Michael, Jill & Haylie V. Family

I am...

2011-04-13T11:04:00.000-07:00

I am.

I am . . . very happy and content
I think . . . my husband is one of the coolest people I know.
I want . . . our basement projects to be finished!!
I have . . . heartburn.. I hope :S
I miss . . . being able to shower whenever I want - not just when I can squeeze it in
I fear . . . Haylie growing up so fast
I feel . . . slightly hungry
I hear . . . the plumber working in the basement
I smell . . . the soup I'm eating (butternut squash)
I crave . . . not the soup I'm eating :/
I cry. . . during sappy movies. I really do. So embarrassing
I search . . . lowes.com seemingly constantly these days *sigh
I wonder . . . what Haylie will be like (what she'll be good at etc.)
I regret . . . worrying what other people thought of me so much as a child - who cares?!
I wish . . . there were more hours in a day and that laundry would fold itself
I love . . . Haylie. So true how they say you don't know what love is till you have a child
I care . . . about my soul and about doing the right things
I always . . . keep my house clean.
I worry . . . about things I can't control.
I am not . . . patient. At all. Except with Haylie - for some reason it's easy with her..
I remember . . . How it felt riding our horse missy.
I believe . . . we all control our own happiness.
I know . . . I've got it good
I sing . . . to Haylie all the time - she loves it! :)
I don’t always . . . get the laundry folded - seriously, why doesn't it fold itself?!
I argue . . . but not often and usually with the same people. ugh.
I write . . . really well. I was reading some old poems of mine last week and was actually quite impressed with myself.
I lose . . . and hate it. I'm very competitive and can't stand when someone else is better than me at something I care about. so annoying
I listen . . . to my baby laugh and could just die it's so painfully cute.
I can . . . repair just about any vacuum. I'm actually a lot more handy than the average girl.
I need . . . a haircut. I always manage to get the worst haircuts somehow.
I forget . . . things I don't care about. I don't care about a lot of things :)
I am happy . . . with my life. I'm really lucky :)

Yes, This is my baby and yes, I know she's adorable. ;)

2011-03-14T08:12:00.000-07:00

Yeah, I don't really know how this happened. One second she was clean and the next I turn around and her face is COVERED in spit-up. Shirt: Clean, Hands: Clean, Face? Well, you know. Ha!

Haylie is turning into a little momma/daddy's girl. She needs attention and needs it right now and it HAS to be HER way or the highway.. doesn't sound like anyone I know.. ;) Haylie ADORES her dad and always saves the cutest little bashful smiles for him. I love it! :)

Haylie is probably one of the most observant children I've ever encountered. You do or say or show her something and she just stares at it/you with furrowed brows and a quizzical expression and then doesn't fully respond with a happy or sad face until you stop doing whatever it was you were doing. Also - It's SOOO hard to get Haylie to laugh.. SO hard. I've never met a kid this young that thinks something is only funny the first time. I'm used to hearing "Do it again! Do it again!" from just about every little kid, but not Haylie. You try everything you can think of to get her to laugh and 9 times out of 10 - NOTHING works... she just stares at you like you're a big ol' weirdo (cuz you really do look like one at that point I'm sure). When you FINALLY do something she thinks is legitimately funny, it's only funny to her the first or second time and then she's like "yeah, yeah - you did that already." But boy is her laugh hysterical. It make all those boy-I-really-look-like-a-big-freak-right-now-cuz-Im-trying-really-really-hard-to-get-my-kid-to-laugh moments all worth it! :)

Haylie could chill in her swing for hours. She just looks around with this pleased little half smile and just swings away. So cute!

Haylie LOVES sucking on her towel during bath time. I probably would have stopped wrapping her in a towel during her baths a while ago if she didn't get such a kick out of sucking the water out of it.

Haylie is the most awesome sleeper ever. I put her to bed between 8 and 9 and she'll sleep till between 6 and 7:30 in the morning! I keep telling people that Heavenly Father must not think I can handle very much because he sure sent me an easy, easy baby. :) I just love my sweet little girl!

Validated...

2011-02-04T11:19:00.001-08:00

A friend of mine posted this on her blog and I thought it was 'awesome' enough to share. Check it out...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cbk980jV7Ao&feature=player_embedded

Haylie's Blessing Day 12-19-2010

2010-12-29T11:57:00.000-08:00

Happy Holidays? They sure were...

2010-12-28T15:26:00.000-08:00

We went to the Lion House for a family dinner on Christmas Eve Eve and boy was it a change from just last years christmas what with 3 new babies in the mix. I don't think that dinner out would have even been a possibility if we hadn't had our own banquet room (thanks Mom and Dad)! Haylie was pretty mad most the time but we did manage to get one or two pics without her wailing - the poor dear...

At the end of dinner: If you look at all the kids you can tell that at this point they are just about maxed out... and thus - so were we. :)

Temple Square lights: After dinner we bundled Haylie up in her cute polar bear outfit (that Randy and Aubrey got for her - thanks!) and ventured out around the pond and back. HAYLIE LOVED IT! She was completely enthralled and had we known she would love it so much we probably would have snuck her out to see them mid-dinner to settle her down.

Day after Christmas: We spent Christmas Eve at Mike's parents house and all I can say is Haylie is one spoiled, loved little lady! It was perfect timing on all her new toys too because she is just starting to really interact and notice more sights and sounds. Her favorite toy so far? Definitely the cute lion pictured just to the left of the pink pants. She gets SO excited every time we get it out and makes all kinds of noise when we rattle it for her. Thanks Grandma and Grandpa!!

Another favorite: I was surprised yesterday when I got the books out that Haylie got for christmas to read because she paid complete attention to each one the ENTIRE TIME - not looking away for even a second! She especially loved the book Keisha and Tyson got her (pictured in the next photo in the top left corner) as it has some moving parts and fun colors. Thanks Jenny & Jake, grandma & grandpa, Aubrey & Randy, and Keisha & Tyson for all the great books! :)

Hope you all had as merry a Christmas as we did! :)

Love this girl!!

2010-12-03T09:18:00.000-08:00

Happy (Belated) Halloween

2010-11-04T12:25:00.000-07:00

Welcome Haylie Faith Vanikiotis!!

2010-10-20T10:35:00.000-07:00

On October 12th of 2010 at 12:51pm, after a near 36 hour long labor, Haylie Faith Vanikiotis was born weighing 7lbs 5.4oz and measuring 19 inches long. More pics coming soon at http://www.mountaincreekfoto.blogspot.com

Yeah, I got that...

2010-09-27T10:24:00.000-07:00

As Mike and I were relaxing and talking about our impending life change yesterday afternoon, we began discussing all the funny comments people have been making toward my growing size lately. As we chatted about the subject, I soon realized that when other women have asked me if I've had certain symptoms with my pregnancy I have NEVER been able to say, "No I haven't." If anything, whenever I have volunteered information about my latest symptoms the other person usually ends up with a perplexed look and a reply of "Wow- really? I've never even heard of that." While one could theorize that it must have something to do with my tiny frame, I'm not entirely convinced that a small bone structure has anything to do with the fact that I could easily fill up 2 or 3 water bottles worth of spit a day in the first trimester or why I've suddenly got a face full of freckles when I've hardly been out in the sun. All I know is when it comes to pregnancy symptoms, the only thing I've ever been able to say is "Yeah, I got that"... and every other pregnancy symptom in the book. What's the latest cooky symptom you ask? Cankles. Big ones.

BEFORE

AFTER

Also - as the birth is getting closer, Mike and I have been debating more and more about what physical qualities we hope our daughter will inherit. We decided that she should have Michael's black wavy hair and my big eyes but with Michael's green coloring. We know she'll be skinny. We concluded that it wont matter whose eyebrows, nose, jawline, ears or smile she gets as any combination would be great... however we do hope she'll save us some money and inherit Michael's crazy hard teeth (It took him all of 17 years to grow all his permanent teeth and the man has never had a cavity in his adult life)! No matter how she turns out though, I know we'll love her all the same!! Michael did say, though, that if she comes out a blondie we're going to have to have a talk... ha ha! ;P

Update and baby names list...

2010-07-25T08:09:00.000-07:00

We've finally narrowed down our list of favorite baby names to just four now (listed above) so be sure to vote for your favorite!!

Went on a drive up the canyon toward Kamas last Saturday. We jumped out and had a picnic at a pretty little lake we just happened upon. It was good for all of us to get out and soak in some fresh air and sunshine.

Here's the latest picture of me at 27.5 weeks preggo. It took a few tries to get a picture that didn't make me look like I have a double chin (seriously) but we got it. It's weird to look back a pre-pregnant pictures as I can hardly remember what it was like to have a flat stomach, skinny arms and a narrow face. You'll notice I'm wearing my wedding ring around my neck now because I can't fit it on my fat hands anymore. Anyway... the first pic is of my fat face. The next pic I'm straining to push my shoulders down so my neck looks longer and skinnier... Funny - never thought I'd see the day. Ha ha! :)

Counting down the days till I get that comfy, skinny body back... Can't wait!!!

Nursery part II

2010-07-14T13:07:00.000-07:00

Mike and I had been anxiously waiting for our baby's dresser to arrive this week so after a phone call from the store notifying us it was in yesterday - my Mom, Jessica (my sissy in-law) and I took a trip down to Salt Lake to pick it up (thanks for going with me y'all).

Mike and I had a plan for how we were going to arrange the room and ended up having to revamp our idea because the dresser ended up being deeper than we expected. Anyway - so here is the nursery with the dresser addition...

Arizona and our new crib...

2010-07-12T08:09:00.000-07:00

We went down to AZ last week for the blessing of my new nephew, James Daniel Hawkes.

Here are some pictures I took that day...

Aren't my niece and nephew the most gorgeous children you've ever seen!? Love them!! Hope ours turn out that cute. :) Anyway - we had a really nice few days just hanging out with the family... we'll have to do it again sooon!

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

On another note...

Our crib finally arrived this weekend - Yay!!! We're still waiting for the matching dresser, which should be in any day, so for now you still only get a partial idea of what the nursery will look like.

This little changing table was originally a yellow-orange oak colored... thing.

It was in my sisters' room for years and then got moved to the basement where it held vhs tapes and video games for a few years more. My mom decided they didn't need or want it anymore and offered it to Mike and I. We knew it needed to be refinished and debated for a while about whether to re-stain it or paint it. I eventually decided to paint it (or have Michael paint it in other words) and am glad I did because I think it turned out super cute. We had them color match the paint to the green on our baby bedding and were a little shocked at first at how bright it ended up being but now we LOVE it. It's very happy don't you think??

Cute little toy bag that matches our bedding. Still trying to decide what else to decorate the walls with...

It's a...

2010-05-29T10:26:00.000-07:00

We found out were having a girl this past monday so after the ultrasound my sister and I went right out and did a bit o' shopping together (she's pregnant with a little boy right now - due in july)!!This is our nursery so far. Mike put up some chair rail and crown molding last weekend (which I painted) for that 'extra touch'. Were still waiting for our crib to arrive - thank you SOOOO much Mike and Becky!!! :)

I don't know if you can see it in this pic but aren't the bugs on the valance so cute?? (Jenny's idea - thank you!!)

It's official... Mike is 27!!!

2010-04-08T15:05:00.000-07:00

I just wanted to give a shout-out to my awesomely wonderful husband Michael who turned 27 yesterday - hooray! When I asked him what he wanted to do for his birthday he said "just hang out at home with you". So that's what we did... plus a few extra people Mike didn't know were going to be there: My mom and dad, Grandma and Grandpa, sister Katie and her boyfriend Hyrum (thanks for coming everyone!). We hung out, had pizza, watched a movie and sang the birthday song while Mike blew out his candles.... I know it wasn't much but come on - I couldn't just do nothing for the love of my life on his birthday!! The boy gets up at the crack of dawn to make me breakfast (cuz' I'm usually way too nauseated in the morning to even think about getting out of bed to make it myself) before he heads out for a very full days work. He then proceeds to call and check on me intermittently throughout the day to make sure I'm OK and then calls me as soon as he leaves work. When he finally gets home around 6-6:30 he greets me with a smile and a kiss and proceeds to then make ME dinner. I should also mention that there has been known to be the occasional dinner that I thought I wanted but then couldn't stomach for fear of barfing at which point he makes me something else without so much as a hmm or ha. The man is a sweetheart. I know for sure I'm the luckiest woman on the planet and am so grateful to have such a caring and thoughtful person be a part of my life! Mike you're such an incredible, wonderful person and I hope all your birthday wishes come true!

(P.S. I promise the nausea won't last forever (knock on wood)... at which point get ready for the best dinner of your life!! Love you!!!)

9 WEEK ULTRASOUND

2010-03-18T13:45:00.000-07:00

Our little nugget at 9 weeks!!!

Check out the actual ultrasound
on my facebook profile!!

5 weeks 4 days preggo

2010-02-22T11:03:00.000-08:00

So here's my already giant belly. Supposedly I'm only 5 and a half weeks judging from my last (supposed) period but obviously I'm huge so who knows. Micheal keeps joking that it's twins (yikes!) Anyway - I have my first ultrasound on March 8th so at that time we'll have a better idea of how far along I am. Till then!

The update...

2010-02-18T07:53:00.000-08:00

Well it's been a while since we posted anything so I thought while I had some time I would give you the update. Were still trying to sell our house so we can move closer to Michael's work but no such luck yet. We have decided that if it doesn't sell by April when the home buyers tax credit is up, then we'll just take it off the market and refinance. We really want to move though so were keeping our fingers crossed extra tight. :)

What else, what else.... Michael AND our dog, Maya, just had dentists appointments within the last week or so and... no cavities! Yay! What good brushers you are! Ha ha! ;)

I purged my closet this week as to make room for all of Mike's clothes that had previously been in the bedroom next to ours so we could make room for all the new baby stuff we'll have to get because IM PREGNANT!!! No really - we found out last week! I had been feeling just a little "off" all day so when I got home I told myself 'just take the pregnancy test - that way you can stop making up false pregnancy symptoms in your head and be done with it.' So I did - and to my COMPLETE shock it gave me a... plus sign. A plus sign? A PLUS SIGN!! I then had a Juno moment where I drank a whole bunch so I would have enough pee to take another test and an hour later... another plus sign!!! Of coarse I couldn't believe it cuz here we had been trying for almost 3 years with no luck - so I went into my OB's office the next morning to have them do the test and... POSITIVE!!! We are exactly 5 weeks pregnant today! I debated on wether to wait or not to announce it to the world (just till we got past the first couple months when miscarriages usually occur) but we're just so ecstatic that we can get pregnant on our own that no matter what happens (and we don't expect anything to) this is a complete triumph for us and we just can't resist expressing our joy about it! Yay!!

Sneak peak at before and after

2009-10-24T12:32:00.001-07:00

Before

Please note the following:

1) Horrible hand painted faux tiles above window

2) Ugly paneling on wall (only one small peice shown here but

actually stretched around whole room and one entire wall - eww!)

3) Hideous old fan that wobbled back and forth

4) Cheap and ugly gold flush-mount light in front of window

5) Sicky blue countertops

6) White wash oak cabinets that didn't match a single other thing in the room

7) Icky old gold drawer pulls

8) Random oak swivel chairs that, again, matched nothing in the room

9) Disgusting yellowy off-white paint

10) GREY baseboards and crown molding (really - who paints their molding grey?!)

needless to say this room has come a LOOOONNNGGG way....

After!!!

Semi-Before

(already painted walls)

After!!!

And if that doesn't impress you already ...

I did it all for under $500 bucks!

Kitchen Makeover

2009-10-24T08:47:00.000-07:00

Can I just say - I can't wait for this remodel to be over!! I mean, fast food is great and all but when it comes down to it I'd like to keep my girlish figure. :) The cat, on the other hand, is loving the remodel and thinks that the plastic hanging everywhere is the best thing thats ever happened to her.

2009-10-12T09:17:00.001-07:00

What a fun game! The Jazz won - go Jazz! We were seated 3 or 4 rows back and had a fantastic view of the court ... and the crazy fan in front of us. He was almost as entertaining as the game itself! We honestly couldn't tell you if he was trying to be funny or if he was dead serious because he never really broke character. Altogether is was a really fun night!! Thanks Michael!!