Meeting Baby Harlow (Rasmussens)

Grandma and Grandpa Rasmussen used Presidents Day weekend to come meet their newest grand baby.  Harlow is number 16 on the Rasmussen side.  (three grand babies will be added to the Rasmussen family this year Paisley, Harlow, and then Becca's baby when it comes-that's a big year for Grandma and Grandpa)  Of course Whitney and Great Grandma Rasmussen came up to squeeze on our precious little Harlow too.  Whitney said that she had been carrying a baby doll around in her arms all week, just dying for Friday to come so she could hold the real thing!  :)  After all, he's getting his middle name after her ( *Whitley ) 

Whitney said that Harlow officially stole her heart and I have to agree, he has completely stolen mine as well

He is a beautiful baby!  I know beautiful is usually reserved for girls but it is the best word to describe him...he's just that BEAUTIFUL!!

It was nice to have Mom and Whitney up here to help me as I am healing.  You're pretty sore after having a baby and I'm so grateful for all the help I have received from all those that love me.  Its kinda hard not to be able to just do everything yourself anymore.  And when you try to do all you want your body has to tell you to "calm down!"

 Oh my gracious!  I have the most adorable, beautiful, and perfect baby in the world!!

My Mom's so beautiful!

.

Harlow loves to be swaddled and better yet to be cuddled!  He is the happiest little guy when he's in your arms.  All wrapped up and squishy...its almost as if he's use to that, haha!  It was so fun to feel him moving around inside of me but it is even more wonderful to hold your own little baby in your arms! Finally!  I could sit and just stare at him for hours and never get sick of every little move and facial expression he makes!

Daddy kissing on his little boy!  

There aren't many things more attractive then seeing my Honey love on our little Mr. Perfect and being the best Dad for his very own son

Little perfect feet

4 Generation picture!

Great Grandma: Nadine Farr Rasmussen, Grandma: Kathryn Larsen Rasmussen, Mom: Elizabeth Rasmussen Andersen and Baby: Harlow Whitley Andersen.

Being a Mom is the most incredible thing!  It is impossible to describe the power feeling of love you feel for the miracle that has just come into your life!  you would give your life, you would pay any price.  He is a complete joy and is the center of Nathan and my hearts, lives and world!  

We love our little Harlow! 

Hehe!

Home!

It felt so good to be home and bring our little guy with us!  

We are a family!  

That's a wonderful feeling!

 Skin-on-skin time with Daddy!

 This is the wrap Nathan bought me for Christmas and I absolutely LOVE it!  I get to have him close but I also get to have my hands free to fold the laundry (which I have tons to do all the time now), make dinner, and such.  Harlow loves it too!  It snuggles him up tight and he gets to be right on me.  We take walks in the wrap and he is one happy, snuggled up baby boy.  

I know I must be a little bias as his Mommy but I feel like I am the luckiest Woman in the word and have the most beautiful baby I've ever seen.  He is good-natured, low maintenance, loves to cuddle up close to his Mom and Dad, and is just as sweet as can be!  We have been so blessed as his parents to have him in our home and lives!  How can you love someone so much!?

Harlow Whitley Andersen

Our Valentines Baby

Harlow Whitley Andersen

Born February 14, 2012

(exactly 1 1/2 years after we were married)

Time: 5:35 pm

weight: 7lbs 1oz

19 inch long

3 weeks

I went to the Dr this last Friday and he said that I was a finger tip dilated, 70% effaced, and at a -2.  He said I looked really good for only having about 3 weeks until my due date! That's crazy!  Its already here!  That visit started my weekly visits from here on out and then the big day will come, whenever it decides to come and we will have a little boy to bring home in our arms!

Yesterday we received a great big blessing.  Nathan has a good buddy, Travis Call, who was up here visiting family this weekend.  Well Travis called Nathan last night when they were about to head back home to St. George and said that his older angel of a sister Sonja had some baby stuff that she wanted to give to us and that he would be bringing down shortly.  (Sonja had 3 boys, no girls, so she had some boy stuff to give us.)  They met at a freeway entrance to make the switch.  She gave us a bouncer, a floor play mat, and a HUGE bag of clothes that are all in very nice condition!  I was shocked and filled with gratitude as opened the bag...she hadn't just filled it, she had stuffed it! 

Nathan and I have been so tremendously blessed in our lives!  We were talking about this on the way home from Becca's house last night.  We had wondered, before we got married, how things would work out and how people would tell us that they just would. 

Well they have and are!  The Lord is blessing us more than we could have imagined!  

Are we perfect...absolutely not, far from even, but we are trying to live our best and obey the Lords commandments.  The Lord asks us to be our best, our very best, knowing we can't be perfect.  And we are trying.  The Lord does bless us in our daily efforts and though they seem small, ordinary, daily acts of faith they help mold us and move us closer to our Savior. 

Invited to our Baby Shower

Come join us for our Baby Shower

Open House Style

Saturday January 28th

from 10:00 am to 12:00 pm

At Becca Laings Home

824 N 350 W Springville UT 84663

RSVP to Becca Laing

hm - 801-491-0987

If you forget to RSVP please still

come and celebrate with us

registered at Walmart

5 more weeks to go!!

Baby's have a mind and schedule all their own so who knows for sure when it will be but as far as we know only 5 more weeks until our precious little buddy will make him debut!!  We are excited and anxious :)  We finished our birthing class last night and goodness, was that helpful and calming!   We enjoyed taking it together and are excited for this amazing adventure of delivery and beyond that's heading our way.  We know it will be challenging but are facing it with smiles, faith, and strength - using each other as supports!  

People still tell me I'm so small but just let it be known that my doctors says that I am right on track with my measurements!!  They said that I have a low public bone and a long abdomen - so he sits more inside of me because this mommy just plain has more room for him!  Sorry to all my adorable short sisters(...I guess that's one advantage of being the giant woman in the family, haha!  a lovely benefit for Whitney and I)

I have braxton hicks but no pain yet.  Sleep is getting more uncomfortable - thank goodness for loving hubbies that will give your body a relaxing rub-down when you wake up to help work out your kinks.  I don't run anymore, stopped that about 3 weeks ago because my tummy started cramping up after a block, but still try to walk and such.  I am really hoping to get a jogging stroller for when I can get back out again.  Last night was the first time I felt like I had swollen feet, nope, didn't like that feeling and my nerve under my right rib is BUGGING!  Hoping that problem goes away immediately after delivery!  (I can hope, right?)  But really, all in all I feel fantastic!  I have had a wonderful pregnancy with so little bumps and discomforts.  It's not entirely the truth but I could almost say that I feel better pregnant than I do otherwise!  Like I said, not totally true but really, I feel great!!  And feel so lucky about that!  

Our First Snow

We woke up Saturday morning  to a beautiful white layer of fresh snow!  First snow of 2012 and really our first real snow of this winter (real snow meaning we actually had to shovel the walks and such).  We grabbed on our snow gear and went to work clearing off our driveway and walks.  As you can see from the pictures it doesn't take long for my little space heater Nathan to warm up and off came the coat and there he is out in the snow with just his t-shirt on, crazy guy.  I wanted to make a snowman with this perfect snow and so we started rolling.  Nathan said that how it started was He saw my snowball and so of course he had to make his bigger than mine...Hence, the huge snowballs :) We had to use a  plank board to get the snowballs on top of each other.  With all the big snowballs we had we decided to make a snowman family with a Daddy, a Mommy, and baby...hey! just like us! :) 

We saw that the neighbors kids were making a snowman but then their's crumbled so we called them over and they had a blast...sad news that our amazing snowmen crumbled later that day too and only the baby's left.  

What a fun morning together in the snow!!

Christmas Time 2011

Dad Andersen made this knife for Nathan - its absolutely beautiful! Damascus steel, wood handle - Dad did an amazing job!!

Our Christmas was wonderful!  We got to go down to Las Vegas for an entire week...it had been about 7 months since we had been home to visit, so it really did feel so good.  We got to see family and friends and gets lots of hugs in.  Nathan got to work with Dad Andersen which was a nice change from school but also working just does something good for you.  I love Christmas time and with family is the best way to spend it.  Funny that right after Christmas we came back up to Utah but we came up with the Andersen family who stayed up for a few days.  The same day that they left to go back to Las Vegas the Rasmussen family came up to finish off the week with us.  So we got 2 solid weeks with family :) good thing we all like each other so much

Bells at aunt Julie's house

The Prego cousins!!  Due just a few weeks apart from each other :) 

Super strange to hug another prego lady!  Everyone else's body kinda curves around yours but ours couldn't HAHA! it was like bumping two basketballs into each other!  A little awkward but super funny

Marci Porter - great friend since high school! Love her to pieces!  We went out to lunchand it was so good to just chat, it hard seriously been too long!

I also got to go out to lunch another day with Edina Flaathan one of my best girl friends from college.  So bummed that we didn't get a picture together but I still enjoyed the time I got with her and her two adorable kiddos.  She gave me a Christmas/early baby girl of blankets, outfits, socks!  So cute and extremely thoughtful!!  I love her too!  Goodness, I am lucky to have such wonderful friends that just make my world bright!  Thanks you two!

Mom and Dad Andersen, Sara, Nathan, and I all got to go to the Las Vegas LDS temple together!  It was neat to be there all together!  Sara is now out on her mission and being totally amazing! She looked beautiful in white

Golly, I love this picture and these people!

***Our little Family***

 Grandma and Dad Rasmussen came to cheer us on as we played some b-ball in the stake center.  It was fun but man, I stunk at basketball...plus its like I had my own basketball in front of me already - give me a break!  

 We decided afterwards that we really should have changed up the teams to be Whitney and me...since Whitney's amazing and I was...well...not

Nathan and I definitely had the disadvantage! Sorry Honey!

We, of course, acted out the Nativity as is tradition and Grandma made a beautiful angel!  She's the only one I got a picture of...bummer

 Pauly and I when we were back up in Provo and we went out to watch Nathan fly his airplane

The kids love watching Nathan fly his plane :) and he loves flying it for them

Seems they make a good team

He's anxious to do the same thing with our little buddy someday