ADVENTURES IN CHENEYVILLE

FYI

2009-03-10T13:41:00.001-07:00

Hey all! Just so you know, I've decided that instead of trying to keep two blogs up to date ( not that I ever keep even one up to date) that I will be doing the majority of my blogging on my "business" blog. I will still occasionally blog things that I don't necessarily want on the other here at cheneyville; Family pics, and random entries, etc. But for the most part, head on over to www.sugarsmitten.blogspot.com to see what's new with us!

Thanks!

Me and my girl

2009-02-19T16:11:00.000-08:00

We had some post-nap fun with the camera this afternoon and thought I'd share. I figure it's been a while since my last post anyways.

Christmas recap in 4 minutes... maybe.

2009-01-04T20:49:00.000-08:00

Ammon and I make pizza Christmas Eve.
Emmie wakes up Christmas morning to a giant jungle mountain covered in plastic animals of all shapes and sizes nestled under the tree.
We go to my parent's house.
We eat a delicious breakfast (thanks Dad!).
We open presents.
My Brother's kindly give Dad a new house key as he lost his previous one some time ago.

Ammon and I give my brother Shawn the Body Flex box set. He's so excited he can hardly contain his self. Yes, we lovingly sensored the box.

Vincent poses for the holiday edition of G.Q.
Emmalyn adorns herself in all things pretty. Stick-on earrings, plastic rings, bracelets, hair ties, and nail polish. Grandma happily helps.
We deep fry a turkey.
We eat.
We eat.
Repeat.
We go home to bed.
We wake up and take off to Newport to visit Ammon's parents.
Ammon and I play on the beach.
Ammon attempts to fling the giant kelp around for a while.
I pose for G.Q. but don't get published. Who knew finger guns were so unattractive?

Ammon does the same, but is much more successful.
Emmie is cuter than anything while thrift store shopping.
Ammon and his dad have some bonding time and make the women some pizza.
We leave Newport.
We come home to a broken water heater.
Celebrate New Years Eve with family and friends.
We eat.
We eat.
Repeat.
Start to remember what it's like when Ammon is in school.
Dread tomorrow- the first day of school.
We wish you all a very Happy New Year!
BTW, consider this your Christmas card too. See, here's the token family picture...

Ugly Sweaters

2008-12-20T17:19:00.000-08:00

Last weekend we held our annual Ugly Sweater Breakfast, which was actually a dinner, but we still ate breakfast foods. We decorated sugar cookie gingerbread men with ugly sweaters, had a sweater unraveling contest while listening to Weezer's "Sweater Song", and pigged out. It was a blast, but next year I need to find an uglier sweater because comments like "Oh, no fair! Your sweater is cute!",and, "That is so not ugly!" should not be made at such a party.It might not be the sweaters fault, but our choice in friends- who knows. What do you think? Ammon and I still think it's ugly, but I know I can do better next year.
This year we capped off the party with an AWESOME awards ceremony that Ammon planned. The 1st and 2nd runners up were presented with mini- okay itsy bitsy- gold metals and announced with "We are the Champions" playing in the background while the lights were dimmed and then Europe's "Final Countdown" came thundering over the speakers and the winner was announced and presented with the Ugly Sweater Sceptor- a disney princess wand we found in the dumpster and then covered in old sweater and topped with a pom pom. It was pretty amazing.

Adventures...

2008-12-03T09:01:00.000-08:00

As you may have noticed, my blogging presence has been abnormally high lately. I used to go months without as new post. There are a lot of contributing factors to this, one being that I am spending more time online promoting my little shop on Etsy ( www.sugarsmitten.etsy.com). As part of this promotion I've decided to take my new-found, but hopefully not short-lived, enthusiasm for blogging and start a blog for Sugar Smitten. I will be posting recipes I've tried, photos and stories about projects I'm working on, and you better beleive that there will be some shameless plugs for new treats in my shop. I might even throw in a little give-away every now and again :)

Come by, take a look. You don't have to come back if you don't want to.

Baby Butternut

2008-12-01T13:34:00.000-08:00

Baby Butternut is the newest addition to the Cheney home. She's quiet, sleeps through the night, and most importantly does not require diaper changes. She found her way into our family after a friend offered her to us from her garden. Emmie has been more than helpful and sleeps most everynight with Butternut in her bed. In fact, I do believe that if it were not for Emmie, Butternut may have met an awful fate and wound up on our dinner plates. Nevertheless, we are glad to have her as part of our family. I'm not sure how long her stay with us will be, but I'm sure Emmalyn will be dissapointed to see her leave. Here they are watching a show soon after waking up this morning.

I know Emmie is going to be a good mommy because when I asked her if she could burp Butternut, Emmie placed Butternut in front of her face and proceeded to, yes, burp on her! Ammon and I are still laughing at that one!

By Request...

2008-11-26T09:29:00.000-08:00

Since my husband has told everybody he knows and 50% of everybody he doesn't know, I assumed that everybody knew that I placed 2nd!!! Needless to say, not everybody knew.

I'm going on my 3rd post about gingerbread and I feel like it needs to stop, but I've had a few requests for just plain ole pictures- like video isn't good enough? Anyways, here's some more shameless gawking of my little creation.

The front...

The Back

The Mad Hatter

The Caterpillar

The Card Men playing croquet and painting the roses red

the White Rabbit...

It's Done!

2008-11-19T13:52:00.000-08:00

Here it is, all done, and off of my dining room table. Maybe we'll start eating as a family again. Pictures don't seem to give it all the glory it deserves ( in my biased opinion) so here's the 360 video Ammon took when we dropped it off this afternoon. Judging is taking place today and we are going to a reception tonight where the winners will be announced. Keep your fingers crossed for me! The bottom picture is what I based mine off of and have placed on the table next to my entry.

Teaser

2008-11-18T16:13:00.001-08:00

My house looks like a bomb blew up in it (literally), I am covered in sugar ( you think that sounds like fun, but I assure you it's not), and I need a break. Here's a glimpse of my gingerbread house going to the competition tomorrow. The "Eat Me" sign is not a 5th grade insult to you. Think Alice in Wonderland and you'll get it.

Alright, break is over!

Distubing VeggiTales

2008-11-14T13:32:00.000-08:00

Something about being pro-life conflicts with me either eating or destroying this potato.

And I'm not just posting this because I need the Hugh Jackman post to be in the past. -Ammon

I heard Hugh Jackman is a gay terrorist though. I'm glad he came out about his problem with warts.... you have to admit that takes courage that we don't see in most drug pushers.

Totally Crushing...

2008-11-11T20:15:00.000-08:00

Not too long ago I had the pleasure to finally watch the movie "Kate and Leopold" with my dear sweet husband whom I love very very much and is the most handsome guy I can imagine...

With that said, since then I totally have (just a small..well kind of) crush on Hugh Jackman. Yes, Ammon knows about this new-found love of mine and doesn't seem to mind. Besides, I put up with the dreamy look in his eye when he tells his stories about how Carmen Electra blew him a kiss when he was 16. Isn't it healthy to realize that you still find those of the opposite sex attractive after 4 years of marriage? Yes.

So... I happened to be on youtube.com watching some music videos with Emmalyn after dinner tonight and as I was thinking of another video to search for I just so happened to think about my Hugh. Yes, I do claim him. Anywho, for those who are interested here's three and half pure minutes of Mr. Jackman put to music. Lame? Yes, but you know you want to watch it. Besides, who doesn't like Wolverine?

As a footnote...

2008-11-07T20:52:00.000-08:00

I just ate a huge-normous fried zucchini stick. I stuffed the entire banana-sized wedge in my mouth a moment after loudly exclaiming: “If I eat this, my heart will explode!” Unable to chew properly, my mouth agape, Emmalyn ran at me crying “No! Daddy, Nooo!” Then she head-butt me, right in my wiener. It was the most loving intervention I can imagine. I am on the path to recovery, because I know that someone loves me enough to hurt me when I act out self-destructive behavior.

-- Ammon

Ladybugs, Pumpkins, Gingerbread, and The Gilmores

2008-11-02T16:43:00.000-08:00

Halloween is over and we had a blast!- Okay, so I wrote this entry last Saturday and am finally getting it posted!- Emmalyn was cute as could be as a ladybug this year. I found her "shell" for $2 at goodwill a month back and she has been wearing it ever since. After the night was over she didn't even want to change into her pajamas. If I were her, I don't I would have either since they seemed to be pretty good luck with all the candy she was getting:) The trend followed to the next day as well until potty-training took its' toll on her pants which are now in the wash. After a few nervous moments that were definitely trumped by her bag full of candy, Emmalyn is now one of the biggest Halloween fans there could be.

Not too much new around here. Ammon is back in full swing at school, I am busily working away at creating sweets and all manner of confectionery, including my entry into the local Gingerbread Jubilee that is due in a couple of weeks. My title this year is "Santa In Wonderland". Here's the work in progress.

So, about a month ago, I purchased the seventh season of Gilmore Girls on DVD. It's the final season and much to my disliking, I only was able to see the first 2 or 3 episodes when they aired. So when I saw the season on sale at Circuit City, I couldn't pass up my chance to 1.) feel complete and satisfied that I've finished and 2.) totally and completely annoy my husband while I watch it. He tends to think that there is absolutely NOBODY that talks as fast as they do on the show. I do admit that the pace is more upbeat than conventional conversation but that's part of the charm of the show. But anyways... back to what I want to rant about- The FINALE! What the heck was that? Do they really think it's okay for Logan to just be gone? They can't break up and then just be over can they? AHHH, it's killing me. I am glad that Lorelai and Luke finished on a happy note, but overall I feel they left too much hanging and I do not feel complete. I WANT MORE!
Any other frustrated Gilmore Girls fans out there? I know I know, this is old news for most of you, but I need closure!

Glamour Girl and Update

2008-09-09T13:57:00.000-07:00

Here are the results of our quasi photo shoot this afternoon. Emmie isn't a big fan of sitting still for long, so most of our attempts are more than blurred.But a few turned out cute. I know you haven't heard from us in a while. Here's a quick update:

1. Ammon and I celebrated our 4th anniversary August 7th. Yes, I do still love him. Very much.

2. Emmie is now 2 years old and has the mentality of a 15 yr old. She's talking like crazy and is so much more than cute.

3. I've been craving Pad Thai for the past week and I think I am finally going to make some for dinner tonight.

4. I've been making cakes like crazy the past month. I didn't have a weekend in August without a wedding cake. Last weekend I had two weddings to deliver. Whew! I'm happy to be able to breathe for at least a little while now.

5. Ammon starts school up again in 2 weeks. I don't know what it's going to be like to not have him around all the time. Sad!

6. I've started attending what we so appropriately have named "bootcamp". A girl in our stake leads workouts at 5:30am for any women that want to attend. Everyday we work on a different part of the body (shoulders, legs, abs, arms, etc.) It's killing me, but I'm going to keep with it. I still need to get back to my pre-Emmie physique. I'd love to be better than that, but I'll take what I can get :)

7. Peach Fresca is my new -non-water- drink of choice.

8. Emmalyn just called me from across the house to tell me that Daddy is on the phone and brought her play phone to me and insisted that I talk to him. I then sat for 5 mins as she held the phone to my head and didn't let me budge as she said "more,more" of my ramblings to an imaginary Daddy.

9. I want to have a tamale making party and stock my freezer full of mexican goodness. Anybody interested?

10. Ammon made me Carribean Chicken with Black Bean and Pineapple Sauce for dinner a few nights ago- Pretty cool huh? I am currently enjoying the left-overs for lunch. Oooh, it's so good.

11. Life is good. Being a one-woman-show business owner and a having a student husband, things are going to get stressful, but we are happy and chugging along.
That's us.

Happy 4th Anniversary

2008-08-06T17:22:00.000-07:00

I have been married to the best girl in the world a whole four years!!

While I like to write poems, I can't force 'em. They come when they come. . .
. . . However, I love her too much to not even try to tell her how I feel. I just wish I could give back to her. She has given me so much. She is my dream girl, and if there were things I dream of giving her, I think the following sums it up.

Bubbles!

2008-05-22T10:21:00.000-07:00

This morning Emmalyn and I had a blast with bubbles! A little dish soap and a straw and you have a party for at least 15 minutes! Just don't let the kids use the straw unless they know to just blow. Emmie took a turn, and to her surprise, got a big ol' gulp of soap water- yuck!

"Roll Over!"

2008-05-14T16:45:00.000-07:00

Why is it parents find such great joy in showing off what their kids can do? Have you ever watched one of those home movies where the child's name is repeated in the same high pitched voice over and over until the child actually rolls over, picks their nose, or signs the entire declaration of independence in ASL? "Emmie, Emmie, oh Emmalyn! Come on sweetie, Emmie, Emmie, Emmie." Well I have, and I am guilty of producing such home movies myself. It's just a parents right I guess. This video, if you can even watch it (I'm no so good at this video thing for some reason) is not that bad. Actually, in my biased opinion, it's very cute. Indulge if you wish!

Lazy Sunday, Saturday too.

2008-04-17T21:41:00.000-07:00

Not to be confused with the popular SNL Digital Short, "Lazy Sunday"
our Saturday and Sunday were were spent enjoying each other's company. Ammon actually spent a lot of time doing homework on Saturday but we were able to end it with a walk through the local Pear Blossom Fair street vendors, a Papa Murphy's Pizza, and a couple of fruit smoothies from the Human Bean.

Let's talk about the girls that work in coffee booths for a moment... Here in Oregon, our streets are practically paved with coffee stands. They are on every corner, in every shopping center, and there is basically one within walking distance no matter where you are. That said, the people that run these stands are a little crazy. The only explanation that Ammon and I have come up with is that they are just so hopped up on caffeine that they have no other option- here's the proof. On Saturday we decided to splurge on two, not one to share like usual, but a fruit smoothie for each of us from our favorite stand, The Human Bean. When pulling up to the window, the cute girl in the stand enthusiastically greeted us and took our order and proceeded to say "Ooh that sounds good" and "Yum!" after each one of our selections. She was very sincere. So thirty seconds later (no joke) she comes to the window and apologizes that it's taking so long and hops back into the kitchen. Ammon and I looked at each other in such confusion. We knew that two smoothies took much longer than the 30 seconds we had been waiting to make. So literally, 30 more seconds passed and she hops back up to the window to tell us that the smoothie machine is broke and she's just going to give them to us for free. By now we could tell that her clock was ticking a bit faster than ours was- caffeine induced or not, this girl was crazy. We did indeed drive away 2 minutes after pulling up to the stand happy and contented with our free smoothies. Here is Emmie enjoying the remnants of peach and sporting her very first skinned knee.

The next day, Sunday, we spent some time in our back yard. Actually it's more like a strip of poorly seeded grass and weeds that connects to our neighbors back porches as well, hmmm..oh well. Regardless of where we were, we had some fun with our little one in the new sunshine.

Gorgeous?...yeah!

As soon as the camera comes out Emmie is all smiles.

.... Ammon hams it up a bit too!

Ammon has been trying to teach her to blow dandelions but they always end up in her mouth, yuck!

Mommy butts aren't quite made for little tykes slides

Can I have some eggs with that ham??

Grateful for Greens

2008-03-08T16:15:00.000-08:00

I just sat down for lunch and was enjoying my green salad and grapes so much, that I thought I'd share with you. The Lord definitely gets my approval for the creation of such lovely consumables! Now I want to go eat the rest...

I love the sun!

2008-03-05T12:22:00.000-08:00

There's something so motivating about a bright sunny day. Even if it's cold, the light that comes into the house warms everything up and makes me want to be productive- so productive I have thousands of thoughts swarming my brain and I don't know what to do with all of them.

The sun has been out for a couple of weeks here in Medford and it has been so nice. We spent most of last week and part of the week before sick with the flu. This was a total bummer because it was finally warm enough to do something outside and we were stuck inside-miserable! At first, I was the only sickly family member, but it soon found it's way to the other two. We still have coughs but things are looking good.

The house is finally getting back to some kind of order after being neglected for the past few weeks. It's a very exciting feeling to be able to walk barefoot across your kitchen floor. It's paradise really. Maybe I'm just a bit O.C.D. about clean floors and I hate stepping on once soggy, now dried-up cheerios. Yuck! Now if only I could get my carpets cleaned...

As some of you may know, Ammon and I tried our luck at a wedding show at the end of January. It went really well, and we got a great response. This was our booth- very humble compared to some, but it did it's job. We've gotten quite a few calls from it so far and hope to get more.

Emmie is quite the handful and is such a girly-girl. At one point a few months back I thought it would be fun to paint her fingernails. As we sat down for our post shower ritual (smelly lotions, brushing hair, and teeth brushing) she blew me away when she very patiently stuck out her pointer finger on one hand and pointed to the bottle of light pink polish I had sitting on the counter with her other. What 16 mo. old lets you paint their nails? After many instances like this, I've learned to hide the polish as she likes it a bit too much. Oh and as for her hair, she doesn't have much, but every morning I tell her it's time to put her "prettys" in ( barrettes, ponytails, and the like), I swear she could implode. I realize that it is my example she is following and she knows nothing different, but really, patiently sitting as she points each individual finger for me to paint? Come on.

Daddy's Post

2008-02-21T11:40:00.000-08:00

Here are a couple recent pictures of my beautiful girls. What more could daddy ask for?

The best Birthday cake I ever ate, I think the flavor was chocolaty-choco-choclate fest 2008!

The return of the "Bag O' Love" and Halloween

2007-11-06T20:09:00.000-08:00

Monday night as we were filling the tub with water for Emmie's bath, Ammon and I went into the bedroom for a minute as Emmie was content playing with her bath toys on the bathroom floor. When we came back into the bathroom, not 2 minutes later, she had found her way into the tub fully dressed and even with a poopy diaper! It was amazing. She sure thought it was great and the pictures prove it.

Halloween was fun. We spent the night trick-or-treating with Daniel (my 6 yr old bro.) and at the ward trunk-or-treat. Emmalyn found this costume at the goodwill and wouldn't put it down. We had originally planned on being an elephant, but due to my lack of planning, and her love for this dog- she got her way. She still drags the costume around the house hugging and jumping on it (both signs of affection). She is at a really fun stage right now. She is talking gibberish a ton and is signing the important things. She loves to give kisses (she has FINALLY mastered the closed mouth version), hugs, high-five, wave, and dance- oh boy can she dance! It's a ball!

Some of you might know that we have our own version of the ever-so-popular Love Sac. Its something Ammon has had since before we met. Sadly, when we moved to Oregon the foam for this bag was left behind due to lack of space in the truck. We have missed our bag and it was only just a month or so ago that we acquired enough foam to bring it back to life. It was a very joyous day in the Cheney household; no more movies watched uncomfortably, no more episodes of Arrested Development or the Office spent on a hard, unfriendly futon. Emmie, being the smart girl that she is, has grown a love for the bag as well. Ammon loves to throw her in it and she can't get enough but he does grow weary after a while. In an attempt to curb this exhaustion he decided to teach her how to jump into it. The video below is her first night learning to jump and it is pretty entertaining. The other pictures are from the day we stuffed it. Oh what a mess!

Ammon's turn...

2007-11-06T11:46:00.000-08:00

Hi. So I love going to school! I'm very grateful to my hardworking wife that is juggling being a mother and running a business. Please keep her in your prayers so that I can keep going to college.

I'm doing well in all my classes, even math, which I thought I loathed in High School. A miracle has occurred in my life, and I am now able to excel in math and love it!

My writing is still my strength, and my greatest pride. My latest essay is at salmonammon.blogspot.com if you are interested in hearing my opinion about "sleaze in the media."

I'm able to do reasonably well in anthropology, considering we discuss a lot of cultural differences, some of which are very appalling. Fortunately I was raised in an open-minded home. I can't feel superior because of my upbringing, but I can desire that other's experience the joy that I experience by living gospel principles.

I once stated that I was seeking a major in geology, I think I will try to minor in geology and major in history. History has long been my first academic love, but I thought it conflicted with my ultimate goal of getting my masters of library and information science, turns out that there is no conflict there.

Whenever I add to the Blog I just feel strongly to thank everyone that reads, for your kind thoughts and prayers towards the Cheneys. We rely on the Lord so much, and we know that prayers are answered.

Emmalyn is growing fast. She is a delight! I love her morning smiles and kisses. She is often sitting behind me in her car seat, just laughing and laughing! I'm glad. She must realize that she needs the practice since you have to be good at laughing as a Cheney.

New Website

2007-11-05T14:36:00.000-08:00

Well, it's happened, we finally have our new business website up and going (well, for the most part). If any of you are crazy website designers and want to help me out, it would be greatly appreciated. But for now, it is what it is, and that will have to do! Also if anybody knows how to get search engines to recognize it, that would be fabulous too. Thanks! Check it out...
www.sugarsmitten.com

Enjoy!

2007-10-30T15:23:00.000-07:00

On this overcast and damp Oregon day, I reached for a bag of Orville Reddenbuder's Microwave Kettle Corn to soothe the " afternoon munchies" that I was fighting. Now normally, I toss the bag of popcorn carelessly into the microwave, press the ever-so-wonderful popcorn button, walk away, and come back a perfect 2 mins and 20 sec. later to a bag of popcorn that is completely popped and never burned. I then take the bag of corn from the microwave and go on my merry way. Today was different though. As I took the bag from the microwave I noticed something I hadn't in the past- the word "Enjoy" scrolling across the tiny LED screen at the top right corner of the console. As I saw it, a smile instantly came across my face. "He wants me to enjoy my popcorn!" I loved it! Was it a message from God? Probably not. Was it a message from the little elf inside my microwave? There's better chances of it being from God. Was it just enough to bring a smile to my face and think about all my many blessings? Yes. That is enough for me!

Just thought I'd share...

The In-laws Come to Town!

2007-10-14T21:21:00.000-07:00

Last weekend Mark and Sally came for a short visit from Newport. They took Emmalyn to the beautiful Lithia Park and walked around Ashland. Here are some pictures from their day together.

Could she get any cuter? I know I'm biased, but really, lets be honest here! Things are good, a longer update will be up shortly, but for now, I am off to bed! Hope all is well and happy with you.

Cruisin' into our 3rd year!!

2007-09-08T22:02:00.000-07:00

HAPPY 3rd ANNIVERSARY to US!
Crater Lake on two wheels! Our first real tour. About 5 hrs of riding. We left Medford around 2 PM and got home around 9 PM. Ate dinner at Two Pine Smoke House in Shady Cove - the same place we ate breakfast the 1st morning of our honeymoon! All in all it was a real comfortable ride. It's chilly up in the mountains, it was nice having Heather wrapped around me. I love that girl!

Apologizing Again?

2007-08-24T17:31:00.000-07:00

Here comes another heartfelt apology for getting behind in my responsibility to all you adoring fans of the Cheney household. I know you check back and think...just maybe... "I hope, I wish Heather put up something new. I must know, I HAVE to know what is going on in their life."
I know because the site meter emails me every so often just to spit on me and tell me what a miserable person I am. Look, I'm sorry!

Besides the fact that our once, (unknowingly), very generous neighbors have taken away our internet connection, life has been a whirlwind the past little while.

Emmalyn is a whole year old as of August 3rd. She has been walking since 11mos and is just about running now. She doing some basic signing and has so much personality. She loves to give kisses (open-mouth of course).

We had quite the blowout of a party for her and all the family was invited. She had a cake all to herself and she devoured it happily.

Since then we have just been hanging out. We went camping for four days with my family and the Cobb family. Ammon felt his inner manliness emerge as he ventured off into the woods without a hatchet to collect firewood. He and the boys appropriately coined the phrase "Wood Bashing" to describe their activities. We've been back to Newport as well to visit Ammon's parents and hang out on the beach.

Today we are enjoying labor day and spent some time at the waterslide. We just watched "Prairie Home Companion" and enjoyed a delectable frozen pizza. Life is good and we are having fun. We are in the midst of trying to start up a small cake decorating and baking business. We have a commercial kitchen to use free of rent and are starting up a cinnamon roll route across the valley. I will be advertising for wedding cakes in the meantime and be doing those on my off days from the route. Its still in the works right now, but we are excited and things are looking good. Thats all for now!

A very nice, long weekend.

2007-06-08T07:58:00.000-07:00

Ammon's parents bought a house on the beach, and, much to our approval, we now have a vacation home! Last weekend they moved from Arizona to Newport, OR and we met them up there to help out.Besides, it was a good excuse for a small vacation.

We began our vacation on Friday and took Emmie for her first swim in our townhouse pool. She was a little leery at first, but was having a blast by the end.

We headed out of town on Saturday morning and drove into town Tuesday evening. Newport is beautiful. Neither of us had been there before and we are definitely glad we have reason to go back.

Mark and Sally's house is not even a block away from the ocean. You walk down the street and there's a trail that takes you right down to the beach.

Some of the local ocean life we found...

The beach just down the trail from Mark and Sally's...

A Word From Daddy

2007-05-30T07:18:00.001-07:00

This is my favorite recent picture. I love her.

I'm totally amazed at her pleasant demeanor. She is so happy and content no matter what we are all doing. There are a few occasions where she doesn't want to be set down unless you are sitting down and playing with her, but all in all we might put her in and out of the car seat, pick her up from what she's doing and sweep her away to accommodate our schedules and she never makes a fuss. She's just the best I could hope for! -Daddy

Pictures Pictures!

2007-04-30T14:15:00.000-07:00

As requested, due to my slacking off, here are updated pictures of our little miss.

One night Emmie decided that she didn't want me to feed her anymore and she wanted to do it! This was the end result. We went directly into the bathtub after that meal.

Ammon pulled her around the house on the end of a blanket and she couldn't get enough of it.

These are from this morning. She is really moving around. She hasn't quite got the crawling thing down, but she can scoot, dive, and push her way to where ever she wants to go. Baby-proofing the house is priority! Even when we think she can't get into anything- she proves us wrong.

She loves her bathtime! The night she learned how to splash with ALWAYS be remembered. I was soaked right along with the bathroom. These pictures are from one of her many.

The weekend of the 21st, I catered Katie Cobb's wedding. This is one view of the food table. It was fun! I did the food and cake. The cake picture is on the cake blog if you want to check it out.

Not a whole lot is new with us. Last week Emmie got really sick. After a couple days of not knowing what was going on, it was finally concluded that she has a kidney infection. She is doing really well now, and is pretty much back to being herself, but it was a rough week. I ended up getting sick for a day or two as well to top it off. We are so happy to be healthy again.

Saturday afternoon the three of us had a fun time in Ashland. We walked all over the town and through the park. It was a gorgeous day! Plus it was good for us to be out of our disease stricken house :) and among all the good - different- people of Ashland. We ended our day with some terriyaki and tempura that was ooh so good! A little bit of Japanese Heaven. We then came home and played and interesting game of baseball. It's not easy hitting little pieces of wheat bread with a cucumber- try it! There is more to the story of how that came about, but it's for another day.

I have another party to cater and do a cake for this weekend. It's just a small thing so it shouldn't be a big deal.

Overall, life is good, we are happy, and we love our simple little life.

Celebrity Look Alikes

2007-04-14T11:53:00.001-07:00

Kind of fun... apparently I'm Marcia Cross and I married Ryan Phillipe- not bad eh?

My cool celebrity look-alike collage from MyHeritage.com. Get one for yourself.

My cool celebrity look-alike collage from MyHeritage.com. Get one for yourself.

Cake Blog

2007-03-12T16:10:00.000-07:00

All of our cake pictures and other sugary delicatessen are now posted on our cake blog. Check it out here.

Sunny Days, New hair, and the Jungle

2007-03-08T22:34:00.000-08:00

Yesterday my brother Daniel had his 6th birthday party and it was jungle themed. Of course, we had to do the cake for it. Here is our fat and lazy crocodile who was envisioned as not so lazy, but you make-do with what the cake gods give you.

Ammon has a new look. At first he looked alot like Jack from Lost...much to my approval...but now his beard is pretty full and Jack is pretty much, well...Lost, but I still like my bearded man.

We spent last Saturday at the Oregon Coast and had a blast. We dropped Emmie off at Grandma's for the day and spent hours hiking around tidepools, uncovering crabs, napping on the beach, playing in the sand, and of course eating seafood and pizza ( not together, don't worry). It was tons of fun and we plan on going back often. It was so theraputic and much needed. We plan on taking Ems next time.

We also built our first beach house!! Architecture by Ammon, Landscaping by Heather!

Emmalyn is so fun and has soo much personality, I couldn't put up a new post and not put in a picture of her.

We're Back!

2007-02-20T09:11:00.000-08:00

So we have been slacking off a bit- but we are ready to jump back in and keep everybody updated! Last week we got our pictures taken and Emmalyn is the perfect model. When we were sorting through pictures and deciding which to buy, it was soo hard because she was smiling in ALL of them. The photographer was impressed and said she was the easiest baby she had ever shot. What can I say- I have a perfect child :)
Not so much is new with us. Emmie is week away from being 7 mos. She's our hippo, weighing in at just over 18 lbs. She loves her baby cereal and has figured out that she doesn't hate bananas after all. She sits up really well, but will nose dive for any toy that is in front of her that she can't quite reach. Overall. she is a joy to have around.

On Valentines Day, last week, Ammon and I celebrated a sort of an anniversary for us. It marks three years from our first date. Granted, we were both very uninterested in each other that night, but it was still our first date. Boy were we wrong! :) We celebrated with our food of love- gourmet pizza- snuck some cold stone into the theater and watched Dream Girls. For those of you have not seen it yet- I recommend it. Its a great musical and Jennifer Hudson does an amazing job. It was a fun night.

Ammon is keeping busy at work, and I always have something going on. My Valentines Day gift was all the makings of an herb garden, so I am getting ready to start that up. I am catering a wedding ( cake and all the food) in April for some friends so I am trying to get prepped for that so things don't go crazy at the last minute. I've also been muling some ideas around in my head for a way to bring in some extra money. Once I decide what exactly I am going to do, I will let you know.

I love getting stuff for free! Lately it seems that we have just been raking it in. The people in the complex we live in put all sorts of stuff in the dumpster. Now, I know that sounds horrible- dumpster diving- but let me elaborate. We have gotten a metal bakers rack and a tv stand/entertainment center. Mind you, they are right on top, easily taken out, and washed very well- but heck they are free! I was also driving down the road a few weeks ago and there was a man unloading a bunch of stuff from his house and setting it out on his lawn for the taking. I filled up my car with a chocolate fountain, glasses, scattergories, a fire pit, very cool alice in wonderland porcelin plates (which are going to adorn the walls of Emmie's room), and much more. And last weekend, we got a $100 gift certificate in the mail from a home furnishing store because we were new move-ins. Granted, they did think that we moved into my parent's neighborhood, and that we would probably spend more that just the $100- but we took it and ran. It was fun even though there wasn't much we could get for the money- we pretty much had to pick between a glass chicken and a mirror, so we got the mirror, but hey it was free.

So that's us right now. I better get off and get Emmie ready to go. We have got to get shots today. Keep us updated on you!

2006-11-27T11:00:00.000-08:00

My little punk rock princess!
Thanks to Vanessa for buying her this shirt, my little girl is already showing signs of her rebelious ways. I woke up this morning and this is how she looked. I just thought I would share my joy with you :)

Well onto something else... I can't beleive that Thanksgiving is over! We spent it over at my Uncle Mikes house and like always, there was too much food. This time it was the pies that did us in. There were 12 of us there and we seriously had 10 different pies. It was out of control, but who cares, its pie! My Mom and I found out that the mall was giving out $10.00 gift cards to the first 200 people Friday morning. So, 1o bucks is 10 bucks, right? After much heckleing from my dear sweet Ammon, and him betting that I wouldn't ever wake up on time, We arrived at home by 1:00am from a long night of games and... of course, pie, and went to bed. I got 3.5 hours sleep on thursday all for a gift card, $10.00 more dollars from waking up and winning out Ammon on his bet, and the satisfaction of running through the mall with hundreds of other crazy people at 6:00 o'clock in the morning- ooh yeah and we got a snowglobe too. It actually was very fun, and I came out with an additional $15.00 in Kolhs cash after waiting in line for an hour and having the cashier mess up. Not bad, eh? I got home from shopping at about 10:30am and who was still asleep? Hmmm I will let you figure that one out :)

Today starts my, "I don't want to look like I had a baby 4 months ago" diet and exersise plan. I am pretty excited about it. I do know that Christmas is coming up so it will be called off for a few days, but why wait until the end of the year? Nobody ever starts anything that they want to do as a resolution so I am going to beat the system by starting a month in advance. I said goodbye to my old ways yesterday after eating like 4 pieces of pumpkin coffee cake. Why not go out with a bang? Wish me luck.

Well Emmie is awake now, and we are off to clean the bathroom and make some phone calls- fun eh? Keep us posted on what's new in your life. Love ya all!

2006-11-05T15:15:00.000-08:00

Its About Time, I KNOW!

So many of you inquireing minds have been trying to get me to put up a new post for quite some time now. I apologize for the wait, but things have been a bit crazy the past month or so. Forgive me?

Well, onto what's new with the Cheneys....
We are officially residents or Medford OR without all the needed documentation that is (Drivers liscense, etc.) and we are having a blast. We just got into a townhouse about a week ago (pictures to follow soon, because I am proud :), Ammon got a killer job at the best printing press in the area, and Emmie is the cutest daughter I have ever had (well she's the only, but don't tell her that). She has been so much fun. After weighing her a few days ago, she clocked in at a hefty 12lbs 7 oz, and is on the rise again I am sure. She loves to eat, just like Mom and will soon be preparing her own meals :) She just recently became really interested in her toys and especially loves anything she can chew on, lights, and the sound of running water. She sleeps through the night ... halleluja chorus in the background... and smiles and talks upon waking up- what a perfect child! We sure love her!

Halloween being last week... these are our most recent photos plus it give me an opportunity to boast about my amazing costume making abilities. Daniel is wearing this years creation... I call it "Le Scarecrow! #5"- nice eh? And then there is Emmie and I which aren't as spectacular, but still fun. We went to the ward "trunk or treat" which Ems slept through so nobody could see her cuteness, and stopped by uncle Mike's and uncle Mitch's haunted houses. Lots of fun had by all and home and in bed by 10:30! Such is life with a baby and very sleepy husband.

2006-09-20T10:51:00.000-07:00

She loves to Smile!!!

Emmie will be seven weeks old tomorrow. Time sure does fly by fast. She is starting to giggle (mostly in her sleep), talk (but moslty grunt like some sort of gremlin), and she is actually starting to gain weight (yeah!!).

Things are going pretty well in our little place here. Ammon and I are just gearing up for our move to Medford, OR coming up here October 5. Our house is trashed with boxes all over the place not to mention all of the baby furniture. But all in all things are pretty good, we are just enjoying our little one and finally...maybe...starting to adjust to this whole being a parent thing.

2006-09-14T22:03:00.000-07:00

September 10, 2006

2006-09-14T21:10:00.000-07:00

Big "Thanks!" to Vince and Sue Rackliffe! You guys have given us such treasures! We could never have afforded such beautiful keepsakes if not for you!

2006-08-28T22:49:00.000-07:00

Meet Emmie's Mommy!

Heather is the beautiful mother of my beautiful daughter!

But before she was a beautiful mommy,

she was my beautiful wife!

And before that

she was Daniel's beautiful sister!

But before she was a beautiful sister to anyone,

She was a beautiful daughter to Andrea and Rob!
I married a woman that has been beautiful in many roles, but she gets prettier with each new role, and she'll always play every role she ever started, but she'll be most beautiful as a Mother that is a wife, a mother that is a sister, and a mother that is a daughter!

2006-08-13T08:34:00.000-07:00

Emmalyn is a week and a half old and bath time was unavoidable. Her umbilical cord mysteriously fell off and found it’s way to the coffee table where it was found Saturday afternoon. (For the record I was only joking when I pretended to eat it, and I didn’t really think it looked like bacon, and it sure didn’t taste like bacon!)

Thankfully Andrea and Daniel are in the Cheney home to provide the much-needed moral support as well as give excellent advice on parenting. Daniel could not have been more clear about that cord not tasting like bacon, he also thinks we should know absolutely everything about Super Mario (who is somewhat of a mentor to him). As a parent I hope to obtain as many stars as possible and eventually beat the final Bowser! That is some sort of metaphor for financial success and Emmalyn’s future fiancé, I think.

2006-08-05T21:42:00.000-07:00

Just one more picture...
I think this one should win some sort of award! I guess I'm just really good at taking pictures -Heather

2006-08-05T19:46:00.000-07:00

We are home!

It's so nice to be here and out of the hospital. However, when you drive home it definitely kicks in that the baby is YOURS and is not just a fun amusment to cuddle up with and give back to the nurses. I am very greatful for how smoothly everything went and for the little girl we get to keep... for good (unlike all the puppies being given away that I hold outside the doors of the grocery store). I am officially a mom and it is great!

Last night, Ammon went to get some some dinner for the two of us, and came back with a full-fledged night of wining and dining. A kind of "last date" of sorts for the time being. After sending Emmie off to the nursery we enjoyed chinese take out, sparkling juice, chocolate eclaires and the smell of sweet red roses. It was a ton of fun and definitely appreciated and needed. We ended up getting Emmie out of the nursery after about a half an hour of going through withdrawls.

Since being home, Ammon has found many things that he wants to improve in the house to make better for a baby and I am enjoying watching him clean and make those changes :) Just joking, we have had a very relaxing day and evening of visiting with family and enjoying having her home with us. We now have Sonic the Hedgehog playing on the Sega with Emmie asleepin' away- and it seems that we are going to adjust to having a baby just fine! -Heather

2006-08-04T08:18:00.000-07:00

Ammon's Account

Aug. 2, 2006 Heather’s due date to delver Emmalyn
7am Heather has the first painful contractions of her pregnancy.
8 am Ammon arrives at work only to be useless as he waits to hear from Heather.
9 am Ammon hears nothing.
10 am Ammon hears nothing.
10:35 am Ammon’s clever female co-workers suggest Ammon call his wife.
10:40 am Ammon feels much better!

I will either kick myself for not writing anything today, or I will just have to write later when I have some kind of organized thought. I don’t know what to think right now. It’s actually a quarter after midnight August 4th. Emmalyn was born yesterday at 3:35 pm. Heather and I drove to the hospital after a sleepless night at 6:30 am. After hours of painful contractions a mishap of sorts with the epideral Heather began pushing at 1:30 pm. I teared up when I first saw Emmie’s little fuzzy head poking through, then after what seemed like hours (because it was I guess) her head just shot out and her right arm right beside it, she came reaching out like she had been digging with her right hand ahead of her. Jackie our midwife exclaimed, “she’s definatley a girl, she’d reaching for a credit card!”

Heather and I each had quite a few messages from concerned parties, I opted to call three people. I gave Heather her phone to call her mother and I left the room to call mine, then I called my good friend Neil Tenney, followed by a member of our ward that I instructed to tell whoever he wanted as long as he calls the bishop for me.

When Emmie was born I cried in a shoulder shaking ball. I was so glad to see Heather done with the pain and to have a healthy little miracle in my arms. I got to hold Emmie for about half an hour or more while Heather was being stitched up where she had torn a little.

The first thing I remember thinking is that I could see similarities in her face and her uncle Shawn and Vincents. Heather said she had my mouth. She had a headfull of dark hair as well as a very hairy back. Her nails were long, but I thought her fingers were as well. Her head was almost instantly perfect shape and a perfect shade of pink. She sucks on the left side of her lower lip. Her eyes looked blue, but I understand that will likely change. Her head looked so small until she popped out and then I saw that her head had been smooshed into a cone like shape, which quickly filled out, she was about three times the size that I imagined, she looked so big to me when I first saw her, I didn’t think she looked like a new-born.

Heather tried to breast feed after she and her bed were all transformed to normal. Emmie seemed to know how, but lacked interest. We tried again when Emmie woke up six hours later, and she definatley knew how.

I like having a daughter. I love holding her and kissing her. It’s nice to have the privledge. I like to hold other peoples babies, but I don’t like to ask others and I have often felt inclined to love little babies that I have held, but that makes mothers uncomfortable, esp. if I kiss the little ones. I’m so thrilled to have all that affection be appropriate.

I love her yawns, and her scowls. I love her snorts and squeeks.

I changed her first diaper at about 10 pm, it was very stickey and black of course, but I think I did ok.

She’s in the nursery now and she will be brought to Heather, should Emmie be hungry. I think we all need the sleep right now though.

2006-08-03T21:19:00.000-07:00

Here is our little one. Emmalyn Anne. Born 8/3/06, 3:35 PM, 8 lb. 3 oz., 20".

14 hrs of labor. Heather is a star!

Key players:
Incubator played by Heather
Seeder played by Ammon
Midwife played by Jackie
Nurse played by Joy
Projectile played by Emmalyn