Shock and Awe ... and joyful surprises!

Team Oakeson's first round draft pick is ... a GIRL ... and very obviously so! Aaron says: "Look out Michelle & Ana! This girl is gonna' GOLF!"

After an embarrassing trip to the mall at the insistence of my sweet husband -- yes, I had an ultrasound in the MALL -- it was quickly apparent even to us, the most deficient of first-time parents, that this was certainly no boy! This really was just peachy with us since it was mainly the not knowing that was giving Aaron heartburn. It sure was a surprise though.

Kerri gave us some great advice to have some OJ and a donut to get some baby movement going on. It sure worked and we got the shots we weren't able to get at the Doctor's on Wednesday. Even with all of the sugar, the tech still commented on what a "mellow" baby this was. Frankly the fact that she is mellow is a bigger surprise to us than the whole girl thing.

So I have to give props to the only three ladies in my life who stuck to their belief that this was indeed a girl: My genius sister Holly and cute friends Rachel and Andrea. Good job ladies!

We are actually quite excited since cousins coming on both sides of the family are also girls. This will probably make for an easier friendship, which is something I discovered Aaron was concerned about. But that only came out after the discovery that it was a girl. Aaron has the very best memories of his childhood with his cousins and this was so important to him. Who can blame him? He has some FABULOUS cousins!

Well, we gotta' go. We have MANY baby boy items to box up and move to the shed today! Then we we are going to Home Depot to buy a 4th shed for baby to live in. We figure we'll just put her in a rubbermaid bin labeled "baby" an stack her neatly with our other items. That should be easier than moving. We're not exactly famous for our willingness to uproot.

So here are the pics. Good luck telling what anything is. You'll probably just have to take our word for it.

Amy's Flight (sortof) from the Rat Race!

It's nearly over! I am officially following my bliss. I left my Supervisory role @ work for a very part time schedule with basically no responsibility, and it feels incredible! When I left last Friday after my last full-time day of glorified babysitting, I realized that moment was everything those that have gone before me had promised ... the sky was a little bluer, the birds sang just a bit lovelier, the flowers smelled sweeter, and when I got home, my husband was that much more attractive!

On the days I do work, I'm there for about 4 hours ... just flying below the radar, making a few bucks to pay for our health insurance and the occasional massage/mani/pedi. :) So here are the lovely tasks that are no longer part of my job description ---

We need to hire people ... Not my problem!

We need to fire people ... Not my problem!

Somebody needs to talk with the office perv about his inappropriate internet use ... Not me!

3 hour meetings to figure out how to manage our time effectively ... I'm not invited!

Day-long workshops discussing how what we do really matters ... Smell ya' later!

Agreeing that we are not just printing checks, we are saving the world ... Nah, we're mostly just trying to pay for college or get a dental plan.

So needless to say, I am very pleased with my new responsibilities which include showing up, helping a few customers, doing a few administrative tasks, then leaving to pursue things that matter. After working at our business each day, I have some pretty lofty plans that include cooking again, washing my own car and going to bed at 10:30. :)

Updates & Random Pics

As I was loading pictures into the computer today, I realized how many fun things have gone on and didn't make the blog. Apparently we were so busy enjoying our friends, family and good times that it didn't leave enough time to share. :) Here are just a couple random samplings of what we've been up to for the last little while.

4th of July with the Eppersons.

Kellie did her traditional (and unsafe!) holiday dance. This year she had a husband to join in the fun! Now Joe can be the one to drive her to the ER the year that this finally goes awry. I'll have to post video of that at some later date when I have the time/energy. Posting video is a bit of a pain.

Lake Day -- Among what seemed like hundreds of youth activities over the summer, we had "Lake Day" ... a big favorite in our neighborhood. It's just a lot of teenagers, a few boats and an a fun time with people we love.

Brandon & Brittiny visited in August to celebrate Brooklyn's 1st birthday. We had a great time. Brooklyn was much more excited about receiving clothes than toys. She is all girly girl and we adore her!

We had the annual Oakeson Family & Friends & Friends & Friends .... Halloween Party again. Aaron was particularly proud of our truly authentic costumes this time around. Each year I just don't know how he'll top the previous one. We got them at "the actual Ninja store." Did you even know there was such a thing? Still looking for the pictures of these!

We got to spend some time with the fun Crumps, but it seems like most of the time we're together, something is on fire or blowing up! They were thoughtful enough to invite us over to see things blow up a couple of times in January -- New Years and the long awaited blowing up of the Gingerbread house! Video of this is coming soon ... to You Tube, I think. It was a pretty eventful evening. For those of you that know Adam, he and his friend Matt really enjoy blowing things up. There's a whole scientific method to it. Rachel's family made this GIANT Gingerbread house. And for about as long as it was sitting out, Adam was making plans on how to eventually blow it up. They make sure there's always something exciting happenin' in Herriman. Below, a picture of Rachel and me tolerating the boys' efforts at a homemade New Years fireworks extravaganza.

We had a great time at Kellie & Joseph’s wedding. It got very rained out so we had to squeeze inside which we certainly weren’t ready for, but it was OK. Hey, anytime the sisters are all together it’s a PARTY!

The Olsen girl cousins planned the “First Annual Pryor Girl Cousins Retreat” at their cabin. We all got together for what was basically a huge sleepover. We made crafts, had great meals, talked and laughed a lot and just had a great time! BIG THANKS to the Olsen girls for making this happen! Here are a few of the girls enjoying one of the highlights of the weekend … the chocolate fountain! It was second only to the great company.

We also had girls’ camp in late June Everything went pretty smoothly. Aaron was “man in camp” again this year. He’s such a good sport and the girls just love him.

Other than that, we just relaxed and spent time with the people we love. Here’s Aaron sharing an ice cream with his good buddy Elizabeth.