Our Life

Creamy Pumpkin Trifle!

2011-11-26T13:34:00.001-07:00

Awesome New Dessert! from www.dashingdish.com

http://www.dashingdish.com/2010/10/creamy-pumpkin-trifle/

Creamy Pumpkin Trifle!

Posted in: Desserts

For Thanksgiving last year, I wanted to make something different than the ‘usual’ pumpkin or pecan pie! I knew my Strawberries ‘n’ Cream Trifle was always a hit during the summer holidays, so I decided to make a ‘fall’ version using pumpkin, cinnamon, and spice cake mix! It turned out even better than I could have imagined, and was gone before many of the pies were even touched!

The creamy ‘pumpkin pudding’ pairs perfectly with the spice cake…and the gingersnap topping adds the perfect crunch! My relatives could not believe this was a light dessert, and many of them asked for the recipe…Which usually means it was a hit! (not to mention I left with an empty trifle dish) If you are having a fall get-together, and are looking for a crowd pleaser, I can promise you that this dessert won’t let you (or your guests) down!

Ingredients

For the Cake Layer

1 (18.25-oz) box spice-style cake mix (you could also use reduced sugar cake mix for even lower sugar/calories!)
1 cup pumpkin
1 cup water

For the Pudding and Whipped Cream Layers

1 (1 oz) box no sugar added instant vanilla (or butterscotch) pudding mix
1 cup fat free milk (or milk substitute of choice)
1/2 cup pumpkin
1 tbs brown sugar (or sweetener of choice to taste)
1 teaspoon cinnamon (or pumpkin pie spice!)
2 (12-ounce) containers light whipped topping
*Optional Topping: 1/3 cup gingersnaps, crushed

Method

To make the cake layer, start by preheating the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 13×9 inch baking dish with non-stick spray. Combine cake mix, pumpkin puree, and water in a large bowl. Mix until well combined, and transfer into the baking dish. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. When completely cooled, crumble the cake (or cut into small squares depending on the look you want) and set aside.
While cake is baking, in a large bowl, whisk milk and pudding mix together for about 2 minutes or until slightly thickened. Let stand for 2 minutes or until soft-set. Fold in 1 container of cool whip, and 1/2 cup of pumpkin, brown sugar, and spices until well blended. (Note: Leave the other whipped topping as is for the whipped cream layer).
In a trifle bowl or (a large pretty glass serving bowl), layer half of the cake, half of the pudding/pumpkin mixture, and half of the whipped topping. Repeat layers until the trifle glass is filled to the top. (I like to end with the whip cream layer!)
Garnish with cinnamon or crushed gingersnaps if desired, (you may also layer the gingersnaps throughout the layers. Refrigerate for 1 hour, or until ready to serve. (Also tastes great when made the night before!)

Note: *You may also use wineglasses or individual dessert glasses for individual trifles!

Enjoy! Love Katie

Servings: 16 (~1 cup per serving)

Calories: 175 per serving

Weight Watcher Points Plus: 6 per serving

2011-11-03T19:07:00.000-06:00

Pumpkin Cake *

Perfect for this time of year and sooo tasty! If you follow the directions its very easy and very delicious!

Filling:
Mix together the following in a bowl:
1 can evaporated milk
3 eggs
1 large can solid pumpkin
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup sugar
2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice

Crust:
Put 1 cup aside to crumble on top:
3/4 cup COLD butter
1 dry yellow cake mix
Mix by **Cutting In** Dry cake mix and COLD butter.
Set aside 1/2 to 1 cup of crust mixture to sprinkle on top.
Pat in bottom of a greased 9 x 13 cake pan (DO NOT use a glass pan, it will destroy your crust).
Pour filling over crust and then crumble the crust mixture that you set aside over the top.

Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour. Top with cool whip or icecream

**Here's a definition of what Cutting In means: When a solid fat such as butter is mixed with a dry ingredient like flour until they form into small particles. I would use a food processor fitted with a metal blade and just pulse it. You can also use your trusty fingers to do the job.
This keeps the bottom from getting hard.*

Ranting and Raving

2011-10-16T21:42:00.001-06:00

It's been an interesting couple of days/weeks some big parenting wins with the binki gone and even more progress with behavior things like in stores and listening better, and then I turn around to have someone ask "isn't he around other kids?" And find out that others don't think my level of discipline is sufficient, it's so frustrating. I think Nate is wonderful, he does get over excited and loud - especially when over tired, and he's not around other kids that much but we are working on that, it's hard for kids to learn how to be around other kids without doing it. So frustrating, I wish I could explain how I feel better and make my expectations clear and feel that in our home we weren't under scrutiny from people who have different parening beliefs and strategies. I am strongly opposed to hitting or any corporal punishment and am lucky that Jake agrees with me on this. I have seen what it can do to a kid as they grow up and want better for Nate, I feel like my childhood was so blessed because I didn't have the fear that some kids grow up wih my parents didn't spank me or my sisters and taught us how to be well behaved by being kind and loving. That is my plan. It is t easy and I find I difficult to balance being kind and loving and still firm in expectations and rules, but I am studying and learning everyday how to be a better mom to my wonderful child.He is so special and so smart and loving and fun its hard to think anyone could see him any other way. Nathan is an energetic and fun almost 3 year old (one week away) he's bigger than most kids his age about 40lbs and with abs of steel and so strong- he's anything but chubby- and it's hard for him to reign in his excitement when he's with friends because he loves it so much. He struggles with being too physical with kids but is learning to be more careful and gentle especially with little or fragile kids. He is growing up so fast it's amazing to me how much he can mature in just a couple days and I swear some days I come he from work and he looks like he's grown an inch taller his 3T jeans are almost too short for him. I know this is a random rant but I had to get it out of my head and wanted to have it where I could look back and reprocess my thoughts and feelings.

Disneyland, the Drive and Day 1

2011-04-16T18:39:00.001-06:00

A little back story to our trip to Disneyland - it was early February and we were discussing the possibility of a family vacation or doing something fun for spring break - Jake's work had an early spring break and it seemed like a perfect opportunity to travel. So I booked a hotel on Priceline one Monday - Wednesday rolled around and Jake was had to "resign" from his job... Well the 300 was already spent and non-refundable... So what to do? Jake thought we might have to just cancel and lose the money, but I thought that we should just go for it, use some tax return money and some severance package money and have a nice family trip. It definitely was a wonderful trip, I am glad we went!

So our journey begins! Our plan was to leave at 6:00 a.m. on March 19th and were trying desperately to get everything done the night before but Nate had other plans, he knew something was up and would not go to bed...

It was about midnight by the time he went to bed - I don't know what time he really fell asleep because we went to bed then too. So instead of getting up at 5:00 like we'd planned we got up at 7:00 and out of the house at about 8:00.

We drove and drove and drove, and stopped to go potty and stretch our legs and fill up the gas - thanks to the gas buddy app for finding cheaper gas prices! Nate LOVED watching movies in the car - thanks Barb and Gary for letting us use the DVD player! He slept a bit but was awake and happy most of the time. He was a bit antsy and there but a change in movie or a new treat seemed to help lots. He finally fell asleep for a nap around St. George and slept until just past Vegas.

We stopped just after Las Vegas in Jean for lunch and a bit of walking around. Nate was in a sour mood at this point and would not eat anything, we got pancakes, eggs and bacon and would have nothing to do with them. While Jake was freshening up Nate went to the car and I offered him what we had in the car to eat: string cheese, grapes, cantaloupe, pineapple and goldfish - those he gobbled right up...Silly Kid!

The drive was windy and used too much gas, we learned which stations to not go to in the future. Gas Buddy was a great app to have and made filling up kind of a funner thing to figure out where we were trying to go.

So we arrive in California pretty late and were happy to check in and get to our room - we ordered a pizza for delivery that night because it was late and we didn't want to get in the car again. The room was not great... It was a great deal and saved us money, but we never could get the "Free WiFi" to work or even find the network... And walking around in socks was gross, within a few minutes the bottoms were almost black, so we made sure to keep them on and keep Nate up off the floor as much as possible.

Sleep was a challenge every night, Nate usually sleeps in his own room where its basically silent and dark... Hotel - not so much. So we had to lay with him to get him to sleep most nights and almost pin him down. The beds weren't very comfy and the pillows were useless - we ended up buying some while we were there.

The first morning we got up and headed out for Disneyland, we thought we were prepared for the weather, bundled up with sweatshirts and a blanket for Nate,but it was pretty cold and rainy, that describes pretty much the whole trips weather, it was kind of nice though because it scared some people away so the lines were short and the crowds weren't too bad. It was our first morning and we walked into the park right as Mickey was coming out to meet people, it was great we hopped in a pretty short line and got a photo, Nate was so excited!

This was his "say cheese" face pretty much the whole trip it was so funny, he was so excited to be there and to meet Mickey, I was afraid he would be really nervous, but no he was so excited!

After meeting Mickey we decided to start with Tomorrowland and got in line for the Astro Orbiter first, we attempted to all ride in one, but no luck, so I rode with Nate and Jake went alone, which allowed for better photos!

Buzz came next, which was Nate's favorite (at least the most requested)

Then we journeyed into Fantasyland, and got in line for what we thought was a Tinkerbell ride, but it was to meet Tink, the line was short and Nate likes the Tinkerbell movies (I know, its not manly, but they are cute shows) so we met Tink!

(Side note about this fish - Gerry has a pond with a fish that spits water and when Nate saw/sees it he talks to it about Tinkerbell, so cute!)

Can you name the fairies? I was trying to remember all of their names because they have lots of them there, but I can only remember Rosetta, Vidia, Fawn, Tinkerbell, Silvermist, and Terrence.

These flowers were giant, as you progressed in the line the scenery got bigger so it was like you were shrinking to fairy size.

There is his crazy "cheese!" face

Then off to the teacups Nate really love this ride too! (He pretty much loved everything!)

This is my FAVORITE picture!

One thing that was so nice about the cool weather and just being there ourselves was that we could go on all the rides, even ones we've heard were lame, so we went on the Storybook Land Canal Boats - I thought it was pretty cute actually.

We were a bit camera happy on the first day of our trip - well everyday probably!

Pirates, we also did Pirates at least once everyday I think. We wanted to try the Blue Bayou restaurant but at $35 for a lunch plate we decided to pass.

Speaking of food a bit - we save SO much money by packing in our own drinks, we bought a case of bottled sodas for each of us before we left and (some waters too) and we were so glad we did, drinks in the park cost about $3 each and you can't carry them on to the rides, so you'd have to buy a new drink each time if you didn't have a bottled drink. Yikes!

After doing Pirates again on day one the rain came in HARD! We decided to escape the weather and head back to the hotel for a break or the day which ever worked, it ended up being the day with record rainfall and snow in the higher cities. We hoped for better weather as we hunkered down for some much needed rest.

Public Notice

2011-01-23T09:25:00.000-07:00

I never remember to post on my public blog about my private blog... So we are back to one, public blog.

Disneyland 2010 Part 1

2011-01-15T18:13:00.000-07:00

We were so lucky this year to get to go to California with the Graves' clan! I was a bit nervous for the travel aspects of the trip because we have Nate (who was almost 2) and Brooke and Dave have Aaron who was about 5 months. We flew into the Long Beach airport - the flight was pretty good, a bit stressful and cramped but still worked out very well! Nate did pretty good, the only problem was that he kept kicking the seats in front of us. Nobody complained though luckily!
We then drove to Newport Beach where we stayed at the Marriott Villa's - very beautiful! It was nice because it was a condo, so there were 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms a full kitchen and laundry. Plus the living room had a pull out sofa. Everyone was so generous, we got the bedroom next to the kitchen which had its own pull out sofa - so Nate got his own bed! (not that he slept in it alone) And we were able to make bottles as needed without waking everyone up. It was an awesome place, I think I could go there and spend a week just at the resort and the beach that is just down the hill from it. We were so busy we didn't really get to enjoy all it had to offer. - But it was alright we went to see Mickey!

We ended up renting 2 cars because the rental place said they had no 8 seater's but then when we got to the hotel we looked and the van really did seat 8, there was an attachment for the middle seat that made it a real seat - perfect for a infant carrier! (I would love the van we had it was a Toyota - Sienna? Maybe, but it was awesome) So we were able to pile in there and just use the other sedan as needed for small trips/errands and as Nate was melting down some times.

Day 1 we drove to Disneyland, it took a while, and we went straight to Buzz Lightyear it was so fun! Nate absolutely loved it!!!

We got to see Mickey Mouse Clubhouse live on stage which was so great!

We were all pleasantly surprised how cute it was!

Gerry fell asleep...

They also have Captain EO back on the screen to honor Michael Jackson and it was pretty cool, quite strange but fun! Nate didn't really appreciate all of the 3D effects - there is a bug thing that flies very close and he kept trying it shew it away.

We also rode the rides in California Adventure - the kids rides are so cute there, the Bug's Life rides were so fun, Nate was laughing hysterically on the Lady Bug ride, it is kind of like the Tea Cups but you don't spin yourself. It was so much fun!

I think my favorite ride is for sure the Tower of Terror it is such a fun ride! We rode it a few times, Janet was nice enough to watch Nate for us so we could!

We went to the stage performance of Aladdin the first day also, it was really good, Nate was a squirmy worm so we watch the last part from the back.

Disneyland

2011-01-15T17:26:00.002-07:00

Pumpkin Cake

2010-11-20T10:46:00.002-07:00

Happy Halloween - May the Force be with you!

2010-11-03T12:16:00.001-06:00

Nate's 2 Year Check Up Update

2010-11-01T14:06:00.000-06:00

Well in the last week Nate has been to 4 doctors... The first was on Wednesday, it was a follow up for the study he did last year for the H1N1 vaccine. The next was on Friday morning, it was a visit to the allergist to see what is going on with his allergies and skin problems, 3rd was also Friday - night - to the insta-care to get the crayon out of his nose. Finally 4th was to the pediatrician to have his 2 year check up. Its been a busy doctor week!

For the Allergy doctor we found out he is very allergic to dogs, cats and mold, and borderline to apples. We've started a new skin regimen that has improved his hand overnight!
Next the pediatrician, he like always is off the charts!

Two Too Cute

2010-11-01T13:08:00.000-06:00

Cute Nate-isms:
I am going to try to list all the adorable things Nate says, his vocabulary is amazing, he is soo smart!
Banana (or anything that looks like a banana) he says "nana, peel peel peel (peeoo, peeoo, peeoo), He even makes the motion with his hands.
Mickey, aka Miska, he sees Mickey in everything, if his food lines up so it kind of looks like Mickey he gets so excited!
He can also say Minnie, Goofy (he calls him Goof lots of the time, they are tight like that)
He can sing the theme song and knows just when to say Roll Call!
All Done (with signs)
Mommy
Daddy
Gampa
Gamma
hot-tub
hot
bath
ouch
owies
scare
scary
clock
silly
water
juice
milk
hold you
oh no!
woah
grapes (used to be bo bo's?)
pizza
strawberries
bottle
binky, bb, beekins
puppies
doggie
kitty
elephant
giraffe
ribbit(usually sounds like biggit)
tato(potato head)
march
slide
wash (usually wash, wash, wash in a sing-song voice)
hat
swim
callie(bird)
block
ball
cars
truck
bus
train
choo choo train
Thomas (train)
sucker
candy
more please
cookie
cracker
toes
feet
hands
head
eyes
nose
mouth
tongue
teeth
ears
hair
itchy
Dave
Brooke
Aaron (usually Aaron's)
Jenna
Aubrey
Lydia (Yydia)
Kayla
Zach
Abi
Jason
Emma
beach
airplane
Disneyland
bucket
coke (he know's which is mommies coke and which is daddies coke)
Push
pull
dropped it
punch
hitting
no hitting
sorry mommy, daddy (or anyone he hits)
bed
star
heart
moon
sun
jacket
cloak
socks
shoes
boots
shirt
toot
burp
wipes
diaper
poop
tired
sleep(with signs)
awake
stairs
step
There are more, and he is so brilliant, because he is making sentences and knows possession and will follow requests ie bring me the wipes. He understands so well what we tell him and if we are smart enough to remember to explain before hand what will happen he does so much better with his behavior.
He is also starting to count it usually is two two three(tee) but he counts things and line them up in to trains and drives them around.

Birthday/Halloween Party at the Lloyd's

2010-10-24T17:00:00.000-06:00

Here are some photo's from the Lloyd's Birthday/Halloween Party. We had so much fun celebrating Nate's birthday and it was great to see the kids costumes and have a candy search for Halloween!

Balloon Extravaganza at the Graves

2010-10-22T18:00:00.000-06:00

From Nate's Birthday - Graves

For the party time at our house with just the Graves we had pizza, gifts and a hallway of balloons... Nate would have been happy to have just the balloons.

He is still saying "balloons, gone." Almost every time we walk past the hallway.

Aviary Adventure

2010-10-22T12:00:00.000-06:00

We went to the Tracy Aviary with Brooke, Dave and Aaron for Nate's birthday this year, it was so much fun! We got to feed the Lorie's and had up close time with a peacock and an owl. It was so much fun! Then we went to Winger's - which was also fun, but a little close to nap time to be really fun.

It can't always be perfect, right? Please Help!

2010-07-31T16:53:00.000-06:00

Ok, I usually try to keep my blog topics happy and informative on the good things - I try... Well, I have a problem and need some advice.

Terrible 2's - at 21 months. (nuff said)

I have to preface the bad with the good, there is so much more that is good than bad.

Nate is such a fun and happy kid most of the time, he has so much energy and is so busy exploring and discovering and pushing his boundaries. He is brilliant and knows more words than I can count, I am working on making a list :) He loves going swimming and playing with his cousins, and is always trying to help keep the newest baby, Aaron, happy and constantly giving him his Binky (Aaron's not Nate's) and will hold his little fingers in the car and give him loves. He adores all of his cousins but has a special love for Jenna, she can make him laugh harder than pretty much everyone and when he sees her he gets so excited you can see it run through his whole body.

Nate can climb anything and will hang from the swing set, kitchen table and anything else and pulls his feet up to his hands (he will be a gymnast). He adores trains, especially Grandpa Gerry's one that lights up choo choo's, Nate will dance and run in place to the rhythm. Speaking of rhythm he is already so musical its kind of scary, he sings and dances along to music in the car. There is a Muse song, Uprising, that he sings the chorus - right notes and beat... It is so cute! Nate also loves books, he is so happy when he's reading, and will make all the animal, car, truck, boat sounds he can while reading, he does tend to tear the flaps off of books to see whats under them (all the way), but its ok.

He has made a somewhat smooth transition into his big boy bed, its been set up in his room for months and occasionally he took a nap or slept in the night there (if I had to lay with him to fall asleep). Then a couple weeks before Corrine had her baby we decided to just go for it (the crib was a loaner from Corrine) so one morning I took down the crib and moved the toddler bed to its spot and rearranged the room a bit to make it safer for him, and he's been so great since, the first few nights and naps were flawless, then he realized his freedom and we've had to get him off the floor a couple times. When he wakes up he'll just knock, well bang, on the door until we come and let him out. I must be a bit of a push over though because he goes to bed when I am not home way better than when I am. He knows that daddy means business and mommy would rather hold him for a few more minutes... I am working on that, I just love it when he's snugly.

Nate also loves animals, especially the kitty's that Brooke and Dave have, he begs me to take him to the "mow's" and will just crouch down by them and try to pet them and then talk to them and play with them with their toys. He also tries to feed them (and has only eaten the food once - that I know of) the cats tolerate him pretty well, he's growing on them. Oh, and he loves Dave so much, they will play together and he is so happy and just runs around, its wonderful! I wish I had as much energy as Dave...

Ok, so there is a list of the wonderful things - but with each thought of those I remember the tantrum that followed or was close at hand, this is what I need help with. In most cases its fine, he's learning and growing, but a few times each day it gets way out of control. He is frequently hitting and headbutting and in very bad cases biting (if he gets within reach). If I take something from him that he shouldn't have, he will try hitting it out of my hand and then hitting me and if that doesn't work he will use his whole body as a battering ram and when that fails he crumples to the floor in angry sobbing yells.

One of the biggest problems is nursery because he is one of the youngest but biggest and one of 2 boys in the class. So when he gets going he's wild and gets a bit rough with the girls, they are all very dainty girls... We dropped him off the first couple weeks and when we picked him up one of the teachers was holding his hand kind of restraining him and they said that he had to have a couple timeouts because he was hitting.

So then we have taken him and he seems fine but he plays with us, not with the other kids. The pushing and hitting goes both ways from my observation, but he is more noticeable because he yells no, or the other kids cries/whines. When he gets hit or pushed he just goes on playing or pushes back. Although his using any toy as a weapon is definitely a problem. He naps usually at about 11 or 11:30 which is mid nursery, so we've been avoiding the battle and just taking him home. I want him to go, he wants to go and really enjoys it when he's there, he doesn't care if we leave. I just don't feel like I can because of the teachers. When they see us coming the kind of cringe, which makes me really not want to take him. There is no way he'd make it through Sunday School because he has too much energy. Some weeks its impossible to keep him relatively quiet during Sacrament Meeting, and by the end I am exhausted and need a nap myself.

Also when we go out in public he is a major handful. He is so fast and strong that he runs, everywhere. If I put him in the stroller he fights me by arching his back and sliding himself down, or folding in half forward so that I can't buckle him in. He's ok in a shopping cart for a few minutes, extra minutes can be bought with snacks, but he throws things. Walking is a whole other nightmare, he want to jump so if you have just one hand he will jump and then like drag his feet (this is also a strategy to get me to let go of him) He'll lay down on the floor and whine or yell. So I got a backpack leash thing to give him some extra freedom, but the other day he popped the loop from my end of the leash because he took off so fast and around something that it popped.

This public issue is stressing me out especially because we are going to Disneyland in October and I am afraid of how he's going to behave.

One more interesting problem is stranger danger, well the lack of stranger danger. If I pick him up or Jake picks him up and he doesn't want to he'll holler and yell No No No, but someone he doesn't know he will let them hold him and even snuggle up to them... It really freaks me out. I am glad he is ok with other people but would like it for me not to look like the person trying to abduct him.

Ok, that is my list for now. I am ready to try any and all suggestions to help him behave better, I would love to have some play dates/play group things but am afraid that he will be mean to the other kids...

Small Sling

2010-07-17T10:37:00.000-06:00

I want to make sure everyone knows that I have started sewing again, and so I am posting this on all of my blogs.

For more info check out my craft blog: http://courtneyscraftycreations.blogspot.com/

My new craft Blog!

2010-07-16T16:22:00.001-06:00

Hey I am going to try and get my sewing back up and going and so I set up a blog to display my creations, check it out some time as of right now there aren't any pictures, but soon, very very soon!

http://www.courtneyscraftycreations.blogspot.com/

I finally get it!

2010-07-10T09:56:00.003-06:00

Ok, so I have been wondering why people have the 2 blogs when they are private but in updating our list of blogs we follow I discovered the reason! To have the links show the name and last update it can't be listed as private. So I joined the bandwagon and have a second blog that will show when we update our private blog http://gravesforalltosee.blogspot.com add this to your list and it will tell you when we update!

Discovery Gateway

2010-06-30T21:46:00.003-06:00

This was a fun trip, it was a little while ago - April 22, 2010. Corrine and I took our kiddo's to the Discovery Gateway Children's Museum. It was so much fun, it was kind of crowded because there was a school group there when we first got then, but they left after the first 20 minutes or so and then it was even more fun! Here are the pictures I took from that fun outing!

Ear Infections Be Gone

2010-05-29T11:29:00.004-06:00

Here are daddy and Nate before Nate's surgery

The whole family before surgery

Well this is a little late on the update, but on April 23 Nate had tubes put in his ears to help with the frequent/constant ear infections. It has been such a blessing, he hasn't had any problems since. Its going to be a bit harder to go play this summer in the pool and at the lake because he'll need to wear ear plugs, but its so worth it and I am sure he will get used to it... Hopefully!

He had 6 ear/sinus infections between December and April, and since then he's not had any, a couple random days of fevers, but nothing more than about 24 hours. So definitely worth it!

To Plant!

2010-05-29T09:35:00.002-06:00

We did it we decided to plant a garden this year, we have planted lots of fun things and hopefully they will grow, I will post some pictures soon, but hopefully we will have: Banana Peppers, Anaheim Chili Peppers, Jalepeno Peppers, Carrots, Beets, Cucumbers, Potatoes (Blue, Red and Russet), Garlic, Onions, Sugar Snap Peas, Tomato, Tomatillo, Soy Beans and Artichoke... I think that's everything!

We keep praying for success, also we are praying for Jake to get a promotion at work, so if you are thinking about it - add us into your prayers!

To Plant or Not to Plant, that is the question.

2010-05-15T10:08:00.003-06:00

So my community has a community garden that we can get a 10X10 plot for $20 including the water for the season. I haven't really done much growing before but I am really interested in trying it this year. I could grow lots of wonderful things - well try to grow them...

I am trying to decide if I think I can do it, I'd have to do some volunteering in the communal part of the garden each month, but that isn't a big deal, and I would learn so much about growing my own food.

Jake and I have talked recently about being prepared for times of emergency and I think this might be a really good way for us to get started on that goal.

The picture above is what the master gardener from the community suggested I do, I thing I would substitute some changes - like beets instead of radish's and maybe some other changes...

What do you all think- can I do it? Would you all be ok with getting some lettuce when its ripe?

A blogger's good intentions.

2010-04-03T18:15:00.003-06:00

Last night as I was preparing for a long slow day at work I tried to upload like all the pictures of Nate onto picasa online 495 pictures to be precise... Little did I know that if you do the face recognition thing that it only uploads the very small and close up face view of the picture. So instead of blogging about a whole bunch of different things today I will post a giant slide show Nate's face.

Nate's Harmonica

2010-03-04T19:37:00.002-07:00

Pardon the mess - Nate's been helping me fold laundry and rearrange the furniture and organize the toys - we have differing opinions on where things should go... He'll win while he's awake and then I will fix it!

way way overdue

2010-02-20T11:12:00.002-07:00

It has been much too long since I have really updated here, I still won't have time today, but I am working on it! Things to note - Nate is almost 16 months now and is so much fun, he's brilliant and has figured out how to color and play the harmonica this last week or so - its super cute!

Other news, Brooke and Dave are expecting their first baby - a boy- in May. Corrine and Tim are cooking up their 4th due in August, and Kat and Darin are going to have a 3rd in September - also Mallory is having a little girl in a couple months! Lots of babies around. We are going to wait awhile before adding to our family.

Jake's job is going so wonderfully - he is the laptop support technician for Rowland Hall St. Mark's private school and will be getting Apple repair certified soon! I am still working at Smith's pharmacy and doing pretty well there, its a good job and allows me to be home most days, I work 3 days a week. My mom is so great and watches Nate on the overlap of when Jake and I are both at work. Jake is home Saturday's when I work all day and he and Nate get to spend the whole day together and also plays with Grandma and Grandpa Graves. Its so wonderful to have family around!

In other news I have a calling at church of Relief Society Activity committee member and am really enjoying it, I am getting to know the sisters in my ward and its nice to get to know my neighbors! Jake has a calling of Building Coordinator for our ward, so far he isn't really loving it because he doesn't have enough information to do his calling effectively but hopefully he will find out what he needs to so he can feel confident and informed about what he needs to be doing.

Well there is a jumble of info - hopefully I will get around to really updating with pictures and details, but until that happens just know that I am busy chasing my maniac Nate around and absolutely loving every minute of it! Even the early mornings and late nights!

Numerology

2010-02-03T23:12:00.003-07:00

A friend posted on her blog about how accurate Numerology was - so I decided to give it a try... The results are a bit frightening.

If you want to try go to http://www.paulsadowski.com/NameData.asp

You entered: Courtney Jane Lloyd

There are 17 letters in your name.
Those 17 letters total to 75
There are 6 vowels and 11 consonants in your name.

What your first name means:
Latin Female Born at court.
French Male From the court, or short nose. From the surname of the aristocratic Courtenay family, based on the Old French word meaning short nose.
French Female From the court, or short nose. From the surname of the aristocratic Courtenay family, based on the Old French word meaning short nose. Courtly; courteous.
English Male Courtier; court attendant.
English Female Courtly; courteous.
Anglo-Saxon Male Dweller by the dark stream.

Your number is: 3

The characteristics of #3 are: Expression, verbalization, socialization, the arts, the joy of living.

The expression or destiny for #3:
An Expression of 3 produces a quest for destiny with words along a variety of lines that may include writing, speaking, singing, acting or teaching; our entertainers, writers, litigators, teachers, salesmen, and composers. You also have the destiny to sell yourself or sell just about any product that comes along. You are imaginative in your presentation, and you may have creative talents in the arts, although these are more likely to be latent. You are an optimistic person that seems ever enthusiastic about life and living. You are friendly, loving and social, and people like you because you are charming and such a good conversationalist. Your ability to communicate may often inspire others. It is your role in life to inspire and motivate; to raise the spirits of those around you.

The negative side of number 3 Expression is superficiality. You may tend to scatter your forces and simply be too easygoing. It is advisable for the negative 3 to avoid dwelling on trivial matters, especially gossip.

Your Soul Urge number is: 8

A Soul Urge number of 8 means:
With an 8 soul urge, you have a natural flair for big business and the challenges imposed by the commercial world. Power, status and success are very important to you. You have strong urges to supervise, organize and lead. Material desires are also very pronounced. You have good executive abilities, and with these, confidence, energy and ambition.

Your mind is analytical and judgment sound; you're a good judge of material values and also human character. Self-controlled, you rarely let emotions cloud judgment. You are somewhat of an organizer at heart, and you like to keep those beneath you organized and on a proper track. This is a personality that wants to lead, not follow. You want to be known for your planning ability and solid judgment.

The negative aspects of the 8 soul urge are the often dominating and exacting attitude. You may have a tendency to be very rigid, sometimes stubborn.

Your Inner Dream number is: 4

An Inner Dream number of 4 means:
You dream of being a very solid citizen that people can depend upon. You strive for organization and predictable order. You want to be recognized as a person with a plan and the discipline to make that plan work like clockwork.

Lloyd Family Nativity Program 2009

2010-01-04T20:04:00.001-07:00

Biggest Loser or Winner?

2010-01-04T11:57:00.002-07:00

Well today is day one...

I am determined to put all of my Christmas presents to good use. I have done well with my pots and pans, Mario and money's.

Today I start on the Biggest Loser game and work out DVD - I will post the stats soon (hopefully)!

Asking Questions

2010-01-02T17:21:00.002-07:00

Nate's vocabulary is very advanced this morning he walked in where Jake was working on his computer looked at him and said "whatcha doin?" He is hillarious. He will ask questions and has some phrases that he always says, we are just waiting for the day that we understand what he's saying.

He will also answer some questions, especially if you ask if he's finished with something, he knows the sign language for it. He also will tell you he's finished with something like getting his nose wiped or diaper changed or being in the car.

His other phrases are still, what is it, who is it, dadadadadada (in a fun laugh voice), moooooommmmaaaa(in a whiney voice) uh oh, quack, roar, ya, no, and so much more that I can't remember right now...

Funny Morning to Mention

2009-12-10T15:51:00.005-07:00

Yesterday morning at 6:45 Nate was awake and crying, I wondered what was wrong because he usually wakes up happy... So I walked in to his room to see him and he stood up and what a sight, he had no pants on, and had managed to remove his diaper. He was crying because his little bum was cold.

What a crazy boy, I have decided that for now he will either have a onesie on under or jammies with snaps.

Phyllis North Lingwall (Gramma)

2009-12-06T16:06:00.002-07:00

Phyllis North Lingwall 1918 ~ 2009 Phyllis North Lingwall, 91, passed away December 3, 2009, of natural causes incident to her age. She was born January 18, 1918, to George William North and Annie Greenwood. She lived all her life in the Liberty Stake where she fell in love with Karl E. Lingwall. They were sealed in the Salt Lake Temple on April 13, 1942. Karl passed away on May 9, 2000. Phyllis is survived by her four children, David K. (Carla), Barbara (Ingo) Schmidt, Jon E. (Pat), and Janet (Gerry) Graves. She has 22 grandchildren, and 39 great-grand children and they were the focus of her life. Phyllis was employed by Mountain Bell as a long distance operator for 20 years and has held many Stake and Ward callings in Relief Society and Primary. She has also served as ward organist. But, her favorite calling was as the Primary pianist where she played her testimony every week through the beautiful songs the children sang. She is greatly loved and will be greatly missed. There will be a viewing Sunday, December 6, 2009, at Larkin Mortuary (260 E. South Temple) from 6-8 p.m. Funeral service will be Monday, December 7, 2009, at the Liberty Ward (445 E. Harvard Ave.) at 11 a.m.; with a 10-10:45 a.m. viewing prior at the ward. Interment Salt Lake City Cemetery (4th Ave., N St.) Online condolences at www.larkincares.com

Nate's going to kill me but... Not until later

2009-11-28T21:36:00.002-07:00

So we have a corner tub that has a little seat in it so when we shower with Nate (its easier than giving him a bath). He sits and plays with his toys on the bench its wonderful, I get to actually shower!
The other day he was playing and all the sudden he stopped and looked down, and discovered himself, and just as carefully as he touches the bird he poked himself, and looked up with this "Oooh" face and then laughed and did it again. So funny.

Sorry if that is over-sharing but I had to document it because it was so funny.

Funny Things

2009-11-17T21:53:00.002-07:00

So here are a few funny thing about Nate:

Nate says a few words now
Daddy
What is it - which sometimes sounds like sh*t
Uh Oh
Quack
Rawr
Who is it (which also sounds like swearing)
Boo
and rarely he says mama - usually that is when he's crying

His laugh is hilarious, and is a whole body emotion.
He's got the funniest personality and runs and plays until he drops and then he's out cold.

What an adventure everyday is!

I do need to make a post about his puppy - but we will do that later!

Nate and Cali

2009-11-04T21:03:00.002-07:00

Some Birthday Celebration Photos

2009-10-23T22:01:00.001-06:00

Happy Birthday Baby!

2009-10-23T21:26:00.003-06:00

Well its been a whole year, I can't believe it we have been so blessed and sleep deprived it has been wonderful! My little one isn't a baby any longer, he is a little boy. An adorable little boy.

Here is a slide show that shows his first year, I know its long, but it started out at over 600 pictures, so I cut it down lots!

We go to the pediatrician on Monday so I will post his official stats there! I will also post again about what he's up to when I have a bit more time!

Time to be private

2009-10-23T21:24:00.002-06:00

Well now I have decided to be a paranoid mom - not that I wasn't before - but I don't want any creepy people looking on my blog at my cute family. So we went private. I know its sudden and all but I wanted to post a bunch of pictures without fear of pervs.

If you have access but know someone who doesn't and wants it please have them email me their email addresses cjgraves@gmail.com

Stay Tuned - a new post is coming...

2009-10-12T23:02:00.001-06:00

I sat down at 7:30 to post an update and started organizing pictures on my computer... Now its 11:00 and I am only 1/2 way through the pictures of Nate's First year... So be patient it will happen soon.

10 Months

2009-08-23T21:26:00.001-06:00

Well today makes 10 months we have been blessed with Nate in our family! It has been an amazing 10 months, We have loved every minute of it. Nathan is such a blessing to me in my life, being a mother brings me more joy than I could have ever imagined. Everyday I look forward to spending time with my sweet boy, he might get up too early and have too much energy and chew all the books and papers to bits, but he is still the most amazing blessing in my life.

I am loving my new work schedule I get to be home with him 4 days a week and work only 3 days. Jake and I have worked out a way for us to be able to be home with him most days, we still rely on the of help from our wonderful families a couple times a week - and are so blessed to have them close to us. Thanks to everyone for being so supportive!

Living with Jake's parents has blessed us more than I can even explain - being here has saved us from some very hard times. I am so grateful to them for opening and finishing their home to us and for being here when we need them. I don't think we will ever be able to repay their generosity but I hope they know how much we love them and how much it all means to us.
#
Well as for Nathan he is growing up too fast, he is a crawling machine and is cruisin' around all the furniture, he pulls himself up on everything and lets go for a long time before sitting down or grabbing back on to whats around him. He is discovering new things every day - which keeps me on my toes - baby proofing is hard! His top two teeth have come in about 3 times now but seem to be unsure of where they want to be because they go back in. Its so sad because they hurt him and he gets so upset. Hopefully they will just come through and stay out - it would be much better for us all!

He is a great napper, he gets up at about 7am and then takes a nap at 9:30 for 2 hours and then is up until about 2:30 and then takes another 1-2 hour nap and then goes to bed at 8pm its great! (saying that will probably curse me with nights of no sleep and days full of napping which makes it impossible to accomplish anything... but whatever). I haven't weighed him yet but he feels about the same to me but seems to be getting taller, he's thinned out in his hips - its probably only obvious to me because of diaper changing. I will update this with some new stats tomorrow if I can get him to hold still long enough!

He is a jumping bean. Ask anybody - whenever someone holds him he just jumps and jumps and everyone asks if he is always like that and I say yeah, all day! His energy and excitement level is so great, what a bundle of fun!

I will add some pictures and a post about our fun trip to Vegas a couple weeks ago another time!

Letting Go!

2009-08-10T20:31:00.003-06:00

So Nate is getting so grown up, I can hardly believe it. He now climbs stairs - we haven't figured out how to go back down yet, but he can climb up all of ours in like 2 minutes (we have 12ish stairs) and he is standing up on his own, he will use something to pull himself up and can now let go for about 10 seconds before sitting down or putting his hands back on whatever he's using to stand.

2009-08-01T18:32:00.002-06:00

This is copied from corrine's blog
We are holding a fundraiser to help Vittoria's family with medical costs as she prepares for a heart transplant. You can read some of her background here.
We are having a yard sale & bake sale on Saturday, August 15th 7 am- 4pm at 4880 West 6040 South.
I am looking for anyone who has items to donate for the sale. We are looking for clothes, furniture, household items, camping/hunting/fishing gear, toys, baby items, books, craft supplies, appliances, tools, anything that might be a treasure to someone else. In addition, we are going to put together gift baskets with new items. If you would like to donate your resources to a gift basket (ie Scentsy, Avon, art supplies, scrapbooking, cooking, gift cards, baby shower items, etc) we would LOVE it! Donate a basket or just a few items. Every little bit will help!
Please spread the word to family, friends & neighbors. I would LOVE a mention or link from your blog. We want to do all we can for this wonderful family and their angelic daughter. Even if you don't know this family, I hope you might help. It could be anyone of our loved ones in a similar situation! Thank you so much!

For more info you can contact Corrine at her blog above or me and I will get in touch with her!

9 Months and Cruisin!

2009-07-24T19:56:00.002-06:00

Well yesterday was Nate's 9 month day, and his check up. He did so great. He is growing up so fast I can't believe it!

He weighs 24 lbs still which is good, he's about 28 inches tall (I am going off memory so it could be a little different) he's in the in high 90%'s on height and head and high 80%'s for height. Everything was great at the appointment - and no shots this time!!! Yeah!

I will add some pictures later to show just how adorable he is, but he's doing great!

Nate is now doing so much he is hard to keep up with, he is crawling so fast and pulls him self up on everything be it the couch the dresser, or a wall and even on very unstable toys - one handed no less. Now that he pulls himself up on everything he is starting to walk across the couch especially if there is a remote or other interesting object around. He puts everything in his mouth like all kids. Of those things he's getting really great at feeding himself the little puffs and other things like bread and really loves watermelon peas and anything he tries.

The best 8 months ever!

2009-06-23T21:40:00.004-06:00

Nathan is 8 months old today and so wonderful!

I did my own measurements on his height and weight and he is 24.2lbs and 28 inches tall, a very solid kid! He is on his way to independence, he is crawling so good now, and has figured out how to pull him self up to standing first in his crib and now at the couch. Its super cute, he gets his hands on what he wants to reach and then scoots his knees up closer to it and then he gets all balanced and puts one foot up and then the other. Very carefully so as to not tip over. So smart and studious, he just practiced for like 20 minutes one day on my knees making sure he did it right and carefully, I am glad that he is so smart and developing but I am wondering if I should have tried to deter him from it, because now he's hard to keep out of trouble! Always reaching for the things he shouldn't.

Here's a cute video I took of him pulling himself up.

Cute family picture!

2009-06-07T22:03:00.002-06:00

Gerry took family pictures last Sunday, here is a sample photo of just us, I will put some more on here when I get them!

Unorganized...

2009-05-17T21:40:00.002-06:00

I like to think of myself as a very organized person that is on the ball and in control of life and the responsibilities I have. Well, I can't seem to get myself organized anymore. I have so much paperwork that I am having a really hard time getting things straightened out. I get so many statements from doctors and insurance companies and I am supposed to keep them just in case and some I have to submit to secondary insurance and on and on. I am having a really hard time getting them in order... That is just one of the things I can't get caught up on. Any suggestions would be great! I can't seem to get caught up on that, laundry, dishes, sleep, and all other cleaning/organizing...

I need to get it figured out because its making me so stressed out that I am always sick and I am a bit snippy to my sweet hubby
- sorry dear -
not to mention all the stress eating and too much diet coke to try to cope with me feelings of anxiety and stress!

HELP ME!!!

Tub time!

2009-05-13T19:21:00.004-06:00

We got Nate a toy for the swimming pool and we tried it out in the bathtub the other day, he really liked it!

He also really likes his rubber duckies - he's eating Scrooge and has a whole set of them from A Christmas Carol - thanks uncle Dave and aunt Brooke!

6 Months

2009-04-30T21:30:00.004-06:00

This picture captures his personality so well, he is a goof ball!

This post won't be thorough enough to do my little one justice, but its a start. Nate is 6 months (and a little bit) now and is doing great! He is getting so big and is so smart! At his appointment he weighed in at 20.4 lbs, which is in the mid 90's on the percentile and his head is in the 90's also and his height is mid 70's. He's not fat, just solid. He is so strong and muscle-y its adorable! He is working so hard to figure out how to crawl, he doesn't have it yet, but he gets around, he is so rolly and busy. He is eating so great now too, he love his baby food and cereal. He especially likes to blow raspberries with it in his mouth, its funny, for now! I have pictures, but they are stuck on my camera, so I will post them soon! He is also starting to sleep pretty well he will usually (being like 4 days in a row) go to bed at about 8:30 and sleep until 6 or so before eating. He will usually wake up a little around 4 but can be given a binkie and put back to sleep without getting him up. Its wonderful! When he gets up at 6 he will eat and then go back to sleep for a little bit which is great too!

Well, more details will come later, but for now I am just going to add some of the pictures that Mallory took when she was out here for a visit they are amazing!

5 Months

2009-03-23T21:40:00.008-06:00

Well today my little baby turned 5 months old. I can't believe it, he is getting so grown up, and is so smart and funny! We are going to get some professional pictures done soon, but here are some snap shots and videos to show just how cute he is!!!

Here is Nate Rolling over, I had a hard time getting this on film because he kept rolling over before I could start filming...

This is Nate in the exersaucer, he loves it!
Pictures will follow in another post, I am tired.

Illness

2009-03-20T21:39:00.003-06:00

Well as most of you know Nathan and I are sick... It all started Wednesday of 2 weeks ago, Nate got a cough and really congested. So we set up the humidifier, tortured him by sucking out his nose and did all the things you can do for a sick little one. By the Wednesday after that he was worse and I thought, ok if this is a virus should be improving, but no he was getting worse.

So we went to the doctor. They did a bunch of things, checked his oxygen, his ears, his lungs, his nose and throat, they even did a chest X-ray to make sure he didn't have pneumonia. Then they said keep doing what you are doing, if by Friday he's not improved call/come in again and we will look at him... So Friday, no improvement. We call and wait for a return call, by the time they got back to me (because I called again) it was pretty close to their closing time and Jake couldn't make it in. So Monday rolls around and he is still miserable, not sleeping well, coughing lots and crying, which he doesn't do. Jake gets off work early so he can take him to the doctors, they say that they think he will just get better... He was still getting worse... So by Wednesday I was so exhausted and starting to feel ill myself, I took him back again. I would have demanded an antibiotic but tada he has an ear infection so I don't have to beg, they prescribe him one! Yeah!

Rewind one day, Tuesday, I left work early because I was feeling so crummy, Wednesday morning I get up I am hacking, have a terrible sore throat, and basically no voice. So I should have had the doctor check me out or give me an antibiotic too, but he said yeah you probably got the same virus, which to me ment wait 2 weeks and then come back if you aren't better. Which is fine, I get it too many antibiotic will make them less effective. No problem. Wednesday night I am getting worse and worse, so I do what I can and get my shift covered at work for Thursday because I knew I wouldn't make it. I thought ok rest all day and I will be better for Friday's work.

Boy was I wrong.

At about 9:00 Thursday night I started throwing up, I hadn't really eaten much all day, but it was still really bad. (Thank you Jake for helping me) So nobody got much sleep last night, and when I got up at about 5 to blow my nose I thought for sure my ear was going to explode. So I went out and laid on the couch on my other side and I could literally feel the fluid in my ear moving to the other side, it was so full that just sitting up made it drain so much I could feel it. I hoped it would get better, yeah not so much. At noon today I couldn't stand it any longer so Jake took me to the insta care in Riverton, and boy were they awesome! I got in fast, they looked in my ears, nose, throat, listened to my lungs and pushed on my face and asked some questions...

When she looked in my ear, she was like wow that is bad, are you allergic to any antibiotics? We are going to give you a shot to get you started immediately on antibiotics and then prescribed a really high dose of Amoxicillin and ear drops and a rinse to gargle for my throat. And a nose spray to clear out my sinuses.

So there is my long story of our being sick... Hopefully we are all on the mend now and we are keeping our fingers crossed that Jake doesn't get it too. Its miserable.

I must thank Jake for taking such good care of me and Nathan in our time of illness. I love you!

4 months... (A little late)

2009-03-08T21:32:00.003-06:00

Well I forgot to post about Nate's 4 month check up, he is doing great!

As of February 26th
His weight 17.25 lbs, which is in the 88.36th percentile, he started out in the 9.96th percentile.
His length is 24.75 in, which is in the 42.16 percentile, he started out in the 42nd.
His head circumference is 17 in which is in the 73.67 percentile, he started out in the 38.49 percentile.

So he is awesome, he is strong and has excellent motor skills, he is starting to reach for things wants to eat what ever he can reach...

He is also sleeping so good! He goes to bed around 7 or 8 and usually sleeps until 3 or 4 then gets up to eat and then sleeps again until 6:30 or so... Its still an early morning but he is doing so great that its ok with me!

He is also starting to roll pretty good, when motivated. He's so close to going from his back to his tummy on his own, and he will go from his tummy to back especially on the bed. He loves the exersauser we are borrowing from Hill and Steve, thanks guys!

Right now he's got a cold though and its so sad, his little stuffy and runny nose make him cough and gag. It makes me nervous at night so I put him in his boppy so he'd be on an angle a little which keeps things from getting caught in his throat and he seems to be breathing better at night that way. He hasn't had a fever and is generally pretty easy to soothe when crying so I don't think he's got any thing serious, like an ear infection or RSV or anything, but we are keeping close watch over him to make sure he stays healthy. Its sad when he's sick.

Adventure in Photoshop

2009-02-25T21:49:00.003-07:00

This started out like...

This.

So fun!

Bad Blogger

2009-02-18T20:49:00.002-07:00

I have turned into the blogger I don't like. I haven't posted in such a long time. So things are getting into a routine, a more normal routine... Nate is sleeping pretty good, he'll get up once or twice in the night to eat and then goes back to sleep pretty easily! So that is wonderful. Work is getting to be more tolerable, I still struggle with the babysitting schedule, its hard to know that I will spend 1-2 hours driving so that I can go to work and leave my sweetie with someone else. I hate that part, because I get him mostly when he's sleeping.

Thursday's are the worst because I have to work from 1-9 and its especially hard because Jake has to work at 4 the next morning but still has to get him from my parents at 8ish and then when I get home he has to go to bed and its still late for him, I am usually up until about 11 then get up again at like 3 or so and then 6 to get ready and leave my house by 7:45 to get to work by 9 on Friday, so for that I don't like Thursday's, maybe one day I will get back to mornings on Thursdays but for now, I am just tired.

I know that its only for now and that one day I will get to spend more time with him and it helps that he gets so excited when he sees me and that I can still get him to calm down better than anyone and get him to sleep when no one else can. He knows I am his mommy, and that I love him.

Jake's foot is healing and he goes to the doctor next Monday and will hopefully be done with the boot and wrap and maybe just get some orthotics or something. School is good as always stressful, too much homework+ not enough sleep is hard on the body and mind.

Valentine's was super romantic though, Jake got his parents to babysit overnight for us and we went down town and had dinner at Happy Sumo and went and saw New in Town and then stayed at The Hotel Monaco, which was very nice! It was good for us to have some married time, not just mom and dad time. Sometimes we get into a rut where we are more like buddies then husband and wife. It was very special to have time to remember how much we love each other. Jake was so sweet and planned it all and I love him so much for all he does for me!

In other news we went to the dentist today, Jake had no cavities, and I had one :( so I have to get a filling next Wednesday. Bummer.

Sorry no pictures tonight, I don't want to go dig out the camera or my cell phone for pictures tonight... Maybe tomorrow. Definitely soon...

Stress...

2009-01-27T13:57:00.002-07:00

Well things have been going so well and so easily that it was time for something to break...

We wouldn't have guessed that it would be Jake's foot.

Yeah so last Friday Jake's foot started to hurt and by Saturday night he could hardly walk, we took him to the insta care on Sunday morning - which was pointless - they didn't XRay it or anything, just prescribed an anti-inflammatory and a mild pain reliever and said to go to a podiatrist.

He did this morning to find out that he has a stress fracture in his foot and will be sporting a lovely boot for a whole month. He will then probably have to get some orthotics or special shoes to help his over-pronation which is what caused the fracture...

Its always an exciting adventure.

3 Months

2009-01-25T07:30:00.003-07:00

Well Friday was the 23rd and Nathan is officially 3 months old! I can't believe it, time is going by so fast, and he is getting so big! He is very good at holding his head up when he's on his tummy and sat in a high chair for the first time the other day, it took some blankets to hold him up and he only lasted about 5 minutes, but it was awesome! We went to the pediatrician the other day and he weighed 14lbs 12 oz. That is a whole 8lbs more than his birth weight.

I ran into a family in my ward yesterday and they have a 9 month old baby and she is only like 2lbs heavier than Nate and she looks little compared to him... So we have a big boy! Although he's really not chubby - he's tall and muscly. He loves his baths and playing in his bouncer. He is so good at tracking things with his eyes and he already likes to watch TV...

Here are some snap shots!This was on Friday night almost exactly 3 month old - like within 20 minutes...
After his bath
During his bath
He was trying to roll over - off his changing table...
So cute!

Rolling by

2009-01-18T06:40:00.001-07:00

Time is going so fast, I can't believe that on this coming Friday I will have a 3 month old baby!!! I am such a happy mom and love Nathan so much! I am back at work, which is going alright... I feel like I miss so much when I am at work, but its important for me to be there.

I don't have a video or pictures yet but Nate is learning to roll from his front to back! He can do it on the bed especially when there is some gravity to help him over... I will post footage as soon as I get some!

Lloyd Christmas Party 2008

2008-12-31T19:01:00.000-07:00

More cute pictures

2008-12-31T18:33:00.002-07:00

I think that the pictures say all there is to say. Nathan is the cutest baby, and we love him so much! He is doing very well, growing up too fast. He's started smiling and laughing a little, we are still trying to get it on film - either video or a snap shot... Hopefully we will get it soon!

Super Cute!

2008-12-20T18:55:00.003-07:00

My Crafty Contribution

2008-12-09T16:33:00.003-07:00

So my sister has a craft blog - the link is on my page- and I have added a craft to her collection of baby and kids crafts. I am making baby slings, they are so cool! If you are interested you can take a look at her blog or email me directly. The picture on there is Hillary holding Nathan in one and here are some self portraits of me with mine. They are reversible and have different sizes so they will fit individually. To find your size measure from Shoulder to opposite hip. There are a few different ways to carry a baby and work for bigger babies, they can sit on your hip, like a kangaroo, and you can even slide them around to be behind you, or the way to hold a little baby in the cradle position (which is what I do with Nathan now.)

If you want to get one they are $20, and can be custom ordered - the price may vary depending on fabric.

Pictures from Thanksgiving

2008-12-08T15:06:00.004-07:00

Jake's Dad took pictures of Nathan on Thanksgiving, here are a few of our favorites! He's 5 weeks old in these pictures.

Some Pictures From Birth to a couple weeks!

2008-11-23T12:20:00.002-07:00

Meet Nathan Henry Graves
Born October 23, 2008
10:24pm
6 Lbs 13oz 20 inches

Nate and Daddy - November 12, 2008

2008-11-13T14:38:00.000-07:00

Two weeks later...

2008-11-07T14:37:00.003-07:00

It has taken me a while to get my blog updated... This isn't going to be a long one but I thought I should let everyone know I am still alive and doing very well. I have the best and most beautiful baby in the whole world. We are doing awesome. A bit sleep deprived but that is to be expected. If I was smart I would be napping now like Nate is but whatever...

The delivery was pretty eventful. I went into the hospital on Wednesday the 22nd of October at night to be induced. They did 3 doses of a drug that should have put me into labor or at least prepared my body to go into labor. It did absolutely nothing... Then in the morning they started Pitocin and broke my water (which hurt a lot) I was on the Pitocin all day long, and at 9:00pm when I was still at a 2 and only 75% effaced. We all decided that nothing was happening and a C-Section was the best option. I was so exhausted and starving - I hadn't had anything to eat since 6:00 the night before, so I was relieved that we were going to finally have a baby. They got me all prepped for surgery and Jake and my mom came in to be with me, then we got started, everything went well until I started feeling everything... Yeah so the anesthesia wore off or wasn't strong enough or something because I felt everything after the cutting, that part I could tell they were doing it but it didn't hurt. Then came the pulling/pushing or something horribly painful. I could tell when they got Nathan's head out, he started crying right then. Then his shoulders and the rest of him. They held him up over so I could see him and then they knocked me out. I was in so much pain. I could move my leg and had to tell myself not to pull it out of the restraint thing it was in. So from then on I don't remember because I was unconscious. But they had to put a tube down my throat because I was swallowing my tongue. It was so exciting... Or scary... The next thing I remember is being in my room with a lot of people standing around me. There are details missing here about coming out of the OR and into the recovery room and them asking me if I wanted to hold the baby and me saying yes like they were stupid for asking because I was so excited to have him, and then I wouldn't share him. But I don't remember that. Jake said it was cute. He will have to fill in those details.

I have much more to say but its apparently time to eat again, so I gotta go. Here's a picture that I don't remember!

To the hospital we go!

2008-10-22T19:08:00.003-06:00

Well we are just getting ready to go to the hospital now and I wanted to post one more picture of my big belly. My parents just took us out to Chuck-a-Rama for one last meal, then came over here to give me a blessing. I am so lucky to have the Priesthood in my home and available to me whenever I want! It really helped calm my nerves.

I think it will be a little while before the next post. But I will get some pictures loaded on as soon as possible! (I will make Jake do it!) So wish us luck as we welcome Nathan into our family!

Finished

2008-10-20T12:07:00.002-06:00

I am excited to say that I am done working as of last Friday! Jake and I decided that it would be ok for me to take a couple days off before to get things ready and to try and get some rest before Nathan joins our family! Its really nice to not have to worry about getting ready and having to go to work. I am so grateful for my sweet husband and all his love and support through all of this! I am also grateful for my work and how wonderful they are and have been throughout the pregnancy and how good they are being for the post-pregnancy stuff! I am so lucky!

Doctor's Update 39 weeks

2008-10-17T17:18:00.002-06:00

No change...

But, a date has been set for induction! We will be going into the hospital Wednesday night to have a baby on Thursday! YEAH!!! I am so excited! I just have no other words, its going to be awesome!

Week 39

2008-10-16T23:18:00.003-06:00

Well the picture might be a night early but whatever... Here we are at week 39... Compared to the previous pictures I think things might be progressing.

My Awesome Friends!

2008-10-13T20:53:00.004-06:00

I have some of the best friends possible! Two of the greatest are Suzanne and Tiffany, they were sweet enough to throw me a wonderful baby shower, it was so much fun! I feel so lucky to have them as well as all of my friends that came to the shower and even those who couldn't make it! We got some wonderful gifts, Janet was kind enough to take some pictures for me during the shower so I can share themon here!

Once again thank you to everyone! It was so great to have my friends and family together and I am so grateful to Sheri, Tiffany's mom for opening her house to such a roudy bunch!

Showers Galore!

2008-10-13T19:26:00.003-06:00

So this month is a very busy one for the Graves' family. Not only am I having a baby, Brooke is getting married on Halloween, Jake's cousin, Seth, is getting married and another cousin, Brianna, is having a baby (well in January - but Janet hosted the shower a few weekends ago) So we have been having lots of showers, I only have pictures from Brianna's baby shower that Janet hosted so I wanted to share them!

Brent and Brianna are going to have a baby girl in a couple months and they are going to be awesome parents so much fun!

I am a bit behind...

2008-10-13T19:06:00.002-06:00

So I haven't updated my blog as much as I should because of my feet I can't sit at the computer, so I am here on the couch with my feet up and a laptop, so its time to update!

My sister Hillary has a funny video on her blog but her blog is private so I thought I would put it on my blog so everyone could enjoy it.

I have a couple more posts I am going to put on here tonight!

The latest update

2008-10-11T13:15:00.002-06:00

So I went to the doctor on Thursday afternoon and we are still pregnant! Everything is good, no progress so probably no early baby, but that's ok, he will come when he's ready! So everything is going pretty well, my back is doing remarkably better, I am not sure if its because the baby has dropped or because I have slowed down even more, but its tons better! My feet are gross and puffy most of the time. (I just got a pedicure though - so they look pretty!)

We are pretty much ready, I think... People keep asking what we need still and I am not really sure. I have thought of a couple things that I think we want but don't know if we really need them... We don't have a thermometer (I think the ear kind is what we want), diaper garbage can, baby monitor, or a baby hair brush and other grooming kit stuff.

Other than that we just need the baby!

What color crayon are you?

2008-10-03T21:40:00.001-06:00

You Are a Purple Crayon

Your world is colored in dreamy, divine, and classy colors.

You hold yourself to a sky high standard, and you are always graceful.

People envy, idolize, and copy you without realizing it. You are an icon for those who know you.

And while it is hard to be a perfectionist, rest assured it's paying off!

Your color wheel opposite is yellow. While yellow people may be wise, they lack the manners and class needed to impress you.

What Color Crayon Are You?

I saw this on my friend Becky's Blog and wanted to know... What color am I?

New update

2008-10-03T21:23:00.002-06:00

Sorry not to write very much, my feet and hands don't allow for much computer time they get too puffy.

I went to the doctor today and everything is still looking good. It doesn't sound like we will be having an early baby by any means... He said though that as of today he thinks he weighs about 7lbs 12oz. I am hoping he doesn't get too much bigger - ouch...

But everything and everyone is doing great!

Doctor's Update

2008-09-26T21:28:00.003-06:00

So today is week 36, everything is going very well! The doctor said that things are looking good and that if I were to go into labor today (not that I will anytime before my due date) that as of today he'd say the baby is about 6 lbs. Can you believe it? That is so crazy to me... I am kind of hoping he doesn't get too much bigger, I have to deliver him, ouch!

Tomorrow Jake and I are going to go to a birthing class. I am a bit nervous for it but hope that I will learn lots and come away less nervous than I go in. We will see.

I asked the doctor about my swelling and he said that I was just one of the unlucky ones who has that and to make it go away I will have to have a baby... I don't need to force myself to drink 3 liters of water, thank heaven's that was too much.

(I guess a little info about that would be good.)

So last Saturday I got really puffy my feet, legs up past my knees, my fingers, hands, wrists and arms. My face was getting puffy too. So usually that goes down by the morning. Sunday I woke up and it was still bad and my feet were hurting really bad like I couldn't even walk on them. I was having muscle cramps in my arms and legs and I felt all around crappy. So I called Corrine and she told me to call the dr. so I called the dr, well the Women's Center and asked them what to do. They said I should be drinking 3 liters of water a day, to put my feet up and relax, check my bp and if it was really high to go in to the hospital to be checked out. So I have been doing those things and have been pretty nervous about it. I think though that the machine at my work is just not very accurate because I checked it at work today and it was 138/83 and at the doctors it was 123/7? but it was normal, like really good normal. So he's not worried, so I am not worried. But the best news was that I don't have to drink that much water. I am going to keep drinking lots because it does help but not that much.

Anyways.

I asked if there was anything I could do for my back pain... He said that pretty much having the baby was all that would really help. I told him that the physical therapy didn't really make a difference and he said yeah that I probably have some disk problems and that nothing really will help. No drugs for the pregnant girl...

He thinks that we will go to the due date or at least pretty close. (Hopefully before Halloween) That is the goal.

So that is what's new. Oh and I had Jake take my picture tonight, after some unsuccessful shoe shopping. I look really thrilled... But I figure its a pretty accurate picture of how I feel most nights. So Here I am in all my pregnant glory at week 36, with only 28 days until D day! I feel huge today. Maybe I will get a better picture tomorrow and put that on here instead... But for now.

Baby Showers

2008-09-13T12:09:00.004-06:00

Last weekend was so much fun! We got to have 2 baby showers!!! I am so blessed to have such wonderful family and friends. I have a few pictures from each of the showers and a picture catalog of what we were given from both showers. I must also mention the awesome diaper cake my sisters made (its not really cake - it is really diapers).

There are lots of pictures but everything was so cute I couldn't not put it on here!

Thanks to everyone that helped plan, host, and came to celebrate!

7 months - August 24th

2008-09-01T09:21:00.002-06:00

I figured that I probably should have at least one picture of me all big and pregnant to prove to Nathan one day that I really am his mom! This was taken 2 months from our due date so 31 weeks and a couple days.

Crazy Week

2008-08-23T09:56:00.003-06:00

This has been an emotional week for me. It started out with my back hurting really bad on Monday, yeah Monday. I mean I can usually deal with it hurting like Thursday or Friday like it was, the stabbing pain that doesn't get better unless I lay down for a couple hours with heat and ice. So I was worried for the week because of that. Then Tuesday just got worse, because even after the heat, ice, and laying down on Monday night the pain was immobilizing after 2 hours of work on Tuesday. So I called my physical therapist to see when she could get me in, and her office people said that Monday was the soonest she had time available... That wasn't going to work. So I called her cell phone and left a message and then also called her other office (down town) to see if she had any availabilities there, I got a no, but we'll have her call you. So at 2 after a couple people went to lunch I went home. I got a call at about 2:30 from Laurie (my pt)saying that I could go in right then to her down town location or Wednesday at 7:30 to the Sandy location. I went then, to the downtown office. She got me feeling a little better, enough that I could walk and sit and stand without being in more than a little pain. She kept a spot open for me on Wednesday night, which was a really good thing because Wednesday was just as bad as Monday had been. So I went again and she taped my back which I think helped a little...

Then Thursday happened...

It should have been a day full of excitement because the Arveseth's moved back that day. But it turned out differently.

So I work in the afternoon Thursday's now, which makes it my day to get things done, phone calls, appointments, etc. I needed to get some details from the HR people at my work about how the disability/maternity leave stuff all worked. In case I had to leave early because of my back, and to see what happens after the baby comes. Well I called the Kroger corporate people and the lady looked me up. She in an very emotionless tone said, well since you have not been here a whole year you have no benefits. You will be terminated when you leave. Insurance will be canceled as soon as you don't meet the hour requirements. Then when you are ready to come back you will have to reapply, which means a new start date and the same waiting period for insurance.

Any other questions?

So then I called my mom, my poor mom... I lost it, complete hysterics, I couldn't breathe, I couldn't talk, I couldn't do anything. After about 5 minutes of not really being able to talk she spent the next 20 minutes trying to get me to calm down and to help me know that it would be ok and that everyone would do what they could to help and that with my license I would be very employable after the baby came, and told me that I needed to talk to my actual store people and the local people to make sure that was their policy as well. It was made so much worse with the state of my back because I was planning on calling in sick because it was so sore from the first thing in the morning.
I was a mess.
Jake started school this morning also so he called me between classes and probably 10 minutes after I talked to my mom, I was still crying, and he was in a panic when I couldn't tell him what was wrong. A hysterical wife is bad but a hysterical pregnant wife is much scarier plus my sister's family was on there way here flying cross country. He was about to run to his car and come home, I had to tell him that everyone was ok and get out the news about my job and insurance... He didn't freak out quite the same way as I did, I don't think he even cried - men are so lucky to not cry so easily. He also tried to tell me it would be ok and that I just needed to relax and that we'd figure it out. He told me to call in to work and see about taking the day off like I had been planning...

So I tried. They were short handed and if I didn't work my whole shift it would leave them with 2 people during lunches and at closing. So that wasn't an option, I had to find someone to cover for me. Well the people I could think of weren't answering their phones, one didn't even have an active phone number... I left a message for one person and hoped she would call me back as I tried to prepare myself for an emotionally and physically draining evening. Finally 30 minutes before I would have had to go in she called and could work half my shift for me. It saved me, I got to spend some time with Jake for lunch and then went and visited with my mom for an hour or so. By then I was emotionally in control enough to not get hysterical at the thought or mention of any of it. I worked my 4 hours, of which only the last hour or so was my back in complete spasm, so that was good.

Friday came around and I knew it was time to talk to the store people to see what they could do for me. It was hard to talk to the manager guy, luckily he is super nice and easy to talk to. I told him what the corporate people said and he quickly said no, no I won't take you off the payroll, you won't lose your job, you can pay for COBRA when you aren't working and then as soon as you are back up to the required monthly hours you will re qualify for insurance. I told him my concerns with being gone more than 6 weeks and he told me he's had people gone for much longer and not fired them when they had a reason to be gone. Phew. One hurdle for the day done. I also needed to make sure that my pharmacy people would help me out and to see if I could cut back hours. They were so very reassuring and said that all the maternity leave stuff would be fine and that Paige (the Smith's pharmacy guy, over all the Smith's in the area, also my old bishop) would make sure I get the hours I need, even if its at more than one location. And if I need more time off he would put me in the float pool and that would keep me from being able to be fired even if I didn't work. Phew again. And then with yesterday being pay day we all got our checks and the other tech's who have all worked for years for Smith's got raises... I didn't. Because I am considered an apprentice or something, but we looked and I am like 2 weeks away from the next pay step, its done by hours, so I will be getting a 60 cent raise sometime in September, isn't that awesome! I told them I wanted to cut back some hours because of my back, I was afraid because the scheduling has been kind of an issue at my work... But they were good with it and I will just cut back an hour a day, so work 9-4 MTWF and 2-9 Th which I think will really help me out and won't totally destroy my pay, like calling in sick or leaving extra early would do. Plus it will probably make it so I can work longer, like for the next 9 weeks.

Jake just called me this morning to tell me he just got his insurance packet from Target and that he will be eligible for insurance in September.

So with all of my freaking out and the horrible things from this week, it is ending on a happy note and with some extra reassurance that everything really will be ok and that God is listening to our prayers and will take care of us and not give us more than we can really handle.
(Sometimes I wish the reminders weren't quite so hard)

Birthday's are so much fun!

2008-08-04T17:41:00.002-06:00

So I am so lucky I get to share my birthday with my sweet husband. Its not on the same day, mine's on the 1st and his is on the 4th. But they get grouped together and we celebrate for like a week or so.

This year was awesome! I can't believe that I am 25. Its crazy.

So we both took Friday (my birthday) off from work and spent the day together. We slept in, a little, went and got hair cuts, then went to lunch and did some browsing down at the Gateway.. Happy Sumo, mmm, so good. Then we went to Smith's Market Place where it was my work's double discount day and went birthday shopping. Yeah!!! My mom told me they were just giving us money, so we decided to use it... I got a new, small, and awesome digital camera. I can't believe how much they have changed in the past couple years, it was so inexpensive compared to our other camera, and has more megapixels. Its crazy. I love it, I can put it in my pocket, or in my purse... Or in a diaper bag... Where ever really. Jake got Super Mario Party 8 for the Wii, which is pretty fun!

Then we went to dinner, to Chili's, with Brooke and her boyfriend Dave - thanks Brooke!

The celebrations continued on Saturday with an early screening of the Mummy 3, which was cheesy but entertaining. Then we had a reunion/party for the Mad's of 2001. I must admit to being more than a little apprehensive to attending this, but it turned out to be lots of fun! It was so nice to see some old friends again and to see where they are in life, who has kids, and what everyone is up to. We made plans for after the party for Nate and Kristen to come up and to play some Wii with us, Nate was a madrigal with Jake, thats where they became best friends. It was so much fun to have them over, they live in Provo, which doesn't seem like such a long way, but we have a really hard time coordinating our schedules so we can hang out. But it worked great this weekend! So much fun!!

Then Sunday we had a birthday cake with Jake's family after church - Brooke made an awesome cake, she works at Cold Stone, So it was half white cake with cotton candy icecream, and half chocolate cake with chocolate/peanut butter icecream, so delicious! Then we went to my parents house for dinner and more celebrations... It was so fun, excellent dinner and an awesome cake from Corrine, it was triple chocolate cake with fresh strawberries mixed with whipped cream between two of the layers and then just whipped cream between the other layers. She makes her cakes with Diet Coke instead of the oil, water and egg. Its so much better calorie wise and tastes and looks just the same! Its brilliant! She is so talented with the decorating and stuff, I am so very impressed.

Today is Jake's birthday, and the poor boy has had to spend all day at school. But it was definately worth it, he is getting A's in pretty much every class! I am so proud of his dedication to his education. Its hard for him, always has been, but he has really stepped up and taken charge of his future. I am so very impressed with him!

Jake - I love you very very much and hope you had a happy birthday!

Walk Down Memory Lane

2008-07-30T17:28:00.003-06:00

I've seen this around a bit, and I loved the idea so here goes.

Here are the instructions:

1. As a comment on my blog, leave one memory that you and I had together. (It can be Me or Jake or both... Yeah I am dumb and didn't notice this sooner...) It doesn't matter if you knew me/us a little or a lot; anything you remember.

2. Next, re-post these instructions on your blog and see how many people leave a memory about you. It's fun to see the responses. If you leave a memory about me, I'll assume you're playing the game and I'll come to your blog and leave one about you.

So Excited!

2008-07-28T22:02:00.005-06:00

I was looking back at my recent posts and realized that I complain too much. Things are really going great! I just want to take a minute and highlight the great things that are happening.

We are having a baby, a boy, in 3 months!!! Its amazing, he is doing great, he's growing and moving around which is an awesome feeling. (Some times like a roller coaster) But knowing that my little one is in my belly growing strong and so active is such a great thing. I feel so blessed to have the opportunity to experience it. We went and registered at Babies-R-Us a couple weeks ago and it is so fun, all of the little things and cute stuff. It really made things more real, and put a timeline really into place. I can't wait until our little boy gets here and we get to meet him face to face. It will be the most amazing event ever.

My family is so supportive. Everyone has offered to help with Nathan after he gets here, its so good to know that I have loved ones around me close enough to me that I can depend on them when life gets crazy or when I will need a baby sitter for any reason. To have the support of people I trust and know will love my child as much as I do is such a blessing and a burden lifted from my mind. I mean I already have a babysitter lined up so I can go see Twilight when it comes out on December 12th(Thanks Janet!), I mean that is love!

I have a really good job, I enjoy so much getting to help people and to work with fun people and especially the 5 minute drive to work. Its great not to have to fill up my tank every couple days. Plus the willingness to work around my schedule and energy level is so nice. Being able to switch from 4 - 10's to 5 - 8's now is so nice, I don't come home totally exhausted. I love it. The fact that they are going to try to figure out the best schedule for me instead of me trying to work into their schedule is a huge blessing also.

I am also so very very very lucky to have Jake for my husband. He is so great and so loving and supportive of everything. He does the dishes and laundry and cooks and does all the things that I ask him to do, and he doesn't complain or get upset about doing them. I love him so much more each day for being there for me. He's going to be the best daddy.

I am so blessed in all areas of my life and really know that my Father in Heaven loves me and has a plan for me and I know that he will support me through all things, easy or hard. They are possible because of his plan.

Its hard to plan the unplannable.

2008-07-27T21:18:00.002-06:00

So you all know I am a planner, I like to make plans for everything, even to make plans... I am finding it very difficult to plan for after Nathan arrives though. Even for before he gets here really. Everyone asks what my plan is for after and when I will go back to work and how long I get off and yada yada.

My most frustrated and honest answer is that I have no clue... I know I have to go back to work, probably 6 weeks after he's born. Which is like the second week of December. I know I will have to work at least 26 hours a week for insurance, but more for some financial stability... I know that I don't want to. I am really trying to think of a way to cut back to about 30-36 hours a week, I want to be home with my baby to raise him and take care of him.

My work asked me the other day what my plan was and I told them about the plan Jake and I had discussed, for him to work 4-8 m-f + Saturday's and me to work 9-4 m-f and him to go to school after that at night. They aren't sure if that will work or not. I am not sure either. I can't decide if it would be better to be gone for a shorter amount of time everyday or work like 3 days a week for 12 hours a day. What do you think? And if I am to work the 3 12's how would that work in with Jake's schedule. I just don't know what to do.

It seems so impossible to plan because Jake will be between semester's when I go back, and won't be able to even register for school until like November or something. So I don't know what his school schedule will be. And if he were to find some amazing job that pays well and has insurance and could work easily with school that would be amazing. Its just so hard to figure out a plan when there are so many unknowns.

My only plan as of now is to try to stay healthy, keep my back in shape, and work as long as I can before the baby comes so that I don't loose out on any time after he's here.

Pregnancy = brain dead.

2008-07-07T21:16:00.001-06:00

I so was excited this morning when I was driving to work, I kept reminding myself not to forget to call and wish my dad a happy birthday...

I did...

He laughed...

His birthday is tomorrow...

A.C. repairs and a new outlook

2008-07-06T21:27:00.003-06:00

Well its once again been a really long time since I updated my blog. Now that I work at Smith's I don't have time to blog like I used to.

So our air conditioner wasn't working like all summer it wouldn't get below 77 in the basement and it was usually between 81 and 83 most of the time. We had to go upstairs to get cool. So after about a month of being hot and uncomfortable we finally went out and got ceiling fans to put up in the basement. We got one installed and it works great! Thanks Tim and Jake for doing it! Then Jake's parents decided to call some one to come look at it finally. There was a loose connection... So the unit that was supposed to be cooling the main floor and basement hadn't even been working for who knows how long. So they fixed it and its back to being nice and cool down here. Sometimes its even cold! We are going to return the other fans or maybe sell them to a friend if they are what she's looking for. I am so glad its fixed. I was miserable in the heat.

Pregnancy update. Things are good we are at 24 weeks now and everything is good. I am a mess though, I spill on everything I wear, drop things constantly and get my words all mixed up... (some of that isn't new, just more severe) Also my back is being stupid. I am doing physical therapy for it but have been grounded from dishes and much laundry. Its really frustrating to me because Jake is so busy with school its hard for him to get everything done. And I feel bad that he has to do it. I am so grateful for him though because he does it without complaint and is trying to keep on top of it so I don't get even more frustrated. Its really hard for me to slow down, I shouldn't pick up my nieces and nephew, I should do any kind of bending and twisting or lifting at work and I need to be super careful because I am already showing signs of carpel tunnel wish is made worse with pregnancy. I am trying to do all the stretches and limit myself like the physical therapist has told me I need to. I just feel like a big lazy bum though because I want to do those things and be helpful and active. I never thought I would miss doing the dishes or laundry or cleaning... But I do.

Jake is really worried that it will get worse and I will have to stop working and what that might do to us financially and everything. I am worried but try not to think about it. Its too scary to ponder at this point.

Luckily my work is awesome and considerate. I know I could cut back hours or work short days or even split shifts if I needed to to make it work. I am so lucky to work where I do and with the people I do.

I am also so blessed to live where I do, Jake's parents are amazing and so generous to us. They are so willing and ever ready to help us with whatever our needs are and it is so kind of them to let us live with them for an unknown amount of time.

I can't believe how much love we have from both sides of our family. I don't know many people who have as awesome of parents as I do and such great in-laws as me. Usually its one or the other. I got both!!! I am the luckiest.

Tomorrow is my dad's 60th birthday, I can't believe it, he is still so young and can do so much more than I can. No one would believe that he is 60. He is an amazing example to me of love and hard work. He is always doing more than anyone knows to support his family spiritually and temporally. I hope I can be as good of an example as he is.

I can't say all these nice things without mentioning my mom. She is my rock and my guide. She just changed jobs so that when our baby is born she will be available to help us with him. This is a gift I will never be able to repay. Without her I don't know what we would do, she will make it possible for Jake to continue on with his education and for me to be able to keep my job (and our insurance).

Like I said I am the most blessed person to have such great family here for me to support, love and guide me through all my struggles.

New Pictures

2008-06-21T11:14:00.007-06:00

I still don't know how to put the movie on here, but here are some of the most recent pictures!

More pictures and a DVD

2008-06-06T23:03:00.003-06:00

Ok, so we had the real 20 week dr's appointment with the big utrasound and got more pictures and a DVD... Unfortunately our computer has a fan that isn't working properly and cannot be used until fixed... So we are borrowing Gerry's laptop tonight and Jake will scan the pictures tomorrow on Gerry's scanner, so then you will all get to see the cuteness that is our baby!

Until then - everything is perfect!

It's a...

2008-05-22T13:59:00.003-06:00

Boy!

The picture that is labeled face, is kind of creepy I think... But he's laying on his side or stomach or something, I can't tell... But everything is good, he doesn't have a hole in his head.

Its so nice to be able to say he.

Tagged

2008-05-18T22:16:00.004-06:00

8 Things I’m Passionate About
1) Family
2) Church and the Gospel
3) Clean Dishes - I mean sanitary clean!
4) Being comfortable
5) Sleep
6) Blogging
7) Grey's Anatomy
8) Twilight, I don't know what to call the series, but the vampire books... they are awesome.

8 Songs I Can Listen to Over and Over Again and Never Get Sick of(I am bad a song titles and don't feel like looking them up... so whatever... Plus I get sick of songs but not albums so we'll see what goes on here.)
1) To Make you Feel my Love - Garth Brooks
2) Anything by Liszt or any classical really
3) Lullaby (Good Night my Angel) Billy Joel
4) I Swear - only when Jake sings it though.
5) Blackbird - Beatles
6) Fire and Rain - James Taylor (pretty much all James Taylor though)
7) Josh Groban.
8) Annie's Song - John Denver

The Past 8 Books I’ve Read
1) Eclipse - Stephanie Meyer
2) Twilight - Stephanie Meyer
3) New Moon - Stephanie Meyer
4) Pride & Prejudice - Jane Austin
5) Mansfield Park - Jane Austin
6) Persuasion - Jane Austin
7) Harry Potter (all of them) - J.K. Rowling
8) Work and the Glory Series - Gerald N. Lund

8 Things I Say Often
1) Smith's Pharmacy
2) I am hungry
3) Be right with you.
4) It's a Boy!!!
5) We'll probably name him Nathan
6) Sweetheart... could you...
7) 5 more minutes, please.
8) I don't know.

8 Things That Attract Me to a Friend
1) Kindness
2) Relaxing
3) funny
4) Same standards
5) On time... Punctuality is important.
6) Dependable
7) Happy
8) Accepts me for who I am

8 Random Things About Me
1) I am pregnant.
2) I love Diet Coke, and am having a diet coke baby...
3) I am scared of being a mom of a toddler (I am a nursery leader right now and don't really like it... then again there's like 12-14 kids...)
4) I have Graves' disease. The irony of the name makes everyone laugh.
5) I wish Jake would pick out all my clothes, he's better at it than me.
6) I love Mexican food... Oddly enough its one of the only things that doesn't give me heartburn
7) Changing from an insurance person to a pharmacy person was one of the best decisions ever.
8) I am a bit of a control freak

8 Things I Want to Do Before I Die
1) Keep a journal and scrapbooks for future posterity *blogging is how I do it now*
2) Tour Europe
3) Raise well behaved kids.
4) Graduate College.
5) Have grandkids
6) Own a house
7) Go to all the temples
8) Tour the USA

8 Things I’ve Learned This Past Year
1) Things happen for a reason, and you have to wait and see what the reason is.
2) Change is good, scary but good.
3) Jake is the best husband
4) I have been entirely too dependant on Ibuprofen.
5) Being pregnant most of the time is fine, almost great, but some times really sucks.
6) I am kind of a control freak (as mentioned previously)
7) Complaining about work only makes work harder.
8) Humility is hard and when you think your there you are not.

8 People I'm Tagging
1) Jake
2) Corrine
3) Hillary
4) Kat
5) Mallory
6) Jamie
7) Kristin
8) Mary

Brooke's Graduation

2008-05-15T10:42:00.002-06:00

Well its been a couple weeks now but on May 3, 2008 Brooke graduated with her Bachelor's Degree in Psychology. We got to go down to Cedar City and St. George for a couple days to be at the graduation and to celebrate with her!

Here are some pictures from the graduation!

We are very proud of her and a bit jealous that at 20 she has her bachelors... Early college high school would have been nice.

whrwhrwhrwhr

2008-05-10T12:00:00.002-06:00

What an awesome sound. We had another doctor's appointment this week, everything is going great! We will have the gender check in 2 weeks and then some new pictures! All we got this Wednesday was to hear the heart beat, but that was enough for me. I am so excited and way less sick feeling. I am kind of an emotional monster some of the time though. I get really ticked off really easily. Unfortunately it seems to only trigger the urge to cry... Very annoying.

Its crazy even though I have only gained about 3 pounds none of my pants fit, everything feels tight and uncomfortable, so I am on a mission to find cute maternity clothes, its hard because all the stores are between seasons. Totally annoying. I have like 1 pair of pants that work... Hopefully I will find some more today.

I forgot to post about my broken window. So last Thursday was supposed to be my appointment, and I was on my way after doing inventory at work and then going to breakfast. I was going north on Bangerter and between 90th (where the doctor is) and 98th about half way something, I don't know what hits my window, my driver's side window and shattered it, in on me... I feel very blessed that it was a cold wet day because I had a jacket on so no cuts there and I also am so blessed that I wear glasses, because I am pretty sure I would have gotten glass in my eyes otherwise. So the government's economic stimulus money came just in time to replace my window... It was scary, I had to reschedule my dr's appointment (apparently).

Finished basement - Finally

2008-04-29T11:43:00.001-06:00

Here we go, I finally got it cleaned up enough to take some pictures, its not perfect but yeah!

First Doctor's appointment

2008-04-03T19:04:00.003-06:00

Everything is great!!! We are due October 26th as of now. I am so excited!!! It was awesome to go and have my first ultrasound done and to see and hear the baby, it was moving around and its little heart was just pounding away! Everything is going great from what we know!!!

Here's the pictures! The head is on the left.

Here's the heart it was beating at 169 which is perfect!

Coupons... And money saving tips...

2008-04-01T21:17:00.002-06:00

Ok, so now that I have a kitched again and a baby on the way I need to learn how to not just be frugal but really cheap, a penny pinching, tightwad. I have clipped the coupons from Sunday's paper and have been told about a couple websites (coupons.com & savvyshopper.com) to find coupons from. I work at Smith's so I can get the ad for the week, and try to plan accordingly. But thats as far as I have gotten in the money saving, smart planning, menu making ways.

I need some help.

I would love some tips from all of you savvy shoppers and busy mom's or even just full time workers, I need to save time and cook at home but where do you find the time to do it? Let alone plan it out.

I wish I could to the neighborhood meal thing like the Hicken's but I don't have friends that live close enough by to make that work... So I am on my own...
Please any suggestions would be awesome!!!

(And Corrine - according to Hillary I need to go shopping and planning with you, she said you are the best around!)

SOLD - Oversized Pillow-Backed Couch and Loveseat Set for Sale

2008-03-20T21:17:00.003-06:00

SOLD

Price: $250

*Sorry Becky, I would have prefered selling them to you, but we sold them last night at like 10:00.

Couch Dimentions: 97" (8'1") Long X 39" Deep X 30" Tall
Loveseat Dimentions: 60" (5') Long X 39" Deep X 30" Tall
7 Large Pillows
2 Small Pillows
1 Long Pillow

We are pained to get rid of this couch, but it won't fit into the basement we live in. The couch seats 4 comfortably and is long enough to lay down on. The loveseat fits 2 pretty snugly (its more of a chair and a half) But it is way comfy to lounge in and relax.

Both are in good condition, they are a few years old so they aren't perfect but we have taken great care of them. We do not smoke, have cats or dogs, nor any kids. Since the couch won't fit into the basement it is in the garage right now but it is clean and dry and there are no bugs.

The tones (as seen in the pictures) are light creamy and have accents that vary to a brownish tan. They are very neutral. All of the pillows have the two different tones, and are reversable (both patterns are shown in the pictures).

**If you are interested make sure you have transportation**

Our contact information:phone: 680-0723
Or send email.

If you have questions or want to set up at time to come and see please let us know!

Finished basement and More...

2008-03-20T21:07:00.003-06:00

Well to all of those who are waiting for pictures of the basement, it is finished, but quite the disaster zone, we have stuff everywhere... Its such a mess.

I will get pictures up as soon as it is somewhat presentable. But for now, you will all have to wait!

In other news...

For those of you who don't always check Jake's Blog, you should. There is some very exciting family news on there. (Yep, that's right, we are pregnant!) We are very excited, I am a bit terrified of the whole having a baby thing, but I am sure when we get to that point, I will be ready for it... at least for it to be out... I haven't been really very morning sick, kind of an all around sick, but so far now throwing up or anything. My sense of smell is insane, its kind of annoying, except for the fact I can't do the dishes... That's nice, Jake is so sweet and he does them! Other than that my main thing is being tired and hungry too frequently... And pretty thirsty, for water of all things. My first appointment isn't until the 3rd of April which is getting closer but still seems too far away.

Anywho, I can't really think of anything else to say in this post... I will update soon!

Sorry to be a slacker...

2008-03-05T21:23:00.002-07:00

So I have been back from Connecticut since Saturday, but have been totally busy with work and moving and being tired to update anything.

So I have tons of pictures from my trip to put on here. We had so much fun in Connecticut and New York, it was a blast as you could read from Hill's blog.

Here are the pictures, I hopefully will get on and put captions on, but here we go for these at least!

Connecticut Update

2008-02-28T06:58:00.002-07:00

Hello everybody! I wanted to let you know that you should look at Hillary's blog, she's put some pictures on of the fun things we've done. I forgot to bring the cable to plug in my camera so all my pictures will be put on when I get back to Salt Lake!

Also Jake might be updating his blog soon with pictures of our nearly done basement! All that's left are closet doors! Yeah!!!

Connecticut

2008-02-21T20:08:00.003-07:00

Well I am here now! I made it, my flight was great, the drive from the airport to the Hill's place was long, the buildings in New York are so cool to see in real life! I am so excited to be here.

I started reading Twilight on my way here, its an awesomely addictive book! I am excited to see what happens.

I will post pictures on here when I get a chance, it will probably be when I get home.

Also an update on the basement. The bath tub in installed and fully functional with the shower and bath fixtures in place. Its awesome. We also have countertops now, they are a pretty laminate - the installation was very smelly, but they look great. Jake and I got to pick out the tiles for the back splash, they are really cool and coordinate nicely with the rest of the basement decor. It will probably be finished this week and for sure be done when I get back from Connecticut. Yeah for our own space!

Exciting Events!

2008-02-15T08:11:00.001-07:00

Well my license is coming in the mail finally! I even am able to print a verification of license from the internet!!! Its so exciting!

Yet more exciting is that Steve (Arveseth) is going to Brazil for a week for work, and I am going to CONNECTICUT!!! for 10 days!!! I am leaving on Thursday of next week and coming home the Saturday March 1st!!!

Basement 2/5

2008-02-08T19:17:00.000-07:00

I am having a hard time keeping up with the changes, they are pretty big dramatic and beautiful changes! So here are some out dated pictures of what's going on down there!
Half are Tuesday before work and the other half are after work and on Wednesday

February 1 Basement Pictures...

2008-02-03T10:09:00.000-07:00