More of Miss Penny

Random pictures of Penny! We had some requests for more pictures so here they are.

Penny had her first trip to church yesterday. She was really really good. She didn't make any noise but she was still a distraction. People kept turning around and checking her out during the meetings. It was fun to introduce her to every one. I think she was a hit!

This is Penny in her Bumbo chair. She doesn't really quite fit in it but Steve likes to put her in it any way.

Penny loves bath time. Steve kept spraying her and she would get all excited everytime he did.

Penny is a little wiggler. She likes to arch her back and stick her head back really far. When we take her outside she will do this when she gets in the sun. She just closes her eyes and relaxes in the sun. She loves it! Steve can't get enough of his little girl. He likes to take her to work with him and loves to play with her every chance he gets.

This is an example of Penny's explosive poo. She puts some power behind it. I was changing her diaper the other day and I guess I had her aimed the wrong direction because the next thing I knew I had poo down my stomach, pants, in my shoe and all over the floor.
This is closest we have gotten to catching Penny smiling in a picture. We love her little smile and can't wait until she is actually smiling at us.

A couple here at Sueno saw this bike and decided Penny and I needed it! So now we have a brand new bike to ride around the beach and in town on. People have been so generous and nice. We have received a lot of nice gifts and a lot of love and support from the guests here. When ever we take Penny outside people come running to check her out. There is always a group following her around. She is the most popular girl here and she doesn't even know it.

Penny Laine

So since Steve made this blog and has not kept it up I am going to take a stab at it. I am not very good at stuff like this so we will see how it goes. As many of you know Penny Laine has arrived! She came on November 8th. She weighed 8 lbs and was 21 inches long. I ended up having to have a c-section after 10 hours of labor. She is healthy and very content. We have been very lucky because she is such an easy going baby. Steve's little sister Suzi had her baby the same day as well, which is going to be very fun! They are twin cousins. Having a baby in Belize was a little bit different. They don't provide any thing. After she was born they asked us for soap, a wash cloth, and towel to clean her. I was not able to sit up for the first 12 hours after she was born so they gave her formula and we didn't bring a bottle so they fed her out of a little cup.

After two days in the hospital we were ready to go home. I got in a taxi and the nurse just set her on my lap and away we went. After the taxi we took a plane to the island and then a boat to Sueno. It was quite an adventure for a two day old baby. She slept through the whole thing!

My Mom and Dad were both here for Penny's arrival. It has been fun having them here to enjoy the new baby and help out.

Penny had a little jaundice so she had to be under the "lights" naked for a day. We couldn't stand just leaving her there all the time so we would sneak her out every once in a while. This is her red naked wrinkely body. I just want to squeeze it!

Check out her cheeks. This picture makes them look huge but they aren't quite that big in real life. She likes to have her hands near her face. Occasionally a finger makes it in her mouth. When she isn't bundled up this is how Penny likes to sleep...arms extended up above her head. We are so excited she is finally here. Thanks for all of the love and support! We appreciate all of the calls and e-mails.

It's a girl!

Don't step on these!

I stepped on a sea urchin the other day. The doctor dug 18 quills out of my toes! Not fun!

Girls Camp

Jessica took the young women to girls camp recently. 9 girls and her. I don't know how she survived it!
The "Island Girls" were the life of the party.

Baby Belly!

Due date Nov 5.

The San Pedro Branch

This is our branch in front of our old building.

We outgrew our old building......and moved into a much bigger and nicer one.

Trip to Guatemala

Jessica and I spent the week in Guatemala. Guatemala City

We stayed in Guatemala City with Sister and Elder Clarke, my Mission President, now serving as Area President of Cental America. We attended the Guatemala City Temple. It was nice to return to the temple after 8 months.

Sister Clarke got a big kick out of this guy sleeping in his wheelbarrow.
We hiked Volcan Pacaya, a live volcano.

Antigua

We spent two nights in Antigua, a great colonial style town with cobblestone streets and brightly colored buildings and Volcan Pacaya soaring over it. We stayed at a cool little hostel. What a view from El Cerro de la Cruz.

Can you tell that Jessica is pregnant in this picture? She just started to get a belly on this trip!

The city is spotted with of beautiful cathedrals and the ruins of countless monestaries that were destroyed in an earthquake years ago.

I'm not sure just how much help this Bombero Municipal (Fire Truck) would be in the case of a fire.

Some of the finest textiles are hand produced in Guatemala, like this babay blanket that we bought for $30. Weaved by this woman and embroidered by her husband.

No where in Belize will you find any American stores or restaurant, so I hate admit that we were pretty excited to see an Antigua style McDonalds.

I liked this guy... risking his life to get the windows clean.Three wheeled Indian "Tuc-tuc's" can take you anywhere in town for less than a buck, but you get the heck jolted out of you on the cobblestone roads.

Lake Atitlan

We stayed two nights at Lake Atitlan, a beautiful lake surrounded by foliage covered mountains, three volcanoes, and a dozen villages.

We stayed at El Casa Del Mundo, The House of the World. Accessible only by boat, it consists of a few dozen cottages that are nestled away in the cliff side rising up above the water. Ranging in price from $30-$70.

The highlight of the trip, for me, was the bike ride around the lake. I rented a mountain bike for $2.50/hour and headed east from the town of Panajachel. I made my way through countless villages that rose up the mountain sides. I finished the 46 km ride at Santiago and took a boat back.

I stopped along side this woman's house to watch her weave and of course I ended up buying some of her textiles.

I rode through some incredible farm land, all of it handed tilled, planted, and harvested, moslty coffee beans, corn, and sugar cane.The things that the Guatemalans can carry on their backs and on their heads amazed me, especially the old ladies! We must have seen some ninety year old women packing firewood around like it was nothing. Everywhere we turned someone was hauling some huge bundle of sticks or rocks.

I rode my bike through a busy street market in San Lucas where they acted like they'd never seen a gringo before.

While I took a water break on the side of the road, this kid came walking right up to me proudly holding his empty five gallon water jug and rambled off a bunch of jibberish as if to tell me what a good helper is was being. It made me excited to be dad.

After the bike ride we soaked in the hot tub with some Dutch firends that we had made along the way. It took halkf a day to clean, fill, and heat the hot tub by firewood. The night time view was spectacular. And it felt great after a long ride.

Atitlan is a dreamland for meditation, yoga, and mental health enthusiasts, so we had to try yoga one morning.

On our last day we visited the last villiage that I had yet to visit. Coinicidentally it was the village's aniversary. They held a great parade and festival in honor of the La Virgen de la Cruz, the Virgin of the Cross, or some variation of that. It was a great way to spend our last few hours in Atitlan.

We had an amazing trip!