Vis-a-vis My Progeny

The Go-cart!

2011-08-06T12:31:00.003-07:00

Hi everyone! It's Emma! We just got a new go-cart! It's soooooooooooooooo Fun! I lllllllllllooooooooovvvvvvvvvvveeeeeeeeeee it! bye!

Pete and the World Of Color

2011-06-03T14:36:00.008-07:00

Hey! It's Emma here! Pete just came running out from his nap and said "Hi mommy. I want to go back to Disneyland and see the World Of Color again."

Scotland Part 1 (Maybe the one and only part, we’ll see)

2010-06-24T17:07:00.001-07:00

I’m sure everyone is on pins and needles waiting for pictures and stories from my trip to Scotland. It was a 10 day trip, so I will mainly hit on the highlights. I take that back, I am going to begin with the worst part of the trip…the flight. We flew from Salt Lake to Paris, then Paris to Edinburgh. I couldn’t sleep on the flight, then the layover in Paris was pretty terrible. Nate didn’t have “papers” for his insulin pump and no one in security at the airport (in Paris) seemed to know what to do. It took us 45 min, but we finally were cleared to fly. We had a couple more hours, then we flew to Edinburgh. By the time we got there it was late afternoon, so we got our car and set out to find the place we were staying. In this whole process we lost 7 hours and I didn’t sleep on the plane, so basically I was exhausted.

The following day was Saturday and one of the highlights of the trip to Scotland. We wandered the streets of Edinburgh for part of the day and we saw much of the city. Toward the end of the day we wandered into the National Gallery of Scotland. We looked at the exhibit they had on dance and explored the main floor, but it was close to the 5 o’clock closing, so we didn’t venture upstairs. As we were leaving I picked up a brochure. I opened it and couldn’t believe my eyes. It said that my absolute favorite painting was on display upstairs. We immediately turned around and headed back upstairs so I could see it. It is a painting by John Singer-Sargent named “Lady Agnew of Lochnaw.” In fact, back in the day when I actually considered studying art in college (ha!) I used that painting as one where I imitated an artist’s style. I couldn’t believe I was actually standing in front of the painting. It was incredible.

I could just start rambling and tell you all the reasons this painting is fantabulous, but I won’t because you’d be bored. Instead you can look at it and if you don’t appreciate it, well, I am afraid you are beyond help.

Wow, I am super duper long winded. I guess I can stop for today. So…..To Be Continued.

Oh Baby!

2010-05-20T14:19:00.001-07:00

Why do babies have to grow up so fast? Pete turned 3 over the weekend. To celebrate he went camping with Nate and Jake at the Fathers and Sons campout. It was his first time camping, and he had a ball. Then on Saturday we had a little family get-together with pizza and cake and ice cream.

Pete is such a fun kid. I have the luxury of spending my days with him and I love it. We get to play every day. I won’t lie, he makes it hard for me to get any real work done around the house. That is okay though, because he is growing up too quickly.

Here are some pictures of Pete from when he was born until he was a couple months old. I know that to most people my little 2 1/2 lb baby may look a little alien-ish or whatever, but I think he was adorable and perfect.

These pictures are from his first year. First Halloween, first Christmas, the Bumbo which was a big part of our life.

He is always entertaining us with his goofy ideas. I’m sure it helps that he has all of us as a very willing audience.

This is one of my favorite pictures of him. I love his eyes and his cute chubby cheeks.

Like I said before, we spend our days together and as you can see he is oh so very helpful with the tasks such as dishes. Most of the time I love it, except when I am in a hurry :)

This picture totally captures my happy, sweet Pete.

There have been several chances recently for me to think about the blessing of being a mom. I remember pretty much the whole time I was growing up my mom had a stitchery hanging in our house. I didn’t comprehend the significance of the words then but, over the last few years I have thought back over those words several times. It was part of a poem called “Babies Don’t Keep” by Ruth Hulburt Hamilton. The last stanza says “The cleaning and scrubbing can wait ‘till tomorrow, But children grow up as I’ve learned to my sorrow. So quiet down cobwebs; Dust go to sleep! I’m rocking my baby and babies don’t keep.”

There have been so many times over the last 3 years I’ve wished I could make time stand still. But my babies keep growing in spite of my yearning for them to stop. How do you ever capture enough moments?

I am so grateful for the opportunity I have to be a Mom. It is one of the hardest jobs, but nothing could make me happier.

Happy Birthday Pete! I love you!

It’s About Time

2010-05-06T19:08:00.001-07:00

Okay folks. I know, it is about time for my once-a-quarter blog post. Here is the deal. I know that last time I blogged I was sad because I couldn’t find the cable to my camera. Well, the lucky woman that I am, hubby got me a new one! Guess what…can’t find it. I KNOW!! Can you believe it!?! Being the organizationally-challenged individual that I am I have now lost 2 cables in the last 4 months.

It wouldn’t be so bad except we went to Disneyland and all the pictures from Disneyland are on the camera to which the cable is missing. I am really pretty bugged, if in fact you couldn’t tell. So, the Disneyland post will have to wait. On to other things.

I have a friend named Julie. I have been friends with Julie since high school. In fact, I think I survived high school because of Julie. Julie and I went to different universities, we lived hours away at times and there have been large breaks between us talking, but it never fails to amaze me, when we get together it is like no time has passed at all. We just get each other, you know? No pretense, no watching what we say, afraid we might offend. It is just easy.

Lately I have missed Julie. I have called her a few times when I have been thinking about her, and frankly it has been times when we have both really needed to talk. We finally found a chance to get together and had a great time.

Not only did we get together, but our youngest boys played for the first time (that they would remember) and they loved it. They were hilarious together.

We went to Farm Country at Thanksgiving Point. My sissies and Mom came too. Yes, the triplets were there! It was so fun. It was a perfect day. The only problem is that perfect days end too.

I really hope I don’t let so much time and so many missed opportunities pass before I see my friend again. Seeing her made my heart happy.

Pete showing us the pony.

Pete and Julie’s son Porter

Maddie, one of Ju’s triplets

Molly, another of the triplets

Hunter, the last of the triplets

Pete and Nat’s son McCoy looking at the horses

Nate’s Truck

2010-03-24T13:49:00.001-07:00

About a week and a half ago I was waiting for Nate to get home from work. He was taking a long time. I figured he was stuck in traffic. Then I got a call. It went something like this:

Nate: “Kris, I got in an accident, I am almost done with the police. Can you come and get me?”

Me: “Wait. What? You were in an accident? Are you okay? Where are you?”

Nate: “I am okay. I am just down the highway, not far. You’ll see the emergency vehicles. I’ll watch for you. Bye.”

Click.

That is my husband, a man of few words.

He was headed south on 89 right by the Jefferson Center and someone who had been headed north turned left into him.

His airbag went off. His left arm got hurt somehow. His neck and back have been hurting. As a result my heart has been hurting.

Nate never complains. Not about being stressed or that he doesn’t feel well. He never lets me dote over him, even when he is sick in bed. Now I know he hurts and I don’t know how to help.

The truck was totaled. That made Nate sad. He liked his truck. Those of you who know him well are thinking he would revel the chance to buy a new car. He would, but he is busy and he is facing not having a car until he finds one. Once they paid us for the truck they took away the rental. His process usually involves looking and thinking about it for a while before he takes the plunge.

The wreck reminded me of something I shouldn’t ever have to be reminded of. I love Nate so incredibly much. My life would be nothing without him in it. Since the accident I have spent much more time thanking my Father in Heaven for Nate, and that he was not injured any worse in the accident. I love you Nate.

Oh, and icing on the cake was the $700 we spent on the tires the day before. Nice.

Another Reason I’ll Keep Him

2010-02-23T16:51:00.001-07:00

Here’s the thing. I am not a good gift picker-outer. I always try and think of something marvelous for my honey, but alas, gift picking-out is definitely not one of my talents. Nate on the other hand is a pro. He is always finding the most fantastic gifts ever. Which, of course, makes me feel terrible when I give him whatever is my pathetic gift.

Not only can I not pick out gifts, I can not keep them secret. This is not because I spill the beans, but I am just not sneaky enough. Case in point. One year I thought I was oh so sneaky. I was giving him a futon for his office. So, I had my parents purchase it and keep it at their place until right before Christmas, when, while we were away one night, my sister and her husband moved it into the back of our basement. So, Christmas morning comes and Nate has gotten a curio for me. It was beautiful. I then escorted Nate downstairs to show him his gift. He started laughing. Apparently when my sister and her husband had put the futon in the basement they leaned it right up against the curio. So, when Nate had gone to get the curio, he subsequently saw his gift. NOT SNEAKY.

This past Valentine’s Day was no exception. Nate got a new keyboard for my computer because a certain unnamed kidlet has wreaked havoc on mine. He also did this for me.

Think we have enough hot cocoa or cereal? Me either.

Being organizationally challenged as I am, this pantry has been the bane of my existence. He made me shelf/drawers. Rolling shelves? I don’t know what to call them but they are marvelous!

I am the room mother for Em’s class, and frankly whoever thought that I would be a good candidate for that was not in their right mind. So, by the time I was done with the whole V-day party for her class I was done done. I did get him a windshield washer thingy that they sell on TV, but I got it at Walgreen’s (pronounced Walgrins by most around here). So, pretty much a great big FAIL on my part.

Which continues the saga of Nate=awesome gifts, Kris=lame gifts.

Christmas and Birthdays Wrap Up

2010-01-25T14:37:00.001-07:00

Here is the deal. I have yet to find the cord to hook up my camera to my computer. I know everyone is thinking, “Why didn’t you just use your computer’s card reader?” The thing is that the card in my camera doesn’t fit in my card reader. I know this because I got it stuck in my computer once. When it didn’t seem to click in right I thought sticking it in further with my nails would help. It didn’t. Don’t do that. So, luckily I am married to a very computer savvy man (surprise) and he was able to retrieve it. Point of the story, I can’t get the pictures off my camera yet.

I have a few pictures on my other camera that I will share with you.

First was my birthday. No pics. Sorry. Maybe there will be some later.

Then Christmas. I only have a few pictures and because of the early morning nature of present opening, I am hesitant to share any with you. There is one that is moderately acceptable. Here you go.

Nate’s Birthday. It is always hard to figure out how to celebrate Nate’s birthday. The whole ‘New Year’s Eve’ thing gets in the way. We did try to go to a Thai restaurant, but they closed early. Weird. So, we found somewhere else to eat and then went home and had pie. Yes, he gets birthday pie. He even orders it himself. This is not because I won’t make a cake, he prefers pie. Pie from the bakery down the street. If it makes him happy I will not complain.

We celebrated J’s birthday and E’s birthday on their actual birthdays at home with cake and ice cream and then on the Saturday between by going to ‘the diver place’ (the Mayan) with Grandma and Grandpa McGuire. A fun time was had by all.

Whew. There. And now I shall sleep. Don’t wake me.

Always Late

2009-12-25T21:27:00.001-07:00

Every Christmas I try so hard to get a start on things early. It just isn’t my nature to be overly prepared for anything. So, every year I decide to get things taken care of early so I can enjoy the season. Every year Christmas comes and I am kicking myself for the things I didn’t get done the way I had wanted.

So, here’s the story this year. Those of you beloved friends and family who have yet to receive a Christmas card. They are in the mail. Yes, they were just dropped tonight, but they are technically “in the mail.” I did get pictures done in the fall so they would have beautiful colors and be ready for Christmas cards. No, I didn’t get on top of the whole card thing until like a week ago. Lame. I make myself so mad.

I do have a fun Christmas post coming, but in the chaos of my home post-present opening, I seem to have misplaced the cord to my camera. It has been a wonderful day, and I am super-duper excited to post the video of Pete. He was so dang cute this morning. I, on the other hand did not look so cute, so there may not be any pictures of how beautiful I look on Christmas morning. I know, you are all very disappointed.

I hope everyone had a great Christmas. Remember I love you, and to prove it, the card is in the mail. Or, because I am an airhead you can tell me if I forgot.

‘New Moon’

2009-12-18T11:53:00.001-07:00

My friend Jaime rocks for a million-bazillion reasons, but lately there was one particular thing that she did that stood out. She got us tickets to an advanced showing of New Moon. So, a bunch of us girls went together on Nov. 19th (Thursday, that’s right, booyah) to see the movie. We got there extra early so we could sit together which apparently isn’t important when the theater is reserved. We felt kind of silly sitting there an hour and a half before the movie started with hardly anyone else in the theater. It was okay though because it was good company. We talked and laughed and our butts already hurt before the movie even started. I took some pretty rad pictures, but I don’t know if the girls are going to kill me for posting them.

That is actually the main purpose for this post, seeing as I saw the movie a month ago, but only found the cord and downloaded the pictures now. Now, I am putting it out there for all of you to see what a goof I am. No teasing.

This is Becky, Jaime, and me. Apparently when I hold the camera AND take the pictures I get crazy eyes. I know this now because I have crazy eyes in every picture where I am holding the camera. Of course, my friends look lovely. On account of the crazy eyes, I handed my camera to Jaime to take pictures. Here is what we got. Notice, no crazy eyes.

A Jaime centric photo. This does in no way reflect her personality, I assure you.

After several tries we all got in the photo. Jaime was not pleased with the way she looks while holding the camera, Becky looks a little tipsy, and I was practically sitting on Jaime to get into the picture. But, no crazy eyes, mostly.

These are pictures we took while the others were getting their snacks, etc. My lens had a fingerprint on it when we took pics of the whole group of us, so I will have to see what I can do about that and post later.

The movie was good. I have to remind myself that it will never be as good as the book, so take it easy on the criticism. Things like, I thought Jacob’s house would be light yellow. I don’t know if it says that in the book or if that is something I made up in my head, but having it be red was a little disappointing. Little things like that always bug me when they make a book into a movie.

So, all you Twilight fans, its some good fun, and Jacob’s not too bad to look at for a couple hours regardless.

Hair

2009-12-04T09:47:00.001-07:00

So, it happened. I always knew in the back of my mind it would. I tried for years to dissuade her. I thought the years where I would worry about it were coming to an end. Then it happened. She cut her hair! I had often told her, as a good mother should, that if she cut her own hair it would make her ugly. Now that I think about it, that may not have been the best approach.

When I saw her and what had been done I could actually physically feel the anger heating up my chest. I knew in that moment I had better just not talk about it then. I very calmly called the mother of my daughter’s partner-in-crime and we talked about it.

I guess today will be another haircut. Her usual stylist is booked out through January, so unless I can persuade her with my desperation, I have no idea what we are going to do. I will hopefully have pictures to post of the new haircut soon.

Opinions please. Should I let her keep bangs, or make her grow them out? I will not tell you my opinion in hopes of getting honest answers.

Gettin’ on my game face for a call to the stylist now.

While I am at it, I can’t help but put up one of the beautiful pictures Haylee did.

Big boy…not so much.

2009-10-29T10:00:00.002-07:00

Today as I got ready to take the kids to school I pulled out one of Jake’s hand-me-down coats for Pete. As I put the coat on Pete I was met with a flood of memories of Jake in that coat. The main one being, that is the coat I sent Jake to preschool in.

The significance of this is in the fact it (mostly) fits Pete. Days after Jake turned 3 I put him on a school bus that stopped outside our townhome and sent him away for half the day to preschool. My perspective was different then. Jake seemed so big to me. As I look at Pete in the coat I know he is still so young, and though Jake was 7 months older than Pete is now, he was too.

With Jake’s vision issues I know it was the right choice to send him to preschool where he was getting more time with therapists. But as I look at Pete in his coat I think, Jake had to grow up pretty darn fast.

This is Jake getting off the bus on the last day of preschool before summer break 2004. He turned 3 in January and this is May.

One of my favorite pictures of Jake when he was little.

I miss the time with my little Jake. He is turning 9 in January and I can’t help but think the time when it isn’t cool to kiss his Mom goodbye anymore, or tell me how his day was or even talk to me outside of grunting will soon be here.

He is my first baby. He is the one who taught me what it meant to be a mother. He was the first one I felt that motherly instinct, where I would do ANYTHING for him. Walk through fire so he doesn’t get stung by a bee, you bet. That kind of skewed logic that you never understand until you experience it. I love him so much. And even when he doesn’t want me to tell him that every single day, when he leaves, when he comes home, when he goes to bed, when he gets up, just when we are sitting near each other, I will still tell him. I love you Bubs.

Hawaii

2009-10-07T11:19:00.012-07:00

Nate and I took a vacation! I know you are in shock. Just pick yourself up off the floor and you can read about our grand adventure. Okay, that may be overstating it a little.

Nate's Dad talked Nate into going to Hawaii with them. See, it doesn't take much talking for me to go on vacation, but I like to. Nate on the other hand is a home-body. So, I was pleasantly surprised to find out that Nate's Dad had been successful.

We flew into Honolulu on a Tuesday afternoon. We were suffering greatly from jet-lag, so this day was basically shot. We went and walked around near our hotel, and then got some "dinner" even though it was only 4:00.
The next day we drove up north to the Polynesian Cultural Center. It was a great day except for one slight mishap. Our first stop was to visit the New Zealand village. There we played a game with sticks. Apparently, I am not very good at throwing a stick at the same time I am supposed to be catching one with the other hand. So, instead, the stick hit me right in the eye. I guess in a way, I caught the stick with my face instead of my hand.

The next day we visited the Pearl Harbor Exhibits. I found it very impressive, but really heavy stuff overall. That is why I chose this picture to show. It was very interesting, but definitely no reason to be smiling. It is me and Nate's mom, Marilee.

We flew to Kauai that evening. Kauai is beautiful. We spent most of the time going to see the beautiful scenery on the island. We visited the Tropical Botanical Gardens, several waterfalls, Spouting Horn, Waimeia Canyon, and several beaches.

We went to see a lighthouse and from that one you could see another in the distance. It was all just very breathtaking. (Oh, and for my Dad and brothers, there is a golf course right up the cliff here. It was a beautiful location.)

Another photo from the same spot. We went looking in tide pools for little fish and other sea-life I cannot identify. Isn't Nate being friendly - a wave AND a smile.

My favorite part of Kauai was taking a charter boat ride up the NaPali Coast. It was more beautiful than my limited writing skills can describe. We saw sea turtles, and dolphins swam along in front of the boat.

I began snorkeling, but had to cut it short because a man on our boat was having heart problems. I was really proud of myself for actually snorkeling. I thought I would be too scared. I really would have liked to have done it more.

After our boat trip up the coast we went to eat at the perfect restaurant. The levels were tiered so every table had a view of the ocean and it was right on the beach and open air to the beach. We ate dinner and watched a beautiful sunset.

This was the first trip I wasn't ready to come home at the end.

It was a great trip. This is me and Marilee saying 'goodbye' to the beach and the ocean.

For all of you who have ever had Nate get his hands on your camera, here is the ever-present foot shot. He even got my foot in this one. Our feet, in Hawaii.

Anniversary

2009-04-16T20:45:00.005-07:00

I am not under any illusions that I am a great writer. I began the day before my anniversary trying to write the story of how Nate and I met and ended up married. It just wasn't working for me. I really tried, but to no avail. So, instead I am going to post a few pictures from our wedding. These pictures had been packed since we moved and I just dug them out of the box a few months ago. I had to scan them in because we got married 12 years ago, which was before all the digital hooha that there is now. So, here, for your viewing pleasure, Nate and Kris, April 3, 1997.

Maybe someday I will be able to sputter a few coherent words that would tell of the circumstances of mine and Nate's meeting and falling in love, but for now, a picture has to do the job.

Baby Girl is 6 (On January 12, so by Kris standard time this post is right on time)!

2009-02-05T23:08:00.002-07:00

CAUTION PICTURE OVERLOAD!!

Emma is 6. No kidding. All of you who are thinking, 'what she isn't 14?',no, no she is not. She just thinks she is. I am really not ready for her to grow up. So, the fact that she had a "Glamor Party" for her birthday really didn't help. On her actual birthday we went as a family to Chuck-E-Cheese. Nate was surprised that the pizza wasn't nearly as bad as he thought it would be. Pete loved riding in all the little vehicles that just go up and down. Both Emma and Jake liked the shooting games. That was a little disturbing. Emma really likes this booth they have that gives you a sketch of yourself. She also really liked the animatronics. The theme was something about "Back to the 80's" so they had Chuck-E singing all sorts of crazy 80's songs. They weren't very good in the 80's, they were even worse with Chuck-E singing. Just imagine this mouse singing "Everybody Wants to Rule the World". Yeah, it was bad. But we were together, and Emma, being the cheeseball that she is said 'that was all she wanted for her Birthday to make it the best Birthday ever!'
Her second party was one after Jake's baptism. We had a luncheon after the baptism. Since there are 4 of us who have birthdays in a 3 week span that also overlaps Christmas and New Years we thought we would give our friends and family a break so they only had to come to Mapleton once and do a combined birthday party. So, she got to open the gifts from grandparents and some family friends that day, and so did Jake. They each blew out candles in a cupcake and we called it good.
Her third and final party was her party with her friends. It was a 'Glamor Party'. I should have taken a pictue of the invitations I made, but I didn't think of it at the time. The invitations were little purses that told all the party info and asked the girl's to come dressed in their most "glamorous attire". It was a roaring success with all the girls. There was sparkling grape juice to drink out of champagne flutes and pink cupcakes. We did hair and make-up and ended the whole glamorous party with a fashion show. It was really something. It made Emma happy, so I guess in the end all was worth it.

I am so glad I have a such a sweet little girl. We have a wonderful relationship and I hope to always have that with her. Her heart is so good. She is always trying to make everyone around her happy. So, Happy Birthday Baby Girl!!

Okay, here is the problem I have encountered, when I went through the pictures of Emma to put up here...well, there were like close to 40 that I wanted to post. So, I am going to post a few of my VERY favorites and then I am going to do one of those slide show things for those of you who care to indulge me in my affection for pictures of my daughter.

One of the first pictures taken of Emma after she was born. She weighed in at a whopping 5 lbs. 5 oz. She was only 5 weeks early and I got to take her home from the hospital with me!
Emma after she was a couple months old.
Emma enjoying a nice, refreshing beverage.
When Emma was almost 11 months old she broke her femur. She had this nasty cast on for about 6 weeks. It was awful. She learned to crawl with it though. She is a tough cookie.
Emma at Christmas time when she was about 1. She was already such a beauty.

Emma at Disneyland for the first time.

Emma as Tinkerbell for Halloween when she was almost 2.

Gorgeous Em, and yes, I am totally biased.

Em at Bob and Erica's wedding. Beautiful.

Emma last Christmas

Happy Birthday Dad!

2009-01-31T16:27:00.010-07:00

Happy Birthday Dad! Today is my Dad's Birthday and I just can't help but be a lemming and write a little about why I love my Dad so much and wish him a Happy Birthday.

Actually, I have been thinking a lot about the things that my Dad has taught me and the ways that he has influenced me. He has always been such a force for good in my life, I thought that I might list a few of these things.
One of the largest ways my Dad has influenced me is that I am a dyed in the wool BYU fan. I can remember as a child spending days just going down to campus. Just to spend the day there. We used to sing the 'Cougar Fight Song' on road trips. I also have attended BYU football games with my Dad since I was too young to even need a ticket of my own. Through the years I am sure I often took these opportunities to spend so much time alone with my Dad for granted, but even as I sit here and write about it I am brought to tears thinking of all the fun times I had with him going to the games. Along with going to the games, he gave me a love for football that most women are never able to attain. I can honestly say I enjoy a good football game considerably more than my husband. It is a strange twist.

My Dad is the most fair man I have ever known. He always gives people the benefit of the doubt. This is something that I admire, but have not perfected. This did give me a good start in life dealing with other people though because I didn't have any experience with being judgementmental or prejudiced.
My Dad was always a wonderful spiritual leader in our home. He taught me to make a decision about the important things in life once and then be a good enough person to stick with the decision. He made the decision he would go to Church on Sunday, so there is no question on Sunday morning, he already made the decision a while back. It makes for an easy Sunday morning. I don't know if I have explained this quality very well, but I think that it has been of great benefit in my life. I don't have a lot of times where I have to figure out what I am going to do, I have already made the decision. I fulfill callings, because that was a decision I made when I received the calling. That is what my Dad taught me through his example.

One thing that I didn't realize until recently is that my Dad, along with my Mom, provided a safe, happy environment for me. He protected me from so much of the rotten things that he saw at work, and never brought it home. I am so grateful that I grew up feeling safe and happy and always knew my home was a haven from the world. I often, in talking with my friends, say I grew up in a "happy little bubble", and frankly, I am grateful for that bubble that was provided. I may be a bit naive, but I don't know it.

One of the things I am most grateful for is that my Dad taught me to have a good sense of humor and some moderation in my life. Life should be fun, and my Dad taught me that I should be able to take time and enjoy the things I like to do. He has always been a hard worker, but he also showed me it is okay to go to a movie instead of spend the entire day Saturday working. You can do some of each, fun and work.
My Dad has a great sense of humor and some of the greatest movies are movies that I first watched with my Dad. Indiana Jones, Die Hard, and Romancing the Stone are all movies that I remember watching with Dad.
One of my greatest memories that my Dad probably doesn't even remember is the first night of bombing during Desert Storm. My Dad let me stay up late (I was in 9th grade) and watch the news with him. I am so much like my Dad in my love of politics, current events, and history. I didn't know it then, but that interest in what was going on and watching that together was something that was so neat to me to be able to share with him.
There are so many things about my Dad that are so extraordinary. I am so grateful that I was able to be raised by such a caring, loving, strong, spiritual man. I can't express in words how much I really love him, but I hope he knows. Dad, Happy Birthday!

Mom and Dad for Christmas. Awhh.

8 Is Great Part 2

2009-01-20T19:48:00.008-07:00

On January 10 Jake was baptized. It was a great day for our family. As we talked before he was baptized I was amazed at his level of understanding of the gospel and the ordinance that he was participating in. I don't think I knew that much at his age, and I don't think I taught him all he knows. Regardless, he knows and it makes me happy.
We had so much family travel and send their love and support I was so grateful for the efforts that were made.
The baptism program was short, but went very well. Jake actually sang a song all by himself. I was so proud of him. There have been many people who attended his baptism who have commented to me about how sweet and wonderful his song was. It was good for him to learn the words to the song too because they talked of the covenant he was taking.
I am so proud of my Jakers. It is times like this that make me so grateful to be a mother and to have these sweet (most of the time) kids in my home. I sure love my Jake. I am one happy Mom.
Oh, plus we didn't get any great pictures. Seriously, these are the best of them. Bummer.

Here is Jake in his new suit that he got for his baptism. He is just being goofy. We get goofy or eyes closed. Take your pick.

Here are the guys ready for the baptism. Those are pretty stylin' outfits.

8 Is Great!

2009-01-05T11:26:00.009-07:00

My Jakers is 8!! It is absolutely nuts. I can't believe he is getting so big. He has been such a wonderful little guy to have in our family. We went to dinner at a Chinese restaurant once and I saved his fortune from his fortune cookie because I thought it was completely meant for Jake. The fortune reads "Your smile brings happiness to others." I think this perfectly describes his affect on others.
The thing that continues to amaze me is what a happy, optimistic, sweet personality he has after everything he has gone through. This sweet boy has overcome many things already in his life, and always is surprising me with his cheerful attitude. Most of the time I don't think he even knows he was dealing with more than most kids do. He brings me so much happiness (most of the time, he is an 8 year old boy) and he keeps me on my toes. I know there is no way for me to let him know how much I love him, but every day I will keep trying.

Merry Christmas!

2008-12-30T23:24:00.002-07:00

So, it was Christmas. Now it isn't. I can't believe how fast it came and went. I am still spinning. This was a very fun Christmas at the Swenson house though. I really felt like both Jake and Em understood what it is we are celebrating. They are old enough now to understand some of the traditions that we do and truly participate. They enjoyed putting their own ornaments on the tree and asked us about each one. They learned so many songs and were forced to listen to many hours of an Osmond Family Christmas (a McGuire tradition that I am carrying on).
Christmas this year seemed to take on a theme for me. It seemed like everything I heard kept turning back to "gift". I know this is a common theme around Christmas but for some reason this Christmas it was a particularly strong theme. With all the talk of gifts, and the purpose of gifts, my mind was continually drawn to the gift of the Atonement. At this time of the year I can't help but be so grateful for that. I have spent time with my own little family and my extended family and it has reminded me how much it means that these are people I can be with forever. The gifts that we have that will last forever are only ours through our Savior. The prophet pointed out some of these gifts during the Christmas devotional, "All that we hold dear, even our families, our friends, our joy, our knowledge, our testimonies would vanish were it not for our Father and His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ." I have gained a greater appreciation for this during this holiday season and although I don't usually use this as a forum for spiritual matters, this is what has mattered to me lately. So, I am sharing. I believe that these things are what make Christmas the time for celebrating. So Merry Christmas!

It burns! It burns!

2008-12-15T20:58:00.004-07:00

Well, it happened. I have always worried about having my kids around gas fireplaces because you know they are going to put their hands on the glass. With Jake and Emma we didn't have a fireplace in the house so I just had to worry when we went to my or Nate's parents. Now with Pete we do have a fireplace. We turned it on for the first time this winter and sure enough we had to tell Peter several times to stay away from the glass. Then we turned our back and he did it. He put both hands on the glass. He is so funny though because he didn't really cry, I mean he yelled, but he isn't much of a cryer. His hands didn't blister right then, so it wasn't a second degree burn (yes, for those of you who are thinking it, I am trying to avoid CPS coming to my house so this is my back-pedalling). By the next morning though they were all blistered and looked like they hurt. He didn't fuss or anything though.
So all of this happened Monday night. On Tuesday night Nate suggested that we put Band-Aids over his blistered palms to try to keep them from getting infection. So, here is our first attempt.

On Wednesday I got to thinking that it might be a good idea to call the pediatrician and see if there was anything I should be doing to make sure his hands healed okay. The call went something like this:

Me: My son is 1 1/2 and he burnt his hands on our fireplace. I was just wondering if there is anything I should do so they don't get infected.
(The nurse asks the Dr.)
Nurse: Keep the hands cool, don't put ice directly on them, and bring him in right now.
Me: (Very hesitantly knowing I am going to sound negligent) Uh, well, he did this a couple of days ago, so, should I keep them wrapped or antibiotic ointment?
Nurse: Oh, hmm. Yes. You should wrap them with... yada yada

This is how the nurse instructed me to wrap them, of course not with the tail that is hanging there, that is all Pete. Needless to say the wrapping lasted a total of a couple hours. It appears I may have been a little lax with not taking him in, but they are healing fine, and he is just as happy and "curious" as ever.

Overheard

2008-11-14T10:38:00.004-07:00

Our little family was driving around the other day. I can't remember where we were going or what we were doing, but in the backseats this is what Nate and I overheard.
Emma: "This time light my bum on fire!!"
Jake: "Okay, WHOOSH (apparently the sound of lighting someone's bum on fire)"
Emma: Pause. Then in a "surferish" tone, "Dude, hey dude. Smell that? What's cookin'?"
Jake roars with laughter
Emma: "No really dude, what's cookin'?"

Ah, the pride a parent feels when they overhear their children playing and laughing together.

All Hallows Eve

2008-11-03T23:04:00.011-07:00

Here is the Halloween Report from our family. It is really kind of crummy here because they don't let the kids in elementary school dress up for Halloween. I swear those Halloween parades in elementary were the greatest. The other thing about dressing up for school is that you can wear your costume without your coat over it. As Jerry Seinfeld said, "I don't recall Superman ever wearing a jacket." The coat with the costume is a drag, and during school you didn't have to wear your coat. Enough of my blathering on about this.
As soon as the kids got home from school we packed up and headed to my parents for a Halloween party with my siblings and parents. It was fun, my kids trick-or-treated in my parents neighborhood which wasn't the highlight because we don't know anyone there, but the kids didn't seem to care. Then we went back to my parents and paarrtied!!! We had a great dinner and some great games (thanks Nat and Ju!).
Jake was really funny all night long. He referred to everyone by their costume. He liked answering my parents door and he would say things like, "Red Power Ranger, that is a great costume. Oh, Dracula how is the trick-or-treating?" Nat dressed up as a devil and he just called her 'devil' all night. During one of the games we drew out trick or treat cards. If it said trick, you had to do a trick, and if it said treat you got a treat. You get it. So Jake pulls a trick card and it says to fly around the room like a bat. So he starts flapping, not a stretch, then he starts pretend biting people and yelling, "Now you have rabies!" I am not sure who told him that bats give you rabies but it was pretty funny for Jake to run around and give my whole family rabies. . Then during desert Bob asked the kids if they liked "Camp Rock" and Jake just comes out with "hated it". He didn't even skip a beat. This is a boy who has obviously been forced to listen to too much Disney Channel pop against his will. All in all, it was a great Halloween.
Here we are. I am supposed to be a cat (I didn't realize the headband I was wearing was so fluffy until I saw pictures), Jake is Anakin, Emma is Hannah Montana, and Pete was a Monster (not a stretch).
My camera ran out of batteries, so I have to get some pictures of Nate in his costume from my Mom, it was pretty funny. You'll have to tune in later for the pics.

It Has Begun: the first of the Halloween posts

2008-10-29T20:04:00.007-07:00

The Halloween festivities have begun. We carved pumpkins with the Jacobsons, Emma had a Halloween party at her dance class, and Emma went to a friend's house for a party. So, here is a sneak peek into Halloween at our house.
Our pumpkin carving has taken on a tradition of sorts. Jake and Nate carve a pumpkin, with a face as simple as possible and get it done as quickly as possible. Then Emma and I carve another pumpkin using a stencil, not a very hard stencil mind you, and spend a bunch of time trying to get a good looking pumpkin. We have carved pumpkins at the Jacobsons for the last few years and it is always fun. My friend Audrey is really into carving pumpkins and always makes these elaborate, impressive pumpkins. So it is pretty funny to see Jake and Nate's circle eyes, circle mouth, and Jake-carved-nose pumpkin along with all these fancy-schmancy pumpkins that the Jacobsons do. You might not be able to tell from the pictures but Emma's has a ghost with a moon and a tombstone. Jake's has 2 circle eyes (different sizes of course), a nose, and a circle mouth. It looks great and he is happy. I guess that is all it takes for successful pumpkin carving.

For Emma's dance party she decided to just wear one of her dress up dresses instead of her Halloween costume. Fine by me. So she was dressed as Ariel. Her friend in the pictures is Alexis.

Here is most of the Hannah Montana outfit. She ended up getting pretty sick of the wig, but overall I think she enjoyed being a diva. I am in for it for the next 15 years. Actually, she was really cute about the whole thing. She told me about everyone else's costumes and how great they looked too. I just know that she is one who loves getting all dressed up and it is not going to end any time soon. BTW- these pictures completely freaked Nate out.

Pretty Uneventful

2008-10-22T21:57:00.005-07:00

Because Nate is gone to Redmond, WA for the week I am updating my blog to keep him in the loop of what is happening at home. And what is happening at home...not much. I, of course, got sick with a cold on Sunday right before Nate flew out. As a result of having medicinally wiped out my immune system I can't shake the cold. It doesn't help that I can't sleep very well without Nate here, and Nate usually gets up and gets Jake ready and off to school while I am spoiled and get to sleep in a little. Well enough about why I feel so crummy and on to what is going on at the Swensons!!!!
First things first, on Monday, I got up, got Jake up, and he got all ready and to the bus on time. I know that most of you who know me thought for sure without Nate here Jake would end up missing the first few hours of school each day, but no. I have been a responsible parent. Which is a lot to say now that my oldest is almost 8. I guess responsible parent may be pushing it, but when it comes to getting him to school I am a responsible parent. Because of the many who will question this I got actual photo evidence to prove it. You can't see the numbers on the clock, but I assure you they read 8:12. That my friends is the exact moment Jake must leave the house to make it to the bus stop in time.

The only other thing that was kind of fun that Nate missed was that as I was looking for a costume for Pete in some of Jake's old clothes I found a cute Halloween outfit for Pete. So, without further adieu here are the pictures of Pete in a little monster outfit (this is not his costume).

As you can see things in this new outfit started out pretty uneventful, but the series of pictures shows just how much Pete liked me dressing him up. Oh well, he's young and I am the Mom.

Disneyland

2008-10-13T22:43:00.008-07:00

We finally took our trip to Disneyland. We went with Nate's sis Natalie, who is one of my BFFs (that is so awesome that I can sound so hip, oh, I just said awesome, nevermind) and our friends the Jacobsons, who we basically didn't see. Disneyland is the most magical place on earth, but you add 95 degree weather, and crowds, and it takes away some of the magic. We had a great time, but I really want to go back in like February when the heat and the crowds aren't as bad. I am not a nice person when I am hot, and my feet hurt from standing in lines, even in the most magical place on earth. Don't get me wrong, I love Disneyland and was so grateful I got to go with my family and have a vacation. Plus, I got Nate away from work for a whole week WOOHOO!
Here are some pictures for your viewing pleasure:
Here are some Pete pictures, basically he did a lot of sleeping in the stroller.
Emma loves Minnie and the Princesses. She didn't even eat most her meal at the Princess lunch because she was turned around in her seat watching the Princesses.
Here are some pictures of Jake. He has his Dad's ability to look angry all the time. It is quite unsettling to take a 7 year old to Disneyland and get pictures of him looking angry.
Here are a bunch of pictures of Emma and her cousins Julie(older) and Kate(younger) at the princess lunch. I don't look forward to when Emma thinks the Princess lunch is too immature for her because it is so fun to watch the girls get so excited about the princesses.
This is a great picture of Jake and Nate and Emma on the rockets. I especially love it of Jake because he is so excited.
Just a photo op shot, but don't you love how Jake isn't even smiling and Emma thinks she is supposed to pose for the camera. Goofs.

"Baby Boy Erickson!" and "Baby Boy McGuire!"

2008-10-05T21:17:00.004-07:00

Yes, I am not kidding I got not just 1 new nephew today, I got 2!! I am just so relieved both boys arrived safe and sound and now everyone can relax and get some sleep while some nurses take care of babies and let the pain meds do their thing.
First nephew: My sister Nat and her husband Jeff finally had their baby. It was a rough 24 hours for them, but he finally arrived at 11:36 this morning. He is 7 lbs. 12 oz. and 20 1/2 inches long. I absolutely fell in love with him the minute I saw him. He is beautiful and I am so glad he is doing so well.
Baby Boy Erickson about 30 minutes after he was born.

Second nephew: My brother Billy and his wife Jacee also had their baby today. Labor and delivery are never what I would call "easy" but from what it sounds like it was as smooth as you could expect it to go. He was 8 lbs. 11 oz. and I am not sure how long he was. I am so glad everything went okay because they are down in Texas where we couldn't be there so we just had to keep calling and giving love and support over the phone. I won't lie to you, I really think it stinks for my brother to have a baby so far away, but I digress. He has a name, so not just Baby Boy McGuire for him. Cade William. I think it is adorable. I have seen pictures, but nothing that I have the ability to post...hopefully I will talk them into some soon.
With my sibling having babies a few things hit me really hard today. I truly can't believe the instant love I have for these new little members of our family. I know that I am emotional, Nate says I have emotional diarrhea, but when I first saw Nat's baby I couldn't believe how much I loved him. It is just surprising to me that it is such an instant thing. Then when Billy called to tell me they had their baby I just felt this overwhelming desire to be there with them and see and hold and love this new little one. I just know these little ones were sent to our family for a reason and I love the immediate connection that I feel with them. Enough blubbering, I know.
Anyway, Happy Baby Day for the McGuires!!!

More Info

2008-10-01T09:48:00.003-07:00

I have been asked repeatedly about my new niece because of the lack of information I provided. Here's the deal. She is Nate's sister Holly and her husband Adam's new baby girl. The name has been up in the air, so, sorry there. She was 6 lbs. 9 oz and 20 inches long. She came a few days early and is doing great. We were the first Swensons outside of her mother to see her! She looks a lot like her Dad. Nate and his siblings have all had babies that look more like the spouses than the Swensons, so the assumption as of now is they have pretty recessive genes. We are just happy she is here and doing so well. Adam and Holly will make great parents too, except for the fact that they are both attorneys :)

McGuire Filled Weekend

2008-09-28T20:07:00.009-07:00

I went to my Mom's house for Friday/Saturday. It was a lot of fun to be with the family. My sister Nat is supposed to have a baby tomorrow, and we still drug her through a bazillion stores. Those who know me well know I am obsessive about Emma's Halloween costumes. Last year was the first year I let her choose her own costume, a witch, but I still got to design and make the costume the way I wanted. This year she wants to be Hannah Montana. I am at a bit of a loss. I got a wig, a microphone, and a shirt that I think I am going to use...but it just hasn't come together in my head yet. So, while I was with my sisters we went looking for some boots, but finding go go boots for a 5 year old is harder than it sounds. We went to a lot of stores, to no avail. I did end up getting some gold fabric to make a pair of leggings, but I am still not sold on what the costume will look like.
We also went to see the movie Kung Foo Panda, which Jake always calls, "Kung Foo Panda, with Jack Black, he is hilarious." Apparently since Nacho Libre, Jake is a big Jack Black fan. Kung Foo Panda was a hit! My kids loved it and, no surprise here, I laughed through the entire movie. All my laughing made Pete really excited and he laughed and yelled at the screen through most of the movie too. All in all, a good day, but then.....I go out to my car.
So, my car was parked across from the Kaysville Theater, yes we went to the Kaysville Theater. As Erica and I stood next to my car and talked a police car, with its lights on pulls up behind my car. I couldn't imagine what this officer would possibly be pulling over for, maybe we were loitering. Oh no, something even worse. He came over to us and said, "Is this your car." I answered, "Yes." Then he says I am parked in a "UTA bus loading zone" and he really could give me a $100 citation. Erica and I were both quite confused at this whole thing. Erica, being more outspoken than I am asked the officer how I was supposed to know that I was in a "UTA bus loading zone" because there were no signs, granted there was a bus stop. Then the officer got a little defensive. This is when we realized he wasn't a police officer, but a UTA enforcement officer. I couldn't believe this. I am sure that sometime in driver's ed I was supposed to be paying attention and learning this "UTA bus loading zone" business, but I truly don't recall ever knowing this. I couldn't believe that I could possibly get a $100 citation from this guy when there was no sign and I was on a public road. It was just annoying. So, if you ever get caught parked too close to a bus stop, you too might just get caught by a UTA enforcement officer and you might get a $100 citation.

Here is a picture of the kids with my beautiful brand-new niece. She is adorable, and so tiny!
Here is a good look at the little one.
And a picture of Pete, just for good measure. For a boy who likes his food so much he should be packing on the pounds, but instead we are having to feed him tons of extra calories.

SCHOOL'S IN!!!

2008-09-10T17:43:00.009-07:00

So, school started like 3 weeks ago, and I am finally blogging about it. I have been enjoying the quiet afternoons.
Well, Jake is doing AWESOME in 1st grade! I have worried and worried about how he would do, and he is doing great. His confidence in his ability to handle the work is so much better than last year. Confidence makes such a difference in his whole attitude about everything.
Emma started Kindergarten. I cried. Not when she could see, and frankly I didn't expect to. I am sure that everyone who knows me will be laughing at that, yeah right, Kris not cry, that will be the day, but really I had it together when we set off to school. Then the Kindergarten teacher did this whole thing where we had to do a couple of "centers" with our Kindergartener and then he read "The Kissing Hand". What kind of crazy torturer is this Kindergarten teacher? I still was keeping it together, then we were getting ready to leave and the kids were all sitting on the mat and they turned to wave goodbye... and Emma was looking and couldn't find me because, well, because I am short...and then I started crying. She was looking kind of frantically for me then found me, as I suppressed tears I waved and basically ran out of the room. I just kept thinking about how I wouldn't be the main influence in her life any more, and I am not ready to turn my little girl over to the world yet. She is so sweet, thoughtful, beautiful, and I just don't want to let the outside world have influence over her. I realize I am saying this as she watches "Hannah Montana" but at least I am here and we can talk about "Hannah Montana".

This is Emma on her first day of Kindergarten. She wore her new school shirt, and being the awesome Mom that I am, I made her a bow to match her new shirt.

Psych!

2008-07-21T16:41:00.010-07:00

So, I know I am the absolute worst blogger in history. I have 3 crazy kids and never take the time to blog about the funny stuff they do and say. Well, this blog isn't about them.
I had a great weekend. There were many good things about it. I visited my parents, spent time with my sisters (that includes Erica for all of you who don't know how much I love that chica), was ready for church on time, and spent Sunday night just relaxing with Nate. But it wasn't all that that made this an AWESOME weekend...my shows started again.
While all the rest of the world is bemoaning the lack of good television, they missing some of the best shows on television. I absolutely love USA Network. They have Psych (my personal fave) and Monk, and Burn Notice. I mean really people, these shows are great! Every time I watch Psych I wish it lasted longer. I hate when it ends. The comedy is witty and wry. And man, James Roday is hot. But I digress, the point is that both Psych and Monk started this weekend and now I have something on tv to look forward too again. It is great and the whole time I watch there is a big ol' smile on my face.

Holy Randomness Batman!

2008-06-10T20:27:00.003-07:00

So, I haven't blogged in a while so I have a ton of tidbits to share. First, my baby said Mama! I know he has been saying Dada for like a month and a half, but HE SAID MAMA! He is so stinking cute, and just so much fun right now. He learns something new almost everyday. I love watching children learn.
Next, school is out, which also happened over 2 weeks ago, but I am just barely coming to terms with it. Actually, it hasn't been that bad...yet. I have tried to make some sort of plans for each day so me and the kids leave the house each day. Mondays are still open, Tuesdays we go to the library for reading time and then to the park for lunch, Wednesday we have tickets to a movie at Provo Towne Centre, Thursday we have the option of going to another movie (which totally sounds lame unless you take into account this one is free and outside it could be like 95 degrees or hotter even), Fridays we are going to try to go to Seven Peaks. So far , so good.

And, last but not least, Emma had a dance recital. She is such a little performer. I know, its hard to believe (ha, ha) but she was completely in her element on stage dancing. Oh, and she graduated from preschool, and lost a tooth. I can't take this all at once. If anyone knows how to keep their baby from growing up, let me know cuz I'm in.

Party Pictures

2008-05-25T20:44:00.004-07:00

So, I am way late with this, but here are the pictures from Peter's 1st Birthday Party. It was so great to have friends and family with us to celebrate this. I know that he will never remember it, but it was so fun to celebrate this first year with our friends and family.
Nate's sister Holly and her husband Adam gave Pete this cute little dump truck. Adam had the idea to wrap it in tissue paper. Pete loved it. The paper made this cool sound when he tore into it and he could actually open the present himself. It was a really great idea! So, most of my pictures of Peter opening presents are of him opening that one, because it was the only one he could open himself.

I made him a Cookie Monster cake. I love Cookie Monster, and I figure by next year he will be able to give some opinion, whether taken into consideration or not, about his cake, so this year I got to choose.

Pete gave a great performance with the cake. He began by just checking it out. Then he tentatively tasted it. Then he really dug in and got cake EVERYWHERE. He started to get tired after a while. At one point he was just taking handfuls of cake and smashing it onto his face in the general vicinity of his mouth. Then with hands covered in blue icing and chocolate cake he rubbed his eyes. So truly he was covered in cake. It was a great party and we all took a good rest afterward.

Here is a series to show how much Pete enjoyed his cake.

My Baby is ONE!

2008-05-14T21:42:00.006-07:00

I can hardly believe it has been a year since my sweet Peter was born. As I think back over the year there is no way I can possibly put into words how happy that little guy has made me. I just love being his Mom. He is busy, and happy, and intense, and so much fun! The day Peter was born was really touch and go, the doctors were trying to hold off delivery a little bit longer, but his heart rate dropped and I had to have an emergency C-section. Nate made it to the hospital just as I was getting back from the operating room. I was just so glad my sweet little boy had made it and was doing okay. The first hour or two were bumpy, but he did so well. It is hard to imagine he was only 2 lbs 10 oz! Today at his 1 year check-up he weighed in at a whopping 16 lbs. 1 oz. That is over 6 times what he started at. I am just so happy to have him in our little family and that he is doing so well. I really can't imagine life without him. Here are some pictures of our journey from the past year.
I LOVE YOU PETER!!! HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

This is one of the first pictures of Peter. The first day he was on a respirator for a few hours. He was only 14 inches long!This was after they took him off the respirator. His eyes are covered because he was under lights to treat his jaundice. That is a preemie diaper and it still looks gigantic!
This is the first time Jake met his new brother, May 15. Pete was 1 day old.
This was the first time Emma met Peter.

This was Peter's first day out of an incubator. This was Peter's first day home.

Weekend Wrap-up

2008-05-05T21:43:00.006-07:00

Some of my blogging friends do a weekend wrap up. So I am trying it, it may be ultra boring. We'll see.
Well, the weekend was a real bummer. My friend Audrey came home from her trip and said she was sick the whole time, so she went and was tested for strep and guess what....it was positive. So, seeing as how we hang out often and our kids play together I guessed that this "cold" I had wasn't actually a "cold" after all. Then Peter woke up Friday with a fever, so we went to the pediatrician, then we made a trip to my doctor. Prognosis: Peter had an ear infection; I had strep. So, I slept all day Saturday. The kids went horse back riding and helped Nate do other stuff I don't remember because I was in a sleepy stupor. Then on Sunday I woke up to take care of the kids while Nate was at meetings. When he came back I went back to sleep and pretty much slept the rest of the day.

The kids enjoyed playing Mario Party 8, and they had their first exposure to the 'Love Bug'. They thought it was hilarious to see a car driving without a driver.
I had an absolute meltdown on Friday because I felt like crap but I wanted to get the house cleaned and dinner made before Nate got home. So, I became Mom-zilla and I made Emma and Jake go outside and play and I cleaned the family room and kitchen. I just hate that I don't keep up on things as well as I would like. There were so many things I wanted to get done over the weekend and I accomplished NOTHING. I logically know that I should not worry about it because I was sick, yadda yadda, but I am still all stressed about it.
So, thats the wrap up. Not so exciting. I'll try for a better entry after next weekend.

Snapshot

2008-04-29T21:30:00.007-07:00

I have a couple of Emma funnies to share quickly. I will do an actual post soon, but I just had to throw these in because they have kept me smiling for the past few days.

Emma: Mom, are monster trucks real?
Me: Yes.
Emma: Have you seen one?
Me: I think so, at some point it seems I have seen one. (I don't know for sure, but that seems logical. I have a much worse memory since having kids that is for sure!)
Emma: I think I would like to get a monster truck.
Me: Why do you want a monster truck?
Emma: Because I think they are fascinating.

Yes, she said fascinating. I don't know many 5 year old girls who find monster trucks fascinating. And we aren't even fueling this fire because we never go to monster truck rallies, or frankly anywhere else that monster trucks might hang out.
My second Emma funny. Scene: the Swenson family is traveling in the car talking. I am not sure how the conversation started but we ended up talking about kings.
Emma: Are there really any kings?
Nate: Some countries have kings.
Emma: But we don't have a king, we have lawyers.
Nate and I were both at a loss for words. We finally composed ourselves to the point where we could explain things to her, and she is no longer under the impression lawyers run our country. We are going to let her live in that sweet bliss until she is old enough to realize the truth of the matter on her own.

This is a picture from the last dance recital Emma had. She has her big spring recital coming up on May 9. No, she does not usually wear make-up, just for recitals.

P.S. Congratulations on graduation Holly!!! I think you deserve to stand up with all the other doctoral degree people (I don't know what you call these particular people when its plural, grammar is not my thing). My sis-in-law is going to be a lawyer...You can rule the world!!! (at least according to Emma).

What a week!

2008-04-24T15:42:00.005-07:00

The kids had spring break for the week of April 14-18 and I am still recovering. We didn't go anywhere exciting or anything, so I had to think of some fun things for everyone to do. I am so lucky to have my friend Audrey or I swear I would spend my life in my house doing nothing. Not that I am opposed to going out and doing things, but I am not good at coming up with stuff and getting it all set up. So here is the break down of the week, pictures included.
Actually our week started with celebrating Clara's Birthday. It is hard to know what to do for something like that. It is a hard day, but it also is something that brings some peace. So we took flowers, pinwheels, and cake to the cemetery. I have the absolutely sweetest friends. One friend wrote me a sweet note, one friend sent flowers, a couple of friends just gave me a hug and told me they were thinking about me. It is strange to think that other people care enough about me to think about Clara's Birthday. My Mom did something really neat and gave us a couple of children's books that teach good morals and values and tied it into Clara's birthday by saying if we try to do these things and live our lives more Christlike every day we will be able to live with Clara again. I thought that is a neat tradition to do. I also am going to take a little dress and blanket to the hospital for them to give to someone else who is in the same type of situation we were.
This is Jake and Emma looking at the books at the cemetery for Clara's Birthday.

Monday: THE ZOO!!!
What a great day. It was hot, but so much fun. A bunch of us and our kids went to the school. If my friends weren't all so fun 17 wild kids would make me crazy. It was great because my friend Rachel who I don't get to see nearly enough met us there with her kids. Emma and her daughter Katelyn were great friends, so it was fun to see that when they got together it was like not a day had passed. It made for a long, tiring, hot day but well worth our time.
Here is a picture of a bunch of the kids taking a break on the rock ledge.

Tuesday/Wednesday: Grandma and Grandpa McGuires
We spent a couple of days at my parents. My kids had a ball. My Dad has a Playstation 3, I know he is hilarious, so needless to say Jake was in video game heaven. Also, my sister Nat and her husband Jeff have moved in with my parents so we got to see them. We played, watched movies and saw Ju and Brack, and Bob, Erica, and Brody. It was great. We went to a little farm and saw some sheep, ducklings and chicks. It was a fun trip.
Jake petting one of the baby chicks.

Thursday: Jumpin' Jacks!
Did my kids love this place or what. No, I didn't take pictures. There was no way to keep up with them long enough to catch them on film. They ran and played so hard that they were absolutely sweating by the time I said it was time to go.

Friday: We went to the park and had lunch with some friends. I love doing things like this for the fact that the kids are entertained and I can actually sit and talk with my friends. We have to periodically stop talking and chase down a child who has snuck a cell phone or snacks or whatever, but overall it is such a great thing. I am so glad that our weather is getting good enough to go to the park more often.

I hope you enjoy this as much as I did...

2008-04-17T22:17:00.002-07:00

I just got some pictures that my sister Nat took on the cruise. I just had to laugh when I saw this picture. Some of you may think that there is some editing done, but I say to you 'nay'. This is my husband at his finest. THAT'S A KEEPER!!!

11 Years!

2008-04-13T20:13:00.006-07:00

Being the worst blogger on earth I of course neglected blogging about my Anniversary. Its true, I have in fact been married 11 years. It is really strange because in some ways it doesn't seem like 11 years could have possibly passed since I married my sweetheart. At the same time I can hardly remember my world without him in it. I truly am married to such a wonderful man. We have been through a lot together, and I am so grateful for every day I have had with him. He helps me to strive to be a better person. He is such a great father and husband. He is so smart and kind. He is always looking for ways to help others. I am just so lucky to have such a wonderful man.
Now that I have blathered on about how wonderful Nate is I have to tell about our incredibly romantic anniversary. During family home evening on Monday nights we always review the calendar to see what we have going on in the coming week. At family home evening on March 31 we went over the calendar as usual. On Tuesday I called Nate at work and our conversation went something like this:

Me: "Nate when we went over the calendar did you realize we completely forgot to mention that it is our Anniversary on Thursday?"
Nate: "No, I hadn't noticed, but you are right it is our Anniversary on Thursday."
Me: "Well do you want to do something to celebrate?"
Nate: "We are going to dinner for Craig's (a friend of ours) Birthday on Friday, so I don't really want to go to dinner on Thursday too." (Nate would much rather eat dinner at home that I cook, I am not that great a cook, but he is homebody)
Me: "Yeah, I don't care if we go out either. Should we do the gifts thing?"
Nate: "I don't have anything I really need right now. Do you?"
Me: "I was going to get a magazine rack. We could pick out a magazine rack this weekend and say it was for our Anniversary."
Nate: "That sounds good."
Me: "This is kind of sad for an Anniversary. We aren't going out and we aren't really doing gifts. Have we been married so long that we've become boring?"
Nate: "No, I would like to call it comfortable. We are comfortable."
So, although we did nothing exciting Nate bought me some beautiful roses and we picked out a real humdinger of a magazine rack.
Regardless of how exciting, or not exciting, as the case may be our Anniversary gave me a chance to think about how happy I am I married Nate.

Snapshot

2008-04-01T16:28:00.003-07:00

My friend Kari, aka "Disco Mom" does these entries she has titled snapshot. I think it is a really great idea, so here goes my first snapshot. Now, keep in mind I was a statistics major, not an English major so clever, interesting writing is not my forte. (and I don't know how to put a little accent over the e in forte).

The other day in the car...

Jake: When did you have Peter?

Me: I had him on May 14th.

Jake: No, I mean when was he BORN?

Me: Well, he was born on May 14th really.

Jake: Wow, thats awesome that you had him on his birthday.

Me: Yeah, I am pretty amazing.

And for everyone wondering if I explained to him how birthdays work, the answer is no. I just left him thinking his Mom was, in his own words, awesome.
Here is one of my favorite pictures of Jake from the cruise.

Vote for Emma!

2008-03-04T20:30:00.004-07:00

You may have seen the link to Haylee Bean Photography on my blog. Well, Haylee is looking for a child between the ages of 5 and 10 to photograph for her new website. I entered Emma in the contest she is having and Emma is one of the 7 finalists. The way the winner will be chosen is by votes. The picture I have posted here is the picture that I submitted. So I am asking everyone to go to Haylee's website by clicking here and vote for Emma. She is number 7. Thanks for all your help! We are really excited about this.

4 Birthdays and a Cruise...

2008-01-30T11:10:00.000-07:00

It just doesn't have the same ring to it as 4 Weddings and A Funeral, but that is basically what has taken up the last month of my life. Oh yeah, that and Christmas. So basically we have just had one big party at the Swenson household. We also squished a trip to Boise in there, so needless to say we are just going non stop in the Swenson home.
First was my birthday. Birthdays just don't have the same excitement they used to. I'm sure its not because I am getting old, right. If it weren't for the kids I would probably just get an extra Diet Coke that day and call it good. Then we had Christmas which was absolutely GREAT! I just love Christmas with kids. I am not going to post all the pictures, but here is a link to some more if you are interested. Then we headed to Boise. We went the same time as Nate's sister Natalie, which of course made it a blast for me. Nate gets babysitting duty too often when Nat and I get together because we just have so many things we want to do. We really should live closer to each other because we would always be playing. It helps that our kids are basically the exact same ages too. So, I really enjoyed our trip to Boise too. We celebrated Nate's Birthday in Boise, I guess. He isn't really a birthday guy either so we did as much celebrating as he lets us. It is on New Year's Eve, so I imagine it has always been hard to feel like it was "your special day". As you can clearly see from the picture I was a little slow on taking the shot, so I made him re-inact blowing out the candles. Yeah, he thinks he's hilarious.

Next was Jake's Birthday. We weren't planning on a party, but for some reason he thought we were, so at the very last minute we threw together a Star Wars party. He loved it. It really was fun. We made lightsabers for all the kids and played games with them. It really was fun, I just would like to have planned better.

Then, Emma's Birthday! Emma had a family/friends birthday. She got to choose where to go for dinner and she chose "the divers' place" which translated means the Mayan. So, we thought we would get an early dinner and then get home and have everyone over for cake and ice cream. We did not plan the Jazz game into our schedule. So we had to postpone cake and ice cream until the next day. She didn't seem to mind though. We had a great time at both the Mayan and home for cake. Kid's birthdays are so much fun. Kids just love having a day dedicated to them, and I love spoiling them that day.

Last, but definately not least we went on our first cruise! It was a Mexican Riviera Cruise and it was great, for the most part. Here is just a taste of some of the fun we had. I will cover the cruise in detail in my next post because it was as Emma says "a doosy". Overall we had a great time though. We stopped in Acapulco, Zihuatanejo, Puerto Vallarta, and Cabo San Lucas. The weather was beautiful and we saw some pretty amazing places. More to come though on that cruise.
Since he is the only one without a birthday in the 3 weeks that surround Christmas and New Years I am just going to post a pic of Peter because he is getting so big and he is so darn cute! I love this boy.

Halloween

2007-11-12T23:12:00.000-07:00

I absolutely love Halloween with kids! They are so excited to get all dressed up and go trick-or-treating. I love thinking about what each of my kids will dress up as. It is all so fun! I start thinking about it sometime in August usually. So, for the unveiling, albeit a little after the fact, of my kids' Halloween costumes, in no particular order.... I give you
SPONGEBOB!

MY LITTLE "SCARY" WITCH!

OUR RED HOT CHILE PEPPER!

They were all so cute that day. I just loved it. It was one of those times I wish I could have stopped time and just enjoyed the day forever. Jake perfected his Spongebob laugh and kept running around saying, "I'm ready, I'm ready." I know only a select few will actually understand that, but it was pretty funny. Emma was very insistent that she was not a "cute" witch, but a very "scary" witch. She came up with all the make-up on her own. That was what made her so "scary." Pete, well he just sat on my lap in his pepper costume and smiled at everyone that came by to see us.
Our neighborhood does this great thing where we all trick-or-treat on one street. The city closes the street for us (yes, I live in small town, USA) and we all set up chairs, tables, some very ambitious people bring decorations and games and we just do all the trick-or-treating together there. There is always cider and hot cocoa and everyone has a ball. It was especially fun this year because the weather was so great. I know there are a lot of people who do the trunk-or-treat thing, but I think this everyone out walking around together is just, well, better. So, there. Anyway I hope you enjoy the pictures of my adorable Halloween kidos and I hope everyone had as great a holiday as we did. There is also a follow-up post coming soon about my obsession with Emma's costumes. It is a must read if I do say so myself. Mainly because I have some great pictures.

He's not mad, really... thats just how he looks

2007-09-18T11:47:00.001-07:00

My sister Natalie did this blog about her husband. I thought it was really cute, then my sis-in-law Erica did it about Bob, and then my cousin, Kristin, about her husband Eric. I thought, oh that is so sweet. They all said these nice things about their husbands. I didn't really think of doing one until I was talking with one of my friends, who shall remain nameless, and she mentioned that if you don't know Nate he comes off kind of well, angry or unhappy, or ornery. Now, I don't think of him like that because I know that is just the way he looks naturally, you know like he hates the world. But I started thinking that it was probably a good idea to do one of those husband blog thingys about him because who knows how many people out there really don't know what a fun guy (I love saying that because it sounds like fungi) I am married to. So, here you have it a whole post devoted to the one and only Nate Swenson.

Who's your man? Nate

How long have you been together? Our first date was September 27, 1996 (ahhh! I'm old) So it will be 11 years on September 27.

Dating/Engaged/Married? 2 months, engaged 4 1/2 months, married 10 years 4 1/2 months.

How old is your man? 32, And still hot!

Who eats more? Nate. He isn't much of a meal eater, but he eats way more often than I do during the day. And if its pie, forget about it!

Who said "I love you" first? This is going to really show how long we have been married... I don't remember. I know Nate told me he loved me and he would just let me know if it changed.

Who weighs more? Nate. He is over a foot taller than me, he better.

Who sings better? Me, but only because Nate doesn't sing. He swears that he sings the hymns in church but I have yet to actually hear sound coming from his mouth. His Mom likes to tell us about how he starred in his first grade musical though, so I might be surprised.

Who's older? Nate, 2 years and 10 days. He was born on New Year's Eve at 10:30 at night. The doctor actually thought he might be able to wait and have Nate be the first New Year's baby, but Nate's dad wanted the tax write-off.

Who's smarter? Probably Nate. His mind is like a steel trap for facts and data. He knows a little bit, or a lot, about everything. I know I am smart, but like my sister Natalie said about herself, I say dumb things. Often I know that it was dumb to say, but I don't realize that until after it has come out of my mouth.

Who's temper is worse? Mine, by far. Nate is very even tempered. I don't think I have even heard him raise his voice.

Who does the laundry? I have addressed the laundry issue in a previous post. See, I have really good intentions so I start it but usually it takes Nate's prompting and help to get it done. I almost always fold and he puts away. It works.

Who does dishes? Me, most of the time. Nate will help if I ask, but I am a very controlling person about how my dishwasher is loaded. My friend Becky and I suffer from the same dishwasher control issues and have concluded it is most of the time better for our husbands to just let us load. In fact unloading is touchy too because I like my cupboards a certain way. I guess he just can't win.

Who's feet are bigger? Definitely Nate, although after so many pregnancies my feet aren't as dainty as they once were.

Who's hair is longer? Mine, mainly because I have hair. I don't think Nate's thinning hair bothers him because he is still 'so good looking.'

Who's better with the computer? This is pretty funny, uh Nate, duh. He swears the only phone calls that are for him are computer questions. That is not true at all because he also gets calls with bishopric questions.

Who mows the lawn? Nate. He really needs a riding lawn mower, but he has been using the push mower all summer without complaint. I did try half the lawn once but it takes me way longer and looks way worse. I would be willing to do it though.

Who pays the bills? I pay them, but Nate works to support my rock-n-roll lifestyle.

Who cooks dinner? Me. I really don't mind fixing dinner, it is the grocery shopping that drives me bonkers!

Who drives when you are together? Nate, unless he is having low blood sugar, then either no one is consciously driving or hopefully I am driving.

Who pays when you go out to dinner? Always me. I think Nate just doesn't want the hassle, and I don't mind.

Who's the most stubborn? That is definitely a hard one. We are both pretty stubborn, but I am just passive aggressive and he isn't. So, basically it's obvious when he is being stubborn, I act like I am not being stubborn. It makes decisions difficult needless to say.

Who's the first one to admit when they're wrong? I am. Nate has better logical arguments for things than I do so even if he was wrong he can make me think he wasn't. Also, he makes fun of me all the time because I apologize for EVERYTHING. Even things I have no control over, I apologize for them.

Who's parents do you see more? Probably mine. We see my parents more often for shorter periods of time, and we see his parents less often for longer periods of time. I don't know if it evens out or what.

Who kissed who first? Nate, and frankly it felt like it took him FOREVER.

Who asked who out? I actually asked him out. I had been hanging out with all his roommates for a while because they were the "hotties" of the ward, but Nate was working nights on a campaign, so I hadn't met him. I had my eye on one of his roommates, but then the first night I was still at their apartment when Nate came home from work my mind was changed. He was so funny and charismatic that as I walked home with my roommate Emily I told her I had to ask Nate out, and I did. He wasn't even sure which of us (me and my roommates) it was that had asked him out when he said yes.

What did you do?We went to a corn maze. I kind of think those are lame, but I hadn't been to one before. Then we went and had desert. Nate said I didn't act like I really liked him, but he was wrong. I really wanted to go out with him again, but I had been asked out on dates for the next two weekends, so it took a couple more weeks before we went on another official date.

Who's more sensitive? Me! Sometimes Nate can't even walk in the door without me getting my feelings hurt.

Who's taller? Definitely Nate. I am 5'1" and Nate is 6' 1". But I wear heels most of the time, so many don't know how tall I really am.

Who has more friends? This is a hard one because it has changed throughout our marriage. When we first got married I would definitely say Nate because he had "the guys". I mostly had friends that were guys when we got married, so I didn't have very many close friends after we got married. Nate has often said he is happy with the friends he has and he doesn't need any more. He has a few really close friends and I have a larger group of not as close friends. It is funny because where we live right now it seems like we just have a ton of people around that both of us want to be friends with. Its great.

Who wears the pants in the relationship? Nate, but not because he is bossy or anything. In fact he would rather not, but I just have such a hard time saying what I want that he ends up having to make the decisions. I am working on it though.

Nate really isn't angry you just have to get to know him well enough to look past his angry eyebrows. I wanted to date him because he was 'so gooood lookin' and because he had such a great sense of humor, and I guess that is something that only a chosen few of us have gotten to experience.
I love you Nate!

Oh, I just had to add a picture of Peter because he is changing so much so fast!

Just kidding, 2 pictures.

Mucho Informacion!

2007-08-22T09:55:00.000-07:00

I know from the title you might think I speak Spanish, but surprisingly, I don't. It is just a warning that this is a very long blog containing a lot of information about our summer. Read at your own risk.

My boy went to school ALL day! I can't believe I have a first grader! It is absolutely nuts. Jake gets on the bus at 8:19 and is dropped off at 3:44. He is gone all day long. He was pretty tired and hungry when he got home yesterday, but other than that I think he did really well. It is so hard as a Mom to just put your little boy on the bus then trust that he is okay and everything is taken care of for the rest of the day. I really felt like following the bus in the morning and following him into school. I didn't, but I was tempted.

So, Jake is in first grade, Emma will be starting her second year of preschool, and Peter is over 3 months old! It is just surreal. Don't you love this picture. It just really shows their personalities. Jake is reluctantly getting his picture taken and Emma is posing.

With all the changes I have decided to try and organize my life. Nate can testify to the fact that although I have the best of intentions, I never seem to get everything organized and running the way I want. Like I will bring all the laundry into the laundry room with the intention of doing all the laundry in one day, fold it, and put it away. Yeah, so I am really lucky if more than one load gets done per day. I just forget. I don't know what compartment of my brain holds the "turn the laundry over" card, but it just doesn't click. So, I am basically doing laundry every day all day. It is nuts. My sister, Natalie, posted once about how her clothes never make it to the closet and how her hair stuff is all over the bathroom counter instead of put away. Well, I think we have a missing link in our brains because I am the same way. Right now as I look around the room no kidding there are 3 pairs of my shoes just in the family room. How they got there I don't know. I don't know where the hiccup in my brain happens, but I know it is there. The point of all this is that I am going to try to get on top of my life, including putting my shoes away. So, when I have a beautifully clean house, all the bills paid, caught up on the current geneology project, sewing projects and photos, I will take a picture so you can all see how far I have come. Just don't hold your breath.

Since my last blog we have gone to a Christensen family reunion. It was held up Hobble Creek Canyon at Spring Haven Lodge. I really enjoyed spending the time with that family. They are some of the best people you could ever meet. They are just really nice, regular (a positive thing) people. I just always feel so good when I have spent time around them. My kids had an absolute blast playing with all the cousins. I swear I hardly saw them except meals and bedtime.

Also, my brother Bill and his wife and daughter have been here for the summer. They have spent the last 2 years in Boston, so it has been a ton of fun to see them so often. Their daughter, Kenslee, is 1 1/2 and she just loves Emma. It is so cute. Every time she is at my Mom's she takes my Mom the phone and says "Emma". I just love it! This is why I have been pressuring my siblings to have kids. It is so fun to see cousins together.

My sister Natalie has been on the east coast all summer, but she got to come visit for a little bit. She lives in St. George when they are out here anyway, so this was the most I have seen her in a couple of years. She came out because my Grandma McGuire passed away. It was kind of bitter sweet because she had suffered a stroke 10 years ago and has never regained the ability to speak, write, maybe read I don't even know. I think her mortal body was becoming kind of a prison to her. Also, Grandpa passed away about seven years ago, so I imagine there was a great reunion on the other side with him. It is strange because the last time I saw her before she died I took Peter to see her. For some reason I handed him to her to hold. This was not a logical thing to do because she is basically paralized on the right side and can't even hold her own body up, but I just handed her my 4 1/2 lb. baby. She was so happy. We got some really sweet pictures that I will always treasure.

Whose idea anyway???

2007-07-23T16:01:00.000-07:00

So, everyone I know is doing these cool things with their blogs. The way they look, the colors, everything. Then there is mine...yes I used a template. I am married to the smartest computer guy on the planet, and I used a template. I have actually been procrastinating posting in hopes I would figure out something fun to change up my blog. But, no you don't get anything exciting yet because today I used a template. So, I expect no complaints just enjoy the template.

We blessed Peter on July 15, 2007 at home. It was really nice. It was a way last minute thing because Nate's family was going to be in town and my family could mostly make it, so we decided on Thursday that we were going to bless him on Sunday. My Dad had to speak in a ward during our sacrament meeting time, and I had to teach Relief Society so it just worked out better to do the blessing at home after church.
Here is my question though. Who came up with the idea that the new Mom hosts a "luncheon" after the blessing. I think everyone should still be bringing lunch to her. Well, I actually can't really complain because my family (Mom) helped out a ton! But I do think in general maybe that isn't a good tradition to continue unless we can figure out a way that it doesn't totally stress out the new mom.
The blessing was very nice. Our Bishop was able to come over and join us for the blessing also which meant a lot to us. I was kind of sad we didn't do it in sacrament meeting because our ward did so much to help us at the end of my pregnancy and then after Peter was born. I think of them as family and wished they all could be there.
Peter fussed a smidge as they got ready to bless him, but then he was absolutely angelic for the rest of the blessing. Not a peep. He is just so sweet.
Emma had a couple of friends here for the blessing and my family, for the first time ever, got the snub from their niece because she wanted to be with her friends. It was so funny to see her in her little social world. She is definitely going to be quite the socialite.
Well, I have been tagged by my sis-in-law Erica... so all of you have to wait with baited breath for my next post when I respond to the tag. I know it is so intense it is like a cliff-hanger season finale or something. Loves and Hugs.

First Week

2007-06-25T13:33:00.000-07:00

The first week of Peter being home has past. I am getting used to having a baby again. Not used to waking up in the night. I have it pretty good though because they had him on a three hour schedule in the NICU, so he seems to stick pretty closely with that. Last Tuesday at the Pediatrician's office he weighed a whopping 4 lbs 2 oz, and he has another appointment tomorrow so we will see how big he has gotten over the last week. I think he seems bigger, but I might just be getting used to how small he is.
There is a lot of help at home. Emma and Jake absolutely love to hold and feed Peter. He is small enough and light enough that they actually do a pretty good job at holding him. We had to have few chats about how Mom needs to say it is okay to hold him and then they can't carry him around. Emma was holding him and I went to turn over laundry and came back to her standing there rocking him. It was nerve racking but she knows the rules now. Not that that always matters, but I think we laid down the law pretty well. I just hadn't thought she would even think she could stand up with him. Oh well, luckily everyone is in one piece and we live and learn.
The noise and confusion of the house is sometimes hard on little Peter, but I think he will learn to tolerate and even like the chaos. He still isn't big enough to cry really loud, but I know that before long he will be a grand addition to the chaos.

HE'S HOME!

2007-06-21T19:06:00.000-07:00

Ahhhh! Life is changing so fast for us right now, I don't even have time to keep everyone updated on what is going on!

Peter was sent home on Sunday, June 17th. We had a heads up that he would probably be coming home sometime this week, but we were very surprised it was so soon. We got a phone call on Saturday that we needed to bring his carseat up and stay the night because they were releasing Peter the next day. We ran around and tried to get things set up to bring him home then went to the hospital. He was sent home on oxygen, so we kept him in a hospital room that night with us so we could make sure we knew how to use the oxygen equipment. Then Sunday morning our little 4 lb baby boy came home. Life has been crazy since then, but we are and will adjust.

2007-06-10T19:57:00.000-07:00

It has been a while since I posted anything. That is just how life is right now. Well, to be honest with you it is just that I would rather spend an extra five minutes holding my new baby boy than write on the blog. It seems like every time I hold him lately he just gets cozy and goes to sleep. Then when I have to leave and I put him back in his isolette he wakes up and looks at me with great big eyes. Its like he's asking me not to leave him. I hate it and love it at the same time. I guess only a mother knows that feeling.

As for how he is doing, he is almost 3 1/2 lbs! Yes, that's right... 3 lbs 7 1/2 ounces. They have four phases in the feeding protocol that he has to pass to come home. He has passed the first phase and is working on the second. He has to take his feedings from a bottle at least four times a day, and take at least 75% of the recommended amount, and still gain weight. Then if he can do all that for 48 hours he can move on to phase 3. He is doing pretty well, but it takes a lot of energy for him to take a bottle. He gets very tuckered out. He is still on some oxygen and we have no idea when he will be able to ween off that. They are starting to ween him from the isolette. So he is in clothes now and usually wrapped in a blanket. He is still gaining some weight but I think the bottle feedings and the extra energy he is using to keep himself warm has made his weight gain slow a little lately. Overall though he is doing great.

We all went to see Peter today and the kids were so excited. They tried to do stuff like play peek-a-boo with him, it was so cute. He basically slept through the visit, but the kids didn't mind. They keep asking when he is coming home. I would love to get an answer to that question too.

Nate has made a lot of progress on the playhouse that he is building in our backyard. It is looking really good, so I have to show it off a little bit. We picked out some paint, but I will wait and let you see some pictures of the finished product. I think it will be so fun for the kids. Right now there is at least a sandbox underneath it for them to play in.

Crazy Days

2007-05-28T20:05:00.000-07:00

So, our crazy life has finally settled down a bit. School is out for both Jacob and Emma. Jacob has officially finished kindergarten, it is nuts! He is getting so old. Emma had a graduation program in which she very willingly performed with her class for all the parents. She doesn't have a drop of stage fright. Nate is going to work about half the day most days, and then he and I head to the hospital. I am getting better a lot slower than I would like, but each day is a little better.
Now, an update on Peter. At the end of last week they removed all his IVs because he didn't need any more antibiotics (which they give every preemie). So they also took him off the TPN which is just feeding through an IV. So he began just getting milk through the gavage tube that runs in his nose, down his throat to his stomach. He did very well and each day they increased the amount of milk they were giving him. Now they are giving him milk with a fortifier to increase the calories. As they did this he kind of bottomed out weight-wise at 2 lbs. 6 ounces. He has been going up most of the time since then. There has been a day or two that he lost some weight but he is back up to about 2 lbs. 9 ounces. He has also been on and off with the billi-lights. His billirubin goes up and down, but the doctors aren't worried about it. It is expected with these little guys I guess.
Today was a hard day. I haven't been feeling well, so I haven't seen Peter for 2 days (2 very long days). When I went in today I walked over to his bedside I saw that he was on oxygen and under the lights again. My heart just sank. I just hate seeing him like that. He has the feeding tube and the oxygen tubes taped to his face. The doctors told us that between 2 and 4 weeks preemies sometimes outgrow their lungs and they have to give them some help breathing for a week or two. They made sure it isn't an infection and that he hasn't aspirated something, so they don't seem too worried. But they aren't his mother. There was some good news though, they are going to try giving him a bottle.
Hopefully this week will bring more good news.

I'm Home!

2007-05-18T21:39:00.000-07:00

It's been almost a week since I slept in my own bed, but I am finally home! Before I left the hospital I spent some time with Peter in the NICU. Everyone seems really happy with how he is doing. They are consistently increasing the amount of milk that he is getting and checking to see how he is tolerating it. So far so good, but he is still losing some weight every day. Today he was down to 2 lbs 6.5 ounces. The Neonatal Nurse Practitioner said they hope that he will stop losing weight soon, but as of right now they aren't too worried about it.
I did get to hold him again today for about 30 minutes. He opened his eyes and tried very hard to look at me while I was holding him. I know that it takes all his energy just for me to hold him, but I think it was really good for both of us to have that time together. He has big, dark eyes. If I was a betting woman, my money would be on brown for his eye color because they really remind me of Jake's.
They have this new pillow in the NICU since Jacob's stay. It is a gel pillow. It is supposed to help the baby’s head not flatten while it is still so soft. I think they are a great idea.
It was really hard to leave the hospital without my baby, but I know that I can't take care of him the way he needs right now. I am just glad that I am home where I can spend more time with the kids and Nate. Now I just have to continue to let myself heal and not take on too much, ha, ha. I am a Mom; taking on too much is what we do.

"Presenting Peter Eli"

2007-05-17T19:33:00.000-07:00

As Jacob and Emma have been anticipating the arrival of their brother all too often visiting me in the hospital they would play "baby". One would hide in the closet in my hospital room and the other would stand on the outside and say "Presenting the baby!" So, now with no further adieu, "Presenting the baby!"
On Monday morning the doctors had become nervous about the baby's heart rate and decided to do a contraction test early that morning. We knew it was coming, but we didn't plan on it leading to such a quick delivery of our little guy. He didn't tolerate even one contraction, so they decided to hurry and take me into surgery and deliver him as quickly as possible. I did call Nate, but apparently I didn't communicate that they were actually wheeling me out of the room to the operating room and he needed to get to the hospital NOW. Anyway, about a half hour later Peter was here. He was born at 8:54 am on Monday, May 14, 2007. He weighed a whopping 2 pounds 10 ounces and was about 14 inches long. As soon as Nate and the kids arrived at the hospital Nate went and found the baby in the NICU and took care of him as much as they would allow.
That day he struggled to get breathing on his own so they did put him on a respirator and give him some medication to help open his lungs. This is all hearsay for me because frankly I spent all day coming out of anesthesia.
By Tuesday they were able to take him off the respirator and get him breathing on his own. He is now breathing room air, although in an isolette. He did have low blood sugar right after he was born so he was on some sugar water for a little bit, but now he is being fed through an IV and some through a tube that runs from his nose down his throat and into his stomach. So, he is receiving a little milk every three hours and his tummy has been digesting it. He also had to go under the lights for jaundice for a couple of days, but they took the lights off him today.
We just have to wait for him to learn to eat from a bottle and gain weight and hopefully his little lung muscles will continue to handle breathing and not get too tired.
I will try to keep updating pictures and information here about him. Emma has a preschool graduation and Jake has a kindergarten performance next week, so there should be some good pictures in the next couple of weeks.
Thank you for all the love and support everyone has offered at this time to our family. I am just so grateful that Peter is here and is doing so well.