Off Probation!!

Brent has survived the police academy, field training, and now he has successfully completed his probationary period. Yeah!!! He can now take a vacation day with out scrutiny. I am very proud of him. I think he is very focused and very brave. He is gone from the house 14+ hours a day. He leaves in the dark and comes home in the dark. He still finds time to give me and his daughter attention. Sometimes he doesn't even see her because it's too late and she has fallen asleep already. I love him so much. Good job Brent!!

Updates

This is our Christmas card. You can kind of see my new hair! (See below for details)

Ella chews.

And she steals. Brent had this in his hand and she snatched it away and stuffed it in her mouth as fast as she could! I happened to have my camera in my hand or I wouldn't have got this!

I have been neglecting blogging for a while. Any ex-cheerleader can tell you that basketball season starts out crazy! Well, first, Black Friday was crazy!! My mom, Ella and I all went together and it was so much fun. Usually I am scaling bins of video games at Costco, ducking under clothes racks and thieving $5 waffle irons from old woman's baskets. (Does she really need six of them?) I was a little more low key this year. Ella did sooo good. She loves shopping. A girl after my own heart.

Next, my little cheerleaders are doing so good!! I love them so much! About half of them work so hard and want to be good so badly, the other half drive me crazy. My captain Dani Swanson is a blessing. She is organized and a wonderful problem solver. Someone gets hurt and she already has a plan on how to fix it. All my sophomores are wonderful, I love them. I like most the freshman. :) I have two awesome stunt groups that are really good and one that is doing a lot better than they were. They are working hard to do their best. I need to have some pictures of them.

AND, I cut my hair off!! Don't be alarmed. It is at my shoulders. That is the shortest it has ever been! But it was/is falling out in clumps! Amy was very kind enough to cut it for me. I really like it. It is so much easier.

Last, it has been a year since my Granny past away. I keep wondering when it will stop hurting that she is gone. Especially that I am in her house now. I miss her so much. I sometimes call Ella, Ruthie and it is bitter sweet.

Thansgiving

Brent had to work Thanksgiving this year. It was kind of sad. He made triple time so I got over it pretty quick. :) Anyways I thought I would write some of the things I'm thankful for.

1. Brent: He is a perfect match for me. He puts up with all my crap and tries his best to listen to me. I'm complicated, so I know it's hard.
2.Brent's job: Many people my age are poor. They are in school or just getting started in careers. I, however, am not!!! I love Brent's job and the security it gives us.
3. Ella: She is beautiful and healthy and I am glad I have her, even though she is text book case of irregularity.
4. My family: I love them because they ARE NOT PERFECT. They are crazy and honest. The are my best friends. I trust them unquestioningly.
5. The gospel.

There are other things that are vital to my existence and that I am also grateful for, but this is what is important. I hope everyone is excited for Christmas and has had a great year.

4 Month Check Up

Ella had to get her 4 Month round of shots I hate shots!! She was 12 pounds 7 ounces 25 %tile and 24 inches long 25%tile. The Doctor said she was healthy. She gets to stop taking her medicine now and I hope it will be okay! She loves cheerleading and football games. She's starting to sit up better and is protesting when you try to take her toys away. Her favorite toy is poodle. A bright pink poodle that vibrates when you pull his string. She loves him and likes to cuddle him when we are in the car. (When I say cuddle I mean chew his ears or tail or feet)

You Know Your Sleepy When.....

My poor daughter was awake for six hours straight and had fussed and cried all day. We went to the football game and seeing as how she loves chaos, she loved it. But, on the very short ride home she fell asleep. She badly needed a diaper change and lunch, so I thought, I will change her and that will wake her and then she can eat and fall back asleep. Usually getting her out of the car seat wakes her immediately... but no. So I put her on her changing mat to change her. It is usually cold and she hates it. But did it wake her?..... No. So I proceeded with the diaper change. Did the removal of pants and cold wipe and new diaper wake her?..... No. She was still sleeping the whole time! I was shocked. So I was finished the job and left her be. On her mat, in her room, dead to the existing world.

Farewell Mews!!

The first time I took my cats to the vet they asked me what the name was. So I told them it was Bowler. The nice lady laughed and said, no the cat! So I said, Oh Lettuce! Then she asked me, Last name? And I thought, I've never thought of a last name for the cat. So I answered, Mew? The nice lady laughed again and said, How funny that you have cats and your last name is mew! I starred at her for a moment and said, no my last name is Bowler, the cat's last name is Mew. She had confused me!! From that point on, I have referred to my cats as 'the mews'. Unfortunately, the mews have found a new home "on a farm" in mesquite. I will miss them so much.

Jack J. Wheeler

My sister finally had her baby. We went to see her today and I forgot how little baby's can be. He made Ella look like a giant!! He doesn't have a name yet, they haven't decided!! He has long black, curly hair. Way more than Ella has now! Joshlyn looked really good and the baby was beautiful. Joshlyn did great and everybody looked happy and healthy. Congratulations on the new Wheeler.

Jack J. Wheeler

8:00 AM

7 lbs 8 oz

20 in

Halloween

We were not able to go trick or treating. The draw backs of GER is it makes Ella a "irregular, difficult" baby. Brent had to work late every day this week so we didn't even get pumkins carved. This is as much as a costume as it got for Ella! (it's a kittie hat if you didn't know) We hope everyone else had some fun!

Ella is learning to sit up. She tries to reach for her rings in front of her and nose dives over! Then she is stranded bent in half and it causes great distress.

PS I would like to publicly rescind my previous comment on Homecoming. My cheerleaders were awesome and I was so proud of them!!

Ella's New Love

Ella has recently discovered that her hand is a easy, accessible treat! It makes her drool like an old dog but what ever keeps her happy is perfectly okay with me!

Ella Update

Ella is getting big. I took her to the doctor for her shots a few weeks ago and she has almost doubled in size. She weighed 11 lbs 6 oz. 50% for weight. She was 24 inches long. 90% for length. She was so tiny and now I feel like she's huge!! She has learned to smile and laughs out loud and even discovered her voice recently. She likes to randomly squeal and then laughs. She lays in her bouncy chair and kicks her legs like crazy. Brent says she looks like she's having a spazz attack. She is getting so strong. Bad news is that we found out that she didn't have colic ( good news you would think) she has GER. Better known as reflux. It's like really terrible heartburn for adults. I have to squirt medicine down her throat every night, and most of the time she fights it. It makes her have choking episodes that are terrifying. She turns bright red and when she finally catches her breath she screams the most terrible blood curdling scream of fear. But we at least know what it is and she has been much happier ever since we discovered the reason behind her misery. She does really well at cheerleading. Loud noise and chaos are no problem. I took her to the Homecoming pep assembly and the band was so loud and she just sat there. I was holding her and she actually fell asleep. The girls are very cute with her and she just stares at them. She likes the games and as soon as it is cool enough I will take her to the JV ones too. She is very sensitive to everything. Especially wind and heat. Anyways, we love her!!

Homecoming 2008

I hate homecoming. Too much stress for 5 minutes of performance that no one remembers or appreciates. My poor little JV girls are running the gauntlet and I hope they don't just scream at me and quit before the next week is over. I don't remember it being this hard when I cheered. I wonder if Mary wanted to pull her hair out as badly as I do. I accidentally have picked up one of the habits she used to have. Does anyone remember when she used to say "one more time" but we would do it 10 more times and still every time she would say "one more time" ? I do that all the time and my girls have picked up on it. They make fun of me. Anyways, Homecoming is October 10th come and see them perform. If they look good, I take full responsibility for their talent and I knew they had it in them.... if they look terrible, that's Denise's squad and I don't know what happened. :) hehe

We Moved

Thanks to the generosity of my dear Uncle Raoul, Brent, Ella and I have moved into my Granny's house. He's in charge of the property and is letting us rent for a ridiculously low price and the promise to take very good care of it. Brent has been faithfully watering bushes and the grass every night. We also have a new member of the family, a 2005 Nissan Sentra. Brent finally killed the poor Saturn, so we got him something that had less problem signals lit up on the dash! It's really cute and has AC and tinted windows, Brent's only requirement. (Seeming as how the Saturn had neither!) Anyways, here are some pictures of my crazy little girl being good. Also I thought this was a funny picture of Tomato. He was nervous on moving day that we were going to leave him. Little does he know he is getting closer and closer to going to "the farm". AKA the pound. Brent has had enough!!

Free to a WONDERFUL home

Unfortunately Brent and I have to find new homes for my two wonderful, sweet kitty cats. I am so sad!! We moved into a new house and we can't have them with us. Ever since we had Ella I haven't had time to even pet them. They deserve more love than I can give them right now. If any one wants to love them or knows someone who will, please let me know. Quick!!! Before Brent takes them to the pound!! He has been threatening to do this since I found out I was pregnant. I love them so much, I will mis them everyday.

PS They are declawed so they have to be inside.

The Woes of Colic

Ella is 6 weeks old today. She has now had colic for 4 weeks straight. I went to the doctor because I thought something was wrong with her and the doctor said it was 'just colic'. JUST COLIC!!!!!!! Tell that to my frazzled nerves. I want to cry and do regularly. I don't even remember what a day with out unconsolable crying is like. I probably take her back to the doctor thinking something else was wrong with her. Our record is 12 hours a day of screaming. Daily best ; 2 hours. Those are good days. However we average about 5. We try every thing and anything all afternoon and evening. She likes the hum of the dryer that will work for a while. Nothing, however is long term. Pray for me.

Ella's Blessing Day

The Alderete Family

Ella's Blessing Day

Brent gave our baby girl a beautiful blessing on Sunday August 17Th. We had a very big circle. The Bowler's are a big family!! Jeff reported his mission and Nick spoke as a High Councilman. It was just a Bowler Family Sacrament Meeting! It was a really great day. Jordan was ordained to the Melchizedek Priesthood so it was a big day!

Aunt Shellie's beautiful quilt

Brent's older sister made Ella this gorgeous quilt. I am going to hang it on her wall. It is too pretty to use for every day. I lack quilting skills so I'm so glad she made it.

Ode to Natural Child Birth

I have been very busy lately (Ella) so I have not been able to post the wonder and aww I experience when I was in labor with Ella. I wondered if I could experience natural child birth and thought that I would wait as long as I could before they gave me any medication. My water broke in the car on the way to the hospital... by the time I got to the maternity ward in Mesquite I was begging the anesthesiologist to give me the strongest stuff he had! Mind you, my labor was very fast, only 5 hours, so it was all kind of sudden. I even asked him if there was any possible way to just wake up in three days with a baby. He laughed at me. I then asked him, so is that a no? Anyways, My mother, Aunties, and my Granny (may she rest in peace) all experienced natural child birth.... AND THEN THEY ALL HAD MORE CHILDREN!! I have a deep respect for all those women who had to suffer through all that intensity. My Granny did it 9 times. Brave or crazy? You be the judge. I personally think that they are all very strong and brave. My mom always says that she didn't the choice but I believe she is just being modest. I think that these women deserve a medal or the keys to a city. But no, all women everywhere quietly (or loudly with much begging for the end) have children and not rewarded for their extremely hard work. A moment of silence for our brave women!!

More Ella

Just another picture of my baby girl.

Jeff Comes Home

After serving 2 years in Houston Texas, Elder Jeff Bowler is back! He got home Tuesday evening. Ella and I didn't get to go to the airport, but Brent did. He looks really good and hasn't changed a bit.

Sleepy Time

Ella is a good baby. She just has a little confusion on when night and day is! She likes to squirm and kick all night and sleep all day!! Brent has 3 weeks paid paternity leave ( God bless Henderson Police) So he keeps a watchful eye on her during the day while I sleep. He has been wonderful. He just celebrated his 26th birthday. Such an old man now!! He has been a huge support and comfort to me these last few days. I love him so much. Even though he is getting very old. :)

Ella Is Here!!

Ella Ruth Bowler

July 12, 2008

Born at 5:39 pm

6 lbs 9 oz

19 1/2 inches

More later.... just pictures for now.

B Team Cheer

I haven't had any pictures of my little cheer squad last year. I found this disc and finally got it to work. (After much wailing and gnashing of teeth) They worked so hard and really did accomplish A LOT! What B team can do a heal stretch? We had an injury at the end of the year so we were limited to 7 girls. Otherwise we would have 2 stunt groups. I was a "flyer" so it was easy for me to coach them. One girl was more flexible than the other so she got to do more "specialty" stuff. But they both had really great strong points. I had to do a lot of research and ask a lot of questions to ex-team mates to learn the finer points of basing. I know that this year is going to be even better than last year! They are so fun.

Independence Day

We're glad we got the new furniture. Everybody barely fit!

No one would look at the camera except Jed. Doesn't he have a big smile?!

My Awesome Watermelon Basket

4th of July was fun this year. Joshlyn, Jed and Jara, My Mom and Dad, and Jordan all came over and ate a lot of food! Nick and Bonnie joined us a little late. Brent was impatient when he got home so we ate little earlier than planned. The fireworks were pretty. We had a good time. It was fun to have all our family together for the evening.

Happy Birthday Ashley

I have officially turned 24 on Saturday. I still don't realize that I am that old. Not that 24 is old, but people will ask what my age is and I have to think about it. In my head I still think I am 20 and just barely got out of high school. My little cheeries and daily trips to the high school keep me feeling young! My Mom got me this beautiful bedspread that I have coveted for a year now! Brent got me the best present EVER! It is a Dyson vacuum. It is so powerful it even keeps my pet hair problem at bay! I vacuumed twice in one day just to play with it.

Presents!!

I have to be honest, I love getting presents! I now have everything I need for the baby. My Aunt Katie sent me a gift card so I could go pick out a baby monitor. That will be the final purchase. Also, this will be the ONE AND ONLY picture of my huge belly anyone will ever see. :)

Baby Shower

We had so much fun! Every one was very generous and it was really nice to see some of my long lost Aunties!! Now if Ella Ruth would just get here....

Ode to my Family

My hormones are at a near toxic level at this point and having made the decision to name my baby after my Granny, has caused me to pause and reflect on my whole family. My mother is the youngest daughter of 9 children. (Also know, I had suspicion my Granny was stark raving mad. Nine kids, holy smokes.) All of my Aunties may look the exact same, but they are all totally different. I have learned so much from them and my Granny. Most of all I have learned so much from my mom. She puts up with a great deal of crap from all of us and I am glad she hasn't moved to her mountain cave like she has been threatening to do for years!! My Daddy always does stuff for me. (Yes I still call him Daddy. Its a habit that I don't care to break. My sister calls him pescado, so I am allowed.) He is really good at coming to my rescue every time something is broken. (Including me, example: hospital day when he had to hunt down my sister at the school) My brother and sister provide me with entertainment and companionship. I am so glad I was born to my family and that it isn't very big. I feel like I have a special relationship with each member and that I know them personally. Okay, now that I have got over that disgustingly mushy diatribe... I am sorry for every one that they had to read it! Gross! But I do love every one and I hope they know!!

Ella's Room!!

I got a little carried away with the ladybug theme. But I personally feel like it is so cute I can't stand it! My mom helped me hang everything with the aid of her handy power tools. Brent put the crib together and it was easy. Not even one explosive curse word flying from the nursery! I may or may not have got a little click crazy when I ordered her bedding off the Internet. That is WAY too convenient!

Our New Furniture

Brent and I used our stimulus check to beautify our house. Gone is the pathetic Aunt Pat couch that died a slow painful death from my cats shredding it to bits! Best money I ever spent having them declawed! I even use my evil laugh when they try to climb something and fall! We got a lovely sofa / love seat ensemble. Then if we spent only 200 more dollars we got 300 dollars off. SO of course we couldn't pass that up! Thus was the purchase of the red chair that is going in Ella's room.

3 things I HATE

1. BATS. I HATE BATS!! Noxious sky rats that not only click in a most menacing fashion, but they unpredictably SWOOP out of the night sky, entirely unprovoked!
2. High school girls. I realize I was a high school girl and that once there was someone out there who loathed me, so I have very little guilt about this dislike. They try to hard and annoy me with there incessant laughter.
3. Direct TV. If I pay one more month for HD channels I am not getting... some one is going to pay!

My 3 favorite things

1. Sunrise. I love the early morning and the birth of a brand new day. The air is still a little cool and the sky turns pink. I love it.
2. Cats. I love cats because everybody else hates them. I think I favor them just to bother every one else.
3. Food. I love food. All food. I take great joy in eating and savor every bite.

The light at the end of the Tunnel

I don't have any new pictures, so you all will have to just read some stuff this month! I am 32 weeks pregnant AND COUNTING!! I know that I am almost finished but it still seems like a very long time before I can sleep on my stomach again. I have the top three signs I know I am getting to the end of the road:
1. Everyone annoys me. I am so tired of hearing, "Oh just wait" in reference to any and all complaints I have. Can't all the old women who have had children before me just let me bitch a little? Also, I am VERY tired of the phrase, "How are you feeling?" I know that some people are genuinely curious about how I feel and it is usually girls who have had a child in the last 2-3 years. Anyone else makes it sound like I have a horrible life threatening disease!
2. All of my thoughts, dreams and desires are consumed by my due date! Every thought is focused on pregnancy and baby. Some of my friends who have already had kids, amused me by how obsessed they seemed. For those who I teased, my deepest apologies!
3. If I pee one more time I'm going to scream..... excuse me while I go tot he bathroom.

I thought a few more pictures of my cats wouldn't hurt, because soon they will be replaced! Then they will just be these shadow creatures that lurk in my basement. It's getting hot, so they stay down stairs where it's colder. Sometimes I have to go down and flush them out so they will get a little bit of sunshine.

MVHS Cheer 2008-2009

We started practice for the new season and it has been a challenge! It is amazing how wonderful and natural girls can be... and how awful and awkward the others are! I am very excited that we have started and I have high hopes that they are going to be awesome. They all have great attitudes and that is what matters! I haven't wanted to kill a single one... yet

Ella Ruth Bowler

We have finally decided on a name for our baby girl, and it is Ella Ruth Bowler. Her middle name is after my dearest Granny who has already left us in this world. I was very close to her my whole life and miss her every day. I thought it would be nice little tribute to her memory! I have been working on making her room perfect for her arrival. We painted it green and it has lady bugs! I love lady bugs and coincidently, that is the nick name my granny used to have for me.

MVHS Cheer 2007-2008

These are my cute little B team cheerleaders. I have 4 returning from last year. The other four are going to be on the Varsity Dance team. I am very proud of ALL of them! This year I will be over the JV team. I am very excited for the year to start so I have someone to yell at besides Brent. Amber retired from our ranks this year and I am going to miss her. Her absence means a lot more responsibility on my part!

Our new car

This is our new Chevy Tahoe. It has all these fun gadgets that I could care less about! Because all I care about is that it is very shiny. Brent likes the gadgets.

Officer Bowler

After 22 weeks in the Police academy, and 18 grueling weeks in field training, Brent is finally a full fledge City of Henderson Police Officer! He work VERY hard! He was peppered sprayed, tazered and ran hundreds of miles at 3 o' clock in the afternoon in mid summer. We are very glad he is alive, let alone finished! We are not allowed to put pictures of him on the internet in his uniform so here are some pics of his hat and boots. Note: I polished those boots so many times I don't think my fingers will ever be the same.

Baby girl Bowler

We are expecting our first child on August 3rd. (This however is a rough estimate) We are excited and too be frankly honest, terrified. She doesn't have a name yet, so we refer to her as Ashley jr. Everytime we think we have it narrowed down, one of us comes home with a new name we heard that day. Brent thinks we should just let her name herself when she turns 5. I think this is a bad plan. If I would have been given that option, you would now know me as Ariel the little Mermaid.

Lettuce and Tomato

No, I am not about to tell you about my favorite sandwhich or what I am growing in my garden. Lettuce and Tomato are my two extremely lazy, spoiled kitty cats. We "rescued" them from the Mesquite animal shelter 2 years ago and they are thriving. By thriving I mean obese. Everyone tells me they are huge and fat but I defend them by making excuses. They have slow metabolisms, are big boned or just full figured. Who wants a skinny cat anyways? Tomato is very affectionate and loves to make friends. Unfortunately, Lettuce does not. She is catogorized at the vet's office as a "red zone feline". She hisses and growls at anyone who tries to touch her and if they don't back off she bites. She used to scratch and we declawed her, so she uses the only tool left to her, her teeth. It almost makes me miss her claws. My sofa however does not! She loves us, but watch out if you ever visit us.

Lessons learned from Granny

I was reading my sister's reminice about my Granny's eternal ham and thought I should share some of the many gems of wisdom that my Granny taught me.

Lesson #1 Any house hold item can be used as a weapon! Examples: Woodenspoons, frying pans, brooms (as my unfortunate uncle Russell can atest to), wallets, shoes, books, and the occassional pillow.

Lesson#2 Wasp killer can be used to depose of birds who nest in awnings.

Lesson#3 Granny claimed to be partially blind in one of her eyes... until you are spotted wearing a halter top in Lin's from 100 yards away, then she was like and eagle! Lesson learned? Beware of your surroundings.

Lesson#4 Sacrement meating is enjoyable as long as it DOES NOT exceed the allotted time limit.

Lesson#5 No one should curse or swear because it is filthy and vulgar. Unless of coarse it is Granny herself, then it is perfectly acceptable.