Went Well

Just a quick post to say the surgery went well and Melia is doing great! Marc got to be with her tonight and she is already able to answer yes and no questions and they are starting to ween her off the ventilator! Such a blessing. Thanks for all of your support.

Sweet Melia

Our dear Melia is having complications with her Spina Bifida and will be having brain surgery on Monday. We are going out to see her in a few days. Please keep her in your prayers.

Sometimes . . .

I think, "I am going to have two kids under 19 months in less than 70 days . . . AGHHHHHHH!"

Hiking The Y

Mommy was at meetings so Daddy took me to hike The Y. It was very exciting.
Here we are almost there . . .
I LOVED being on The Y. I kept calling it snow and did my best to climb up it. I also call every letter "Y" right now. My parents, being Cougar fans, think this is great!

Family Hike

We went on a lovely hike as a family the other day . . .
We tried our best to get a picture of all of us with the iphone ;)
Lucy was so happy as long as she had a stick and a rock in each hand. She kept saying, "Stick. Rock".
And Jr. came too . . .

Next Project Please

I'm guessing it's the pregnancy, but I cannot stop creating things! Anyway, here is the latest project: It's a car seat cover that is super easy to make. I've seen these advertised for $30-$40 and decided I could make my own.

It's basically a 1 yard blanket that you can make however you want and then you add velcro straps or ribbons to attach it to the handle:
If you make the blanket a yard then it will completely cover the car seat (front, back and sides) . . .
The straps will keep it in place so you won't have to worry about your blanket falling off. I just covered the velcro with fabric and then sewed the handles right on to the cover. EASY!
If you want to make one and have questions-let me know.
You just need:
2 yards of fabric (for the front and the back)
Velcro or ribbon
thread

If you want to get the supplies and have me make it for you, I'd be happy to. I mean-I am in a creating phase of life ;)

Some of Lucy's Favorite's . . .

Talking to Daddy at work. If you ask Lucy, "Where's Daddy?" she will quickly reply, "Work." She also has this picture of Jesus hanging in her room that she usually points to and says, "Jesus." I asked her yesterday while we were in her room, "Where's Jesus?" (thinking she'd point to the picture) she instead replied, "Work."
She loves taking inventory of the pantry. The moment I open the door she is right there to examine the goods.
Sitting in her red chair and watching Barney. This kid is obsessed. I let her watch it once a day usually after her nap, but that does not keep her from asking me about Barney at least a dozen or so times an hour. Our conversation usually goes something like this:
Lucy: "Barney?"
Me: "Do you want to watch Barney?"
Lucy: "Yes"
Me: "Later"
Lucy: "Barney?"
Me: "Do you want to watch Barney?"
Lucy: "Yes"
Me: "Later" (and so forth about 10 times in a row)
When the answer is no to Barney, she will then ask for "Jesus" and then we will watch some primary songs on YouTube together. Her favorite is, I'm Trying to be Like Jesus.

This is Great

Well said . . .

St. Patrick's Day Traditions

What the Leprechaun's will be making for our dinner . . . delicious!

Corned Beef and Cabbage Soup

2 TB Oil
1 1⁄2 Cup Chopped Onion
1 TB Minced Garlic
3 Cups Sliced Carrots
3 Cups Diced Red Potatoes
8 Cups Chicken Broth
1 tea. Caraway Seeds
1⁄2 tea. Black Pepper
2 tea. Spicy Brown Prepared Mustard
2 Bay Leaves. Whole
3⁄4 pound Deli Corned Beef, sliced thick and cut into medium dice, or 2 cups leftover Corned Beef cut into medium dice
3 Cups Green Cabbage. Cored and diced large

Heat oil in a large soup pot, add onions and garlic. Sauté until soft. Add all ingredients except for cabbage. SIMMER 15 minutes. Add cabbage and simmer additional 10 minutes or until vegetables are done. Taste and adjust seasonings, remove bay leaves. This can also be made in a crock pot. Serves 8-10 people. Horseradish could also be served on the side. Great served with rye bread.

Don't forget to wear your GREEN!

Help Our Friends Adopt

A wonderful family in our ward would love to adopt another baby. If you can please help spread the word that would be such a blessing.

As my friend Lindsay would say, "Gotta have a hobby".

For Junior (super easy to do BTW) . . .
Picked this little beauty up at The DI for $10. Her name was stamped in one of the drawers so I looked it up and found out she was made in the 30's, but it's a very common brand so she's not worth too much-just wait until you see what I did with her . . .
Taaa daaa! I've decided orange is my new accent color and I am having all kinds of fun with it!
Saver's find for $3.99 . . .
Little bit of paint and we have a new end table!
And last but not least I love the project of helping my daughter learn and grow. Our current goal is to get her walking before I break my back! ;)

What I Do at My Grandma Kay's

She has these most amazing pots of dirt with green things coming out of them that I help her rearrange. Mommy says I shouldn't, but Grandma just smiles . . .
Mommy said something about being too big for this, but Grandma said I was perfect. I thought it worked out just great.

What to Name Junior?

David
Andrew
Lincoln
Oscar
Samson

Any thoughts?

I Knew It!

Just got back from the Doctor's visit for Junior. I am 28 weeks along, but measuring 30 weeks (with Lucy I was always smaller or measured right on). I told the doctor that I know this baby is bigger. He said, "Oh he's definitely a bigger baby". Thank you for the confirmation Doc and most of all my self esteem and pant size thank you! ;)

To Want

I was watching some Mormon Messages on YouTube with Lucy. She loved them and I want to watch a few with her every day. While watching them, I realized Lucy needed her diaper changed. I told her we needed to go change her diaper. She was of course upset to move from watching videos to having her diaper changed. While on the changing table she was fussing then reached towards the computer and in the saddest/most wanting voice cried, "Jesus!"

Oh to be like a child . . .

What I Do When I Go To Grandma Sampson's . . .

Help her reorganize the kitchen . . .
Inform her where her eyes, ears, nose and mouth are . . .
Restock the shelves at Wal-Mart . . .
And go up and down her stairs about 20 times (she would let me do it all day long if I wanted to) . . .

Little Tip

I must confess this is not my idea, I saw it in a magazine, but it is a great idea to help organize your pantry with a simple shoe rack. This is especially nice with all those jars and containers that get lost amidst the cans and boxes!

Elmo

So Sesame Street really knows what they're doing. Lucy does not watch Sesame Street (she does have 2 books with Elmo in it though) but would you look at the smile on her face when she has her Elmo. Often the first thing she says when she comes out to the front room is, "Elmo?"

Quack! Quack!

It was a beautiful day and we had a great time feeding the ducks as a family (the best fun we have ever had for 87 cents). The only tricky parts were 1) Keeping Lucy form diving in and 2) Leaving


Lucy was so adorable when she saw the ducks. She kept saying, "Duck, Duck!" and "Quack, Quack!" She is so much fun.

Changing Times

Hi, my name is Lucy. I used to be on a schedule like this:
Sleep: 9:00pm-8:30am
Nap: 11:30am-1:30pm
Nap Again: 4:00pm-5:00pm

Now my schedule looks like this:
Sleep: 9:00pm-7:30am
Nap: 11:30am-1:30pm
NO NAP: 4:00pm-5:00pm!!!

And did you catch that not only did I give up my afternoon nap, but I am also waking up an hour earlier too. Mom said the timing is tricky with being 6 1/2 months pregnant, but I think it is all working out great. Mom said it's a good thing I am so darn cute!