Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Man....it has been a while! I am so bad at updating this thing! On a positive note...I am finally on here! Well...let me quickly rap up the year 2009 for the Yates' Family! First off...I finally started working in Labor and Delivery for the United States Navy (my dream job), I took out my endowements and Brenton and I were sealed in the San Diego Temple, and most importanly....KINGSTON MATTHEW BISHOP YATES (our son) was born on July 17th! This has been quite the year for us and has brought much excitement and happiness into our family. We are truly blessed! As 2010 approaches, Brenton and I must decided what I plan to do in the Navy. Pretty much I can get out (Deep down I really don't want to. I love my job and I love serving this country. Afterall...why not??? Somebody has do to it...right?) or it looks like we could be heading off to Okinawa, Japan. Nothing is final, but we will be making our decision very soon and will be keeping everyone posted. I know some may think...why Okinawa??? It is so far away from family...but after thinking, praying, pondering....it may just be the best option for our family! It's taking that leap of faith...right Brenton! On another note, Kingston is growing so much! He amazes me everyday. I love being a mommy and spend every minute I have with my baby boy. That might explain why I am never on here! haha! Brenton is doing really well. He is currently the "stay at home daddy" and taking classes online. We really wouldn't have it any other way. I am glad at least one of us can stay home. We still have our cute puggle Hurley and currently are taking care of my parents yellow lab Shobo! They are literally best buds and get along so well. Well, I hate to keep this short and give such a short update...but I have to work tonight and welcome some babies into the year 2010!!!! I am actually excited!!! I hope this New Year brings much happiness and love into each of your homes and we love you guys!!! I will post more pictures of our Christmas adventures in another blog!!!

hugs and kisses!

Brenton, Melissa & Kingston

What have the Yates' been up too?

Kingston's first lil' bonfire in our friends backyard...yeah he pretty much slept right thru it!

Kingston's first trip to the beach...again...passed out!

Our new friends...the Zeltner's! We absolutely love this family...they are amazing! And yes, those are identical twins who are almost 2 and a 10 month old! Busy Busy family!

This is Kingston's friend Greadon! We love this lil' boy!

And Kingston still LOVES his swing! Best thing we ever bought!

As you can see...Kingston stays pretty busy! He is 5 weeks old and has already been to Sea World, the beach, Oceanside Pier, LOTS of shopping trips with mommy, has lots of friends, and is sleeping 6-8 hours at night! We are very happy parents and could not ask for more. Mommy goes back to work on August 31st and is not looking forward to leaving Kingston behind...but Kingston loves Daddy and will do great! Well not much else is new. All of our visitors have left for the time being and Brenton and I are just working on getting in a good routine with just the two of us. So far things are great! Only drawback...we can't go to the gym together anymore....one of us always stays behind!!! haha....I am not complaining! Just miss my gym partner! We do want to thank everyone for all their love and support and thanks Oma, Opa, and Nana Mary for coming to visit! We enjoyed every moment you guys were here and thanks for all your help!

We love you all!

xoxoxox

Brenton, Melissa, Kingston & Hurley!

Kingston Matthew Bishop Yates

Kingston Matthew Bishop Yates born July 17, 2009 @ 2135! Kingston is now 10 days old and already changing so much! He has been a true blessing for our family and Brenton and I couldn't not be happier...even though he keeps us up all night long!!! We absolutely love him to pieces. I am sure many of you are wondering how my labor went. It actually went A LOT better than I anticipated. I ended up going into work Friday morning in hopes that I might be sent home or at least not have to work that hard. I was contracting every 5-10 minutes and of course in pain. I am a wimp! The charge nurse decided to let me lay down for a bit and later decided I should be triage'd...and sure enough...I was admitted around 1330 and delivered at 2135! My body just did all the work all by itself and to me...I went pretty fast! Here are some pics of baby Kingston...we have tons more and I will post them at a later time. Enjoy the pics!!!:)

Hurley meeting his baby Kingston!

One proud mommy....yay...we get to go home!

One proud daddy!!!

Already blowing kisses...muah!

Our happy lil' family!

Getting my foot prints takend by Auntie Konnie! Thanks for being my nurse!

Laboring away! So comfy after that epidural!:)

Del Mar (dog) Beach

So today we went to the Del Mar (dog) beach! It was the first time we have taken Hurley to the beach since we have lived here....I know what you are thinking! We need to take him more often. He absolutely loved it. He ran right into the water with Brenton. It was so cute. He was an absolute mess when we left...all wet and covered in sand. All I could think about was our car....thank goodness we had lots of towels! I had Brenton take a couple of pics of me...we are 35 weeks pregnant!!!! My belly is getting huge! The only downside of the day was that it was overcast all morning....but the sun did manage to come out by noon and I did manage to get burnt!:( My legs are very red...haha! Well enjoy the pictures! I will try to post more later! We love and miss you all !

xoxoxo

Brenton, Mel, Hurley & baby Kingston (in utero)

LTJG Yates (my promotion ceremony)

So after working three nights in a row...I stayed after on that third morning to get promoted to LTJG. Here are some pics of the ceremony. Hope you enjoy!

Here is a side pic of me. People seem to enjoy pics of my belly...especially from the side view...so here is a pic!

Here is a sweet pic of my dad and I! I am so glad he could be there on this special day. It is because of him I am doing what I am doing today! I just love the "military life."

As you can see here is a pic of Brenton and I. Look how exhausted I look. I worked three nights in a row and had to stay after on that third day for the ceremony. I was literally a walking zombie! but I made it!:) And thank you baby for being there on my special day! Get ready...you get to pin me when I make LT.!

Here is a pic of my dad pinning me. It was so special that he could be here for this special day! As a retired marine himself, he took a lot of pride in pinning his daughter...especially here at Camp Pendleton where I was born! Thank you dad for staying and being a part of my first promotion ever!

Here we are "renewing" our Oath of Office...and yes...I promise to support the constitution of the United States of America. I promise to serve this country in the best way I can!

Here is a picture of the whole gang! I normally wear skirts cause they are so much cuter...but no...I am in prego gear! haha! so flattering...I look huge! 32 weeks and counting!

After the ceremony...Brenton and I ran around the hospital signing paperwork and getting name badges...etc. all changed with the new rank! It was definately an exhausting morning. We also had an appt. with my midwife. Everything looks great! Kingston finally decided to turn and is head down! Yes!!! He is moving now more than ever. You can just watch my belly and see him move around...it is actually kind of freaky! We are now 32 weeks pregnant...8 more to go! We definately can't wait to meet our lil' man! Hope all is well with everyone else. We love and miss you all!

xoxoxox

Brenton, Mel, Hurley & and of course Baby Kingston (in utero)!

Our trip to Portland!

For those that didn't know...Brenton, Hurley & I recently made a trip back home to Portland to see my brother graduate from Vancouver Fire Academy (go Matt!!!), our baby shower, and a trip to the zoo with our precious niece (Tori) and nephew (Gavin). It was a short trip...but full of fun and we were able to spend some quality time with family. Well worth the drive!
This first picture would have been a lot nicer if the wind didn't blow my hair in my face right when the pic was being taken...haha! This pic was taken at the Portland Zoo with Tori and Gavin! We love you guys!

Here is a pic of my brother Matt, me, and Brenton all standing by our cakes and even cupcakes. My aunt and uncle made them and they were delicious. Gosh, they are so talented! Brenton even got a cake made for himself for graduating from Tank School with the Marines (and he was promoted to LCpl)!


Here is a pic of my girls! Where is Ang??? She wasn't there yet! and I can't believe Kylie is one already!

Here is a pic of me and my cousin Shaun! I just had to post this one...too funny!

And of course...MY LETTERS! I have been wanting to get these made. Thank you thank you thank you Aerin and Mary for assisting me with this project! They turned out great and we absolutely love them!

Well now that Brenton and I are back into the full swing of things again, we are anxiously counting down the weeks till Kingston arrives. We have been busy getting the house and nursery ready for his arrival!...and I am still busy working full time! We want to thank everyone for all the wonderful gifts from the baby shower and making our trip home so wonderful. We miss and love you all!

xoxoxo

Brenton, Mel, Hurley & baby Kingston (in utero!)

Old Town, SD with Carol and Kyle!

Kyle, Carol, me and Brenton at Old Town, SD.

Carol and I! It was such a beautiful day and we enjoyed seeing Carol and Kyle! It has been way too long! We had tons of fun!!! Come visit again you guys!!!

Us!!!!

I just wanted to write a post about Brenton and I and our upcoming adventures. We leave Tuesday for Fresno. We are going to stay overnight with Brenton's aunt and uncle....and Seaniepoo!!! Then we are going to wake up early Wednesday morning and drive up to Portland so see family. And YES....Hurley is coming with us. We would never leave our little pup behind. We are very anxious to see family. It feels like it has been forever. We will head back down to SoCal around the 12th! I am already scheduled to work on the 14th! So far work is going great for me. I am now 28 weeks and baby Kingston is starting to grow like a little weed. People have been asking me if I just "popped." It is all very exciting. We already can't wait to meet the lil' man. My family is throwing a huge baby shower on Saturday May 9th and we hope to see many of you there!!! We love and miss you all!

xoxoxo Brenton, Mel, and Hurley...baby Kingston too!:)

Hurley with HIVES! Yikes!

Poor Hurley had some allergic reaction to some vaccination that he received earlier today. Brenton had to take him back to the vet. The vet gave him some anti-histamines and a steroid. Hurley is doing a lot better....but still has chubby, swollen cheeks! His eyes are so swollen in this picture and those little bumps are hives. He had them all over his legs and paws. Poor little man was panting hard and was so miserable. Now he is just wiped out from all the meds and has been sleeping the evening away. But most of all...he is better. He gave dad quite a scare today while mommy was at work! The love we have for our dogs...I say this as I am looking at the vet bills!:)

Wind and Sand Beach in La Jolla!

25 Weeks!!!! We spent the day at Wind and Sand Beach in La Jolla. As you can see, Brenton's brother Sean came down to visit! We had a blast and enjoyed the sun!

24 week pictures!!!

So...here is an update...FINALLY! Brenton is home and has been home for quite some time now. We have been busy working, unpacking, and trying to get this house in order. Brenton has already checked into his reserve unit on Camp Pendleton and already drilled for the first time! I am officially off orientation on the Labor & Delivery Unit at the Naval Hospital. It can be scary at times...but I know all my co-workers are watching out for me. Baby Kingston is growing like crazy. I feel like I am carrying him more in front now. Before I felt like I was carrying all around and into my sides...but not anymore. Also, my sciatica is gone! Yahoo! That was painful!!! Hurley is such a happy dog these days. He loves having daddy home all day long. They both like to play in the backyward and catch some sun! Of course they do this while I am working...haha! Other than that...not much else is new. Just getting excited for Kingston to come and are trip to Portland in May! We love and miss you all!

xoxoxoxox Brenton, Mel, Hurley& and baby Kingston

Video of Brenton at the Gun Range!

Here is a video one of Brenton's fellow marines put together of them at the gun range. You will not see an official picture of Brenton, but he is shooting from inside one of the tanks!!! It's a really cool video. I tried to upload it to this blog and I couldn't figure it out...so here is the link!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZT00tlJAia4

Brenton and Tanks!

There he is! Brenton is having so much fun with those tanks! The Marine Corps should be so happy to have you babe!!! You are an AMAZING MARINE! OOH RAH!!! hehe:)

Baby Boy Kingston!

There he is! He is so cute...I love this lil' man so much already. I had my big ultrasound on Monday, March 9th. Everything looks great. Everything appears intact, all accounted for, and in my eyes; PERFECT! The sonographer says he is average weight and looks like he will be about 7.5 lbs and 21 inches long when he is born. She did say he had long legs and asked if my husband was tall (that was after she looked me over from head to toe). I had to laugh...haha...of course my husband is very tall compared to me!!!:) Other than that, I am feeling him kick more and more and I absolutely love it! I can't believe I am going to be a mommy!

My dad flew in today. He will be staying with me until Brenton gets home from tank school. Brenton is due to graduate on March 24th and should be coming straight home after that. Hurley and I are so very anxious to have daddy home!

I am working on Labor and Delivery and so far...LOVING IT! I am on week 2 out of 6 of orientation...and so far feel like I am learning tons!

I hope everybody else is doing well...we love and miss you all!

xoxoxo

Mel

18 weeks!

Here is a picture of my swing...it matches the bassinet. This is the other Valentine's Day present from Brenton. He did so good! Thank you babe!










I am 18+3 weeks in this picture. My belly is growing!












18+0weeks in this picture. Just wanted to give you guys all an update! Hope all is well! We miss everyone.

xoxo

Mel