Jessa's best friend.

Back on January 5th, our great friends Amber and Todd had their first baby, Haylee Marie. Once Jessa and Haylee met, the two of them hit it off immediately. It's truly amazing how much they have in common. Crying, drooling, getting dressed up, watching NASCAR with their Dads, the list goes on and on.

At their first photo shoot, there was a dispute about who should be in front.



Jessa landed a quick uppercut.....



... but all was good in the end as they decided to share the lens and wave to the camera.

Up, up, and away!

After a very uneventful 2 months (sarcasm implied), Jessa finally got to take a ride on her first jet airplane. Oh how I long for the days of lugging bags for just one Monagan woman. Now, they do let families with small children board before most of the cattle, so I guess that's my carrot. But I figured it just means I get to sit on that uber-comfy airplane longer (again with the sarcasm).

Almost forgot. There was a family vote, and unfortunately I'm not allowed to post poop stories on the blog anymore (you can guess where the party lines were drawn). So in the interest of self preservation, nothing actually happened on the flight. Below you'll find a picture taken a few minutes before nothing happened.



We were greeted in Sacramento by 104 degree temperatures, and of course a large contingent from the Monagan side of the family. Here's a shot of Great Grandma Ione and Jessa together for the first time.



Great Grandpa Bob with Jessa (another first).



Grandma Wendy gets her second visit in.



Grandpa's turn



It looks like these three have fallen victim to the power of cooing.

Say Cheese!!!

Apparently, all it takes is one smile for me to forget about all the sleepless hours, dirty diapers, and ear piercing crying fits. Lucky for me, I had my handy-dandy camera to snap a few thousand pictures of em. Lucky for you, I filtered through them all to pick out the best ones.

Happy 4th of July!


For our extended weekend, we decided to take a trip up the 5 freeway to visit Grandpa Harry and Grandma Joan, aka "Pops" and "G". With 4 sets of grandparents, nicknames are not only cute, but a necessity. Most of the time is spent lounging in the lagoon, eating, and the occasional beverage of choice usually containing malted barley and hops. Jessa decided to throw us a few curve balls with what seemed like hourly "blow-outs". If you don't know what a blow-out is, you probably don't have children. Consider yourself warned.


That's Jessa'a cousin Harry, aka "five", sporting his Stetson.


Jessa and her festive duds. Unfortunately the blow-out fairy soon paid a visit, and the star spangled outfit was doomed.

On Wednesday, we celebrated the 10th anniversary of my 20th Birthday. Grandma Pat drove up to babysit for the first time, while Auntie Kelsey and Cousin Emilio drove down from LA to lend a hand and offer their condolences regarding my milestone.

Stefanie and I were joined by a few close friends and family for a nice evening out, and a short baby break. 10 years ago, this group would have been dancing on the tables (which is tough on the feet at Benihana) and throwing back tequila shots. Unfortunately, we're now sneaking in for the early bird special and our night caps consist of prune juice with the occasional TUMS chaser.

Everything went smoothly, and we arrived home to find our little Princess wrapped up snugly in one of her favorite new blankets. This particular one was hand made by our good friend Joanna (soon to be Mrs. Seth Shaw). We couldn't resist snapping a picture and sharing it. Considering the refreshments that were served at dinner, I'm surprised it's in focus.