Our little Con-Man is One!

We celebrated Conner's first birthday a little over a month ago, so I thought I should probably post some pictures.  We have loved every second of this past year that we have been able to see Conner grow.  He is such a relaxed and easy going  little guy.  It also takes a lot to compete with his older sister who is go, go, go all of the time!  He just started crawling right after he turned one and we are still working on the walking part but I have to admit that it has been a lot easier for me to have a slow mover.  Here are a few pictures to enjoy!

I love that face!  Daddy always knows how to get the best pictures!

His first action figure....an army guy

He didn't hesitate at all to just dig right in!  He loved the cake!

Basketball carrot cake with cream cheese frosting

We love our Con-man!

New Hair, New Look

So, I did something kind of crazy for me this last weekend and I wanted to share.  I am one of those people who usually sticks with things that I'm comfortable with especially when it comes to my hair.  I have always had the same color my whole life and I have never cut it shorter than my shoulders.  I decided that I needed a change and I thought I could really go drastic with the layers and also get some bangs (the coloring will probably just have to wait until I start going gray).  Whenever I decide to to something different I always end up going on the safe side when I'm actually at my hair appointment.  This time, I said just cut those bangs and give me some crazy layers!  My good friend Trianna cut my hair and she did a great job.  It kind of freaked me out when I saw myself at first but I'm getting used to the new look and I'm glad I finally did something different :)  Here's some pictures!

Happy Fall and Halloween!

 This is the family at the annual Porter Halloween Party.  Brielle was Jessie from Toy Story, Conner was a dragon, I was a cat, and let's see if you can guess what my husband was.......Himself. He didn't really have time to dress up but I think he looks great;)

This is up American Fork Canyon when the leaves were all changing.  We took an whole day and drove up the canyon and then stopped by Tucanos in Provo to use our Christmas present from my brother Eric and his wife Cheryl.  The food was delicious and the leaves and scenery were even better!

 My sister Camille was so wonderful and came to my house to clean the carpets for me and it was fun to see her little boy Joseph and Conner play together.  I can't believe how fast they change!  Conner is just under 9 months here and Joseph is about 7 months.

 Just having some fun taking pictures.  It was quite the challenge trying to get everyone to look at the camera at the same time.

 Mother and daughter

 Father and son

Our amazing pumpkins. I drew the face and Tagg drew the witch and he also carved both of them.  I know what you're probably thinking....my husband is really artistic right?  You would be correct :)

New Arrival: Conner Ray Bowen

I'm finally getting to posting about the newest addition to our family, now making us a family of four! Conner Ray Bowen was born on Tuesday, January 31st at 3:33 pm, weighing 8 lbs 2 oz and was 20 inches long. He has brown straight hair like his daddy and definitely looks like a Bowen. My labor and delivery was kind of a crazy story so I thought I would share some of the experience.
My actual due date was January 29th so I went into the hospital to have the baby monitored on Monday, which was the day after my due date. Everything looked good and I had been feeling random contractions through out the day but nothing serious. That night I didn't get much sleep because I was having contractions about every 30-45 minutes and I knew that Conner was coming. Tuesday morning I told Tagg that he should probably stay home from work and my contractions starting getting about 5-10 minutes apart around 9:00 am. They just kept getting more and more painful and I tried to stay distracted. The hardest part this time around was knowing when to go to the hospital because I wanted to do it naturally again but did not want to labor much at the hospital. Well, I got my wish because around 2:30 I told Tagg that we needed to go to the hospital because my contractions were starting to feel different. Tagg rushed to get Brielle and our things in the car and helped me get there as well (I could barely walk). The drive to the hospital was pretty intense because I felt like I needed to push...not good. Tagg ran a few red lights and called his mom to meet us at the hospital to get Brielle. I was just praying that I wouldn't have this baby in the car! We got there, a nurse wheeled me in while Tagg parked the car and got Brielle, and literally about 20 minutes later Conner was here! That was almost too close for comfort, but I was so relieved that we got there in time and that Conner got here safely. Even if I wanted drugs this time around, there wasn't even enough time to get an IV in me. My doctor barely made it there in time and joked that he knew exactly what room I was in when he got to the floor. How embarrassing. Anyway, Tagg and I could not be more thrilled to have little Conner in our home and Brielle is adjusting just fine. I think she was a little overwhelmed at first with all the pictures and her normal routine being thrown off, but now she seems to be back to her normal self. She loves to give Conner hugs and kisses and likes to play with his toys too.
I can't believe that Conner is now 1 month old today! He is already changing so much. I feel totally recovered and have enjoyed being a mother of two. He is a great baby so far, just eats, sleeps, and poops:) His days and nights were mixed up for awhile. He is starting to wake up more now and has smiled at us. He doesn't cry much, just grunts a lot, definitely a boy thing. I remember when I first heard his cry at the hospital, I thought he sounded like the raptor in the Jurassic Park movie when it's being born:)
We are so grateful that Conner is here safely and feel so blessed.

My first picture with Conner.

3 Generations

Our first family picture all together!

With Grandma Porter

With Grandma Bowen

Brielle welcoming Conner into the family at the hospital.

He has brown, straight hair like his dad. I was so happy to have a mini Tagg now since Brielle looks so much like me:)


You can't see them in this picture, but one of my favorite things about Conner are his cute dimples! They're showing up more now too since his cheeks are getting chubbier. I'm still working on getting a good picture to do them justice.

My two studs. Conner definitely has a lot of daddy in him!

Brielle likes to help mommy out with Conner, especially with giving hugs and giving him his binky. Her favorite words to say around him are 'Baby Conner' and 'Bye Bye Conner'. I always have to say that he's not going anywhere:)

This is the most recent picture I have taken of Conner. It's amazing how fast they change!

Pictures

Here are some pictures of the baby room and the little projects that I have been working on the last few months. I went with the owl theme and had a lot of fun going to my mom's and having her help with all of the sewing! We sewed the crib bumper, skirt, new covering the rocking chair cushions, curtains, and I sewed covers for two pillows. I also made the mobile above the bed and put together the pictures. Eventually the middle picture will have our boys initials in it.

More pictures to come of the baby!!










This is the most recent picture of me prego and I am about 35 weeks along. My sister Camille and I had to get at least one picture of us both pregnant. It's so fun to be pregnant at the same time as my sisters and Camille and I are both having boys!

Nesting and getting anxious....

So, I thought it would be a good idea to post something on my blog before the baby comes cause things will get a little more crazy once that day arrives. We are so excited and can't wait to meet our little boy! I feel like I can't slow down at all and want to get as much done as I can right now, I just want to organize everything. The nursery is pretty well finished now, and it was a lot of fun to sew and have fun with decorating. I love that I now get to experience a lot of blue now instead of so much pink:)
Brielle is growing up so fast and we're hoping that she will be ready for the new addition to the family. She seems to love little babies but it may be different story when it's her brother. I think she'll be great. We just put her in a toddler bed over a week ago and she has been doing wonderfully, besides the fact that she can get in and out whenever she pleases. She still sleeps through the night and will usually take her normal once a day nap. She also got to experience nursery for the first time and has now been twice. She didn't even seem to care when mommy left and when I returned she greeted me with a big hug and kiss:) I love being a mom. We figured we should try those two changes before the baby got here, and Brielle is adjusting just fine...for now. She is still our little talker and can now count to 10! She is starting to become a little parrot so Tagg and I need to watch what we say:)
Well, it is now just the waiting game and I will be sure to post some pictures of the baby once he gets here! We are all very anxious at the Bowen home!

Our Summer Adventures

Tagg's brother Tyrell got married in August and this is us at the reception. It was a beautiful day for Tyrell and Katherine and we are so happy for them.

We went to Jackson Hole, WY with Tagg's family and stayed in a condo right inside the city. It was a much needed vacation for me, I really needed to get out of the house and go camping or something in order for it to feel like summer.

We went and had dinner at Bar J Wranglers while enjoying some entertainment. Brielle loved the music and was dancing the whole time! I think it wore her out though because right before the show was over she was asleep in daddy's arms.

This is Tagg and Brielle enjoying some of our garden veggies. Brielle really loved the tomatoes and also eating the corn right off the cob. We really enjoyed doing our first garden and can't wait for next year. We planted corn, tomatoes, potatoes, green beans, peas, green peppers, and carrots.

Brielle enjoying the sun on the lake.

2nd Baby well on his way!

This is me at about 22 weeks and I'm feeling great! We are so excited for our little boy to get here and I feel like this pregnancy has just flown by! He will arrive at the very end of January when it will be nice and cold, very different from when Brielle got here. I definitely started showing sooner this time around but am so grateful that this pregnancy is much like my last. Tagg and I both feel that trying to choose a boy name is much harder than choosing a girl name.

A New Beginning

So I'm trying to change things up a bit with my blog and actually start updating it on a regular basis. I have come to realize that the reason I never update this thing is because I don't love it. Go figure:) I often felt like I needed to be clever or entertaining like the many blogs that I read and because I can be a perfectionist, I put it off.
I'm done doing that now. I decided that this blog is to keep the people we love updated on our lives and it is also a way for me to keep a journal.
I will be back shortly to post a few pictures and give the update on the Bowen Bunch!

Brielle Bowen!!

This little woman is the new addition to the Bowen home. Brielle Bowen was born on July 20, 2010, weighing 8 lbs 10 oz. As you can see mom had the dominant genes with this one:) We love her and couldn't be happier to have her with us!

More to come!

A little GIRL is on her way!

So, here is the most recent picture of me. I am definitely getting the bump now and it feels nice to actually look a little more pregnant rather than just feeling pregnant. Things have been going great and on March 5, Tagg and I found out that we are having a little girl! We are both so excited! We already have a nursery that is painted perfectly for a little girl....Score! Don't have to make any changes there:)
There is so much more that I want to talk about......but I need to go get ready for piano lessons today. Yes, I have started teaching piano just recently and am so grateful for the opportunity so soon. I wanted to possibly teach in the future, but I guess there is no time like the present! More posts and updates to come (Also some funny pictures of Tagg).

Great News!

I am almost 18 weeks pregnant in this picture. Starting to show the little baby bump:)




So, I am finally updating my blog! It is pretty pathetic that the last time I posted something was when I actually created this thing. Tagg and I have been married for almost 9 months now and we are so excited to say that a little Tagg Jr. or Julie Jr. will be in our lives soon. I am almost 18 weeks pregnant and my due date is July 17th. We both are so excited and can't wait to be parents. We moved into our house on October 1, 2009 and have loved having a place of our own. Of course I want to do a lot more decorating...but that will have to just come with time. It costs enough just trying to fill an empty house with only two people living there. The baby will help out with that:)

I have to say that I have been very lucky with my pregnancy so far. I have not thrown up once to this date and hope that I never do. I am past the nausea stage and feel like eating more often. I still get tired and want to take naps all the time, but that's normal for me:) I also just start crying sometimes and it only lasts a minute or so. Different things will trigger it... for example, when I was only about 7 or 8 weeks pregnant, I saw a homeless man on the side of the road and I just started crying for him. Normally I would feel bad for a homeless guy but I definitely would not just break down in my car about it! I felt so blessed and I just wanted to help this man.....I'm sorry to say that I did not stop to give him some money cause I was getting on the freeway and could not pull over. I guess that shows how much I really cared, right? I knew it was pregnant emotions but I do care about homeless people.
Anyway, being pregnant so far has been great and I'm excited for the rest of the journey and all the other fun things that lie ahead. Tagg and I truly feel blessed.

Just Married!!!

Tagg and I were just married on May 21st and we are loving married life together! Tagg surprised me with a whole week honeymoon in Orlando Florida and we pretty much tried to fit everything in. We went to Disney World, Epcot, Sea World, Universal Studios, and enjoyed a luxurious resort. It couldn't have been any better. We are now trying to get back into the swing of things in our new basement apartment in Provo.