Introducing the Newest Phipps

Ash had the baby this evening at 6:23. He is 8lbs 2oz and 19in long. Both mom and baby are doing good. I'll let Ash tell any details she wants to later. For now, here are some pictures (in reverse chronological order).

Hope you all had a wonderful Christmas! One of our greatest Christmas gifts this year was finding out that I'll be induce on the 31st!!

I can't think of a better way to ring in the New Year! :)

My Little Elf

Caden was LOVING helping me wrap presents this year. He LOVED to pull the tape out as far as he could and then crinkle it up in his palm before I could use it. He LOVED to try to steal the scissors, which he knows he's not supposed to touch. He LOVED to walk across my fresh wrapping paper, making it look 100 years old. He LOVED to scribble on the front of the presents. He LOVED trying to unwrap each present I'd just wrapped. Let me tell you, this kind of help is hard to find.

First Snow.

It snowed here, which obviously would mean that a little boy has to wear his hat EVERYWHERE!

Thanksgiving In Vegas

Well, dear readers, I'm uncomfortable and tired, so don't hold your breath for much beyond pictures. (I always get mad at myself after I say stuff like that because I really am so, so grateful to be pregnant. Grateful beyond words, but the reality of the situation for me is that being 9 months pregnant means a good healthy mix of tears and tantrums.)

Anyway, back to Thanksgiving. We started our vacation off with a trip to MGM to see the Lion exhibit. Let me give a recommendation. If you happen to be stupid enough to drive in a car for 5 1/2 hours while being nearly 9 months pregnant, don't be stupid enough to walk 3 miles to see a lion. It is not worth it. Though, I'm sure Caden would completely disagree.Caden turned gangster while we were in Vegas. Well, as gangster as you can possibly be in a BYU hat.The weather really was incredible. After growing up in Wisconsin, who knew that it was possible to swim after August, let alone the end of November?!?I put my feet in the spa...and then couldn't get my swollen feet back into my sandals for hours. What's worse is my dad told me not to and then I had to hear, "I told you so" the rest of the day. Dad, isn't it comforting to know that some things will never change. :)Thanksgiving day was spent enduring this look...Because my dad and I totally championed Pinochle. Woot Woot.And then my crazy father decided to take 500,000 pictures. Thanks dad, Bryan now knows where I get it from. It must be a genetic defect.We told Caden to say "Cheese"...he does a GREAT job.
Erika and I...probably after she told me I should start running again. Gee, thanks.Caden found one of the cabanas and put on a dance show for us. Grandma & Grandpa Hoggatt with the grandchild. The resort we stayed at.

Thanksgiving was fantastic. So good to see my family, and so good to be reminded of all the good things in life we have to be thankful for. Hope you all had wonderful Thanksgivings whether it was in the desert or the frozen tundra!

Side, Side

Every morning this guy climbs down the stairs and goes to the back door to knock. "Side, side, side, side, side...."

He loves to be outside.(Thank you Aunt Megan for entertaining him so I could get some pictures!!)

On another note, my husband rocks. Our dryer broke. Wouldn't turn on, period. The man fixed it. Went to Sears, bought a part, took apart the entire dryer, and fixed it. Who knew Betty Crocker/Johnny Cochran was also Handy Manny?!?

Halloween Giraffe.

9 million pictures to follow:

Being that it was our last chance, Bryan decided he would grace BYU with his presence at the Halloween party. I guess he's not ashamed of us this year. :) Caden surprised us with no funny business when he modeled his costume for everyone. He was strictly business walking across the stage. Then we went trick-or-treating through the carrels. Caden only lasted for a bit because his costume was making him sweat bullets. Ella was my favorite, she was on a mission walking straight from one carrel to the next. Her bag was so full by the end that her arm was bright red. Hilarious. As always, thank you Lesley, for documenting our lives.

I took Caden into our backyard jungle to do a photoshoot. I thought it would be cute since it's so African Safari-like. Caden thought I had lost my mind. When I climbed into the weeds, he looked at me like, 'there is zero chance I'm following you crazy woman.' He started screaming, and then ignored me completely. Result: Caden wouldn't speak to me for an hour afterward, and no worthy pictures. Luckily for me, Lesley saved the day, at our Halloween celebration with lots of fun shots. I'm probably going to die when we all go our separate ways.Caden's cute buddies: Carter and Ella.

So he decided he was done sitting on the box and went to roll off. I swear I've never seen my husband run that fast. He was at least five feet away, and was able to save Caden. I love the look on his face!The kids thought it was fun to be "behind bars." The giraffe looked like he was all caged in. I'll be honest...some days I wish I had one. :)

We ended our Halloween evening with the girls at Jessica's safely watching Twlight, and the boys at Kyle's watching a horror movie. This was the best situation for all of us: No nightmares or sleeping with the lights on. I'm not sure when I became such a wimp...I remember in high school we did some scary stuff for Halloween. Those days are loooong gone.