy!
Here's everyone who dressed up...
Gordon the lobster

William the grandma who lost her puppy

Charlie was Nemo

Maggie was squirt

Katie and I were Cindy Lou Who

Adriane made an awesome Sarah Palin

And Annie was an eighties girl which totally fit her!

DuKe UnIvErSiTy

2008-11-02T10:30:00.001-07:00

My parents just got back from a wonderful vacation back east. They got to go to Palmyra, NY to see many amazing sights. They also went to North Carolina where my dad played and did really well in the PGA McGladrey tournament at Pinehurst. Russ told them they had to go visit Duke University while they were there for him. He LOVES this school and is a big fan of their basketball team. Well they did and brought back tons of stuff for him, he was stoked!
The Duke Chapel

Russ and all his Duke goodies

8 ThInGs...

2008-11-02T09:48:00.000-07:00

8 Shows I like to watch:
1. Friends
2. Jon and Kate plus 8
3. 17 Kids and Counting
4. 30 Minute Meals
5. American Idol
6. Baby Story
7. Full House
8. Fox 13

8 Things that happened yesterday:
1. Slept over at my parents house
2. Jogged to Gardener Village with Katie
3. Played with Gordon
4. Went to the mall with my mom, Katie, Age and Gordon
5. Bought Maggie a present
6. Watched Pirates with Katie
7. Laughed so hard at my mom because we were all very punchy last night!
8. Waited for Russ to get off work

8 Favorite Places to Eat:
1. Noodles and Co.
2. Cafe Rio/Costa Vida
3. Molca Salsa
4. Tepanyaki
5. The Roof
6. The Olive Garden
7. Happy Sumo
8. The Sky Box

8 Things I'm Looking Forward To:
1. Selling our house
2. Moving to SLC
3. Having a baby
4. Russ being done with school
5. Going to California over Thanksgiving
6. The semester being over
7. When we can buy a house
8. For Christmas time!

8 Things on my Wish List
1. Have good kids who love their mommy
2. Be a good parent
3. Win the lottery
4. Give some of it to my parents
5. The next president will be a good one
6. Adair and Billy don't move away
7. Stable economy
8. Own a home

8 People I Tag
1. Leah
2. Maddi
3. Whitney
4. Natalie
5. Mom
6. Paige
7. Sarah
8. Stephanie

I'm AdDiCtEd...

2008-10-09T09:34:00.003-06:00

Yes, it is true I love Jon and Kate Plus 8! I get depressed watching the debates or the news of what's going on in this scary world we live in, so I flip on Jon and Kate Plus 8 and feel so much better. I think they are the cutest family and surprisingly watching it really makes me want a family (maybe not sextuplets, I'd rather they come one at a time). Russ likes it too, though he might not admit it he really does! We can sit there together and watch episode after episode and never get bored.

Family Pictures

2008-10-05T13:27:00.009-06:00

The DeSantis familyMom and Dad

The boys

Charlie
Maggie

Baby Gordon

The girls

Me and Russ

LiFe

2008-10-02T10:42:00.007-06:00

Life is a funny thing. One moment our life is going well, everything is just the way we want it to be (for the most part) and then all of the sudden my husband loses his job and the next day gets called as the Young Mens President? We definitely didn't see either of those coming our way. Though it's been tough and kind of scary, Russ still is unemployed and hasn't heard back from a couple jobs he is hoping for, we both really feel at peace and know that everything will work out for the better. This really is a learning experience for me and has forced me to grow and be patient, those who know me know that I am not the most patient person in the world and I'm a big worrier. But I really am not worried because I know everything happens for a reason and sometimes trials don't seem fair or come at a very convenient time, but we are trying our best and that's all the Lord expects from us. It's funny we've really grown closer to each other the past couple of weeks and I feel like we have a much stronger relationship. Most importantly we have grown a lot closer to our Heavenly Father and have found a real love of going to the temple. It's amazing what joy this gospel brings into our lives, even when life get a little rocky. We love this gospel and we know because we are striving to live the best lives we can, we will be blessed for of it.

AnNiVeRsArY NuMbEr TwO

2008-09-09T13:39:00.024-06:00

Can you believe it? We've been married for two whole years! It's a little late, our anniversary was on August 31st, but I've been so busy lately with school starting up again. To celebrate our wonderful two years together Russ took me up to Park City on a shopping spree at the outlet mall, what a nice husband huh?! He had a reservation to The Roof for the night, but I was feeling yucky all day and the last thing I wanted was an all you can eat buffet. I was so bummed I love that place, their crème brûlée... mmm so good! So, we settled with Joe's Crab Shack and the movie "The House Bunny" we both actually kinda liked it, it was really funny and entertaining! I'm so lucky to be married to Russ, he's such a fun and loving husband to me. I couldn't ask for anyone better.

SwEeT bAbY GoRdOn

2008-08-13T17:51:00.002-06:00

Adriane and Tory welcomed their first baby on 8-8-08 (His exact due date!) Gordon Hugh Gatrell weighed 7 lbs 4 oz and was born just in time at 10:54 PM...Grandma Holly was especially excited he was born on this fun date. He is a yummy little thing and looks just like Age. It's so fun that my sisters are having babies. There is nothing like being an aunt, I absolutely love it. Congratulations Age and Tor, you will be great parents to your sweet little boy!

Fishin' in the Uintahs

2008-08-03T21:33:00.003-06:00

This weekend we camped and fished near the Stateline Reservoir in the Uintah Mountains with Troy and Janet. I learned to really love fishing on this camping trip. I even got brave enough to hold the fish and was able to take out the hook all by myself. Russ was especially happy I learned to do that, so he could just worry about his own fish. I think we caught about 60 fish between the 4 of us! We mainly stayed around Stateline but we did try fishing in a river that was close by, not much luck though, Russ and Troy were the only ones who caught any.

What a fun camping trip. It was so fun to spend time with Janet and Troy, I am a lucky girl to have such wonderful in-laws. Also, to spend time with my great husband, he is such a sweetheart!

North Fork Park

2008-07-26T15:42:00.014-06:00

My in-laws live in a beautiful area up in the mountains. They invited us to go on a little hike with them a couple weeks ago. We came upon this lake that Russ and all his friends used to swim in, they made a rope swing like ten years ago and it was still there! So, of course Russ and Sean had to try it out.

Take me out to the ball game!

2008-07-26T15:34:00.005-06:00

Since our whole family was out of town this week Age, Tory, Russ and I got together for the 24th and went to the Salt Lake Bees game. We had a good time eating our hot dogs and nachos, watching the game from the grass and going out onto the field to watch some awesome fireworks.

TaGgEd

2008-07-10T15:30:00.000-06:00

10 Years Ago: I was 11, just moved back from living in Ephraim for 2 years, in 6th grade and in a brand new elementary school. I met my best friend Laura, and loved living in Draper!
5 Years Ago: I was STOKED about turning 16 so I could drive, date, and get a job (yes I was excited to work!) I worked at Dig It with my sister Adair and loved it. I was a sophomore at Alta and that was by far my favorite year of high school. 16 was a good year for me!
Yesterday: I worked all day and then was home alone doing laundry, and attempted to go jogging at 7:00 p.m. while it was 90 degrees outside ( I don't recommend that) while Russ was fishing all night with my grandpa, uncle Patrick, cousin Hollister, and bro-in-law Tory. I also went on a walk with Leah and had some fantastic girl talk!
5 Favorite Snacks: ICE CREAM (I agree Mindy), chips and salsa/guacamole, fruit, string cheese, and licorice.
5 Favorite Books: The Book of Mormon, Twilight, Lucia Lucia, The Kite Runner, and any childrens books, I love them!
5 Favorite Places to Run Away To: California, my house after a long day at work, the mountains, Bear Lake, and the beach!
5 Bad Habits: Judging people, gossiping, biting my fingernails when I'm nervous, obsessing over silly things, and one other thing that is too embarrassing to share with you all... :)
5 Pet Peeves: Liars, rude people, smoking in public, not listening, and bad customer service.
5 Famous (well-known) People I Want To Meet: Emma and Joseph Smith, President Hinckley, the President of the U.S., and Brigham Young (I'm obviously not that into meeting celebrities.)

I tag: Adair, Adriane, Leah, and both Maddies

BeAr LaKe

2008-07-09T10:27:00.003-06:00

We had an awesome 4th of July weekend up at Bear Lake! We played on the beach, swam, went four wheeling, watched fireworks, ate lots of good food, played cards, the boys went golfing, we took a tour through the Minnetonka Cave, and had some good quality time spent with our family and friends!

My little niece and nephew Charlie and Maggie

Dad (the birthday boy) and Maggie

Katie, Maggs, Mom and Me

Katie, Adair and me

The Whetton Family

My cute friend Leah

My family (except Agey, we missed you!)
The whole crew at the entrance to the cave

4Th Of JuLy

2008-07-03T14:52:00.012-06:00

This has to be one of my favorite holidays by far! Every year my family does the traditional wake up at 6 in the morning to eat breakfast in the park (we always were first in line though!), wearing our GINORMOUS Old Navy 4th of July t-shirts, watching the fun little parade (that we were in every year when we were younger) go down my grandparents' street, going swimming all day with the Lamberts and Maceys, and then ending the night eating KFC and watching fireworks usually at Sugarhouse park. However, Russ and I won't be doing all that this year, instead we will be up at Bear Lake with Russ's family for the 4th, and who needs professional fireworks when we've got family that lives in Wyoming?! It will be fun with all his cousins and some of our friends up there and Saturday my family will come up and join us. I am a little bit sad though, to break our fun tradition we've kept for all these years!

Mormon Miracle Pageant

2008-06-16T22:25:00.006-06:00

Last weekend Russ and I drove down to Manti to get away for the weekend. We camped at the Temple Hill Resort. We swam in the pool at the campground which was so nice because of the almost 90 degree weather! We drove passed my old house in Ephraim, ate at Fat Jacks (now Roy's) walked around the little craft fair they had, got some tasty ice cream and ended the night watching the Mormon Miracle Pageant. It was so neat to watch, we've been to the pageant before, but this time it was a different feeling we both felt the spirit so strongly!

GoOdByE...

2008-06-02T14:22:00.006-06:00

Russ and I are so lucky to have such great friends and neighbors! This weekend was full of friend nights. Friday night we had Leah, Cameron, and Issaiah, and Jessi and Ty over for a last get together before Jessi and Ty move to Oregon. We had a little homemade cafe rio, the boys played golf outside while Leah, Jessi and I had a little girl talk! We also played a fun game of Worst Case Scenario.

Saturday night we went to a BBQ at our friends Aaron and Rachael's house. There were a bunch of people over and it was so fun to talk and get to know all of them. The boys played basketball, while the girls all talked and watched the cute little ones run around.

Russ has some really good friends from jr. high and high school. They've all been very close since and have all married very nice, cute girls. One couple, Josh and Maddi are moving to Pennsylvania to go to school so Sunday night we had a farewell party for them at Adam and Shalise's new house. We will miss you guys so much, and wish you the best of luck in Pennsylvania!

RusS's NeW ObSeSsiOn...

2008-05-20T09:21:00.009-06:00

Is GOLF! Yes he is officially obsessed. In one day he played 27 holes! He got up early Saturday morning and played 9 holes with his dad at The Barn and then decided he wanted more and drove down to Salt Lake to play another 18 holes at River Oaks with Tory. I think those two want to take after their father-in-law and go pro, so they're getting all the practice they can. So if anyone feels like golfing, call Russ, he will drop everything (including spending time with his wife) and go!

MoNarCh oF ThE SeAs

2008-05-16T11:05:00.019-06:00

Tory, Adriane, Russ and I all took a road trip to California Sunday, May 4th where we would all venture out on our very first cruise together. When we got in to LA we found the nearest hotel we could find to where our port was.
We boarded the ship around noon the following morning and were surprised to find a large buffet of food waiting for us, little did we know there would be food to eat 24/7 on the ship! We had time to kill because our rooms wouldn't be ready until 2:00, so we went around to see what the ship had to offer. There was a lot to do on the ship: rock climbing wall, basketball court, ping pong tables (thank goodness!), a casino, a spa, swimming pools and hot tubs, lots of restaurants, gift shops, Ben & Jerry's ice cream, and a deck that went all around the ship which gave us incredible views of the ocean, we even got to see whales and dolphins one night!

Funny little animal towels that were on our bed each night after dinner

Dinners were awesome on the ship we had a very nice waiter from India, and a hilarious assistant waiter "Papa" from Jamaica. We were pleased to find very nice, and funny people at our table who we'd be sitting with every night. There were two couples who came together as well, one couple was actually from Logan, in fact half of the people on the ship were from Utah, and the other couple were from Seattle.

While Tory played Craps and Russ watched, Adriane and I thought we'd do a little gambling ourselves over at the slots, sure we lost about $15.00 in less than five minutes, but it was fun and also my first time gambling legally.
We sailed away at 5:30 monday night to our first stop, San Diego. Unfortunatly it was cold and cloudy when we got there, heck it was cold and cloudy the whole time, but that's okay we still had a good time! We decided we'd be cheap and not do some of the fun things San Diego had to offer, like the Zoo or Sea World. We just stuck around where we were docked and shopped around at this cute little village that was near the ship. That was also the day we discovered how fun ping pong really was. I really wanted to go lay out by the pool but the weather just didn't permit it, so we played ping pong instead. The guys even had people lining up, wanting to take on their mad ping pong skills! They also found a couple of little friends who always seemed to be over by the basketball court and ping pong tables when we were.

Tuesday night was the formal night on the ship so we got to get all fancied up for dinner, the food was so yummy and Russ and Tory had their first tast of escargot and really liked it, it probably helped the taste being drenched in butter and garlic!

Our next stop, and probably my favorite was Catalina Island. What a cute little island that was. The boys went golfing, while Age and I went to all the little shops in Catalina. It was funny, most people don't drive cars over there, instead they drive around in golf carts. We saw a lady with all of her groceries in the back and another one with a car seat strapped in, we laughed so hard. We found a little beach where we took advantage of the hour or so the sun peeked through the clouds, we laid out to get a little sun and it felt so nice. Not nice enough to go for a little swim, we got cold just watching a couple guys, from Salt Lake of course, swim in the very cold ocean.

We met back up with the boys and took a boat back to the ship. We ate a late lunch when Tory and Russ left "to go to the bathroom." After fifteen minutes went by and no Russ or Tory, Age and I new something was up. They came back and told us we had a spa appointment waiting for us right then. Age and I were so excited to find that they surprised us and made appointments to get a facial and massage. I had never had a facial before and now I want to have one everyday! It felt so nice. When we went to leave we realized the boys had made the appointments, but didn't pay for it... Hey it's the thought that counts, right? Thanks guys, that was very sweet of you to think of us.

This was the night of the chocolate midnight buffet, the boys wussed out and fell asleep but Age and I went (well, I think I forced her to come with me) and it was a sight to see. Ice sculptures, chocolate sculptures, people lining up and down the stairs waiting for their chocolates, and tables and tables of chocolate desserts!
Ensanda, Mexico was the final stop and I don't really recommend going there, unless you want to really appreciate where you live. We walked around and had moms and their little kids practically hanging on us trying to get us to buy things from them such as gum, hand made jewelery, dolls and all sorts of other things. It made me so sad.

Tory led us to where we thought would be a nice, sandy beach to lay out on, but no, beaches were no where to be found! We decided we'd just find an ornament (we try and get an ornament everywhere we go to remember the places we've visited) and go back onto the ship. I guess they only have ornaments around Christmas time so we had to settle with a neclace that we could make into an ornament.

We sailed through the night back to LA and departed from the ship friday where the long road trip back home awaited us. Poor Tory had to drive almost all the way there and all the way back home because the rental car was under his name, sorry Tor, next time we'll make Russ rent one.

Russ and I had a fabulous vacation, we had a blast laughing at Tory's funny personality and I even got to feel Gordie move around for the first time! We are so lucky and blessed to have such great sisters and brother-in-laws to do fun things with. Thanks Age and Tor for inviting us to go with you!

Wii

2008-05-02T09:04:00.006-06:00

School is finally out for the semester, so Russ and I whipped out the Wii last night, I have probably only played it once since we've been in our new house. We just haven't had a lot of time lately with work and school to do things just for fun.
After we ran and got some pizza, I really didn't feel like cooking, we hurried and cleaned our very messy house and did a little laundry (thought we'd clean all our dirty clothes since we are leaving on vacation soon) we decided to play a little wii. My favorite is the tennis and I'm almost Pro! So anyone who wants to come on over we'll have a match!

HaIR CuT

2008-04-21T08:45:00.016-06:00

Russ is very brave and lets me cut his hair. I don't know what he's thinking, I tell him to just go somewhere to get it done, but he said he likes how I cut it (I think he's just being nice!)

This is his fro before...

After...

OliVe GaRdEn aNd GolFinG

2008-04-21T08:28:00.013-06:00

Russ and I went on a fun, much needed date Friday night. We went to the Olive Garden and then to Mulligans to hit a bucket of balls.

How's my swing dad?

Exactly Two Years Ago Today...

2008-04-15T13:55:00.017-06:00

Russ and I had our very first date. We were set up by a couple of our friends. Neither one of us were too thrilled about going out with someone we had never even met before, but boy are we glad we did! We had dinner, played games and watched a movie at Tiffany and Jeff's place, and we've been together ever since.

The only reason I remembered this date (I'm usually horrible at remembering dates) is because it was the day before Easter and Easter happened to fall on my good friend Laura's birthday so I'll always remember April 15, 2006!

That's Gotta Hurt!

2008-04-14T08:37:00.008-06:00

On friday Russ came in to my work and said, "this pretty much sums up how my week has gone!" A little bit confused I asked, "Why? What happened?" He bent down and showed me this...
I guess what happend was while he was taking a window out the crow bar slipped and took a good chunk of skin out of his head. He had to go get staples and the doctor didn't even numb him... Ouch! So I guess Russ didn't have the best week ever!

Fun Filled Charlie Weekend!

2008-04-01T11:30:00.007-06:00

This weekend we got to have Charlie up to sleep over at "aunt weewee" and uncle Russ's new house (Charlie says weewee for Lizzy). I went down to Draper to pick him up from the Covey's house. My mom, Adriane and I took him to get his hair cut and Rick did a good job cutting it, regardless of Charlie's busy self wiggling all over the place.

Grandma Holly trying to distract with pictures on her cell phoneFriday night we went over to the park with Cameron, Leah and Ike. Charlie wasn't as interested in the "go round" as he was in Ike's "go ball". He loved drop kicking it and having Russ and I chase him around. Russ unfortunately had to work Saturday, but that didn't stop Charlie and I from having a little fun together! Saturday morning we went on a little "doughnut date". We went to two stores because the first one didn't have any with sprinkles. We went to the Tree House with Leah and Ike, they both loved it; however Charlie was a little disappointed that the "go round" (the slide) was closed. Later that day, after the long three hour nap Charlie took and when Russ got home, we went to the mall to get Russ some new shoes and went to Cafe Rio for a little quesadilla with Cam, Leah, and Ike (Thanks guys for hanging out with us all weekend and for sharing your toys with Charlie!) Then we went back home and watched the Bee Movie and ate some tasty oreo shakes.

Playing at the Park

Charlie eating his doughnut and drinking his milk, he sure loves his milk. He drank a whole gallon in two days!

Setting the table

Charlie & Ike coloring the dinosaurs

Uncle Russ and Charlie having a little popcorn watching the Bee Movie

Charlie is a funny, happy, and such a good boy (he didn't have to go to time out once!) He had me and Russ laughing the whole time at his funny little personality. We love you Charlie and you can come up and play anytime!

Springtime

2008-03-20T09:33:00.003-06:00

It's the first day of spring and I am so happy. Spring is probably my favorite season! I do love winter and am usually sad when all the snow melts, but not this year, I can't wait for the snow to be gone. I don't know if it's because I usually go snowboarding a lot during the winter, and this past year has been so crazy I only went once, or the fact that it just felt so long and drug out.

I love spring because 1) longer days 2) I love to be outside and now I can be without having to get all bundled up, and 3) that means school is coming to an end and hello summer! I do enjoy school (for the most part) but it is good to have a break! So happy first day of spring everyone!

My cute husband

2008-03-18T14:03:00.003-06:00

What is his name? Russell Gary Whetton

How long have we been married? About a year and a half

How long did we date? About 5 months

How old is he? 23

Who eats more? I eat a lot, but I would say Russ does, I have never seen anyone put away as much food as he does!

Who said I love you first? Russ did.

Who is taller? Russ by a couple inches

Who is smarter? That's a tough one, we both get about the same grades.

Whose temper is worse? Mine, it takes a lot to make Russ mad!

Who pays the bills? I do, sitting at work all day I have a lot more time to do that than Russ, he is very busy with work and school! We are good about communicating finances though.

Who does the laundry? I usually do, although there are times I come home and he has done them because they get piled up and I forget to do them.

Who cooks dinner? I do, unless we're having mac and cheese or PB&Js for dinner, Russ can do that!

Who drives when together? Usually Russ, unless he's tired or doesn't feel like driving, then I will.

Who is more stubborn? I would say me, although Russ can be pretty stubborn at times.

Who is the first to admit when wrong? Definitely Russ! He is very good at that, I'm working on it.

Who wears the pants in the family? Russ says me but I think we both do, we are pretty equal and neither has too much control.

Who eats more sweets? That's a tough one we both LOVE our treats! But when it comes to ice cream that would be me!

Who kissed who first? I think I kissed him first actually.

Who asked who out first? We were set up on a blind date so neither of us really...

Who proposed? Russ did.

What is my favorite thing about him? I love how patient he is with everything! I tend to freak out over little things sometimes and Russ is very calm about everything, when trials come our way he is very patient, he definitely looks at life with the half full attitude. I also love how hard of a worker he is, he works hard all day and then has school at night and he still has a good attitude about everything! He is a very happy, optimistic person, I rarely see him upset.