linda winnie

Friday, February 13, 2009

Valentine "delivery" 1982

My Special Valentine Delivery

Brandon David Winnie

February 13 1982
8 lbs 4 1/2 oz

21 1/2 inches

Blonde hair & blue eyes

Bringing with him, a love a mother can feel with every inch of her body, and with every breath she takes, a love that is so strong & so real, that she can not even begin to describe!

long story short.... week over due, arrive at LDS hospital 10:00 a.m. nurse wants to send me home, cant because i have toxemia, & high blood pressure, cute YOUNG intern comes in to break my water, (yikes, where is my OLD doctor!) labor pains get intense, want epidural, nurse says NO, she'll be back in 1 hour! Dave watching chart, telling me how big & long my contractions are! (that helped) over a hour later Dave leaves to take a potty break, I scream.. THE BABY'S COMING! That got the nurses attention, room fills up fast, cute young intern is back, I push & push I rip, he cuts, I make loud noises, I push & push, make more loud noises, baby is born, baby placed in my arms, we bond, & my life is changed forever : )

(Yes that is the cute young intern!)

Here are a few snippets of our life with this sweet little bundle of pure JOY!

Bringing home baby, Riverton Utah

Proud Daddy

3 months

This face shows you what a happy baby Brandon really was. He was so good & easy going. He hardly ever cried. Once he had a pretty high fever so I took him to the doctors, when the doctor looked in his ears he said, isn't this baby screaming his head off all night? these are the worst ears i've ever seen! Brandon hadn't even made a peep!

6 months old

You can see how chubby he is in this picture. He LOVED food (still does) I would make a bowl full of cereal and by the time I would get another spoonful of oatmeal, he would have his mouth wide open & ready for more! He would always make yum yum noises when he ate. (still does)

This is typical Brandon, always getting into food. Dave, Brandon & I were just chillin on the bed watching t.v. one night. I guess we took our eyes off our bowls of ice cream, and Brandon's chubby little hands were in it so fast, next thing we knew there was a sticky, gooey, mess.
Brandon was known as the human vacumn, at family parties he would always go under the table and eat anything that fell on the floor. Mashed potatoes were even known to dissapear right off peoples plates. : )

Our family's first Christmas.
Look at that cute little boy! I made his outfit, mostly because I probably couldn't afford to buy the one I wanted, but also because I secretly wanted to be a fashion designer. The overalls, are green velvet I cross stiched the little reindeer.
Ha ha before you judge, just know I had a NO money budget, and its not like I had access to a store with great fabrics and supplies!

Brandon's First Birthday.
He was so cute, he loved everything. Digging into the cake, opening his presents, playing with his toy top. I remember I saved this outfit for him to wear on his 1st birthday, it was a 18-24 month size, he was so chubby I couldn't get it snapped closed!

He loved that top, the faster I would spin it the faster he would clap!

Brandon got the chicken pox...
Right after his first birthday! So as you can see, this was a problem because he was still in diapers, so it took forever for his little bummie to heal, because you cant let little boys run around naked for very long.

Such a snuggly little boy.

18 months old
Always happy, always smiling, always laughing, my little buddy!

Easter 1983

Brandon with cousins Brian & Justin
oh my goodness!

Our little hiker

Funny Bunnies
Halloween 1983

Brandon with his side kick Tanner

Brandon was a sweet older brother, (most of the time) he always let Tanner tag along.

Jazz Fan
So many of Brandons birthdays consist of Jazz balloons, Jazz wrapping paper, & a basketball cake. He loved the Stockton to Malone days, playoffs, going to games at the delta center, greeting the players at Millionair airport after a big win or a loss.

Turning 8

12th Birthday
We took Brandon & his friends for his birthday party to meet Karl Malone & get his autograph. We had Karl sign his basketball birthday cake, with frosting in a pastry bag. Karl thought it was so cool, & said he had never signed a birthday cake before.

Life happens fast, & then your baby is 27! I can remember all of these "Brandon moments" like they were tomorrow! (it's a Brandon comment} And I love this sweetheart baby of mine 27 million times more than the day he was born, and I look forward to the next 27+ years to come.

Wishing you a Happy Birthday Brandon, may all your birthday wishes come true.
I Love you, Mom : )

Tuesday, February 3, 2009

Navi Baby

This little baby girl warms my heart!

It is so hard to believe that Navi will be three months old in three days, she's not a new born any more : ( but each month brings many new and wonderful surprises! She is smiling so big, gooing all the time, and blowing bubbles all over her precious little lips.
Take a look at these adorable pictures.
Courtesy of Courtney Brooke Photography of course : )

I cant get enough of ...those cheeks, this nose, these lips, that face,

my baby Navi!

Thursday, January 1, 2009

Twas the season...

Maybe its because i refuse to listen to Christmas music until after Thanksgiving, or maybe its because Christmas songs can take me back, in a instant to Christmas as a little girl. (awe such sweet memories) anyway for some reason i cant seem to get Christmas songs off my mind.

Our Holidays started out with...

I DECKED THE HALLS WITH BOUGHS OF HOLLY,

I love Christmas, and I Love decorating, but for some reason i don't like decorating for Christmas anymore. I don't know why, I guess its because it is just so exhausting, and takes so much time. I always wish i could spend a day at a nice luxurious spa when i get done! This year I didn't get out a lot of my decorations, and i really missed it, so next year I promise, no matter what, I am decorating everything! (well, only if i can get a massage!)

FA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA

OH THE WEATHER OUTSIDE IS FRIGHTFUL

BUT THE FIRE IS SO DELIGHTFUL
And so are my neighbors in Autumn Ridge.. I was in charge of our neighborhood charity drive this year, and our friends, the Debenhams, helped us pull it off, this is how it works... Every year the first Monday in December the neighbors get together and bring unwrapped gifts and or money donations for the Boys & Girls Club of Sandy. This year we built a big bonfire in our driveway, roasted some hotdogs, and had hot cocoa. Friends & neighbors young & old come bundled up to enjoy the evening together. It is a great way to start the holidays off, giving and sharing what we have with those who are less fortunate, This is what Christmas is all about. Thanks Lynda Orme for starting such a great tradition!

Me & Mona

A bunch of friendly neighbors

Courtney with cute laura & Ellie

LET IT SNOW! LET IT SNOW! LET IT SNOW!

I'M DREAMING OF A WHITE CHRISTMAS

and this year my dream came true! We had so much snow, I loved it!
Every time I was in a great mood this holiday season I noticed it was when it was snowing!!! And I'm not just talking a few flakes either, i am talking a snow globe kind of snow storm, (my favorite kind.) and all though i love to be home baking cookies, or making a delicious soup for dinner when it snows, I'd much ratter be out in the middle of a snow storm. How else can you

really enjoy it?

MAY ALL YOUR CHRISTMASES BE WHITE!

DON WE NOW OUR UGLY CHRISTMAS SWEATER APPAREL

We attempted to make gingerbread houses this year. We mixed, & rolled, cut, & baked, & assembled our little gingerbread houses... then the night we got together to decorate them the kids decided to have a ugly Christmas sweater party! We had so much fun laughing at each others hair styles & ugly sweaters that we didn't quite finish our houses, but they still looked great, and we had such a fun time. Ugly Christmas sweater party is here to stay. And next year we will start making our gingerbread houses Thanksgiving weekend, then MAYBE we will get them done!

FA LA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA

DASHING THROUGH THE SNOW

Call me crazy but we spent the day before Christmas Eve snowmobiling! The crazy part is, I had so much shopping left to do, but it was so worth it, because OH WHAT FUN IT IS TO RIDE! It snowed the whole day (which I loved!) we had some veggies, chips & queso dip, pulled pork sandwiches, hot cocoa, & chocolate chip cookies. Which all tasted so good after being out in the cold mountain air. The kids had a blast driving the snowmobiles through the freshly fallen snow. Thanks Debenhams for planning it, & thanks McDougals for letting us enjoy your cabin!

LAUGHING ALL THE WAY!

SANTA CLAUSE IS COMING TO TOWN

This Christmas Eve it was just the Winnie crew,

it's a good things we like each other!

ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS IS YOU... BABY

I got a early Christmas present, a granddaughter! Her name is Navi. As you can see she is so precious. I can't get enough of her. She is the best Christmas gift of all.

FA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA AWWWWW!

SILENT NIGHT, HOLY NIGHT, ALL IS CALM ALL IS BRIGHT

December 28 was Navi's blessing day. Robyn's brothers & sister were all in town for her blessing. She was blessed her in our home Sunday afternoon, around 2:30 p.m. Brandon gave her such an amazing blessing, there was a really strong spirit here, what a special day. This sweet little baby girl is so loved. Navi was sleepy all day, & she was so good during the blessing, she even giggled, how cute is that! This is such a great time of year to have a new baby, & to see her dressed in a beautiful white gown, i have no words, only tears!

Navi's blanket is the blanket Brandon was blessed with almost 27 years ago. Crocheted by Dave's mom, to our surprise the design on the blanket is the same design that is on Navi's dress! And the really freaky thing is... things that I used for my babies are now heirlooms!

MOTHER, FATHER, & CHILD

HOLY INFANT SO TENDER & MILD

Chicken curry haystacks & sticky rice with all the toppings, black berry & pomegranate salad, coconut & chocolate cupcakes for dinner.

Thee cutest great grandparents, grandma & grandpa Atwood

The Winnies & the Rupps

SLEEP IN HEAVENLY PEACE, SLEEP IN HEAVENLY PEACE.

OH HOLY NIGHT, THE STAR IS SHINING BRIGHTLY

Finally to end our holidays in style, we hiked to the STAR! For the past three years on New Years Eve, we have hiked to the star, & it is always the highlight of our holidays. We are so lucky to have an amazing neighbor named Harold Haugen, who 5 years ago had a dream that he put a star up on our mountain, & that year he made his dream come true. He hikes up every night to fill the generator with gasoline, which lights the star. I always have such a peaceful feeling on our journey to the star, there is just something about climbing up a mountain in the snow at sunset, seeing the twinkling lights from the houses below, reaching the top to see this giant star shining in the dark. It is breathtaking. This star brings so much happiness to so many people. It helps to reminds us all, the true meaning of Christmas!