I think it's pretty obvious that I've been slacking like whoa on updating this blog. Over the next couple weeks my plan and commitment is to write a blog a day catching up on the past 2 1/2 months. Mostly for my own records, but also on the off chance that anyone is still reading this blog. And for my sweet cousin Anna who requested that I update this dang thing! =) To start with today, here's a little summary (aka list of excuses why I haven't blogged) of what's been going on in our lives!
1) We moved to North Carolina about six weeks ago. After about a week long ordeal of packing, driving, flying, and truck deliveries, we are all here in one piece. Austin has been at his new job for about six weeks now and absolutely loves it. We are staying with his parents for just a couple more weeks because...
2)...we bought a house! The first couple of weeks here were spent looking non stop at I swear every single house for sale in the great Raleigh area. And we found our perfect place. They accepted our offer a couple weeks ago and we are just waiting for it to close. We should be moving in by the end of November. And we are getting this darling little house just in time because...
3)...baby #2 is on the way! I am 18 weeks along and due April 3rd. I posted this on Instragram a while ago, but since that isn't as far reaching as Facebook, I feel bad that I've left so many out of the loop. We are so excited and will be finding out in a few weeks if it's a boy or girl.
And I think that about sums up the really big stuff! Look forward to posts on our 4th of July beach trip, two trips to Connecticut and New York, birthdays, Fall, and lots and lots and LOTS of pictures. Thank you for being patient with me and for even continuing to check this page after such a long sabbatical!
Wednesday, October 31, 2012
Tuesday, August 14, 2012
Gone to Carolina
Ohh for heaven's sake, has it really been this long since I last blogged?? Well this little announcement will serve as my excuse...
We are moving to North Carolina!
Yeah, we just moved to Idaho. Well 8 months ago now. But this is definitely a move we did not plan to make so soon. Austin received an amazing job offer in Raleigh. We tried to turn it down, a couple of times actually. But the offer just kept getting better and in the end we couldn't say no.
We are leaving Idaho the first week of September and will be driving to Utah for a couple of days and then Austin will drive the moving truck the rest of the way while I fly with the babe. We considered driving the whole thing together. And then we came to our senses and faced the reality that we have a 14 month old who does NOT like to be in his car seat for more than ten minutes max. So my gallant husband will be doing the remaining 30 hours of driving on his own.
I have spent the last three weeks cleaning and packing and spending about 8 hours a day on the phone making arrangements to move across the country.
We are so excited about this too because we are going to be able to buy a house!!!! I can't even begin to describe how grown up that makes us feel. We thought we would buy a house here, but for some reason Lewiston doesn't believe in houses that have more than one bathroom. Or that were built post-1892.
Anyway, blogging might be sporadic during this transition. I am still planning on doing a recap of all of our summer vacation adventures. Austin will be out of town for work until Monday so I'll have some free time on my hands and maybe I'll take a packing break to upload some of the 700 (seriously) pictures that we took.
For now...here's a little sneak preview.
We are moving to North Carolina!
Yeah, we just moved to Idaho. Well 8 months ago now. But this is definitely a move we did not plan to make so soon. Austin received an amazing job offer in Raleigh. We tried to turn it down, a couple of times actually. But the offer just kept getting better and in the end we couldn't say no.
We are leaving Idaho the first week of September and will be driving to Utah for a couple of days and then Austin will drive the moving truck the rest of the way while I fly with the babe. We considered driving the whole thing together. And then we came to our senses and faced the reality that we have a 14 month old who does NOT like to be in his car seat for more than ten minutes max. So my gallant husband will be doing the remaining 30 hours of driving on his own.
I have spent the last three weeks cleaning and packing and spending about 8 hours a day on the phone making arrangements to move across the country.
We are so excited about this too because we are going to be able to buy a house!!!! I can't even begin to describe how grown up that makes us feel. We thought we would buy a house here, but for some reason Lewiston doesn't believe in houses that have more than one bathroom. Or that were built post-1892.
Anyway, blogging might be sporadic during this transition. I am still planning on doing a recap of all of our summer vacation adventures. Austin will be out of town for work until Monday so I'll have some free time on my hands and maybe I'll take a packing break to upload some of the 700 (seriously) pictures that we took.
For now...here's a little sneak preview.
Friday, July 20, 2012
I have about a hundred blog posts to write to document our three week excursion to North Carolina, the beach, Connecticut, New York, etc. I have over 700 pictures from the trip to sort through, so be ready for some very photo dense posts in the near future.
But today I wanted to just document a little experience we had in Wal Mart while doing our restocking shopping trip, post month long sabbatical from home.
Austin has always had such an incredible respect for men who have served in the military in any capacity and talks a lot about how much he wishes he could have done something like that.
So today at the store we saw an elderly man wearing a World War II veteran's hat.
Austin was kind of lagging behind me near him, and I said "why are you acting so weird?"
He said, "I really want to say something to that guy to thank him for his military service."
Me: "You really should! Go say something."
Austin: "I feel too dumb. Ugh, why am I such a wuss?"
We continued to wander around the produce section while the man looked at oranges. I continued to try to build Austin's courage with things like "it would mean so much to him" "you'll never feel bad saying something nice to someone". Finally I said, "do you want me to say something?"
He refused to be shown up in bravery by his wife, so he started to walk toward him. The sweet old man then looked up and asked Austin if the oranges he was looking at were grapefruits. He said no, and then I pointed him toward the grapefruits.
Then Austin put out his hand and said "Sir, I wanted to shake your hand and thank you for your service because I noticed your hat and I just wanted to say thank you."
The man had the most genuinely surprised and appreciative look on his face and said "I truly appreciate that."
I was of course trying not to start bawling. After we walked away a woman came up to Austin and said "Did you just thank that vet for his service? You are so nice, people don't do that enough anymore. Thank you for thanking him. I am so impressed."
By then I was like on the complete verge of tears and couldn't say anything. I was so proud of Austin for being so appreciative, and for that woman for being willing to thank Austin. We both agreed that we will always express our gratitude to military men and women whenever we get the chance.
But today I wanted to just document a little experience we had in Wal Mart while doing our restocking shopping trip, post month long sabbatical from home.
Austin has always had such an incredible respect for men who have served in the military in any capacity and talks a lot about how much he wishes he could have done something like that.
So today at the store we saw an elderly man wearing a World War II veteran's hat.
Austin was kind of lagging behind me near him, and I said "why are you acting so weird?"
He said, "I really want to say something to that guy to thank him for his military service."
Me: "You really should! Go say something."
Austin: "I feel too dumb. Ugh, why am I such a wuss?"
We continued to wander around the produce section while the man looked at oranges. I continued to try to build Austin's courage with things like "it would mean so much to him" "you'll never feel bad saying something nice to someone". Finally I said, "do you want me to say something?"
He refused to be shown up in bravery by his wife, so he started to walk toward him. The sweet old man then looked up and asked Austin if the oranges he was looking at were grapefruits. He said no, and then I pointed him toward the grapefruits.
Then Austin put out his hand and said "Sir, I wanted to shake your hand and thank you for your service because I noticed your hat and I just wanted to say thank you."
The man had the most genuinely surprised and appreciative look on his face and said "I truly appreciate that."
I was of course trying not to start bawling. After we walked away a woman came up to Austin and said "Did you just thank that vet for his service? You are so nice, people don't do that enough anymore. Thank you for thanking him. I am so impressed."
By then I was like on the complete verge of tears and couldn't say anything. I was so proud of Austin for being so appreciative, and for that woman for being willing to thank Austin. We both agreed that we will always express our gratitude to military men and women whenever we get the chance.
Friday, June 22, 2012
A Birthday Party Trip
This post is belated, but I wanted to post the cute pictures from our day in Spokane a couple of weeks ago. We decided to do a little road trip to celebrate Mason's first birthday, so we drove up to Spokane which is just a couple of hours away. Sadly this is where the closest Nordstrom is located, so we went there first for a couple of things we needed. Mason was just as excited as I was to finally be back inside a decent mall. There is also a darling park with amusement park rides and the world's largest Radio Flyer wagon. We rode the carousel and played with the ducks. Then we had some dinner and let Mason eat his very first cupcake (really his first baked treat) at the most darling bakery! We love that our little town is so central to lots of wonderful places to go and see. We will definitely be spending more time in Spokane!
Sunday, June 17, 2012
Daddy
I actually started writing this post a couple of weeks ago, and figured it was just appropriate to finish it and post it on Father's Day!
I always seem to talk about how obsessed I am with my Mom, and I do absolutely adore her. I find it so flattering that people call me her twin and I want to be like her in every way. I think it's natural because I'm a girl and a mother and so I emulate her in so many ways.
But I feel that I owe my Dad the same accolade and praise. My dad is seriously awesome. Here's a few of the many many reasons why.
*He has always worked so hard to give our family a beautiful and comfortable place to live. He remodeled the house I grew up in and worked on it every night after what I'm sure was a super long and stressful day at work. I know Scott, Siara, and I have happy memories of running between the beams of bare walls and watching my Dad use the jackhammer. We'd also get to take turns going to Home Depot with my Dad, and getting ice cream at The Honeybucket after. I still love the smell of lumber.
*He provides so well for our family. We were given everything we need and then some all through our lives, even into our adulthood. He has made sure that our family has never felt financial stress and has given us so many opportunities.
*He is the most generous person I know. I know that part of why he works so hard is so that he can share with others who are less fortunate. He has taught me how important it is to be charitable and kind and to give. And he always picks up the tab when we all go out to eat. Which is a huge deal, considering that there's 8 kids in just our core family, and that it continues to grow with in-laws and grandchildren.
*He has always honored his Priesthood and I realize how blessed we were to have that in our home growing up. I remember when I had the Chicken Pox and had a horrendous fever and he gave me a sick blessing. And we were given blessings every year before school started. And I always knew and still know that I can ask for a blessing anytime I need one.
*He always magnifies his callings. I remember when he was a Seminary teacher when I was really young and he just seemed to love it. He brought waffles for the class one morning and I thought that was so cool. And now that I really know how hard being a Seminary teacher must be, I respect that even more! I was also able to see how many lives he influenced serving as Bishop during my early teenage years.
*He taught me how to travel. Ohh man did he teach me how to travel!! Poor, Austin. He had no idea that he was marrying a crazy, neurotic, super-efficient travel Nazi. All thanks to my Dad! =) I could be a travel agent with all the training I got. My parents took me on an amazing trip to Switzerland and Italy when I was 17, and that trip taught me not to be afraid to go anywhere in the world.
*Going along with his incredible travel skills, he is the most hyper-efficient guy I know. If something needs to get done, my Dad will do it twice as good and in half the time. When we were packing the moving truck and I was getting so stressed and it was driving me crazy, Siara said "you need Dad here, he's so good at this stuff!" And it's true, he can Tetris maneuver anything into a Pod that you need in there. It's really very impressive.
*He had to be out of town for work on my 16th Birthday, but sent me a giant bouquet of flowers to my high school.
*He is super funny and goofy. We used to have family wrestling matches and my Dad's favorite line was "you wanna piece of me?!" One time Shane said "I want the whole thing, and then bake another batch and I'll have some more!" Obviously Shane's sense of humor came from my Dad's.
So here's to my amazingly awesome Dad! Thank you for all of the wonderful things you have taught me and the example you have always shown to me. And for not killing me during my teenage years, I know I was a serious handful during that time. Happy Father's Day!
I always seem to talk about how obsessed I am with my Mom, and I do absolutely adore her. I find it so flattering that people call me her twin and I want to be like her in every way. I think it's natural because I'm a girl and a mother and so I emulate her in so many ways.
But I feel that I owe my Dad the same accolade and praise. My dad is seriously awesome. Here's a few of the many many reasons why.
*He has always worked so hard to give our family a beautiful and comfortable place to live. He remodeled the house I grew up in and worked on it every night after what I'm sure was a super long and stressful day at work. I know Scott, Siara, and I have happy memories of running between the beams of bare walls and watching my Dad use the jackhammer. We'd also get to take turns going to Home Depot with my Dad, and getting ice cream at The Honeybucket after. I still love the smell of lumber.
*He provides so well for our family. We were given everything we need and then some all through our lives, even into our adulthood. He has made sure that our family has never felt financial stress and has given us so many opportunities.
*He is the most generous person I know. I know that part of why he works so hard is so that he can share with others who are less fortunate. He has taught me how important it is to be charitable and kind and to give. And he always picks up the tab when we all go out to eat. Which is a huge deal, considering that there's 8 kids in just our core family, and that it continues to grow with in-laws and grandchildren.
*He has always honored his Priesthood and I realize how blessed we were to have that in our home growing up. I remember when I had the Chicken Pox and had a horrendous fever and he gave me a sick blessing. And we were given blessings every year before school started. And I always knew and still know that I can ask for a blessing anytime I need one.
*He always magnifies his callings. I remember when he was a Seminary teacher when I was really young and he just seemed to love it. He brought waffles for the class one morning and I thought that was so cool. And now that I really know how hard being a Seminary teacher must be, I respect that even more! I was also able to see how many lives he influenced serving as Bishop during my early teenage years.
*He taught me how to travel. Ohh man did he teach me how to travel!! Poor, Austin. He had no idea that he was marrying a crazy, neurotic, super-efficient travel Nazi. All thanks to my Dad! =) I could be a travel agent with all the training I got. My parents took me on an amazing trip to Switzerland and Italy when I was 17, and that trip taught me not to be afraid to go anywhere in the world.
*Going along with his incredible travel skills, he is the most hyper-efficient guy I know. If something needs to get done, my Dad will do it twice as good and in half the time. When we were packing the moving truck and I was getting so stressed and it was driving me crazy, Siara said "you need Dad here, he's so good at this stuff!" And it's true, he can Tetris maneuver anything into a Pod that you need in there. It's really very impressive.
*He had to be out of town for work on my 16th Birthday, but sent me a giant bouquet of flowers to my high school.
*He is super funny and goofy. We used to have family wrestling matches and my Dad's favorite line was "you wanna piece of me?!" One time Shane said "I want the whole thing, and then bake another batch and I'll have some more!" Obviously Shane's sense of humor came from my Dad's.
So here's to my amazingly awesome Dad! Thank you for all of the wonderful things you have taught me and the example you have always shown to me. And for not killing me during my teenage years, I know I was a serious handful during that time. Happy Father's Day!
Monday, June 11, 2012
One Year Old
One year ago today we brought our sweet little baby boy into the world. We were lucky enough to be able to bring him home that very day too. I of course can't believe all that's happened in these last months. I also can't believe how truly blessed we are to have Mason in our home. Here's a few things that our little man has been doing in the last month.
His weight gain has tapered off now that he's moving so much more, and he's held pretty steady between 22.5-23 pounds. He's getting taller and taller! His doctor's appointment is tomorrow so we'll find out his height then.
He walks like a champ now, just picks up and goes anywhere he wants. And he can walk while carrying things now too, so our house is getting rearranged on pretty regular basis.
He's also talking so much, he's started to say "uh-oh" in context now, like when he drops something or at the end of a book. And he says "down" "go" and "cracker". He also babbles in what seems like a very complex language.
He loves to look at himself in the mirror, and waves and says hello and clicks his tongue and dances while he's looking at himself. So vain!
His culinary repertoire has expanded as well. He is pretty much off all baby food and onto the real big boy stuff. He loves hummus, cheese-especially cheddar, goat, and fresh mozzarella, kiwi, mangos, cinnamon toast, triscuits, PB&J, pasta, oatmeal, blueberries, tilapia, tuna fish, sweet potato fries, and...just about everything else we put in front of him! And he loooves almond milk! He chugs several cups every day.
We've started weaning him, especially the nighttime nursing. It's going well, but of course right when we started to cut back he teethed and then got a terrible cold. So we've been merciful on the poor little thing, but he is sleeping much better and he can actually be put to bed by Austin instead of just me. Which is nice. He now has 8 teeth-4 on top and 4 on bottom.
He has been on a lot of plane rides, but lately he has become a seasoned road tripper too. We've gone on three road trips in the last four weeks and we'll be leaving in a couple of weeks to go on our 3 week excursion to North Carolina and Connecticut. I hope he keeps up being an adventurous and patient little travel buddy!
And now here's a little timeline of pictures to show how much our littlest sweetie has grown in the last 12 months.
Brand New!
One Month
Two Months
Three Months
Four Months (I miss the thumb sucking!!!)
Five Months
Six Months
Seven Months
Eight Months
Nine Months
Ten Months
Eleven Months
One Year Old!
It's tradition in our family to do a train cake for the first Birthday. Mine is not anything spectacular by any means, but I wanted to keep the tradition alive! We used Google Plus to have a virtual birthday party with all of our loved ones all around the country!
Singing Happy Birthday from 6 different states
Are these wrinkles already?!
And here's some pictures from the last month!
He's the best little helper. He helps me vacuum...
And helps me in the bathroom...
And helps me fold the laundry...
He LOVES his books. Loves, loves loves. I tried to get him to watch a movie this week because I was so sick and just wanted to rest my eyes for a little bit. But he turned his back on the TV and instead looked at his entire pile of books. Our little smarty pants!
His weight gain has tapered off now that he's moving so much more, and he's held pretty steady between 22.5-23 pounds. He's getting taller and taller! His doctor's appointment is tomorrow so we'll find out his height then.
He walks like a champ now, just picks up and goes anywhere he wants. And he can walk while carrying things now too, so our house is getting rearranged on pretty regular basis.
He's also talking so much, he's started to say "uh-oh" in context now, like when he drops something or at the end of a book. And he says "down" "go" and "cracker". He also babbles in what seems like a very complex language.
He loves to look at himself in the mirror, and waves and says hello and clicks his tongue and dances while he's looking at himself. So vain!
His culinary repertoire has expanded as well. He is pretty much off all baby food and onto the real big boy stuff. He loves hummus, cheese-especially cheddar, goat, and fresh mozzarella, kiwi, mangos, cinnamon toast, triscuits, PB&J, pasta, oatmeal, blueberries, tilapia, tuna fish, sweet potato fries, and...just about everything else we put in front of him! And he loooves almond milk! He chugs several cups every day.
We've started weaning him, especially the nighttime nursing. It's going well, but of course right when we started to cut back he teethed and then got a terrible cold. So we've been merciful on the poor little thing, but he is sleeping much better and he can actually be put to bed by Austin instead of just me. Which is nice. He now has 8 teeth-4 on top and 4 on bottom.
He has been on a lot of plane rides, but lately he has become a seasoned road tripper too. We've gone on three road trips in the last four weeks and we'll be leaving in a couple of weeks to go on our 3 week excursion to North Carolina and Connecticut. I hope he keeps up being an adventurous and patient little travel buddy!
And now here's a little timeline of pictures to show how much our littlest sweetie has grown in the last 12 months.
Brand New!
One Month
Two Months
Three Months
Four Months (I miss the thumb sucking!!!)
Five Months
Six Months
Seven Months
Eight Months
Nine Months
Ten Months
Eleven Months
One Year Old!
It's tradition in our family to do a train cake for the first Birthday. Mine is not anything spectacular by any means, but I wanted to keep the tradition alive! We used Google Plus to have a virtual birthday party with all of our loved ones all around the country!
Singing Happy Birthday from 6 different states
Are these wrinkles already?!
And here's some pictures from the last month!
He's the best little helper. He helps me vacuum...
And helps me in the bathroom...
And helps me fold the laundry...
He LOVES his books. Loves, loves loves. I tried to get him to watch a movie this week because I was so sick and just wanted to rest my eyes for a little bit. But he turned his back on the TV and instead looked at his entire pile of books. Our little smarty pants!
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