A New Hough Family Addition

Official Announcement: Baby Number Three is On The Way!

Steve and I are excited to announce that we are pregnant and we feel very blessed. Little Boy Hough or Little Girl Hough will be arriving sometime in late August, which means I'm about 10 weeks now. We had a great ultrasound checkup today with a strong heartbeat (178) and good measurements. For those of you who have seen me lately, you can probably already see the signs (I've put on some pounds). This pregnancy has affected me more than the last two. I had some weeks of sickness and sprints to the bathroom. But I am feeling better now that I learned how to control it. And thank heavens my time at Deer Valley is almost over. That almost killed me :-)

We did tell Jake & Stevie. And all they can figure out is that it's not okay to jump on Mommy's belly. Jake also told me that he wants a boy and that we are going to name him Max. He loves that name and usually comes up with Max when he names something. I explained to him that we will have to come up with a new name because we already have a little friend named Max. I think we are going to wait until the delivery room to find out the sex. It will be hard to wait, but we loved it the last time around.

I'm excited to join many of my friends who are pregnant too. It will be fun to have little playmates the same age. Loves...

Carrie Ann is Getting Married!

My little sister Carrie is now engaged to the wonderful Shane Hunter. Shane is 23(I think), one of 7 children, and comes from Idaho Falls. They met at Snow College. She got the ring on Christmas Day and set a wedding date for February 15 (no time is to be wasted). They both seem very happy and Shane will fit into our family really well. Shane is a lucky guy. Carrie is so beautiful, funny, and smart. He will just have to get used to her crazy laugh and her bad luck with wrecking cars. Ha ha.

This past weekend the family threw a Bridal Shower open house for her. All of the Draper children are married now (or soon to be). Congrats!

Serge

Okay...so my husband is what I call a "Music Snob." He is extremely into music and loves to hear live bands and have music going all day as well. I think that is ultimately the reason behind why he still drives the Explorer (good sound system) and why he built his home theatre PC for the family room. I have been known to be annoyed by the volume level of the music. But I have come to love the fact that we generally have music going in the house.

This past weekend we had a babysitter and plans to go on a date Friday night. Last minute, our friend Tim Watcke invited us to party at his house to celebrate his girlfriend's birthday. Other than to catch up with some friends, this is the reason we really went to the party...to see Serge.

Serge is a member of the band Marah. Most of you have probably never heard of them. But Steve loves them. Our friend Tim happens to do occasional construction work with Serge and he was going to be at the party. Steve even stayed late to talk to him and get a picture with him and sent me home with friends to relieve the babysitter. Great date :-) Just kidding...I love you babe.

Playdate Week

It was a week full of playdates. I guess because we haven't done them for so long with the holidays and everything else. Monday we spent some time with the Millers - Miranda, Maya, and Gavin. We had fun sledding, eating lunch, and just letting the kids play. Jake really loves Maya and looks up to her. It was so fun to catch up with Miranda.

Wednesday we were supposed to go to Discovery Gateway with the Hansens, Elliotts, and Bergs. But the weather kept us local in Heber at the Bergs house. The boys played trains and the girls just stuck close to their Mamas. We met Amy, Grandma, and Carrie & Shane for lunch. Jake loved playing trains with Carrie and Shane too.

Thursday we when to the OBrien's to see Melissa and Ted (13 months). I really thought Stevie was gettting better about being a bully to younger children. But no...she had quite the performance with Ted. I know I probably didn't handle it right, so next time I will be prepared with an action plan. I know that she understands what she is doing...so I think it is for the attention. Tips...anyone?

Friday we finally met up with the Goodfellows - Sarah, Mallory, and Carter at Discovery Gateway. The kids had so much fun. Jake was a little farmer most of the time. He found a tractor with a wagon behind to ride around. He would pick vegetables from the farm and then deliver them to the grocery store or the refrigerator in the playhouse. Stevie loved the water fun. And all of the kids loved the helicopter.


The week of playdates ended Friday night with dinner and movie. I went out with Katrina, Sara, Crystal, and Brittoni. We went to Bajio and saw "Juno." I loved the movie and we all got some good laughs.

Victory at Church

Victory happened yesterday at church when Stevie Kate stayed in Nursery and only cried for 5 minutes! Thank you Stevie. I was able to play the piano in peace without a toddler drumming the lower keys along with every song.

Jake started in his Sunbeam class with 8 of his friends. He was very intrigued at first, but soon became confused and came up and asked me to go to his "old" class (where they have toys and treats). After a few tears, he resigned to the fact that he needed to go back to his chair. He stayed and listened, but didn't really look like he was enjoying it. Maybe next week!

Grandma Helen

My Grandma Helen, also know as Grandma Draper, passed away on Monday. Cody has to speak at the funeral on Saturday and asked us all to send him a few memories and thoughts about Grandma. Here they are...

I remember my Grandma being the happiest when she was taking care of others. She loved to cook for us, quilt for us, and help out where she was needed. Her homemade chicken noodle soup and rolls will never be outdone. I know my Dad will miss that terribly. Every Christmas I love to pull out the stockings that she made for me and my family. And I know that I always can find a quilt to remind me of her too.

One of things that I admired most about Grandma was her strength. I believe she passed that strength and determination on to her granddaughters. I will never forget the incident with the rattlesnake in the front yard. And I will especially never forget how she was determined to live by herself and do for herself until she passed on to Heaven. She was a great grandma and I will miss her.