Last Day of Bed Rest!!!

And then we are headed to . . .

Las Vegas and yes, Marc will be driving this car while we are there!

Reason #9,834 Daddy is Amazing . . .

Saturday our washer started overflowing with lots and lots of water. Mommy said we had a mini river in their bedroom. Daddy had Mommy look a few things up on the internet, he took the machine all apart and within a few hours he had it working perfectly. He is so amazing!

What I Do When I Want To Be Outside With Dad

To Double or Not To Double???

I would love some advice here:

First of all-I feel like with baby and Lucy being 19 months apart a double stroller will for sure be a necessity. Yet I notice lots of Moms don't have double strollers and they have 2 or more kids. Any thoughts one way or the other? Feel free to share experiences from friends, sisters, etc here.

Second of all, which one should I get?
Right now we are leaning toward the Baby Trend Sit and Stand (seen below).
Pros:
-It has a seat for both and when Lucy gets older we can take the seat off in the back and she can stand or sit on the little bench
-The front seat can hold an infant carrier (fits the one we already have)
-It has a cup holder for me and the front seat
Cons:
-One kid has to sit behind the other kid
-There is not a tray/cup holder for the seat that is behind
-Is this stroller easy to maneuver-or would a side-by-side style be easier?


Maclaren Double:
Pros:
-Lightweight, easy to fold
-Easy to maneuver
-Very well made
Cons:
-Can't hold an infant car seat
-No cup holder for Mom or Babies


Peg Perego:
Pros:
-One side can hold an infant carrier
-Trays/cup holders for both babies and Mom
-Lightweight
-High quality
Cons:
-Expensive
-We'd have to get a new car seat to fit in this stroller
-Will side-by-side or front and back seats be easier to maneuver?

What do you think???

Doing The Lucy

Lucy has a new dance move . . .

Miracles Have Not Ceased

In the moment I had just discovered I was having complications with the baby my first thought was to call my Doctor. As I sat on hold, my dear husband was prompted to call me from work. How comforting it was to know he was there with me in such a difficult moment. Coincidence? I know better.

Moroni 7: 27&29
27 Wherefore, my beloved brethren, have miracles ceased because Christ hath ascended into heaven, and hath sat down on the right hand of God, to claim of the Father his rights of mercy which he hath upon the children of men?
29 And because he hath done this, my beloved brethren, have miracles ceased? Behold I say unto you, Nay; neither have angels ceased to minister unto the children of men.

Thank You

Thank You President Bush. You led us in a difficult time and brought me peace through your courageous leadership. May your true character be remembered and honored.

Update on Peanut (and Mom)

Here is a profile shot of our little guy. We just love him so much. Things are looking very good. I have not had any more bleeding since Friday and I have been moved from "total bed rest" on my back only being allowed to get up to use the restroom to "taking it easy bed rest" where I can sit-up and do things like take a shower. I have been told I should be sitting when at all possible and I should not lift Lucy for about 2 weeks. We have been blessed with very supportive family and friends who have been so willing to help.

The condition was a premature separation of the placenta. We have done a lot of reading about it and have discovered that mine appears to have been "slight" and the prognosis looks good for me and baby. It is rare to have bleeding again after successful healing from bed rest.

We appreciate your prayers and would be grateful for continued prayers on our behalf.

Pray for Peanut

We had our official ultrasound and everything looks great! He is still a boy, placenta is in the right spot, etc. The very next day (Friday) I started to bleed. The Dr. said it is most likely signs of the placenta starting to detach prematurely. I have been put on bed rest for at least 2 weeks.

Marc gave me a very reassuring blessing and we feel very hopeful. Please keep our little family in your prayers and if you'd like to come visit, I'd welcome the company.

Pregnancy Dos

Conversation with Doctor yesterday regarding pregnancy #2:

Me: "I've had these electric shock feelings in my tummy sometimes when I get up from bed."
Dr.: "Yes, very normal. After your first pregnancy you have really stretched a lot of things out that will never go back to their original shape so your ligaments can really be stretched causing that sensation. You'll find it will only be more severe as your pregnancy continues, especially in the last month. And it tends to get more intense with each pregnancy thereafter."

To think I was foolish enough to believe I had the whole pregnancy thing figured out after I had been through it once. Silly, silly me.

Happy Monday

Thought this might be of interest to some of you . . .

Suggested Amounts of Basic Foods for Home Storage
Per Adult For One Year

Grains 400lbs (wheat, flour, rice, oatmeal and pasta)
Legumes 60lbs (dry beans, split peas, lentils, etc)
Powdered Milk 16lbs
Cooking Oil 10 quarts (16 lbs of shortening equals 10 quarts of oil)
Sugar or Honey 60 lbs
Salt 8lbs
Water (2 weeks) 14 gallons

My thought: You will not be able to do it all at once. JUST START with something and keep moving forward.

Marc's 2008 Homemade Gift To Me

This gift was quite the project and I am one lucky lady. The gift was spurred with a twofolded problem: 1) we had this random area with a fireplace and 2) very little storage place in our home.
You can see this place was awkward. If you turned the sofa to face the fireplace you lost a lot of space. When you turned the sofa around, you lost your dining room place and the dining table had to be pushed against the wall. We tried many a ways to make it work!
Then we (I mean Marc) got to work on a master plan of installing shelves for storage, creating a "wall" to separate the area and therefore opening up the room. This would mean we would not have access to our fireplace, but we got over it.
You can see here that we have shelves! No more storing our food storage under all the beds. The room also had so much more usable space in it, but we weren't done yet.
We hung up a curtain from the ceiling (thank you IKEA) rearranged some furniture and look at what a wonderful nook we have created off of our kitchen. And, yes look at all that accessible food storage sneakily hidden behind a lovely curtain.
With this open space, I now have an actual space for my dining room table without it being pushed against the wall. What an amazing homemade gift! I am in heaven.

Come one over and see it. We'd love to have you!

Husband Tag of 5

Marc's 5 favorite things:
1. His girls (all of us)
2. Wikipedia
3. iPhone/Macs
4. The brain
5. A head scratching

5 things on his to-do list:
1. Hike Machu Picchu
2. Complete an Iron Man
3. Learn Spanish
4. Start a Private Practice
5. Take me to Tennessee

5 snacks he loves:
1. Quinoa ;)
2. Reese's Peanutbutter Cups
3. Boiled eggs
4. Hostess Pies (a RARE treat)
5. Blueberry Muffins

5 facts you may not know:
1. He can back up a trailer as smooth as silk
2. He is a Provo Bulldog
3. He had to wear "grandpa pants" with an elastic waist to work when he was recovering from surgery on his arm so he could more easily "use the facilities"
4. He has run 2 half marathons
5. He wants to own a Vizsla


5 places he has lived:
1. Provo, UT
2. Spanish Fork, UT
3. Mapleton, UT
4. Australia
5. Cincinnati, OH

5 quirky things about him:
1. He cannot fall asleep with his hair wet.
2. He asks if he can take a 5 minute nap at the most inopportune times (like as we are about to leave his Mom's house).
3. He can spin just about anything on his finger.
4. He will outright laugh in his sleep.
5. He has a borderline obsession with putting felt pads on just about every piece of furniture we own.

5 People we tag:
1. Jayna
2. Lindsay
3. Jennifer
4. Jackie
5. Aimee

My Theme For 2009

1 Corinthians 13: 1-4, 8, 13
1 Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal.
2 And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing.
3 And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing.
4 Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up,
8 Charity never faileth: but whether there be prophecies, they shall fail; whether there be tongues, they shall cease; whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away.
13 And now bideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.

I do not want to merely serve, I want to serve with a pure love for everyone I am blessed to help. I do not desire to win an argument for the sake of my pride, but rather to understand what is the best solution for everyone involved. I do not want to watch Lucy, I want to care for her and support her in her desires to grow, learn and become all that she can. I do not want to work, I want to share a passion for the greatest profession one can be a part of. I do not want to keep a clean house and make yummy food, I want to treasure the art of homemaking. I do not want to to be a woman of the world, I want to be a daughter of God.

Ways that will help me accomplish my goal:
1) Time for myself (you can't serve from an empty plate)
-Exercise 4-6 times a week
-Daily personal scripture study
-Take more time for personal prayers
-Eat balanced meals
-At least monthly temple attendance
2) Time for us
-Weekly dates with Marc
-Quarterly overnighters without Lucy (at least 2 before the baby comes)
-Stronger couples' scripture study
-Kneel when we pray
3) Time for all of us
-Read to Lucy at least 15 mins a day
-Read scriptures with Lucy daily
-Do something outside daily together
-Attend baby story hour at least once a month
-Take one more Mom & Baby swim class with Lucy before the baby comes
-Continue with weekly Family Home Evenings
-Eat dinner together nightly

Why Mommy Pulls My Hair Back . . .

BEFORE

AFTER

My New Cousin is Here!

Eliza Jane came to see all of us on January 2nd at 2:18pm. She weighs 8 lbs and is 19 inches long. She and her Mommy are both doing really well.
Here are her happy parents, my Aunt Jayna and Uncle Ryan.

Family Photos

While we were in New York City, we took some family pictures. Below are some of our favorites.

If I Can Make It There . . .

Here we are all together in New York City as a family. I loved being with my sisters, Hailey and Melia. Every morning when I woke up I made Mommy take me right out to see them. When I had to go down for naps, I would reach out for them and it made me so sad to be away from them. I really like them.
They played with me so much. Melia taught me some new songs and Hailey gave me lots of fashion advice.
We had a fun time doing Christmas with them. This is us playing the ribbon game. Then we had stockings and opened presents.
This is Hailey being very creative getting ready in a 500 square foot NYC apartment with 6 people staying there.
The subway line we needed to use to get to church wasn't in service so we ended up missing church. We decided to go see the temple instead. It is so magnificent in the middle of the city.
Here we are all together. It was so fun that my Grandma Kay got to come too.
What would New York be without a walk through Central Park? We also made sure to eat a hot dog, see the tree at Rockefeller Center, ride in some taxis and . . .
Here we are enjoying some yummy breakfast at a delicious New York Cafe. Melia and I are adoring our Dad in this picture. She is my buddy.
Hailey got to check out the Fashion Institute of Technology where she hopes to got to school one day. She is very stylish and smart.
Dad surprised Hailey and Melia with tickets to see The Rockettes. Everyone loved the show. Mom and I got to stay back and try the adventures of grocery shopping in NYC.
Then we had to say goodbye to my sisters. It was so great to be with them. They are so nice to me. Mommy says I should look to them as examples in my life. While Daddy took them home, Grandma, Mom and I took The Staten Island Ferry to see The Statue of Liberty and The Brooklyn Bridge.
Then we stopped in Times Square and lots and lots of other people decided to go there too. Mommy liked seeing the 2009 sign where the ball would drop.
Then we headed home on the worst flight ever. It was supposed to be direct to SLC and we should have gotten home by 1:30pm. Well, after sitting in holding patterns, 3 throw-ups by me, landing in Wisconsin to re-fuel (buying a new outfit to replace my puked on clothes), a 3 1/2 layover in Minneapolis, a 1 hour wait after boarding the plane, we were finally home in SLC at 1am!!! I did get a lovely outfit from the experience however.
It was a wonderful adventure. I can't wait to see my sisters again very soon. I love my family.