Just Morris'n Around

Did you know...

2012-02-01T11:10:00.001-07:00

Today is my 35th Birthday!! I can't believe I'm only 5 years away from 40. I remember when that seemed so old. Now, I can't believe that's almost me. I'm too young! I thought it would be fun to remember a little bit about me at this time of my life. So I wrote down 35 things you may not know about me.

1. I wish I was a nurse.
2. I have a crush on David Cook. If I had a woman-cave, I would hang up a big picture of him.
3. One item on my "bucket list" (that I doubt will ever come true) is that I could have Chef Gordon Ramsey cook with me.
4. I would LOVE to go to culinary school just for myself. Not to have a career in cooking but just to learn some really cool skills and become better.
5. Pride and Prejudice (the Keira Knightley version) is my all time favorite movie.
6. My feet are not ticklish. If you touch them, you must massage them. Ask Brian.
7. My eyes change from blue to green, depending on what I'm wearing.
8. There are three places I hope I get to see before I die: New York City, Boston and Paris, France.
9. If I had my single years to do over again, I would move to Europe and travel everywhere and see everything.
10. I really wish I dressed cute. But I don't. And I really don't know how with this body of mine.
11. My parents were going to name me Sally Sue but then the nurse mention I could have a lisp. So I was named Sally Ann. But I LOVE being called Sally Sue.
12. My future home will have a library. Seriously. An entire room with floor to ceiling bookshelves, comfy places to sit and a million books I can hold in my hands and smell while I read them.
13. Halloween is my favorite time of the year.
14. I really hope my next baby is a good sleeper.
15. Giraffes are my favorite animal.
16. I've always wanted red hair.
17. It's absolutely impossible for me to pick a favorite book. I just love to read, read, read.
18. The coolest date I've ever been on was when a guy took me up in a little cesna plane. He flew us to Bear Lake where we sat on the wing of the plane and ate sandwiches. Every other date I've been on has always been movies, dinner, stuff like that.
19. I LOVE to organize and be organized and reorganize. Oh! I just love it.
20. My dream home would be on an acreage (or more) with fruit trees, a huge garden, raspberry bushes, etc. - where I could garden and live off the land almost.
21. I love to play games and learn new ones.
22. I hate sharing a bed. I've hated it my entire life. It's so hard to sleep with someone else moving around, pulling the covers, making noises. I hated it before I was married. In fact, I had to take sleeping pills for the first few months of marriage so I could sleep.
23. I'm cloth diapering Gideon and really enjoying it. We haven't had to spend one single penny on disposable diapers.
24. I wish I had a best friend. I have tons of friends. But not a bestie.
25. My favorite drink is water. And ever since pregnancy, Dr. Pepper is, unfortunately, a second runner up.
26. My favorite food is breakfast - french toast, waffles, scrambled eggs, bacon....yummy!
27. I love flannel sheets. I'm always so happy when the weather turns colder and I can pull them out.
28. I love music that shares real emotions. Typically it's music that's slower and tells of heartbreak.
29. I love roller coasters. Someday, I'm going to fulfill one of my dreams and I'm going to ride a roller coaster where my feet hang free. And the one at Lagoon doesn't count.
30. I hope I become a published author.
31. I love blackberry flavored treats. Like at Zupas, I fill my cup with 7up, then pour in some blackberry syrup - Heaven! I wish there was blackberry pop I could buy at the store. Wait, no I don't. Cause then I would buy it and drink it all.
32. I think text messaging serves a purpose but I also think it takes away from real communicating. Sometimes I'd rather just TALK to people. Sometimes getting only a text for something is a disappointment, like I'm not worth a phone call.
33. I love being a student. LOVE it! The assignments, deadlines, writing papers - I know I'm crazy. But I really love it. I would be a professional student if I could. And I really want to go back for my Master's someday, but I just have no idea what in. Too many choices.
34. I love scary movies. Not the horror, blood filled kind. The sit-on-the-edge-of-your-seat kind. The kind that makes you think twice when you see a shadow, or something move, or hear a sound. Oh, yeah. I love that! I even watch them all by myself.
35. I love trying new recipes so much that we hardly ever eat the same meal around here. Some are so good (like lasagna soup) that Brian asks for a repeat. Some are not so good and we end up going out to eat. But it's really fun and I've gotten really good at spotting a good recipe.

So there is a little about me. I wonder if I'll laugh at some of these things in 30 years from now. Or if things will pretty much be the same.

Brian has joined my insanity...

2012-01-29T11:02:00.000-07:00

and is trying to capture pictures of Gideon smiling. He actually caught some really good ones. Here are my favorites.

a little smile

little tongue sticking out

huge smile for daddy!

another big one!

Two Months

2012-01-28T09:41:00.001-07:00

My little man is already two months old! Crazy how time flies. I really wanted to take pictures of how much he grew during his first year, but all those weeks of him being so sick really threw me off all my plans. So I looked back at pictures to see if I could use something and found this crib shot of him the day we brought him home from the hospital.

TWo dAYs oLd!

TWo mOnTHs oLd!

He now weighs 11 pounds, 15 ounces.
He is 23 inches long.
He LOVES to smile and be social. He is already a little flirt. He loves the ladies! He is so strong and has amazing head control. He hates tummy time but we make him do it anyway. He LOVES when you sing to him. Gideon was only moving his head to the right and could only bring it to the center. So we learned some exercises and now he moves his head all over the place. He prefers facing forward when being held. Gideon has the cutest giggle. He does it most often when he is sleeping, but has giggled while awake a few times. He sleeps great at night but rarely naps during the day. He can be fussy when he doesn't get enough sleep, but when he gets enough, he is one of the happiest kids ever. Gideon is cooing up a storm and loves to tell stories. He is an absolute joy and we LOVE having him in our family.

We "celebrated" his two months by taking all his 0-3 month clothes out of his drawers and replacing them with his 3-6 month clothes. So sad! He is growing too fast. The clothes still fit around him but he was too tall to wear them. The outfit in this picture I bought before Gideon was born. We randomly stopped by The Children's Place and I found it for $2.50!! The price made it even cuter. I remember coming home and holding the onesie against my belly, amazed at how big it seemed. Now he is wearing it and it fits! So surreal.

Big Blue Eyes

2012-01-25T17:22:00.000-07:00

You can never post too many pictures of your child's face, can you?? Actually, I was meandering through my blog yesterday and realized that there are no pictures that show Gideon's real eye color. Now, I know they can still change, but you need to see what a beautiful blue they are. They are just like my sister, Stacey, and her three kiddos, eyes. A bright, beautiful blue. See for yourself. And enjoy his silly faces too.

A Wanna Be Birth Announcement

2012-01-24T20:59:00.000-07:00

I'm not a photographer, but I think these pictures turned out pretty cute. I saw this idea for a birth announcement shirt on pinterest and I just HAD to do it. But with all the screaming that went on around here before, I never had the chance to make the shirt. But with the new, happy baby I have, I made the shirt and snapped a bunch of photos. I'd really like to send out a birth announcement but is it lame to do that when your baby is almost two months old?? I always dreamed of sending out a birth announcement. Maybe this blog post will just have to do. At least he is a cutie! Here are my favorite shots:

A little smile. My dang camera needs to take pictures quicker!

I Give and I Get

2012-01-17T19:51:00.002-07:00

For a while now I knew something was wrong with Gideon. He was sick, but my pediatrician (that I only talked to over the phone about this) told me I was being an overprotective first time mom. But it kept nagging at me and so just over two weeks ago, I finally took Gideon to the InstaCare over the weekend.

First off, I absolutely LOVED the pediatrician that was there and wished he could be my pediatrician, but his practice is in Orem. Not worth a 45+ minute drive, one way, for a doctor. Also, he knew right away what was wrong with Gideon. He is not able to tolerate milk protein.

Now, back in the hospital, when I supplemented with formula for a couple of days, milk based formula made Gideon really sick. But this news still surprised me. After all, I'm breastfeeding him. How could he be getting sick?

Turns out, milk protein is absorbed by the blood. And breast milk is made from nutrients in your blood (disgusting and fascinating all at the same time.) So every time I ate any milk product, Gideon was also eating the milk protein in that food, making him sick, sick, sick. The doctor said I would notice a big difference between 1 1/2 and 2 weeks of being off milk, if it really was the milk. So no more milk for me. But now, I'm left with horrible cravings for this...

and this...

Now, craving ice cream doesn't surprise me because I have craved ice cream since college. But I had no idea how much I would miss chocolate. Chocolate withdraw for me is BAD. I have even been dreaming that I STEAL chocolate from people, that's how bad I want some. And milk is in EVERYTHING! I have no "emotional foods" left to eat. No chocolate, no ice cream, no cookies, no cupcakes, no brownies and the list goes on. So instead of eating emotional foods, I step on the scale and LOVE that the number keeps going down, down, down.

Meanwhile, I switched pediatricians. A friend recommended one to me but she wasn't available, so I saw someone else in that office. Turns out his first son had the same problem and he was able to answer all my questions. And he gave me some great advice. And he was really nice. And he told me I did a great job noticing something wasn't right because most people don't know until their child has blood in their stool. BLOOD! I seriously think I would freaked out and called 911 if that happened to Gideon. And he didn't make Gideon cry, like the other doctor. So consider us officially switched.

On the other hand, I have been dealing with a baby that NEVER sleeps during the day. Sometimes, he has been awake for as many as 15 hours straight. And because he is so tired, he spends a lot of time crying and screaming. (Which is even worse when you can't stuff your face with emotional foods.) I've tried everything, everything to get him to sleep with no luck. On days when he would sleep for 20 minutes I was so happy. But for the last four days, there has been a lot of this going on...

My baby finally sleeps. And he lets me know he is tired. And he falls right to sleep. And he is SO much happier. And I think I might actually be able to live without chocolate and ice cream and The Sweet Tooth Fairy for the next year. Maybe.

I'm so glad he is feeling better. I had no idea that me eating milk could make him so sick. I had no idea that being sick could make someone so little not sleep. I wish I had known sooner. And I really hope that telling the world about this doesn't jinx his sleeping. Seriously.

The strangest part of this whole thing to me is that during pregnancy I LOVED milk. For as long as I can remember in my life, I hated milk. The smell. The taste. The texture. For nine months, I LOVED the stuff. I drank it all the time. And when eggnog came out, I would actually wake up at night because I NEEDED some eggnog. I would actually have to get out of bed and drink some in order to fall back asleep. And now my baby can't handle it. So strange.

At least he is feeling better. And sleeping. And much happier. So here's to a year with no milk!

Grandma and Grandpa Morris Visit

2012-01-16T21:02:00.000-07:00

Grandma and Grandpa Morris came to visit on the 14th and 15th. We basically visited at home and marveled at Gideon, who was taking naps, often. Brian and I kept expressing our disbelief and claiming this wasn't the typical, screaming Gideon we were used to. Hopefully, this is a sign of things to come. Anyways, we had a great visit, Gideon got lots of extra love and we only took a couple of pictures. Murphy's Law. It was a fun time. Thanks for coming!

One day after his bath...

2012-01-12T22:59:00.016-07:00

Gideon was looking extra cute. So I snapped a few pictures.

He is figuring out how to suck on his fingers. He makes so much noise when he sucks. Totally funny!

His hair is getting a lot longer too. And lighter. You can't tell in any of these pictures, but originally you couldn't see his eyebrows (note the lack in these pictures) or his eyelashes. Now his eyelashes are close to the color of his hair and they are much easier to see. But you can only see his blonde, blonde eyebrows up close.

Cover Me Up!

2012-01-09T22:57:00.005-07:00

Gideon loves to have his face covered when he goes to sleep. On this day, he was really hot so I didn't cover him up. I didn't realize how much he loved having his eyes covered until he figured out his own way to do it. Adorable!

Will I Ever Capture a Real Smile??

2012-01-09T22:51:00.008-07:00

Nope. Sure can't. And I even tried on two different days this time. I'm just not quick enough to get those big grins. You'll just have to take my word for it.

Cutest. Smiles. Ever.

Maybe I'll enlist Brian in helping capture them. One can get him smiling, the other can take the pictures. Yeah, maybe that will work.

First Real Tie

2012-01-08T22:41:00.000-07:00

Check out my little stud muffin! Isn't he the cutest in his first real tie?? He really is too little for it, since it jabs him in the chin, but we dressed him up and took him to church and took the tie off when he fell asleep. He was a great participant in the picture taking until the end.

Trying to capture some smiles

2012-01-07T22:35:00.000-07:00

This kid has the cutest smiles. Huge smiles. He just won't show off for the camera. But here are some shots of me trying my best to capture those smiles. Someday. Meanwhile, enjoy these little teasers.

Playtime

2012-01-05T20:32:00.017-07:00

Gideon got this awesome play yard from my friend Crystal and her mom. He LOVES it. He talks to himself in the mirror, he loves the giraffe and talks to it, and (with my help) has figured out how to activate the bumblebee toy, which plays music, and hit the rattle. It's so CUTE! I took some videos too, but I have to switch them to another format in order to post them, and I can't figure it out. Any computer savvy people out there want to help me??

The pictures don't do justice. His cuteness is much better in person (or in video.)

New Years 2011

2011-12-31T20:29:00.001-07:00

For New Year's Eve we headed out to Tooele to party it up with the cousins! Miracle of all miracles, Gideon fell asleep shortly after we hit the road and slept all the way to Tooele. Then he continued to sleep through the mommies only trip to Walmart, dinner and a whole lot of craziness around the house.

Emma, Ashley and Ellie LOVED playing with Brian. They chased him everywhere, jumped all over him and begged for more and more. Where ever he went, there was a string of giggles following right behind.

Meanwhile, Ben army crawled all over the floor, playing with cars and loving life.

Emma and Ellie cheering for more. At this point, Brian was covering them with a pillow (in a non suffrocating way) and they were laughing up a storm.

Ashley safely posing on the arm of the chair. What a cutie!

And here is a sad story. I have not baked a single thing since Gideon was born. I LOVE to bake. I miss it so much. If my little guy would ever sleep, I'm sure I could jump into baking every once and awhile. So, Brian took over Gideon on New Years Eve day and I baked this beautiful, amazing Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Bundt cake. The batter tasted delicious, the end product turned out so pretty and I was so excited to bring it to the party to eat. I felt like I was back in the game doing something I knew how to do. It felt so good. Then we cut into it and discovered it was raw in the middle. I totally cried!

We headed home before midnight because Gideon needed to go back to sleep. I didn't pay any attention to the time and Brian was sad because it would turn midnight while we were in the car. I felt bad. But then when midnight hit, the entire valley, from Bountiful to Riverton lit up with fireworks. Hundreds of them, all over the skyline. It was AMAZING!!! That made midnight in the car totally worth it.

The Spencer's Come to Visit!

2011-12-29T20:25:00.001-07:00

Robin and Joel and their girls came to visit us and meet Gideon. They came up, partied in a hotel, saw the lights on Temple Square and spoiled us. We went out to dinner, visited, laughed, got introduced to some new funny shows and Robin gave Gideon his first photo shoot.

Loving the baby - Abbie, McKenzie, Robin, Whitney and Joel.

Gideon has lots of pain, which results in much fussiness and crying, when he passes gas or has a bowel movement. Robin worked wonders with Gideon the night she was here. She got him completely calmed down and content. Come back anytime, Robin!! Thanks for teaching us some new tricks.

Look at my little guy just chillin' with his family! It was a super fun time!

Limes, Lemons and Oranges

2011-12-27T20:21:00.000-07:00

I have been wanting to blog about this FOREVER! I just kept forgetting. Here is the entire (short version) of my green thumb attempt:

Last spring I bought three dwarf trees: lime, lemon and an orange. I was told if I jumped right to a big pot, the trees would die. So I started out with small pots and the trees grew really quick. So quick, the pots were too small, really soon. Being pregnant, working full time and getting ready for a baby soon became my excuses for not getting bigger pots. I always watered the plants and kept them in the sun, but they soon started to die from the too small pots. That finally motivated me to get bigger pots. I really wanted (and still want) this green thumb project to succeed.

While in the small pots, the lime tree bloomed. Beautiful, white blossoms that smelled amazing. Every day when I walked by, I would smell them. Yummy! Several (probably 10) of them turned into teeny, tiny green limes, but only one of those limes made it. And here it is the day I cut it off and used it to make some lime squares.

I really should have looked at the pictures before cutting off the lime. Cause they really aren't good pictures.

And here are some more sweet smelling, white blossoms on another tree. But I can't remember which one is the orange tree and which one is the lemon tree. If any of these blossoms turn into a fruit - I'll let you know. For now, operation get a green thumb is progressing nicely.

Christmas 2011

2011-12-26T12:22:00.002-07:00

Oh, Christmas tree. Oh, Christmas tree. I wish you were a live, pine-smelly one. But you are beautiful and in six Christmas's married, this is only the second time we have put you up - so I'll take you exactly the way you are. I LOVED staying home for Christmas. No worries about traveling, packing, getting the house ready, someone to watch the cats/mail/newspapers/house, etc, etc, etc. It was an extremely stress-free Christmas. Which was extra wonderful considering there is a cute little newborn in our lives now.

We have only had two stockings at our house for five years. Now we have THREE! LOVE it! My sister, Amy, makes these stockings for each new member of our family.

The stockings were hung by the chimney with care! Don't you love our fire??

Our new little family, celebrating Christmas together.

Gideon was WIDE awake at 7:00am. Personally, I think he KNEW it was Christmas morning (just kidding!) So I woke Brian up and we opened presents with a wide awake baby. Very fun!

We got Phanta our first Christmas together. Brian taught her how to unwrap presents so he could see what the gift was. She still opens presents to this day. And somehow she only manages to open Brian's presents!

New books from Cousin Robert. Thank you Robert!

Cute Elmo book from Grandma and Grandpa Sandberg. So Big is a "game" my dad plays with his Grandkids a lot. I'm so excited for when Gideon gets big enough to play!

Brian being silly and excited for another year to play online games. Thanks Jeremy and Janie!

Mokie was excited the gifts were gone from under the tree and she happily hung out underneath it.

Gideon's first tie. When I was getting Gideon dressed for his first day of Church, he was squawking a little because I pulled the shirt over his head - remember it was a onesie with tie on it. Not his favorite part. Brian comes in and starts saying that he would cry too if he had to wear a tie - blah, blah, blah. Well, I said we are NOT going to raise our son with a bad attitude of wearing a tie to church so please stop. Imagine my surprise when under the tree was a gift to Gideon, love Dad - Gideon's first tie! Precious!

My niece Jennie had Gideon's name for Christmas. She bought him this adorable first Christmas ornament.

Which you can see hanging on the tree behind Gideon. As well as some reindeer play socks and the Cars movie. Spoiled rotten! Thanks, Jennie!

Mokie eventually came out from the tree when she discovered the pile of wrapping paper. She played in there for hours.

And what would Christmas be without a nap??

It was a wonderful Christmas! We ate lots of yummy food (including French Dip sandwiches and a fancy breakfast), spoiled each other and enjoyed being a new little family. A very relaxing, perfect day.

Merry Christmas to you!!

Holiday Outfits

2011-12-23T13:17:00.000-07:00

This is the outfit we wanted to bring Gideon home in. But he didn't come on Thanksgiving! So he gets to enjoy it now. Brian and I found this shirt for ONE DOLLAR before we knew if the baby was a boy or girl.

And I found this at Target and had to have it!

Now I'm already thinking of what my choices will be for Valentines!

Christmas Party 2011

2011-12-22T14:07:00.000-07:00

We headed over to Andrew and Laraine's for our annual Christmas party. The girls always do a gift exchange while the boys watch sports.

Marissa gave Brendee a homemade ornament.

Brendee made Kirsten a really cool tree.

Kirsten made Crystal a ring.

Which Quinn absolutely LOVED and claimed as her own.

Crystal made Whit some cake stands.

Whit made Laraine a decoration.

Laraine made me a B for baby and a Morris sign.

And I made Marissa some sugar scrubs.

All the girls partying it up.

Seattle Visitors

2011-12-21T13:17:00.002-07:00

Aunt Janie, Uncle Jeremy and Cousin Robert came to visit from Seattle! Robert is such a cutie! It was fun to spend a couple of days with them and have them meet Gideon. They came to town for a friend's wedding and stayed down in Provo. But they came to visit us twice while they were here and even brought us yummy Culver's for lunch. The time went too quick but we had lots of fun while they were here!

Just When I Think He Can't Get Any Cuter

2011-12-21T12:36:00.001-07:00

he falls asleep like this...

Miracles

2011-12-20T20:28:00.000-07:00

Take a LOOOOOOONG look at this picture. It's a picture of a small miracle - Gideon SLEEPING during the day!!! My little guy does NOT sleep during the day. I'm lucky if I get two 20 minute naps a day out of this guy. Thankfully, once I get him to sleep at night, he sleeps great! However, the days are leaving a huge something to be desired. And he is so tired that he spends most of the day crying and screaming. I try everything. And I mean EVERYTHING!! But he refuses to sleep. Then one random day, he will sleep for four hours in the middle of the day. Just like with this picture. I took a shower and cleaned by entire house. Which I hadn't done since he had been born. It was glorious!! And, on a side note, he hates the swing. I only put him in it so I could run to the bathroom. And when I came back, I found this cute guy sleeping away. LOVE it!! The next day, he hated the swing again. So I had to remember this moment.

Lots and lots of baby posts

2011-12-20T17:56:00.003-07:00

Gideon has been a super sleeper today. Like really super and I'm beginning to wonder how tonight will go. However, I used the time to get all my blog posts done. There are 15 posts!!! All about Gideon's first three weeks of life. Enjoy!

Funny Faces and Poses

2011-12-19T17:45:00.001-07:00

This is my new favorite picture!! So funny! If you look closely, you can see even his right eyebrow is raised. Love this kid!

He found his fingers. He sucks on them very noisely.

I call this the superman pose. I wish I got this shot during the stretch cause it's even better.

And another cute hand clasp.

First Day of Church

2011-12-18T17:34:00.012-07:00

Here are my two handsome guys all ready for church.

Gideon is wearing a tie onesie made by my sister, Stacey. Isn't he so adorable?? Gideon did great. Slept some of the time in his car seat, then in his dad's arms and then he was ready for lunch so we checked out the mother's lounge for the first time. Then we tried to go home but lots of people wanted to talk to us. Our ward is so excited for us to finally have a baby! It's overwhelming, in a good way, how kind people are. We love church and our church family!!!

Sleeping Babies Have a Way of Putting You to...

2011-12-17T15:57:00.002-07:00

Sleep!

After our ward party I found this. LOVE it!

Santa

2011-12-17T15:56:00.002-07:00

We took Gideon to our Ward Christmas party. It was the first time everyone at church had seen him and was he ever loved! He has been fighting sleep during the day, but our neighbor took him so I could eat and he fell right asleep and slept the entire time. Even through all the noise and all the arms that wanted to hold him. I really wanted to go for one reason. So we could get his picture with Santa! And it turned out better than I imagined. So stinkin' cute!

Two Little Hands

2011-12-16T15:52:00.000-07:00

Gideon always has his hands together. It's adorable and I totally love it! They are always clasped or laying on top of each other. Especially when he nurses. Sometimes he, for lack of a better word, wrings his little hands as he kind of rubs them together. It's one of those things I had to capture so I won't forget.

And why is it that sleeping babies look extra cute?

Hanging out with Mom (and refusing to sleep)

2011-12-14T15:42:00.000-07:00

Gideon was looking particularly cute while hanging out with me today. He is going through this refusing to sleep stage now during the day. YEAH!! You might think I'm crazy for being happy about it, but it used to only happen at night. Now he sleeps lovely during the night and refuses to sleep during the day. I LOVE it!! I mean, he should sleep when he needs to and all, but at least we are both getting more sleep during the night now!

Trying to Catch Some Smiles

2011-12-12T15:38:00.000-07:00

Gideon has the CUTEST smiles. I know 99% of them are "gas smiles" but they are still amazingly cute. He has started socially smile on rare occasions, but I'm so caught up in the moment, I can't remember to take a picture. So instead, I tried to catch some while he was sleeping.

A Day in the Life of a 13 Day Old

2011-12-11T15:35:00.000-07:00

I felt like I wasn't taking enough pictures. So here is Gideon making faces on his 13th day of life. He always forms his lips into an "O", Brian's favorite.

A little tiny gas smile.

And sleeping away on the couch. What a life!

First Bath

2011-12-10T15:25:00.000-07:00

At Gideon's doctor appointment, the doctor took off what was left of his umbilical cord. That meant we could finally give him his first real bath! I mean, we gave him sponge baths before that, but this was the first real thing. He LOVED it.

He didn't cry until I washed his hair. I didn't get anything in his eyes but he did not like it.

An all clean boy.

Once the hair washing was done, he settled right down and just chilled in his chair. He kicks his feet and pushes off all the time. So we really, really have to watch him because he could wiggle himself right out.

Then Brian went crazy taking tons of pictures of him cuddled in his towel. I must admit, he is pretty dang cute, so I totally don't blame Brian. Here are a few of our favorites.

Grandma and Grandpa leave

2011-12-10T15:22:00.000-07:00

After a week and a half, my parents left to go visit some more family in Minnesota. I was sad to see them go. My dad labored for days putting up some very troublesome closet doors and my mom made yummy meals, cleaned the house, folded laundry, took the baby so I could sleep, etc, etc, etc.

Here are several shots of my new little family. I kept all the pictures because the looks on our faces are priceless. I had to share all of them.

And its a tradition for my parents to take pictures with their grandkids on the stairs. Here is Gideon's first one.

Later that night, Gideon was curled up so cute in Brian's arms. Here is the proof.

Sleeps All Day, Awake All Night

2011-12-09T16:29:00.000-07:00

Here is what Gideon does during the day...

And this is what I see ALL night long...

I can't wait until he switches those nights and days around!! In the meantime, its wonderful to have lots of people to help us both adjust to life.

One Lovely Saturday and the Week in Review

2011-12-03T16:24:00.000-07:00

On Gideon's first Saturday of life, we finally took our first family picture!! Well, Cousin Heather took the pictures.

Gideon had a little bit of jaundice. I knew he looked slightly yellow, but now that he is no longer jaundice, I can't believe how yellow he was! He refused to eat for hours at a time, and would then eat for, literally, hours at a time. Which the doctor said was causing the jaundice. After a couple of days, Gideon started eating on a normal schedule and the jaundice went away.

Cousins Jason, Heather, Ben and Emma came to visit. They brought us brownies and yummy lemon curd tarts (I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE lemon curd and my sweet cousin remembered that.)

Dad and Brian headed down to Provo so Ben and Sara could meet Gideon.

Earlier that week, on Thursday, Cousin Ann came with her two girls, Ellie and Ashley, and brought us dinner. Ellie and Ashley sang us songs and loved the baby.

And there were some other things I was going to remember to include, but now I can't remember them. Oh well, at least I can come back and add things to this post whenever I want to! :)

Three Days Old

2011-12-01T16:27:00.000-07:00

Here is my little man, only three days old.

He got to spend lots of time being held by his Grandpa that day. After that, we put Grandpa to work on the closet doors.

The Hospital and Coming Home

2011-12-01T16:15:00.001-07:00

I don't really have much to say for this post, I just wanted to share all the pictures. I enjoyed my hospital stay as much as someone can enjoy the hospital. Our nurses (all but one who kept trying to convince me I was starving my baby) were amazing. The food, not my favorite. But it was nice to be so catered to. I loved that I didn't have to think about much. Someone showed up with food regularly. The nurses brought me pain meds right on time. I could ask any and all questions I wanted and someone always happily answered.

I have had some "complaints" from people telling me I looked far TOO beautiful after giving birth. Ha!! Little did you know I ordered a hair dresser and make up artist before taking pictures. Totally kidding. Just the luck of the angle, people. And the fact that Heavenly Father loves me because I honestly wanted to look pretty after the big event. However, here is another picture where I don't look quite as fabulous except for the fact I'm holding my new little guy.

Brian's parents left Idaho to come shortly after we let them know I was in labor. They had to wait forever to meet Gideon because I refused to let anyone in the labor and delivery room. I had to deliver my placenta, get stitched up, breastfeed for the first time (Gideon latched right on and went to town - good thing he knew what he was doing) and since I got my epidural booster about 1/2 hour before I pushed, my legs were completely and utterly numb. So I had to wait forever to get out of bed. And I didn't wait long enough because when they got me up to go to the bathroom, I fell to the floor and had to sit in all my lovely bodily fluids. Then a whole slew of nurses came in to help me up and to clean me and my clothes and the floor up. It was awful. One of my most embarrassing moments - EVER! But then I finally got to my new bed and was wheeled to the Mom and Baby unit where we spent the next couple of days.

The next day our sweet, wonderful neighbors, Donna and Riley came to visit. We tried to remember to take pictures of everyone that came, but we totally forgot. My friend Sonja came the night before. Not many people came to the hospital because no children under 15 are allowed on the baby floor. Most people came when we got home so their kiddos could come too.

And here are lots of shots of Gideon's first couple day's of life.

My legs were dead numb for hours and hours after the birth.That epidual works great! So Brian, the amazing dad and husband that he is, ended up changing ALL of Gideon's meconium diapers. He said it wasn't as bad as he predicted.

Time to head home.

This is the outfit Brian picked for Gideon to come home in. Such a little stud.

The pediatrician had some kind of meeting the day we went home so we had to wait forever to get checked out. The nurses almost had to call our insurance to let them know we wouldn't be checked out before our 48 hours was up! But he finally came and gave us the all clear.

Poor little guy. He head was still so swollen from birth. Can't imagine what it would have been like if I had pushed for hours.

He actually didn't mind his carseat. He only cried when his binky fell out.

Getting all ready to head home!

Brian wanted me to be the one to bring him inside. So cute!

We actually didn't know what to do when we got home. (And they let us leave with him!!!) So we laid Gideon in his crib. And then we stood there and stared at him.

After about 1 minute of staring, Brian took Gideon out and sat in the chair, where he continued to stare at him. :)

About an hour after we got home, my mom and dad arrived from Canada. They had come to stay and help us with the baby.

Then later that night, Tim and Crystal and family, came to meet Gideon. This is so not a great picture, but sorry guys, you were part of the big day so the picture is a keeper.

Our friends, the Nestors, made us dinner that night and brought it over. That was amazing!! I didn't have to worry about anything. It was great to be home!

The down low of the labor and delivery

2011-11-30T15:41:00.000-07:00

My entire pregnancy I REALLY wanted Gideon to be born on Thanksgiving Day. When people would ask when my due date was, I always told them Thanksgiving Day - even though it was really the 29th. But instead of a baby on Thanksgiving, I made Thanksgiving dinner. It was yummy! It was just Brian and I and we LOVED it!! It was so relaxing. It was fun to enjoy the last few days of it being just the two of us.

I think this is the last meal I have really cooked since the baby was born. Good thing it was an amazing one! Both Brian and I had a four day weekend for Thanksgiving. I had absolutely no signs of labor. At all. The entire weekend. Every day Brian and I would pick a store, such as IKEA, and go walking and walking and walking. It was WAY too cold to walk outside. On Sunday, I did not feel well at all. Really nauseated. We headed to church and by the time Sacrament was over, I needed to go home because it was worse. Being lazy helped and I went to be early that night sad that I had to go to work in the morning.

Okay, so here come the details. I want to remember them so I'm going to share them. Read on at your own choosing. On Monday, November 28th at 3:00am I had a strange dream. In my dream I was about to wet my pants. I instantly woke up and realized it was for real. I went running to the bathroom and barely made it. But it felt different and then the funky smell hit. I realized my water had broken!!

But I wasn't in labor. Since this process is rare, I never asked questions or looked into what you are suppose to do when your water breaks first. So, I sat around in the bathroom for awhile trying to decide what I should do. I was really tired and wanted to go back to bed. I needed to tell Brian what happened but then I had to have a plan of what to do. And I didn't know what to do. So, after much more water leakage, I let Brian know my water had broken. He instantly jumped out of bed, on high alert, and I told him I wasn't in labor and we didn't need to hurry. So he laid back down in bed. I decided to call the doctor and was told to go to the hospital. Now, in my mind once your water had broken and all the water came out, the leaking and gushing would stop. I'll just let you all know right now - that isn't the truth!! I waited around, while Brian finished the last few items to pack, thinking I could eventually leave for the hospital without "wetting my pants." Yeah, well did you know your body continues to make more and more water?? And it doesn't stop til the baby is born? Super fun.

We left our house shortly after 4:00am and arrived at the hospital about 4:30. The nurses there were kind enough to notice the continual dripping and not make me go through triage. Instead, I was signed right in and given a room. By this time labor had started and my contractions were 5 minutes apart. Within 1/2 hour, my contractions were 3 minutes apart. The doctor originally told the nurses to put me on pitocin but I was doing great on my own, so I didn't have to have it. At this point, labor was pretty much what I expected and I was just excited the day had finally arrived! I honestly was enjoying laboring through what I had read, studied, and asked a million questions about. Other than the fact that every contraction brought on more leakage, I really was relishing the experience.

Here I am laboring. Brian took the picture when I was not contracting so it was easy to smile. The strange bulge on the belly is one of the monitors I had to wear.

Seriously, we were so excited! Then it all changed. My contractions stopped. Another phone call to the doctor and I was hooked up to pitocin. Not my dream but the doctor said it was very rare that the contractions would start again and so pitocin it was. At first, all that happened was the contractions returned. They weren't much worse and I kept right on progressing. Then, the pitocin really kicked in. From one tolerable contraction to the next, I felt like my pelvic bones were shattering and the shatters were shattering and even those were shattering. And horrible nausea took over, especially as each contraction peaked. I was trying so hard to concentrate on other things and breathe through the contractions, but I couldn't because I was trying not to throw up and I was trying to convince myself that my bones were indeed, not shattering and the poor nurse kept having to change the towels underneath me with every contraction from that dang water. It had become too much. So I asked for an epidural.

It really was the best choice I could make because in the current condition it was impossible to relax. By this time it was around 9:00am. I was still dilated to only a 2, just like the last several weeks of my life. I was totally effaced now but making no progress on dilation. Within an hour and a half of the epidural, I was completed dilated and almost ready to push. At this time, Brian was loving to watch the monitors. He could see every contraction I was having. He was telling me that before pictocin, the blue line didn't go very high. But since the epidural (and the pitocin) the blue line was peaking at 100 every time. And he was really glad I had stopped asking him to take me home. Once the shattering pain came, I begged him to take me home. In my mind, at that time, everything would go away if I could just go home.

Half and hour later, my pelvic bones started to hurt, no where near as bad as before, but the epidural guy told me to tell the nurse when that happened so I could get my booster shot. I called and she asked me what it felt like. When I told her, she said that sounded like the baby was ready and it was time to push. So she checked, and sure enough, I was a +3 and totally ready to go. She was surprised at how fast labor was going for me since epidurals often slow labor down. Woot! Woot! for me!! :)

They called the doctor to come, I took a nap and woke up when he got there about an hour later. The doctor told me he had a small problem. He had me, a first time mom who had never pushed a baby out and he had another mom up the road (at another hospital) who was also ready to deliver her third baby. He told me I got one try and if I moved the baby at all, he would stay and deliver me first. If not, he would go to the other mom and come back to me. One try was considered pushing for the count of ten 3 times, with a breath in between the counts of 10. After my first try the baby was almost crowned and my doctor was amazed at me. He told me I need to teach a class on how to push. I told him he needs to threaten all his patients he is going to leave them!

When the baby crowned the doctor commented on how much hair he had. Brian took his first look in that direction and it was so amazing to see his face light up and see how excited he was. After that, he would tell me how much further the baby's head was out after each push. He really cheered me on and let me know I was doing it right and I could do it. And after less than 10 minutes of pushing, Gideon was born!!

He's here! He's here! He's really, really here!!

2011-11-29T14:47:00.000-07:00

On Monday, November 28th, Gideon Gregory Ray was born at 2:15pm. He weighed 8 pounds, 3 ounces and was 20 inches long. Oh, and he is also the cutest baby EVER!!!

He came out crying the cutest cry ever and WOW - did he ever feel good in my arms!!

Time to get poked and weighed and checked out.

Check out those curls!! That was my dream for this baby - curly hair!

Oh - that face. I just LOVE that face!

Snuggling with his daddy.

I am soooooo in love.

Brian giving Gideon his first bath.

And getting his cute curly hair washed. Please let it stay curly!!

More to come - stay tuned!!!! Oh, and Brian has been posting a million pictures on facebook, so you can check out more there.

8 new posts

2011-11-20T20:51:00.001-07:00

I have been getting all the last minute organization done around my house. I had a bunch of pictures, etc to post but I needed to scan them. Today was finally the day of scanning and posting. I decided to post all eight posts today, rather than over the next eight days, so I can just be done and all caught up. Camera cleaned off, papers scanned, everything organized and put away. So make sure you take a gander through all eight of them. Cause my life is just that exciting. Eventually, I 'll change all their dates and put them where they belong.

Yeah for being organized!!

Oh, my! Has this baby grown.

2011-11-20T20:47:00.000-07:00

Here I am 38 weeks pregnant. I know, that was almost a week ago but posting today is better than never, right? All I have to say is, when I compared this picture to the ones from just three weeks ago (in my Halloween shirt), I couldn't believe how much bigger my belly is. This little guy has definitely put on some weight. No wonder all my shirts were fitting different.

I can't wait til he gets here. Come on little guy!!

The nursery

2011-11-20T20:39:00.000-07:00

We finally did it. We finally set up the nursery!! Now our sweet baby boy will have somewhere to sleep when he gets here. I bought the crib way back during Father's Day weekend. I remember because I was so sick and didn't go to church that day, Brian went by himself. I was randomly looking at cribs while he was gone, so we would know how much to put aside for one, when I came across a deal I couldn't pass up. It has sat, in it's box, since then just waiting to be put together. Here are a few pictures of the moment.

The crib was really easy to put together. Brian tried to trick me when he first opened the box by asking why I bought a black crib. It didn't work. And here is the completed nursery...

I left the bookshelves in there because I LOVE them. I made the curtains and the mobile. The chair is amazing! We were going to get a regular glider but I have been having a lot of back problems and can no longer sleep laying down. So, we spent a little extra and got a rocker recliner chair that I now sleep in. It's very comfy and I'm amazed every night how quickly I fall asleep sitting up.

The crib - LOVE the color!

Changing area

Cute decorations friends gave me

A closer view of the mobile. I made it with cars, motorcycles, fire trucks, airplanes and trains. It didn't turn out the way I visualized it but I still love it. Now Brian and I stand in there and just wonder what life is going to be like when our baby gets here. I can't wait!

School Pictures 2011

2011-11-20T20:22:00.000-07:00

It's that time of year again! I actually hate having school pictures taken. But whatever. This year, our principal actually declared it was a REQUIREMENT to have your picture taken. He even came on the school news to remind the teachers. And he sent out emails. I'm not that bad. I happily take them every year, while inwardly wishing I didn't have to. It's not like my mom is going to put my picture up on the wall or that I'm cute like all my students. It's just one of those things.

But this year, this year was different. In this picture, I'm SEVEN MONTHS PREGNANT - and I have a skinny face!!! In fact, this picture made me look back at my other pictures, and over the last four years I have progressively gotten thinner. At least in the face. So, see, teaching has it's benefits. It drains the life (and fat) right out of you. I would especially like to point out the lack of a double chin in this year's picture. I think that had to do with the 5 1/2 months of morning sickness (okay, let's be real - all day sickness) more than anything. But hey, I'll take it!

Thank you Pinterest!

2011-11-20T20:16:00.000-07:00

Want to see what an amazing teacher Pinterest made me this Halloween? Oh yeah, I felt so fancy. I mean, how could my little Halloween gift get any cuter?? Just check it out...

Yep, a little smore. Complete with graham crackers, a chocolate candy bar and a ghost marshmellow. And don't forget the note on the back that said, "Wishing you smore fun this Halloween."

Seriously, I felt like the coolest teacher ever. Especially when all the students and parents were dying over them. Thank you, Pinterest!

Lucky us...

2011-11-20T20:11:00.000-07:00

So far this year we had to get a new furnace. As in, we had no choice if we wanted heat this winter. So we looked around for a great deal and got air conditioning with it! Yeah!

Then, we are also having to pay for a baby. All the stuff they need, the upcoming hospital bills, etc. Oh so fun!

And now, the water heater broke. Leaking all over the place but thankfully ruining nothing. While replacing it, we also discovered the pressure regulator was broken and that was what had ruined our water heater. And why we suddenly were getting amazing water pressure in our house. For example, the laundry was getting done so fast. It was lovely. But four times the amount of water pressure coming in the house than the pipes can handle, not such a good thing. We were blessed once again, because our neighbor came to our rescue and helped Brian install the new water heater. Brian replaced the pressure regulator and things are back to normal around here. Minus a few dollars.

But I'm just going to be happy, happy, happy that we have heat (and had AC this summer), a cute baby who is almost here and nothing was ruined by the leaking water heater!

November 3

Check out this adorable note!

2011-11-20T19:57:00.000-07:00

I got this note just this last week from one of my students. I think she is now my favorite!! :) I hang up every note and picture my students give me. When this one wasn't on the wall the next day, the little girl wanted to know why. I told her it was so adorable I had to show it to my husband! She responded with an oh, well don't forget to bring it back. Love these little people!

Baby belly woes

2011-11-20T19:47:00.001-07:00

At about six months pregnant, I was having some serious baby belly woes. I didn't look pregnant at all, but I didn't fit into regular clothes. I just felt fat, fat, fat. I really had some mental health issues about the whole thing. Well, my sweet husband kept telling me all kinds of nice and wonderful things about myself. But my internal woes continued. So one morning I woke up and found notes ALL over the house. On my water bottles in the fridge, in my lunch box, on the lap top, and several more places. I wish I had saved them all. I'm not sure what happened to the rest of them, but here are the three I managed to hold on to. And I must say, they kept me smiling all day! :)

What a great husband I have!! It really did make me feel better.

Notes from last year

2011-11-20T19:40:00.001-07:00

While taking down and getting rid of my craft/exercise room (it is now the guest bedroom and the guest bedroom is the nursery) I found these super cute notes from my Kindergarten students last year. People wonder all the time how I could ever teach Kindergarten. This is why people. There isn't a single day I don't get tons of hugs, lots of giggles, being told "I love you" or "you are the best teacher ever," and the cutest notes EVER!! Seriously, this job can be tough but then the kids are so cute and wonderful, it's all worth it. It's far more rewarding than challenging - most days. So enjoy all the cute notes.

35 weeks pregnant

2011-10-25T19:40:00.001-06:00

So here I am at 35 weeks pregnant showing off, not only my baby bump, but the cutest Halloween shirt ever!! As soon as I saw this, I knew I had to have it. The only sad thing is, when can I ever wear it again??

I can't believe my little guy is almost here!! Life is a changin'!

Halloween Party

2011-10-21T08:12:00.000-06:00

We headed out to Andrew and Laraine's annual Halloween party all decked out for a good time. And we were not disappointed. Here are all the guys.

We had Ice Man and Maverik at the party.

K.J and Marissa.

Crystal and Tim

Me and Brian

Whitney and Taylor

Kirt and Kirsten

All the girls

Then we played some games. Can you figure out the first one from the pictures?

We had an orange between our chin and neck that we had to pass to the other person, down a line of people. I got several great shots but these were the best.

Then we had to wiggle an oreo from our forehead to our mouth.

And finally, eat two donuts off a string before everyone else.

Then Andrew, the Playboy Bunny, got to work cleaning up the donut crumbs.

Happy Halloween!!

Cousin Baby Shower

2011-10-05T07:53:00.001-06:00

My sweet cousins, Heather, Holly and Ann threw me a baby shower while my Mom and Aunts were in town. Look at my adorable invitations!

We have this fun tradition of doing a crepe bar for showers, but this time Heather came up with a new idea - an ice cream bar!! And anyone who knows me, knows I LOVE ice cream. There were five flavors of ice cream and five different kinds of cookies.

Check out the spread! I sadly did not try every kind of cookie that night, but my cousins sent me home with some. The next day I tried the peanut butter cookie with chocolate icing and I almost died from the deliciousness! It's a good thing I didn't eat one that night or else I would have eaten (or stolen) them all.

Cousin Ann holding her nephew, Ben.

Some of the guests: Suzanne, Linda, Aunt Charlotte and Cousin Holly.

Cousin Ann, baby Ben and me.

A few more guests, Cousin Maren and Aunt Kathleen. Maybe some day I'll get better at taking pictures of everyone!

And then there were presents. I tell you what, this little guy is one lucky and loved little man!

Sandberg Brother and Sister Reunion

2011-10-04T08:00:00.000-06:00

So my parents came to visit for several days in the middle of September. I never took a single picture. Then they headed to Texas, to be there when my nephew, Jacob, got baptized. Then they came back. This time, they spent all their time with my dad's brothers and sisters for a mini-reunion. They visited, went out to eat, took a tour of BYU on golf carts, volunteered at my elementary school, and took a personal tour of Mrs. Cavanaugh's chocolate factory.

I got to go to the chocolate factory. The Cavanaugh's are family friends and so they took us on the tour. We got all kinds of chocolates for free because Marie (Mrs. Cavanaugh) just kept handing them out. I brought my camera, but just didn't take any pictures! We watched some videos explaining how the business first got started and they had pictures of my Grandma in it! It was really fun and if I'm up to making candy this Christmas with a newborn around, I know where I'm going for my brick of melting chocolate.

Another part of the tradition is inviting all the family living in Utah for a pot luck. So we headed down to Provo and enjoyed a fun evening of catching up.

Here is everyone that came. And this does not include everyone that lives in Utah and beyond!

Left to right: Wanda, Philip (my dad), a space left for Gilbert who is serving a mission in Belize, David, Kathleen, and Charlotte. I love that Wanda is rabbit earring my dad!!

And the kids with their spouses! Thank you, Heather, for letting me steal these pictures from your blog!

Because I want to...

2011-10-01T08:02:00.000-06:00

Yes. Yes, I really did. I realized that since I have and will continue to turn my blog into blog books, I want to have more posts that include my cats. I can't help it. I just love these little critters.

They often snuggle together. They have done this ever since we got them. Adorable!

Mokie LOVES to sleep in small spaces. I had brought some baskets home from work and in she climbed. I don't know how she ever fit.

Both our cats love to crawl onto our clean laundry. If I don't put it away right away, on it they climb. It's a great motivator to get the laundry done and put away.

Both cats love our suitcases. As soon as the suitcases come out, the cats crawl in. It makes packing slightly difficult. I personally think they are trying to come with us.

Brian uses this chair to play video games. The cats enjoy it the rest of the time. As soon as it's set up, they jump right in.

Phanta is a huge snuggler. We call her our heat seeker. Brian was sitting with his legs bent one day and she wiggled her way right next to him. Where there is heat, she will go.

Idaho Baby Shower

2011-09-25T08:09:00.000-06:00

Brian and I headed out to Idaho on September 24th because his family put together a baby shower for me! And, seriously, they went all out and spoiled me rotten. It is wonderful to be part of such an amazing family.

Check out these cute table decorations! All the cute shoes were handmade.

Mini cheesecakes with fruit topping

Cake pops - and there were five or six different flavors

Cute carriage for a fruit bowl

I had to include the cute napkins

In Brian's family they used to tease their dad by putting rubber ducks in the pond. Now it's kind of a family tradition and they are included in most every event. So, here is the rubber duck tribute to the baby shower. So cute!

We played fun games. For this game you decorated a ping pong ball to be your "baby." Then you had to toss it so it landed in the kleenex box covered by the towel at the end. Only one person got it but I came SO close.

This game is similar to a game from the Price is Right. Tyra held up a baby item and each team had to come up with the price for the item. Then the baby moved the amount you were off from the price. My team totally won because we are awesome!

Then it was time for opening presents. Cute Whitney helped hand me gifts. The little tiger I'm holding comes from a super cute diaper cake that Tyra made for me.

Isn't it adorable?? Tyra said she looked at all kinds of diaper cakes but knew this was the perfect one when she saw it. I'm not sure Brian is ever going to let me take it apart and use the diapers!

The baby shower was perfect and tons of fun. It was great to see and spend time with family. And I seriously cannot believe how spoiled I was!

Brian's Birthday

2011-09-04T09:40:00.000-06:00

Happy Birthday to Brian!! He wanted to spend the weekend at the X-Games for his birthday so we just invited a few friends over on the actual day. He always requests cheesecake for his birthday. So this year, I made him raspberry blackberry cheesecake. Brian was a happy man!

So here he is attempting to eat the cake and then blowing out the candles. He got five candles on his cake for some funny reason that I currently cannot remember for the life of me. So much for that idea! So, it was a pretty laid back day. Nothing too exciting. But a birthday just the same.

Happy Birthday, honey!!

Sandberg Family Reunion Day 6

2011-08-18T09:36:00.000-06:00

On the last day there was no time for the water. Just enough time to finish the packing and cleaning and travel away. It was an amazing, amazing week!

The traditional Grandma, Grandpa and Grandkids picture on the stairs. Good thing this house has a big stair case.

On the road again. Jennie reading to Maddie and Ella.

And after days of water and sun, the kids enjoyed some Wii time in the RV.

Before long, all the vehicles were loaded, trips to the airport were taken and everyone was back at their own homes. I wish I could rearrange the US and make it so we all lived closer.

Sandberg Family Reunion Day 5

2011-08-17T09:05:00.000-06:00

You may think we could get sick of the water by now, but we aren't! The playing continues...

Ben, now a college student. Seriously, where does the time go?

What is a family reunion without a new family picture?? LOVE, LOVE, LOVE it!! So I will do my best to tell you who everyone is, left to right. Brian and me (6 months pregnant). Amy and Barry - Jacob and Madelyn (on the grass), Amy holding Abby, Barry holding Ella. Mom and Dad behind them. Wendy and Kenny. Sara (red shirt), Xander (in front of Wendy), Jennie, Joey, Rebekah (behind Joey), and Ben (behind Rebekah). Jeremy and Janie - Robert (asleep in Janie's arms). Stacey and Brett - Kale (being held by Brett), Mallory and Olivia (on the grass). Greg (who by the way, has the legal right to marry people now - just in case you are in need of such services!)

Brian taking funny pictures. He didn't even look, he just shot the picture.

Ella, Amy and Stacey playing on the trampoline.

Kale and Grandpa playing with trucks.

Dad diving into the water to head to the trampoline. Best Grandpa ever!

Mallory and Olivia burying Jennie in the sand.

So pretty. I now dream of owning a lake house...

Grandpa jumping with Xander on the trampoline.

Amy taking a scoot on the bike.

Janie, Jennie and Robert hanging out on the dock.

Mallory, Wendy and Rebekah suntanning.

Relaxing on the beach.

Grandpa helping Xander to the trampoline.

Amy and Stacey zooming around on the bikes.

More playing on the beach. We just never got enough.

So Stacey and Amy swam out to waters that were seaweed free, just for fun.

Then their kids started swimming out to them.

And soon most everyone joined them. Too funny!

Rebekah water skiing.

Jennie towing a whole bunch of stuff around. Another favorite past time of the week.

Abby-loo LOVING the water!

Xander trying out the knee board.

Joey's birthday!! The kids were trying to patiently wait for the cupcakes.

Happy birthday to Joey!!

Sandberg Family Reunion Day 4

2011-08-16T08:37:00.000-06:00

Mom chillin' in the water!

Rebekah, Jennie and Xander taking the bike out for a spin.

Auntie Gail getting in.

Sara and Joey fishing. They actually caught a lot of fish. And then put them back in the lake.

Aunt Shelley out on the bike.

Liv about to head into the water.

Mom heading into the deep.

With Aunt Gail not far behind.

Another shot of the house.

Shelley giving Mom a lift back to shore.

And Gail a lift too!

Jennie and Grandma paddling in the water.

We tried to convince Rebekah she could fit into a smaller life jacket. She couldn't get it on and then she couldn't get out of it! Hahaha!

And the knee board comes out!

Having fun in the speed boat.

Coming into shore to switch people.

Getting ready to pull Rebekah off the dock.

Rebekah waiting to get pulled out for some skiing.

Robert and I were hanging out one evening. He LOVED taking pictures of himself. Here is his cute little foot.

And his cute face!

Amy and I were walking from the house to the beach when I saw this baby skunk. I yelled (well, not really, I talked quietly) for Amy to get out of the way. I guess baby skunks smell lots worse than when they are adults. Either way, we stayed far away from the little guy and used zoom lenses to get some pictures.

The little kids really wanted to go tubing but the speed boat was too fast for most of them. So we headed out on the pontoon boat to give them a chance.

They absolutely LOVED it!!! It gave Jacob the confidence to try it behind the speed boat later on. And wow, did he ever love it.

Brian popped right up and loved all his time behind the boat!

The kiddos LOVED the independence the trampoline gave them. They were out there as often as possible.

Wendy and Stacey got dropped off about a mile off shore. Then they swam the entire way back to the house. I was so impressed. Sara followed them on the bike, just in case. But they didn't even need it!

And the perfect end to the day is a campfire and smores!!

Sandberg Family Reunion Day 3 - Minute To Win It!

2011-08-15T09:47:00.000-06:00

Day three continues!! Seriously, the fun when we are all together never ends! My Mom and Dad organized a night of games based on the tv show "Minute to Win It." Talk about hilarious, unforgettable fun!

First we started by balancing dice on a craft stick in the mouth.

Then we rolled marbles in a pop can. You had to get the marbles moving in the can and transfer them from one cookie sheet to the other without any marbles falling out.

Then we had to move oreos from our foreheads to our mouths.

Then you had to attach a kleenex box, filled with ping pong balls, to your bum and shake the ping pong balls out.

Then you had a stack of cups that you had to move from the bottom to the top (or was it top to bottom.)

Brian and I taking a break for a picture moment.

Next we flipped cups onto the neck of pop bottles.

Jacob and his awesome stack of cups. We had to build a tower and take it down.

Next was balancing apples on top of each other.

Then unwinding a roll of toilet paper that is on a stick. Brian had this one down!

What to do with all the toilet paper? Oh, cover Ben in it!

Then you had to balance as many pencils as you could on the back of your hand, flip your hand over and catch all the pencils.

Following that was bouncing a pencil on the table and into a cup. This one was very popular and addicting.

Oh the memories that were made that night!!!

Sandberg Family Reunion Day 3 - Surprise Baby Shower!

2011-08-15T09:35:00.000-06:00

In the middle of day 3, I was relaxing in the sun, when I was asked to come up to the house. I walked into some cute giggling nieces, who took my hands and brought me to my surprise baby shower!! So cute! I have the best family in the world!

Stacey made the onesies and cute banner behind me.

All the goods. Can I say spoiled rotten?? Not only did they give us all these wonderful gifts, they also put together enough money for me to buy a stroller and car seat. Which I made Brian take me to get the very same day we got home from Minnesota.

Sandberg Family Reunion Day 3

2011-08-15T09:24:00.001-06:00

Can you believe it's only Day Three!! We have already had so much fun. Today is a Monday and we spent the entire day in the lake.

Jacob and Barry on the jet ski.

Lots of fun was had on these water bikes. The smaller kids would sit on the sides and just enjoy the ride. Jennie LOVED driving them all around. But several other people also biked the kids around.

Xander was not a fan of the seaweed (along with several others) and he liked to find alternative ways to the trampoline and back to shore. Here he sits on the tube and is getting pulled to the trampoline.

Getting set up and ready for a fun ride on the pontoon boat. We drove out to the middle of the lake, and jumped in. We swam around in seaweed free water, played "try to get on the tube" game, did a little tubing, drove the boat and enjoyed much giggling and laughter.

Back at the dock, someone started a game. They would stand on the tube and pull them self from the dock to the trampoline. Or at least see how far they could get. It was extremely entertaining to watch.

Sandberg Family Reunion Day 2 - Mississippi River

2011-08-14T09:56:00.000-06:00

On the second day at the lake house, we did something really cool. You might not think it's cool, but I thought it was amazing! Like, once in a life-time kind of amazing. We went to where the Mississippi River STARTS. Where the waters actually start to flow. We played in it, we walked in it and we loved it!

There was a visitors center at the beginning that explained a lot about the Mississippi River. There were maps and facts. All that fun stuff. We, of course, checked that out before heading down to the water.

Here are some beautiful pictures Brian took of the Mississippi River.

And here we are walking across the very spot the Mississippi River starts.

Cutest girl ever - little Abby!

Ella heading for stardom.

Posing on the dock after enjoying the water.

Some of the family waded back in the river, rather than taking the path.

Sandberg Family Reunion Day 2

2011-08-14T09:29:00.002-06:00

I seriously cannot delete a single photo. I can't live without ALL of them. So enjoy the picture overload. I sure am!

Kale hiding on the playground.

Olivia, Maddie, Rebekah, Jacob and Ella playing on the beach. Rebekah was the BEST cousin EVER. She spent tons of time playing with the smaller kiddos.

Mallory making sand castles.

Joey and Robert digging a big hole.

Kale playing in one of the many holes that were dug.

Robert - could his cute walk get any cuter??

Me and my feet enjoying all the sun.

Xander waiting for the speed boat to come back.

Playing downstairs.

Having fun as cousins.

Janie playing a sound game with the kids.

A view from the downstairs door. Beautiful! The house is three levels, but the bottom level goes right out to the lawn, which goes to the sandy beach, the rocks and the dock.

The playground we had to play on. Quite honestly, it wasn't used so much. The beach, dock and water were so much more fun!

Our fire pit.

Setting out for a late night cruise on the pontoon boat.

At the Ehlert's house, they have a wall where they mark how tall everyone is. That is, until the kids started getting close to matching or exceeding Kenny's height - then the measuring stopped! Hilarious! But it's still something they love to do. Here Rebekah and Sara are seeing how close they are.

And this one shows just how much taller Sara is to Wendy!

My mom is an AMAZING quilter. She brought a ton of quilts for us girls to go through and KEEP! We had fun looking at all of them and deciding which ones we couldn't live without. And afterwards, we were still all friends and sat around visiting with the quilts on our laps.

Uncle Ron, Uncle Pete and Dad visiting.

Sandberg Family Reunion Day 1

2011-08-13T10:07:00.001-06:00

It's the middle of August. I'm at a lake house in Minnesota with my ENTIRE family. The weather is perfect. There are lots of adorable children running around. I'm catching up with my siblings, parents, and my Aunt Gail, Uncle Pete, Aunt Shelly and Uncle Ron. And we are having so much fun it's going to take me, nine blogs, to share the entire trip. And there will be complete and utter picture overload. But there is no better way to share the amazing week we all had at the lake house.

Here we are on the road. Wendy, Kenny and family let Brian and I ride with them in the RV. It was delightful because not only did we have great company, I had a bathroom right there. Wonderful for a pregnant lady! Xander really misses his brother, Ben, who is away at college. So he was hoping that sitting on him would make him stay around longer. I LOVE both their smiles! Cute boys!

Jennie offered to massage Brian's back. Any smart person would respond with a yes. But I'm not sure he had this in mind. There was no complaining though. Just a giggling Jennie.

Xander and Brian put together a lego set. And soon after, we arrived at the lake house and jumped right into the water.

Mallory is one happy girl who happily jumped right into the water.

We had a trampoline just off the dock. It was a huge hit. Jumping on the trampoline wasn't the only fun. Everyone would jump off the trampoline, climb back on and jump off again and again.

Brett and little man, Kale, having fun on the trampoline.

Stacey and Gail dipping their toes in the water.

A view of the house and our beach from the dock.

Ella and Mallory playing in the water. These two LOVED the shallow water and would play here all day, every day.

Brett helping the jumpers back onto the trampoline.

A huge swarm aiming for the trampoline. I think the boat was coming back in and they were all getting out of the way.

I think this is my favorite picture of the entire reunion. From left to right is Rebekah, Olivia, Madelyn (striking a pose,) Jacob, Brian, Jennie (standing behind Brian) Ben, Joey, Sara (behind Joey) and Brett.

Uncle Ron on the water bike.

Enjoying the first evening on the beach. We practically lived outside the entire week. There were comfy lawn chairs everywhere.

All bathed and pj'ed after a fun filled first day. We had Family Home Evening where we all got to share what we had been up to in life lately and Grandpa shared some spiritual thoughts. All these kiddos are growing up too fast!

Tired girl

2011-08-07T09:12:00.000-06:00

This past week has been busy. On Friday, was our ward campout. Since I am not a fan of trekking from a tent to the outhouse bathrooms multiple times a night, we didn't stay overnight. Hey, don't judge me. I am 6 months pregnant. We didn't get home until 11:30pm. Then, about 10 minutes later, my brother, Jeremy, showed up. He came for the weekend for a friend's wedding. We ended up staying up really late that night and the next night talking and having fun. Jeremy left Sunday morning.

Sunday night, Brian's sister, Robin, came for the night. As you can guess, we stayed up late once again talking and laughing.

Then my niece and nephew, Sara and Ben came to stay for the night. We laughed non-stop at reruns of Wipeout and stayed up late talking.

So when Brian declared a movie night, this is how I spent it:

I was so tired I had no idea what movie we were even watching, that my cute cats were sprawled over my body or that Brian took a picture until the next day. I woke up to see the end of the movie and crawl into bed. It was the best 3 hour nap ever!! But now it's kind of lonely around here.

The Hogle Zoo

2011-07-30T09:20:00.000-06:00

Tyra flew in from a little vacation on Wednesday night and stayed over at our house. The next day, Amy, Ana and Tyra's kids drove up from Idaho to get her. After a yummy lunch at Bangkok Classic, we headed to enjoy the zoo.

At the back is Ana, followed by me and Christopher, Tyra and Amy, then Tayor and Cassie. Brian was taking the picture.

Cassie the turtle.

The Taylor, Cassie and Chris squished into a dinosaur egg.

Tough guy Taylor took on the spider.

One happy girl on the slide.

Waiting in line for the train.

Tyra and Cassie. Happy to be together again.

Playing in the sand pit, right next to the part of the zoo being built for sea lions, polar bears, bald eagles and more! So fun!

Checking out the giraffes. I LOVE giraffes.

And here are several cool shots of animals that Brian took. Enjoy!

Raspberry Jam

2011-07-27T09:11:00.000-06:00

It's summertime! It's summertime! There is no better way to tell than raspberry bushes full of those sweet delicious berries. My friend Sonja's Grandparents gave her a bunch of raspberries. So it was time to make raspberry jam!

Here the pectin has dissolved in the raspberries and we are adding the sugar.

Good thing we got to taste test to make sure all the sugar was dissolved. Wow - did it turn out good!

Several of the finished jars. I love summertime! Thanks, Sonja, for letting me join you on the jam making fun!

Weekend Away in Idaho

2011-07-11T09:23:00.000-06:00

We hadn't gone anywhere for a long time. I couldn't help it. I was too sick from pregnancy and had no desire to go anywhere or do anything other than sleep. Once I finally started feeling better, we headed to Idaho on July 8th, for a weekend with Brian's family. I drove my car, filled with our old inside doors, leaving no room for Brian. So he happily rode his motorcycle.

Not to long after we arrived, we loaded up all the kids and headed to Rigby lake. For a man made lake, this one is wonderful. It actually has a nice beach and lots of water to play in. Cassie was in heaven, wading into the shallow water to fill up her bucket with water. You can see some of the bigger kids playing in the background.

Here are almost all the kids, I think. Amy and I sat on the beach counting the children (and Brian) to make sure no one got lost, went missing, etc.

Cassie would fill up her bucket and then dump the water in the same spot over and over. She would jump in the puddle it made until the water was soaked up by the sand. Then she was off for another bucket full of water.

Brian had fun launching the kids off his shoulders. Most of the kids tried it and LOVED it!

Then Brian committed a horrible act. He introduced Cassie to the deep end. Previously, she no interested in venturing where the big kids went. She was very happy on her beach with her bucket. But once she participated in the fun out in the deep water, she was hooked. Time to buckle her into a life jacket!

The kids built a big hole and then filled it with water. The sun warmed up the water and they would sit in the "hot tub" to get warm. Which is even funnier considering the day was really warm anyways. Here are Emily and Abby enjoying the warm water.

We also had a girls lunch on Saturday while Brian, his brother James and some friends went for a motorcycle ride. We went shopping for material to make two flannel baby blankets for our little guy. We had a family barbeque and celebrated Ana's birthday. We toured the new additions to Brian's parent's house. And just enjoyed being together. It was a great weekend. Brian and I had plans to leave early Sunday morning so we could miss the rain storms that were coming (remember, Brian was riding his motorcycle.) But that didn't happen because Brian always has to visit with people on our way out of town. Hence the soaking water man in the next two photos. We actually made it all the way to Bountiful before the rain started. We waited under an overpass for awhile, hoping the rain would stop or slow down. But Brian wanted to get going. When we got to Taylorsville, the rain was coming down so hard I could barely see. My car was hydroplaning from all the water on the road. I just kept praying Brian would be safe. And of course, the rain stopped the instant we arrived home. But we were safe, so I have no complaints!

Even Brian's leathers were totally soaked through. His shoes squished water out when he walked. He was worse than drenched.

And about 15 minutes after we got home, cousin Shaun arrived from Idaho. He has come to visit us lots of times when he comes here to work. We have just never got picture proof of the events. So this time I did.

20 Week Ultrasound

2011-07-08T08:20:00.000-06:00

I had my 20 week ultrasound yesterday. Look at my handsome guy! I just want to kiss that cute little face.

We had the best technician EVER for this ultrasound! She spent the whole time telling us all kinds of things, making us laugh, pointing stuff out and answering our questions. We loved it!

Here is an arm.

And another cute shot of his profile!

Here are his legs.

And another verification that he is, certainly, a boy. That was Brian's favorite part.

I can't get enough of that face! It makes me long to meet him and see that cute face. And in the background you can see a little hand.

And here is a foot. Brian is already convinced the baby has his feet.

The little guy is measuring correctly, all parts are in working order, feet are straight, lips have no clefts, all bones are present and accounted for, etc. That was the best news of the day. I can't believe this is really real!!! That guy is really inside of me! Okay, well I can, because he kicks and punches me quite constantly. Those bladder shots are pretty unreal. I love feeling him move. It lets me know things really are progressing. It's wonderful! :)

Ben Lewis's Baby Blessing

2011-07-04T09:13:00.000-06:00

On July 3rd, Heather and Jason blessed their little guy, Ben. Here is their super cute family! We all gathered at their church in Provo and took up several extra benches in the Sacrament room. It was a packed house because there were two other baby blessings that day. After, we headed to their house for some fun times.

We ate yummy food, visited and played. Here I am with Ashley and Jennie.

The Ehlerts were randomly in town that weekend so they came to celebrate too. Along with lots of other family and friends.

And Brian decided to get some practice in for when his own little guy arrives by sleeping with the sleeping baby, Ben. Too cute!

Holly and Matt's Wedding

2011-06-25T09:10:00.000-06:00

Yesterday, Holly and Matt got hitched!! It was so fun to gather with so much family up at the Draper Temple for the big event. Catching up with those you love is the best part of family events. The ceremony was perfect. Holly and Matt were sealed for time and all eternity by Matt's grandpa! How cool is that?

Here is the super cute couple coming out of the Temple.

And here is a great shot that Brian got! So cute! So in love!

Then we headed to a church in Sugar House to get ready for the reception. This is all the pictures I took because I jumped right in and kept the food table flowing. Thank goodness Heather took lots of pictures so I could steal them from her blog!

Here is the yummy drink table. I sampled each and every one of them. Delicious and such a fun idea!

The wedding colors were bright orange, bright yellow and lime green. Here are the cute decorations and some adorable kids. Each table had a little bucket filled with candy and topped off with balloons.

Brian and Jason barbequed hundreds of hot dogs for the event.

The couple arrived in style! There were bubble machines going and a huge line of people to greet the guests of honor.

The reception was both inside and outside the church! The outside part was decorated amazingly too. Here is the couple's first dance.

And the cute decorations in the tree.

And cutting the cake.

And the couple leaving to a pom pom salute. If weddings weren't so much work, it almost makes you want to get married again.

Congratulations Holly and Matt!

Home Improvement - my favorite one so far perhaps!

2011-06-23T10:06:00.000-06:00

We finally have central air conditioning!! It's amazing and incredible and freezing - all at the same time. We have been saving up for this wonderful moment for several years. We knew we had to because our furnace wasn't going to last through this next winter. Seriously, every time it turned on or off, a loud (and I mean loud enough to wake you up) bang would occur. And we knew that most places around here had great deals if we got the new furnace and the air conditioning at one time. So my wonderful husband met with several businesses, talked with smart people who knew things about furnaces and air conditioning and WAH-LA! We have central air, in all it's gloriousness.

And I'm sure I'll be singing the praises of this lovely furnace come winter. We went from a 53% efficient furnace to this 95% efficient and 2 stage beauty. No more exotic gas bills for us (we hope!)

Husband of the Year Award goes to...

2011-06-20T08:29:00.000-06:00

MY HUSBAND!!

Seriously, I am one lucky girl. Brian has really taken over some responsibilities for me that I still can't do. Like clean the house. I'm still so sick. All that up and down, chemical smells, sheer exhaustion, etc, etc, etc just kill me. So quite often lately I come home to a spotless house. All because my hubbie is the best, EVER!

Just like this week. I had been seriously ill all weekend. Like crawling out of bed to the bathroom was all the movement that took place, kind of sick weekend. I had lots of other plans, like make dinner for my husband for once, but I couldn't do anything. Nothing. Nada. My husband went and bought me some Dr. Pepper because, crazily enough, that stuff seems to settle my stomach. (No other kind of pop - must be Dr. Pepper, which I find so strange considering before pregnancy I rarely, rarely drank soda.) He also bought me this:

A HUGE sack of sour watermelons. I currently love them. And he remembered that and bought me the BIG sack. Sadly, I couldn't eat any at the time, the Dr. Pepper didn't work and neither did the Dr. prescribed nausea pills.

He also rented and watched a movie he didn't really want to but that he knew I wanted to. He made food for me and made sure I was drinking and eating. He even rubbed my feet, which he really doesn't like to do.

Then came Monday. I spent the morning throwing up, again, but still headed out to work. Afterall, I'm not contagious and trust me - sub plans take longer than just teaching the day for yourself. When I came home from work my husband had cleaned the entire house, finished all the laundry, washed and put away all the dishes, emptied the clean dishwasher, mowed the lawn, went to the store and got the cat stuff we needed, cleaned the litter box, took out the garbages and bought these two super adorable outfits for our little guy.

I LOVE this one!!!! And it's totally true and completely hilarious!

I tell you what - I can wait to see my husband with our little guy! Just the thought brings tears to my eyes.

It's a...

2011-06-16T16:30:00.001-06:00

BOY!!

We are super excited, especially Brian. I didn't have a preference for a boy or girl but it is SO FUN to know! Brian, on the other hand, was all about having a boy. He was hilarious during the ultrasound. The technician told us to look for three dots in the shape of a triangle for a boy, or three stripes for a girl. Brian would lean forward, his body tense, every time he thought he saw something. It would make me laugh, causing the doppler thing on the belly to move. At first, the baby was in a funny curled up position. His head was on the bottom, his legs curled around on top. When he finally moved so we could get a look, he moved the umbilical cord between his legs. That didn't help. The technician had me roll to my side for a few minutes and left the room. Brian promptly told the baby that this would be the only time in his life where his Dad wanted him to expose himself! Too funny. When the technician came back, the baby had moved the umbilical cord and it was VERY easy to spot the three dots in the shape of a triangle. He was officially a boy!

I was really nervous going in. How can they REALLY know when I'm only 16 weeks along, and the baby is so tiny? I was worried they would tell us the wrong gender. But, I can now testify that it's really easy to spot a boy or girl. The above picture does NO justice. On the ultrasound screen, it was bright and obviously a boy.

I was fascinated by the baby's spine the entire ultrasound. At the 11 week ultrasound I had, I didn't see the spine. But this time, there it was, all perfectly formed and seriously amazing. I am one of those super obsessed first time pregnant woman who read books and articles all about what the baby looks like each week. I LOVE it! Mock me all you want. Anyways, I knew the little guy was approximately the size of an avacodo, but that spine. I couldn't get over it. I could see every little bone, how it curled when the baby would move - I could just stare at it all day. So the cute technician made sure to give me a picture of his spine. Can I just say again - AMAZING!

Brian wanted a couple of face shots. The little guy wasn't very cooperative, or shall we say he was camera shy. Every time the technician would get close, he would turn his face away or move. It was quite funny to watch. However, we did get these two shots. Brian is already positive the baby looks like me. Just from the picture below. I'm still not sure the baby looks human quite yet! :)

As we left the ultrasound and walked outside, Brian held my hand, smiled and said - "My wish came true." I think that sums things up perfectly!

Gavin's Birthday

2011-06-12T16:19:00.000-06:00

Yesterday, we partied it up for Gavin's birthday at the Living Planet Aquarium. When Brian heard you could feed the stingrays, he was like a little kid on Christmas morning. How could a wife say no to that?? :) He was in heaven, to put it lightly. He even chose to feed the stingrays with his bare hand, not the little stick other people used.

I love this first picture because of the lady next to Brian. Check out the look on her face!

And here is another picture of my very happy husband feeding the stingrays. He never stopped smiling the entire time!

Meanwhile, there was a happening party going on. Here are all the kids lined up to go on a treasure hunt.

The birthday boy blowing out his candles.

And Gavin opening presents. The best part of all birthdays! :)

Happy birthday, Gavin!!

Cousin Holly's Bridal Shower

2011-06-12T09:59:00.000-06:00

Yesterday, I also partied it up at Cousin Holly's bridal shower. As usual, when getting together with the cousins, it was amazing!! And who can't be happy for Holly, who found the most amazing man of her dreams? No better reason to party!

These gloves were from cousin Maren. Aren't they awesome?? They are regular gloves for cleaning with lace sewed on the bottom and a ring glued on the hand. They were a hit! Along with all the other incredible gifts people gave.

Of course, we had to have the famous crepe and goodie bar. Here there are Orange Creme cupcakes, Lemon Cupcakes (which recipes you can find on my cooking blog - just click on the name), pumpkin chocolate chip muffins and so much more.

Here is the entire spread... fresh fruit and crepes with all the fixings. Nothing but the best!

Here is only some of the party people. There were lots of wonderful people there to celebrate with Holly. We ate yummy food, visited, got to know each other, opened gifts and played a super fun Holly-opardy game where we learned all about Holly and Matt.

Congratulations, Holly!

We have been up to a lot...

2011-06-04T10:25:00.000-06:00

We just don't have picture proof, not a single photo. Zip, zero, zilcho. Except this cute mug:

And since I view my blog as a sort of journal, I would like to record that I did more than just lay around my house sick, sick, sick during the first 4 1/2 months of pregnancy. So here is a list (so exciting, I know) of all the things we have done, but don't have any picture proof of.

The Ehlerts have been here several times and we have had TONS of fun with them. Most recently they came to drop Ben off at BYU.

Sara and I went to Cousin Heather's baby shower. There was some really interesting conversations while there causing much blushing, but it was a fun party!

My friend Kirsten had her baby shower. In fact, she is due with her baby girl any day now. We made scrapbook pages and onesies and laughed a lot.

Robin and her two oldest girls came to visit and go to the Young Women's broadcast. Robin and I headed up to Park City so she could take the Ehlert family pictures (which turned out AMAZING) while Brian took the girls to a movie. It was a fun, fun time.

Brian's sister Amy visited (I have to say it's Brian's Amy, because we both have a sister named Amy). I was still sick from pregnancy and still in need of 20 hours of sleep, so I basically slept while Brian and Amy visited. But I did say hello and felt sad I couldn't visit more.

We have spent some late nights with friends Kriss and Sarah playing Mexican Train. Brian has this "killer" strategy at Mexican Train - which basically means he got the highest score EVER known in history. However, it also leads to much laughter and some unforgettable moments.

Brian enrolled in both terms of summer school this summer so he could graduate sooner. That's my man!! He has been hard at work studying and trying to understand college text books. And keeping up an amazing GPA!

I think that's all that we don't have picture proof for. Lots of fun. Lots of wonderful memories.

Duck Walk

2011-05-30T10:17:00.000-06:00

We were down in Provo the other day, hanging out with Sara, Heather and Jason, when we saw this couple walking. We were fascinated because the duck followed them perfectly. It made us wonder if the duck was randomly following them or if they were actually taking it for a walk. I must admit, we continued to stalk them, too curious to let it go. They never turned around to see if the duck was following, even when they crossed the road. But what duck would randomly pick people to follow so closely behind? As we continued to follow them, they walked up to a house, the duck continued to follow. The guy helped the duck into it's pen. Solved! This couple had a pet duck! We loved it. I just felt sad the duck's pen is so small.

My body has been taken over by...

2011-05-29T16:36:00.002-06:00

A BABY! This little one will join us Thanksgiving weekend. We are super excited! It's been a long road to get here but it's really happening. Having never made it this far before, when we went for the first ultrasound, I knew there was one of two options. Either there really was a baby in there (taking over my body) or I was headed to a mental health facility. It was AMAZING to see a baby on the ultrasound screen. And a relief to know all the craziness going on was really being caused by something so wonderful!

I had no idea pregnancy was so life altering from the very beginning. For example, I have never been more aware of certain aching body parts in my life. I had no idea I could barf so much in one day and still keep going. I am now the world's pickiest eater (or is it the baby?) I've lost 12 pounds so far but my belly is getting bigger. I am no longer able to cook/bake anything because it makes me sick and showering is pure torture. And the list goes on. It's a roller coaster ride but I'm glad I'm on it.

Countdown to Thanksgiving!!!

Sleeping positions

2011-05-23T10:27:00.001-06:00

Mokie typically sleeps belly up with her front paws curl under her chin and her back legs sprawled open. Brian and I often chuckle as we watch her sleep because she keeps waking herself up as her body parts relax and slowly fall. Too funny! But she has found a new way to "fix" this problem. She now curls up against the back of the chair, which hold everything perfectly in place.

My Cousin Mike

2011-05-16T14:30:00.001-06:00

My cousin, Michael, passed away in his sleep on April 14th, 2011. He was only 33 years old. The whole thing is just so heart breaking. It doesn't seem right that his life had to end so young. To leave behind two young daughters. To leave his sister an only child. His parents without a son. Heart. Breaking. I'm glad for my knowledge and belief in our Savior, Jesus Christ. To know that Mike is in a better place. To know he is happy and that he will see and be with his family again.

His funeral was held in Oregon, where he grew up. It was a sad reason but a wonderful time to spend with family. Mike would have liked that. After the funeral services, three men on motorcycles escorted the family to Mike's final resting place. It was an amazing experience to see traffic stop on both sides of the road while we all drove by. Mike deserved that kind of respect.

Once at the cemetery, Mike was carried to his final resting place by his cousins and nephews.

This is the same place our Grandparents are laid to rest. Mike's feet meets the head of our Grandpa. We all considered this a tender mercy. Mike and Grandpa had an amazing relationship. There is no better place for Mike to be.

Some of the pallbearers, Mike's cousins.

Michael Bowman, November 4th, 1977 to April 14th, 2011. You are missed and loved, Mike.

Mike's two daughters, his sweethearts.

Until we meet again, Mike.

Ikea Smorgasbord

2011-04-24T11:17:00.001-06:00

On April 15th, we joined Cousin Holly and her man, Matt, at the Ikea Smorgasbord. Holly had gone to it at Christmas and was really excited there was an Easter one too. After waiting in line for the earlier seating to exit, we found some seats and headed in for the food. Holly and Matt got their food so fast and I was amazed because the line was so long. Then Holly clued us in to the fact there were two food lines, but no one had figured that out yet, except for smart Holly. So naturally, we jumped lines, got our food fast and dug in. They had Ikea famous meatballs and sauce, ham, deviled eggs plain and with some egg stuff on top, salmon, two kinds of halibut, scalloped potatoes and baby red potatoes. Then there was this huge fruit bar, rolls, fancy carbonated drinks, salads and a long table filled with desserts. There was great conversation and we all left happily stuffed. It was a fun experience.

Sara's Birthday!

2011-04-23T13:16:00.000-06:00

It was my cute niece, Sara's, birthday on April 12th! She is attending BYU and it was her first birthday not at home. Here she is with her cute friends. Brian and I headed down that night to celebrate with her. We all ate dinner together in the Cannon center. That place is crazy! After dinner, we headed over to her dorm lounge for cake and ice cream.

I brought candles, but it was too windy outside to light them. And, inside the dorm no candles are allowed. So the cake looks slightly not birthdayish, but I promise, it was a true birthday cake. (It is my Best Freakin' Chocolate Cake recipe.) Cousins Heather, Jason and Emma joined us as well. Then we all got more than our fill of chocolate cake and ice cream, visited, laughed and hopefully helped Sara have a great birthday.

Happy Birthday, Sara!!

Quinn's 2nd Birthday

2011-04-22T16:28:00.000-06:00

Quinn turned two! The par-tay was awesome...we had Quinn's favorite food - spaghetti. Crystal decorated her house sooooo cute and she made the yummiest rainbow cupcakes. Here Quinn is getting ready to blow out her candle.

She dove right in, like any smart girl would do. Quinn knows how to party.

This is one happy girl about her open her presents. Seriously, I could not have caught a cuter look on camera. She wanted to play with everything right when she got the paper off. She had to be enticed with another gift to keep opening them. When she understood there were more presents she squealed with delight! Adorable!

Brian and I got her two My Little Ponies. Every girl needs some. She set right to work brushing the pony's hair. Quinn was completely spoiled for her birthday. Just like every two year old should be.

Happy Birthday, Quinn!

General Conference Weekend

2011-04-21T16:11:00.000-06:00

Every conference weekend we head out to Tooele to "watch" conference with our cousins! There is watching and listening that happens, but lots of talking, eating, sleeping, and all out fun too. Here is Aunt Charlotte, Jason, Holly and Matt.

I couldn't help it Holly! I had to take this picture. Too cute...Holly and her man, Matt, ~~listening~~ sleeping.

Emma and Ellie playing games.

My man sleeping away. I think listening to Heather and I talking put him right into a coma. Ha-ha! Works every time!

Josh, Ashley and Ann lounging in bed while listening to conference.

It was a great weekend! It's always wonderful to get together with cousins. I need to get better at taking pictures because this post makes us look like we just laid around all weekend. But we didn't. We made food, played, shopped, and bonded like all good cousins do. Six months until next time...

I just love these two little gaffers!

2011-04-19T15:59:00.000-06:00

Snuggling on the couch. They also happen to be on my legs.

Mokie in some baskets. She loves small places to curl up in.

Snuggled up on all the clean and folded laundry.

Phanta has realized Brian isn't so bad. She never liked him (or anyone but me) until just recently.

Phanta is one snuggly kitty. If she is snuggling with you and you move, she will wiggle her body back up against you. Here she is wiggled up against Brian.

You may (or may not) think I'm crazy, but I love these two kitties of mine!

Ehlerts Were Here!

2011-04-18T15:36:00.000-06:00

Isn't Xander so cute? Wendy said he practiced for hours how to get his own boots on, get into his skis, get back out - over and over again. He was so excited to go skiing! I really planned on taking more pictures but alas, I did not. The first night we went to visit, Xander had to show me how he could do it all by himself.

Here is the Ehlert crew, with their skiing buddies. They came up to Utah for skiing this year since Sara is going to school here. We LOVED seeing them!! They stayed in a fun cabin up by the ski hill and we visited them several times. We did not join them in skiing even though they invited us. Work is just in the way sometimes. We ate yummy meals with them, played games, laughed and just enjoyed being together. I hope they come again next year!

Kindergarten Classroom

2011-04-03T21:13:00.004-06:00

Lots of people have been asking to see my Kindergarten classroom. I finally took some pictures! So here goes the tour.

This is my desk. Most days I really wish I had a bigger work area. And a better chair. But check out all the works of art my students have given me! Since taking this picture, there is about three times as much.

To the left of my desk is this table. I meet here with small groups of kiddos to do reading, work on skills they are struggling with, etc. Behind the table is the tower with all the students tote trays.

In this area, we do art, listen to stories on CD while following along in the book, and do all kinds of writing activities. There is also lots of storage here. Problem is, years of previous teachers left lots of stuff. I got most of it cleaned out, but its still a work in progress. The colorful papers on the doors, is the word wall. All the students name's and our sight words are on the wall. To the left of this room, is the coat room and bathrooms.

Here is the view from the back door of my classroom to the front. My desk is to the right, by all the garbage cans.

This is the computer area. It's right in front of my desk.

To the left of the computer area, is this area - the reading area. The green board on the wall is a flannel board. My students LOVE flannel board stories. I switch out the books each week and there are also puzzles and a memory game.

To the left of the reading area are two tables I got from Ikea. Recognize them, anyone? The first table is the phonics area, the second table is the science area. All the orange papers on the wall are each student's sticker paper. They earn stickers for following rules, handing in their homework, etc. When the paper is full, they get to pick a prize from the Treasure Chest. Stickers work wonders in Kindergarten. LOVE it!

Here is the other side of the tote trays. The tv on top is so we can watch our school's news every day. The blue baskets are the math area in the classroom.

This is our carpet area. We go over the calendar every day, a poem, sight words, letter sounds and so much more! I give all my instructions from here. All the other Kindergarten classes join us for singing in our classroom too.

Here are the tables the kiddos work at. The boxes in the middle store pencils, crayons, scissors, glue. You know, all the fun stuff. In the back you can see the door we use most often. There is a small playground right outside but it isn't big enough for 26 Kindergartener's.

Here is a view from the front of the classroom, to the back.

There ends the tour. It's a fun place. Lots of learning takes place here. When I originally took these pictures, I wasn't sure where I would be working next school year. See, they are building a new elementary school just down the street. They said they were going to take 1/2 of my current school's student population so about 1/2 of the teachers would be displaced. The way it works in my district is, once you are displaced, you are put on a list and placed where there is a job opening. Not necessarily at the new school. Though you fill out your grade and school preferences, you are placed wherever the powers that be decide. So I have been pretty nervous. Then one random Thursday, my principal walks in my classroom and asks me if I can attend a training this summer. I gave him a strange "I thought I wasn't working here next year" look. To which he said, "Oh, the district just approved three full time Kindergarten teachers next year. You are third on the list so you have a job here next year. Will you go to the training?" In my shocked stupor I answered, "ahhh, sure." Later, after what he said settled in, I celebrated. Yeah for not packing, moving, getting to know a new principal!! We are switching from year round to traditional school next year, and losing one month's pay - but, hey! I have a job!

I Survived!

2011-03-22T18:27:00.001-06:00

I survived 6 weeks of testing (while trying, at the same time, to manage a classroom full of 26 5 and 6 year olds), 50 report cards and 50 Parent/Teacher Conferences (a.k.a A LOT of late nights) last week. Within 5 minutes of getting home, I was dead asleep on the couch. So asleep, I didn't notice the cats sleeping, literally, on me or Brian taking pictures. But I do think this picture is HILARIOUS! And another moment from the life of a dedicated teacher. Love your kid's teachers! They work harder than you know.

Look what my amazing husband did for me...

2011-03-13T18:41:00.000-06:00

He turned the entertainment center from this...

to this!!

Doesn't it look AMAZING?!?!?! I LOVE the new doors. They make everything look so much cleaner. (And looking back at those green stairs verses the new carpet, reminds me how much I love my carpet.) My hubbie is awesome! I've been wanting them up forever and I came home one day to this wonderful surprise.

Now I just need to make a cute crafty to go on the top!

Thanks honey! You are the bestest!