baby zoe, im ready for my close up

Pocatello Pump

I am very pleased to announce that Jared placed third in the Pocatello Pump {a national climbing competition} yesterday even though he didn't climb on Sunday {which was necessary to win}! We are so proud of him! Way to stick up for what you believe in Love! I love you!

Zoe...three weeks old

Zoe has amazed us yet again! She was lifting her head on her own the day she was born and this week, she started lifting her head and legs at the same time. Saturday morning, as Jess was getting Zoe warmed up after her bath, she completely flipped over and we thought "wow, that probably won't happen again." But Saturday night, Jared and I woke up at 4 in the morning to find that our power had gone out. Thinking it was a tripped breaker, we laid Zoe on her back and went out to the garage to see what we could find out. Well, it wasn't a breaker and after calling Idaho Power, we found out that our neighborhood was in the dark. When we got back to bed, not even two minutes later, we found Zoe flat on her tummy! Yep! She rolls over at not even three weeks! Super exciting but rather scary as we will be keeping a VERY close eye on her every move from now on! We've also discovered that Zoe LOVES bath time, or rather, shower time. Jess loved taking showers when she was pregnant because it helped with the nausea, and now whenever Zoe even hears the shower water turn on, she gets really quiet and looks super content! And she loves the shower water running over her. She is so gorgeous and is such a good baby. We are so blessed that she is a part of our family!


Zoe in the shower with dad


"almost" rolling over

State Fair

This week, Junae and Jared and Zoe and I went to the Eastern Idaho State Fair. Jared made sure that Junae and I tried the infamous Idahoan "Elephant Ears" and we enjoyed delicious candied and carmel apples. We also went to the petting zoo, saw dogs that jump in the air and catch frisbees, and saw some amazingly large vegetgables, courtesy of the FFA {Future Farmers of America}!


Junae and Zoe at the petting zoo


Jared and his dream puppy {someday love...I promise}


petting a baby goat


amazing flying dogs


the largest pumpkin we've ever seen!

Zoe...two weeks old

At two weeks, Zoe is more adorable than ever! She is definitely a snuggler and can really only sleep if mom or dad are holding her. She is especially adorable when she wants to eat. She just opens wide and tries to find where her food might be and sometimes ends up shaking her head back and forth with her mouth open because she's just too tired to find it. She also "jumps" whenever we burp her. We aren't sure if the recurrent taps surprise her or maybe it's the sound, but her whole body startles whenever we do it. She just gets cuter by the day! We love her so much!


Uncle Jordan


Auntie Lo


Gramma Martha




Sarah designed and made this adorable princess outfit for Zoe....it says "little princess" on the bum :D

Labor Day 2009

Jessica's dad, stepmom, sisters and brother, and Jared's mom and stepdad were with us for Labor Day this year so we spent the day at Ross Park doing a little climbing. Everyone did so well. Jordan scaled the wall like a champ and Martha made it to the top {even with a bad hip and BAREFOOT}!

Jordan victorious

Lauryn

Martha

safe on the ground again

Jordan

Jess's Dad

Jordan enjoying the view

Jess's dad and his motorcycle {which he drove all the way from St. George}

our first week with Zoe

Our first week with Zoe has been full of sleepless nights, changing diapers, and feeding frenzies, but we wouldn't trade it for the world! She is so adorable and is such a good baby! How thrilled we are to be her mom and dad!!!


the prettiest baby I ever saw


such a sleepy face


still so tiny


perfectly content


her adoring dad


admiring the grass



she was freezing by the end of her "photoshoot"


she was such a little trooper


our little family


what a beautiful baby

"how much longer"

two beautiful girls


baby Zoe and aunt Junae


very tired mom and baby


Grampa Mike


Nonna and Zoe

trying to smile

she looks just like her daddy

our little thinker

Zoe's arrival

Here are the long awaited pictures of Zoe Adriana Tolman's arrival and the full version of the story. So it all started on Saturday night during the adult session of Stake Conference. I had started feeling more intense Braxton Hicks contractions that night so Jared and I walked the halls of our Stake Center so we could still hear the member of the Seventy that had come to speak. We didn't really think much of it because there were still like ten minutes apart and they would kind of come and go because I was able to sleep through most of the night without any pain. Well, the next morning was the general session of our Stake Conference. We left the house early at about 9:30 in order to get a soft seat but by the time we got there, the only seats available were in the very front row. So we sat down and and the meeting started. About halfway through the meeting, I was starting to have contractions again, but they were still rather mild, so I got up and walked the halls again and sat out in the foyer for a few minutes. Well, the President of the Idaho Pocatello Mission was one of the speakers and he got up and started talking about the fact that the greatest missionary we will ever do will be within our own homes. Then he mentioned that as he looked out over the congregation, he noticed a "young couple sitting up here on the front row" (Jared and I) and that the young lady(me) was pregnant and had gotten up and left. "She may be delivering right now in fact!" he said. Then he asked Jared when I was due and Jared told him that we still had three weeks to go. He talked about how seeing young families like that gave him hope and excitement for the future and that how thrilled he was that our baby would grow up in a gospel centered home, and would attend primary, and would be baptized, and would constantly have the gospel in her life. To avoid embarassment. I waited till he was done speaking and then came back in for the remainder of the meeting. After the closing prayer, nearly everyone on the stand came to congratulate us and ask us questions. Our baby was a Stake celebrity before she was even born. We went home, made dinner, and started watching a movie, but the contractions were becoming more intense. I have always been told that contractions would be the worst pains that I would ever feel so I thought I was just being a whoos and that I was maybe at a 2 or a 3 on the intensity scale. But by the end of the movie (The Audrey Hepburn Story), I was getting a little nervous. They were now much more intense and were about six minutes apart and this time they weren't going away. I told Jared we should do a little straightening up, just in case, which took us about half an hour. I finally called Labor and Delivery at about five o'clock and they "well, you might be in labor, you might not, but you might wanna come on in." So after throwing the last minute items in the suitcase and getting a blessing from Jared and our great neighbor Nash Johnson, we headed to the hospital. At this point, there was no way these weren't REAL contractions! I changed into the gown, they took my blood pressure, and then the ONLY nurse(or person for that matter) in L&D that night, checked to see how far I had progressed. We were expecting a 2 or a 3 and thought we would be told to go home. But she looked up at us and said..."You're at a 6 missy. I need to go make some phone calls." So by 7:15 they had started the epidural, and by about 8:30 the on-call doctor had arrived and had broken my water. There was no going back now! :D By 9:30, the doctor and nurses filed in and within minutes, everyone was ready to get to the pushing. A very tiring thirty minutes later, Zoe Adriana Tolman was born and we couldn't believe it! Certainly not the way we had been expecting to end our day, but SO much better! She was absolutely perfect, and we loved holding her and kissing her and we never wanted to let her out of our site. We were able to leave the hospital the very next night, and it may have been sooner but nearly passed out several times getting up to go to the bathroom. Thank goodness for Jared who was always there to catch me! The doctor, nurses, friends, and family were all wonderful. My mom and dad were there as well as my little sister Junae, and Jared's mom came as well. And of course we can't forget Tim and Audrey who brought Jared a much needed pizza dinner. Thanks to everyone who made Zoe's "birthing day" so special!!!


waiting to find out if we're staying the night or not


Audrey and Tim...we couldn't have done it without them (they brought dinner and much needed moral support!!! Thanks guys!)


Jared...just before they started the epidural. I think he may have been a little nervous.


just after pushing


Zoe Adriana Tolman. She was born with a "heart of gold."


finally some mom and dad time


our beautiful baby


our little family

the cutest dad ever

wrapped around her finger

the new mom

Gramma Patti (Nonna) and Aunt Junae


Gramma Karla, Jess, Gramma Patti, and Baby Zoe

Zoe, Mom, and Gramma (three generations)

Grampa Dave

Zoe's first kiss

her Christmas bow (The nurse asked us what our favorite colors were. Mine is red and Jared's is green so she made this beautiful "Christmas" bow for the two of us.") And she has strawberry blonde hair!!! Yay!!!

our "bundle" of joy

the car ride home