26<-08:00>01/08

Excited for Church

8:45 am by Janelle. Filed under: News

1 january 2008 061Aunt Kelsey had a little photo shoot with Preston before church on Sunday. She actually captured a few smiles! I’m not sure what the ghostly blur is on most of these pictures (there are a few more in our webshots gallery) but they are still cute. Kerstin got him this adorable miniature tie…he looks all grown up!

The other day I looked at Preston and he looked like he grew over night. He just looked bigger all of the sudden! It is almost his half birthday…next Wednesday. I remember writing all about being pregnant and wondering what he would look like and what he would be like. Now he is here…and has been here for almost half a year. It always amazes me how time seems to slip by. Being in my home ward I find myself looking at the teenagers and wanting to say, “I knew you when you were this big” (holding my hand down by my thigh) or, “I used to babysit you!” I always wondered why so many people would say that to me and now I know. It’s crazy to watch people grow. I am 24 today and I cannot believe I am this age…with a husband and a kid! Not that 24 is old, but don’t you remember being 10 or so and thinking even 16 was so far away? When I was 19 I had a roommate that was 22 and to me she was just so much older and wiser than me. Looking back I realize she was older but definitely not wiser!! (correction: my birthday was actually yesterday, the 25th. I wrote this yesterday but didn’t get it posted until today.)

Being my birthday, I just wanted to write a few traditions that we used to have for birthdays…and I would love to hear any of yours because Shaun and I need to start some birthday traditions for our family! Growing up, and still today, my dad works the graveyard shift…so he works from 12am-8am. So on his way home from work every birthday he would stop by our favorite donut shop and bring us a donut, usually with a candle in it. Mom’s friend, Aileen, would usually come over with a bouquet of balloons and we were excited if ours had candy holding it down instead of some plastic cut out. My grandma and grandpa Strazzo used to get me a jar of Claussen pickles every birthday because every time I went to their house I would eat their whole jar of pickles…but they had to be Claussen.

Birthdays are fun. I hope you all have a great day!!

20<-08:00>01/08

New Pics

5:13 pm by Janelle. Filed under: Uncategorized

For all who are interested…I put up just a few pictures and videos in our webshots gallery. Preston went down his first slide, HOORAY. He didn’t seem too excited about it but one day I am sure he’ll enjoy it a little bit more. He is getting great at yoga…he can do child’s pose, plank, downward dog…he’s pretty talented : ) Dinner is on the table, I’m excited to eat. Hope you all have a great sabbath!

14<-08:00>01/08

Obvious Fan

2:10 pm by Janelle. Filed under: Shameless Plugs

1 january 2008 031

Some friends of ours gave Preston this University of Utah shirt for Christmas because we gave them some BYU apparel awhile back. Shaun said he would never put his son in it because he dislikes the U that much…well, I thought it was a cute shirt so I put it on all the time. But from this picture you can tell that Preston feels just as strongly about the U of U as his dad does… I was CRACKING up. Priceless picture.

13<-08:00>01/08

Sorry…It’s been awhile

9:27 pm by Janelle. Filed under: Janelle,Shameless Plugs

I know, I know…you have all been checking our blog every single day wondering when we are going to post something. Many of you live each day wondering what is going on in the lives of Shaun and Janelle…okay, probably not…but it really has been quite some time since I wrote on our blog!! I was quite the addict when we lived in Utah. Maybe because our apartment was small and I was either in the bedroom or in the front room by the computer so it was easier to surf the web…I don’t know. Anyhow, we made it to California and many will be jealous to hear that it is going to be almost 60 degrees this week and sunny. Oh, what a great feeling that is! Shaun was supposed to start his job last Monday but there was a massive, crazy storm when we got here so the police department was busy dealing with the chaos of fallen trees and downed power lines so they couldn’t get his finger prints and background check done. They didn’t want so hoodlum working for them so they postponed his first day until tomorrow. He was able to go out to lunch with the city manager this week and get a tour of the office. Shaun even gets his own cubicle! How fun. His first project begins tomorrow and he will be meeting with a committee to discuss how to fix a parking situation in down town Folsom which is apparently ugly. We’ll let you know how that goes.

Preston has made some huge strides (not literally…) He had been getting up on his hands and knees but mostly just scooting backwards or staying in the same spot. Today we held a toy out in front of him a few feet away and he would get onto his hands and knees, start rocking back and forth, and eventually heave himself forward as many times as he needed to, to get where he wanted!! I seriously think he will be crawling soon! We tried to get a video of him doing this heave-ho thing but once the camera came out he all of the sudden became so interested in everything else EXCEPT his new trick, so we’ll work on getting that documented so all can share these crazy fun times :)

My sister, Kelsey, and I have started training for a half marathon which we are planning on running in April. I am not as out of shape as I thought I would be but she is still running me into the ground!! In the end this will all be worth it, I have to keep telling myself.

We are doing well here so far and miss our family and friends in Utah! We hope you are all doing well! Exciting adventures are in store and I’ll be sure and write every step of the way. LOVE YOU ALL!

03<-08:00>01/08

Check it

11:30 pm by shaun. Filed under: News

Preston has learned how to stick out his tongue.
1 january 2008 013

03<-08:00>01/08

Going to California with an achin’ in my heart…

9:53 am by shaun. Filed under: News

First, let me start by saying how excited I am to be graduated from BYU. It is such a relief to have one milestone out of the way and to feel like we are making some progress in life. Secondly, we are very excited to be out in sunny California and so close to Janelle’s family. But…

We really are going to miss our friends and family in Utah. We will miss family dinners and Wii tournaments at the Edwards home. We will miss beating Taylor at Risk, Daniels long hair and brace-less smile; Mom’s cooking among other things; Dad’s expertise in every area of life; Christer’s computer skills and anti-Microsoft rants; Catherine period (she is the new favorite right), and watching Amy and Burgess enjoy their first year of marital bliss. We will miss everyone’s smiles and hugs, but we will see you again soon. Kerstin we always miss you because you moved as far away as you could go while staying in the US (are you trying to tell us something?)

Leaving BYU is bitter-sweet. I really am glad to have a degree under my belt and to start working, but I really grew to love BYU. I learned more than I ever could have imagined. I made so many friends I hope I can stay in contact with half of them, and most importantly… Utah is where Janelle and I found each other. It is where we dated and fell in love. It is where we have spent all of our married lives, and where Preston was born. We have so many wonderful memories from our years in Utah.

It would take a lot more than words to express how thankful I am that I went to Utah, that I said hello to Janelle in the hall of the LDS Business College, and that we decided to start our family when we did.

Oh, and one last note. Final grades just came in this morning and I finished my final semester with a 4.0 gpa (I never thought I would be able to get an A in statistics, but we prayed a lot). That brings my overall gpa to a 3.91. WOW! I hate feeling like I am bragging, but for those who didn’t know me in high school, trust me, even getting into college was an accomplishment for me. To have done so well in school is nothing short of a miracle.