Cute New Pictures

I would like to start off by apologizing on not blogging in weeks and weeks...I have slacked severely.   So.... Here we are....Brody is now 3 and 1/2 months old...He weighs about 15 pounds!!! I would just like to share a few weight related stories with you guys!!! A woman at the bank sent a sucker for Brody through the little machine at the drive-thru and a woman at the airport asked if he was 7 months... NO.... (and random age to guess...personally I would have guessed 6 months 2 weeks and 3 days)...Moral of the stories??? He is large for his age.  He is wearing 6 month clothes and proudly still sporting the double chinS :) But we love him lots!!! He is smiling and talking...coohing and gooing... I like to translate when we talk... He says "I love you mom" a lot... "I love you dad" when we are with Joey and "I'm starving...I ate like an hour ago" and "I just pooped all over myself" pretty run of the mill conversations... Sometimes I like to play like he is telling me a story and say..."Really" or "No...you didn't say that" It gets a smile out of him... And yes... I am that mom,who in public, coos and goos like an idiot!

As far as other news... he is going through a little growth spurt right now, so he is eating like crazy and is waking up in the middle of the night again.... he was sleeping through... He has started to drool a lot, has rolled all the way over twice... both were accidents I am convinced...none the less he did it... He does roll to one side all the time though.  He can sit up and stand on our legs with support.  So for those of you that don't know the developmental milestones...he is right on track.... He was a cow for Halloween. The cutest cow in North Carolina that is for sure!!!

In other news, Joey and I are both doing well.... We are enjoying a little bit of a break with the summer being over.  I have been running... I am going to do a half marathon in December... I have never been a runner, so it has been fun to train and actually enjoy it!! We went to Utah for Brody's blessing...It was such a fun a trip.  We spent most of our time at a cabin in Eden with Joey's family for a family reunion. Brody was blessed on Sunday....Joey gave him a beautiful blessing....and then had lunch with everyone who was there for the blessing.  We got to meet Brooks...Storey and Ben's (Joey's sister and Brother-in-law)  son who is 2 months older than Brody... He is a cutie and it was neat to see what Brody will be doing soon.  It was nice to get away and great to be back in Utah for a visit.

Well I hope you guys all enjoy the new pictures of Brody. 

7 Weeks

So I can't believe how fast time has gone by..... It is Brody's 7 week anniversary.... that is 49 days of life!  It has gone by way too fast.  I have decided that it is a love-hate time right           now.   I love how cuddly and small he is and hate that he is now moving from the "oh look how tiny"... to "wow... he is a big baby" stage. But, I LOVE the new stages... There is something new every day that has changed....He smiled 3 big smiles today....I have yet to get it on camera, but hopefully will soon.  Now, for those of you who have not met Brody (the majority of you reading this) let me tell you a little bit about him. :) He is an active little guy.  He kicks and moves his arms a lot.  I can lay him down in the pack and play vertical, but when I check on him a few minutes later, he is just shy of horizontal.   He likes to take walks, either in his stroller or in the Baby Bjorn.  He is a content baby.  He does not cry... except when he is hungry and gives a quick shout whenever he has a bad gas pain.  He is almost grown out of his newborn clothes and is into the 3 months size.  He can no longer wear the hat you see in one of the pictures. hah... his chinS are in full force.  He loves his Binkie.  He will sit for hours just chomping on it!!! He loves to be held and cuddled.  He is sleeping, burrito style... what I call it when they are wrapped all tight.... in his crib now.  He sleeps from about 9 pm until about 3 or so...sometimes waking up about midnight... and then from 3 to about 6:30-7ish.   Well I hope that gives you a little insight into who he is and how much he is growing.  

As far as other things go.... We are wonderful!! The summer is over and now we work normal hours.  It was a great first year!! We are excited for our trip to back to Utah the beginning of October.  We miss it there and are excited to get back and see everyone! I will leave you with some updated pictures of Brody. Enjoy!!!

 

Almost 3 whole weeks!!!

So I am just as bad at posting as before, except now I actually have something worth posting!!! These past 17 days have been so crazy!! Brody is such a great little guy! He seriously is just perfect. I know...I may be a slight bit biased, but I am already that mom. He is now almost 9 pounds... eating like a champ...pooping like a champ and making sure to pee on everyone that changes him!! We are really proud. He already has so much of a personality! His neck is really strong already. He likes to think he can hold it up himself and he is showing signs of wanting to roll over. I am pretty sure he is going to roll in a week, talk in a month and walk in about 3 months. As you can see... he is advanced for his age. hahaha!!! Really though, on a serious note....Having him is so amazing! Joey is super dad and I would be lost without him. He is so helpful and has been the greatest blessing to me and little Brody. I love being a mom. I love just watching him. I love his little face and cute little body. I love his reflex smiles that he has just after he eats... I keep trying to catch one in a picture, but he gets camera shy. I love his little sounds and love how cute he looks wrapped up like a little burrito... yes the food analagies are still here.....I love the spirit that he brings into our home and how much love we have for him. I love how his little toes point up when he eats and his glorious double chin he works so hard to keep. Well, I will leave you with a few cute pictures of Brody..... He has changed so much, even in the 17 days of life. Thank you to everyone for the calls and visits, thoughts and prayers. Also, thank you mom and dad and Tim and Michele for all the love, support, cleaning, dinners, shopping and for just being there. We appreciate it so much and hope we have expressed that enough!!

Brody Joseph Toone

He made it!!! Brody Joseph Toone was born this morning at 7:08 am weighing 7 pounds 15 ounces and he is 20 and 3/4 inches long. Both mother and child are healthy and they did an amazing job during labor and delivery. Seriously, Lauren was awesome. Thanks for your prayers and we'll keep the updates and pictures coming. Joey

Not Yet But Soon. . . . . . .

7 pounds 4 ounces!!!!!!!!! No we haven’t had the baby yet but the doctor told us this morning that this should be his approximate weight. They did an ultra sound and full check up and Lauren scored 8 out of 8 on all the tests and the doctor referred to her pregnancy as “the perfect pregnancy.” For those of you who need a reminder Lauren’s due date is Aug 6th but she has been having contractions since 7/17 and the doctor predicted that she would have the baby a week ago so Lauren is pretty anxious. She has been dilated to a 3 for the last week. She wakes up every morning and walks 3 miles and at night she eats anything spicy. From Wendy’s spice chicken sandwich to extra wasabi with her sushi she is trying everything.
I on the other hand, as of late, have found it very easy to engulf myself with work and not even think about the baby. I have had emotions ranging from throwing up to being so excited I can’t sleep. Mostly I just rub feet and fetch food to fulfill cravings. This is the craziest type of anticipation I have every felt. Now more than every am I grateful for the person I married and the mother she will soon be.
Now I will catch you up on all the other happenings. Over the 4th we were able to sneak away to DC to visit our good friends Burton and Janaya. They recently moved to the DC area and it was great to see them. We are excited to have them so close. This was my first time to DC and it exceeded my expectations. I loved seeing all the monuments, memorials, and museums. I was surprised by the deep reverence and respect I was able to feel for my country and its history while walking around such a busy and populated city. On my way home I tried to figure out why I have such a desire to travel to foreign lands when we have such amazing places here in the United States that I have never been to? I guess we will have to kill a lot of bugs and do both!! Anyways, since our little get away it has been nothing but work work work. The business is doing well and we are continually pleased with our decision to come out here to North Carolina. Hopefully in the next week or so we will have great news and pictures to post. Joey

Happy Birthday Joey!!!!!

This past Saturday was Joey's 26th birthday.... I LOVE birthdays.... mine, other peoples...it doesn't matter!!! Seeing as how his birthday lands right in the middle of our busiest time, the summer, I try and do as much as I can, while trying to fit it into our work schedule. Unfortunatley, I stole his thunder a little this year, well Brody did :) and I had a baby shower here in Monroe that morning...He was really sweet about taking over for me, doing double duty, while I went to the shower. Other than working, here is a rundown of how his day/weekend went.... Friday night I made a pie!! Yes, a pie... homemade pie crust and all...Banana Cream....Joey's choice. I took pictures because I was quite proud of myself. We also went to dinner that night(Joey's choice). On his actual birthday, I got up and made him german pancakes for breakfast and then that night we had our friends over and grilled brats and burgers and had birthday cake and opened some presents! It was a lot of fun!!!

So....Happy Birthday Babe!! I hope you had a great day!! You deserve it! You are such a hard worker and driven by ambition. You are a motivating force in my life to be better and I am forever grateful for that!!! I love you so much and am truly blessed to be married to you. I'm grateful for you and the times we have together. We are always laughing and lovin life 24/7.... ;) Thank you for being the husband you are and for making this last year the so great!!!!

Love you---Lauren

Here are some pictures from his birthday weekend! 1)The pie   2)birthday breakfast  3) Joey and some of the guys  4) us at the birthday party

Teach Them While They're Young

I wanted to share my first purchase for Brody with you all. Go Cougars!!! -Joey

A Tiny Toone Update!!!

I know I just posted, but I thought.... what the heck...I'll post again...So,I hate pictures of myself these days!!! Which is why mine and the cameras relationship has drastically decreased!! However, I understand belly updates are needed and before Brody comes would be preferable. So here you go!! Tiny Toone is doing great!! He is just growing and kicking and loving life 24/7!! He kicks a lot... and seems to be quite fond of my rib cage and organs. Which PS... they don't really have much of a place to go. I now have about 6.5 weeks left and counting!! I have not been too uncomfortable, but am really ready to meet him! :) I went to MS this past weekend and had a baby shower! Brody got lots of cute things and we are almost set with all that we need! I will post pictures when I get the nursery finished...my goal is to be done by July 1st!! (I heard all those "yeah rights")

As far as other news goes, bugs are dying and customers are happy!!! :) Really though.. we are doing awesome!! We are lucky to have the group of guys down here that we do... Joey has been having a lot of fun with them on the weekends, paintballing (with and without shirts), golfing, and barbecuing! They sure are lucky to have such a great boss!! I have also posted a picture of one of our Moxie trucks with 2 of our technicians for veiwing pleasure! We have a strict diet we keep them on to ensure their sleek physiques. It benefits us because they can get into smaller cracks and crevices!!!

On other news, life outside pest control is going great as well. We have gotten to know a lot more people and that makes our weekends fun! Joey was recently called as the Young Mens President and I got called as the 2nd Counselor in Primary, so we both stay pretty busy with our responsibilites! I had to fill in to lead the music one Sunday and realizing I do not know any primary songs, got Joey to fill in for me... It was funny! He is really good at Book of Mormon Stories!! I wish I had a video camera... I do think he added a few extra moves... but it was great... the kids didn't even notice!

Speaking of kids, some other great news is that Storey and Ben, Joey's sister and Brother-in-law, just adopted a handsome little boy...Brooks Jorgensen.. He is so stinking cute and has a head full of hair! We can't wait to meet him in October when we are back in Utah for a visit. I think Brooks and Brody will be great friends!

So that about sums up the 2 month gap in my posting!! :) As we say in the South....Byyyyyyyyyyyye!!!!!

The long awaited pictures and posting is here!! To all those who will actually read this and have not given up on us yet (seeing as how the last post was about a month ago!!) I hope you like it :)   So... I am sure you can guess the basis of this post by the pictures!! I am currently 26 weeks along and feeling wonderful... Other than the fact to get these pictures, I think I put on an endless amount of outfits to get a good picture of me and a good picture of my belly!! And I thought being a girl was bad enough when it came to liking pictures.... Adding pregnancy on top of it makes for a a long photo session with my photographer... Thanks for being patient babe!!! :) Everything is great though, I am doing well and feeling better than I have the whole pregnancy.  The little guy is very active.  I had a doctors appointment this past Friday and all is well! Brody ( what we have decided to name him) decided to show off for the nurses.  They were using the little machine to listen to his heartbeat and every time that they put it on my stomach, he would kick really hard and kick it off.  It was so funny and the whole doctor's office was getting a kick out of it ( no pun intended:)..hahha) good to know he is having fun in there!!! He is healthy and the doctor says I am right on track! 

I have been thinking recently about what a blessing it is to be having a little baby!! At night, it is crazy how he just kicks and moves around.  I sit and watch my stomach morph into different shapes depending on where he decides he wants to be.  It is amazing how at 8 weeks he was just a little gummy bear and now he is as long as a Subway sandwich... footlong.... and weighs 2 pounds or so.  As you can see pregnancy is in full swing, using the food analogies and all:) But really, there are times where I get all teary-eyed just thinking about him and what he will look like and be like.... his personality and his spirit! How he will look at me and Joey and know he is ours and feel our love for him.  To think it is only 3 months away!!!  

As far as other news goes... We will officially be up and running as Moxie Pest Control of Charlotte as of this Wednesday.  We have our first batch of salesmen coming this next weekend.  We are both excited and ready to get rolling! This summer is going to be a crazy experience!!!  Well, I promise to be better about posting! We miss everyone and hope all is well!! 

Well, if you are wondering about the 2 above posted pictures, it sums up our weekend :) On Friday, I got one of my random pregnancy cravings and cooked some Velveeta Shells and Cheese and some sausage!!! Despite the description, is was quite delicious!!!! Joey thought this was a sight to see, hence the picture!! Hey... it is all the baby's doing!! The second picture is of Joey studying... Look closely and you may see Elder Toone or just a bug geek!! Either way... I guess he figured if he dressed the part, he would study better.  Sweet part Boo!! We spent Saturday night with some new friends we have met here, Natalie and Brian and Katie and Jeremy, at a local mexican restaurant called La Unica. It was great!!! We have been so good about not going out to eat lately, that La Unica is now on my list of top 10 favorite places to eat! Sunday was great... We went to church and then spent the next few hours with the Elders (and no Joey did not dress the part this time.) Did I mention that these were the Spanish speaking elders in our ward? Also, that my broken Spanish did not help me much except to find the bathroom??? Really though, it was such a cool experience.  We went to 3 discussions with them that night.  Joey's Spanish is great and it has been fun to see him in missionary mode.  We are having a great time out here and have met so many nice people.  I will leave you on a little funny note.  So Joey talks to our son...via my stomach.... about what all he will be when he comes out and  grows up.   One of his many talents will be that he will be a pro skateboarder like Ryan Sheckler... except when he was telling him, he said Ryan Seacrest instead of Sheckler.... Ooops!!  Same thing right??? Now when he talks to our son after he says I love you, I make him leave with Seacrest out!!!! Miss and love you all!!!

Here is the requested picture of the house.  As the lawn illustrates we are in a bit of a drought here in North Carolina.  When we turned our water on at the Monroe City Building they let us know we would be fined if we were caught watering our lawn or washing our cars.  Hey, if it doesn't get watered it can't grow, and if it doesn't grow, it doesn't need to be cut.  

We made it to Charlotte and we couldn’t be better.  First off I say Charlotte because it’s a city most people recognize but we actually live in the city of Monroe. We technically are 20 minutes away from downtown Charlotte. Let me know if you want our physical address, I'll shoot you an email.  We left Sunday the 24^th of February at 5a.m. and drove our 26ft truck and car trailer 15 hours across the country and spent the first night in St. Joseph Missouri.  The next morning we drove another 12 hours to make it to Mississippi in time for dinner (otherwise known as supper).  Dinner is a pretty big deal especially when Laurens mom is making her famous red beans and rice.  We spent Tuesday through Thursday with Laurens family and enjoyed some much needed relaxation and fun.  Friday we hesitantly climbed back into our traveling beast and started our 12 hour journey to Monroe.  We spent the night in a hotel and woke up Saturday morning to start moving into our new residence.  We had plenty of help moving in, all which included Laurens two cousins from the ATL and 12 men from the Monroe ward.  We had everything out of the truck and into its assigned room in 30 minutes.  Lauren and I didn’t lift a single box, seeing as how we were more useful directing the 14 helpers we had.  We couldn’t have received a better, more appreciated welcome. 

Approaching 2 weeks here things are awesome and feeling more and more like home everyday.  We miss friends and family but are also enjoying the time to ourselves.  Especially considering that will be a thing of the past come August 6^th!!  Lauren is getting to where people actually believe she is pregnant if she turns to the side and sticks here belly out.  I am loving the weather and have been able to use my new Christmas clubs!!! 

Well we got this to keep people updated on how things are out here and also to post pictues so I’ll post a small time line to catch people up on the last 8 or 9 months and post plenty of pics.  Enjoy and we love and miss y’all!!  That’s right I said y’all, and I’m fixin ta keep using it too!!   

July 21^st 2007 Married in SLC Temple

Sept 2007 Moved into a home in Lehi

Dec 2007  Scooter, R.I.P.

Dec 13^th 2007 Lauren found out she is expecting

Feb 22^nd 2008 We found out Lauren is having a BOY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Feb 24^th 2008 Left for Monroe, NC

March 1^st 2008 Arrived in NC

We are out of here!!!!!!