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Tuesday, June 30, 2009

El Reuniono De La Familia

Heck no, I don't speak Spanish...


We had a GREAT time at Lance's 1st annual family reunion. It was in Mantua -Box Elder campground in Sardine Canyon. Let's start with a fabulous embarrassing picture of the public Mia-diaper change. I love you, baby! ...Uncle John did work for some privacy. He's got your back.

The Crew

This baby got SOOO dirty!
Here's Lance's brother John. ...The dirtiest of the group, I think. This is LeAnne, Monique (LeAnne's mom and John's wife), John & Monique's daughter Caitlin, and LeAnne's daughter Ariana.
Scotty and Candace.
Love you Debbie and Donny for organizing and putting this reunion together for all of us to enjoy! There's nothing better than family.

Friday, June 26, 2009

OCD Mini-Me!

The other day I went into the kitchen and noticed that all of the magnents had been mysteriously removed from the fridge...Around the corner I found my little busy-body OCD mini-me hard at work putting all of the magnents on the trash can...

Then she found a new spot for all of them...
Mia is becoming methodical in how she'll stack things and put them in to piles. It's precious. ...Is that a good word for it? :)
Here's the new pile.
I'm sorry, but how ADORABLE is that?! It's a great sign that no maternity test is needed. THIS kiddo is definitely her mother's daughter! (heh heh heh)

Wednesday, June 24, 2009

Scotty and Candace's Wedding

On the 13th, Scott and Candace tied the knot... again. Not only are they family, but they're very dear friends to us as well.
For the wedding, I did Candace's hair. This is one of my hair masterpieces! Yes folks, the talent IS astounding, please stand back in awe as you look at how simply FABULOUS it looked!

...Just happy to contribute some of my talent to this very joyous occasion. :)
Here's Lance and me. The park was gorgeous -Von's Park in Providence. It was so lush and green. The river is VERY high and close by and is a danger for kids -it causes a bit of an acoustic issue as well, but overall, just a beautiful location.
Here's Lance and his two Grandma's! To the left is Donny's mom, and to the right is Debbie's.
Here's the happy couple! How sweet is this picture?!
...And here is the couple I know and love. Scotty, we're related again. Eeeeew.
The FAM!

Congrats you two! We love ya!

Monday, June 22, 2009

Ok, pictorial catch-me-up for last weekend!

We've been UNDER the stinkin' weather in a baaaad way. Lance took the worst of it, and lost some work because of the deal. Not a huge biggie, but rough times. We seem to be on the mend with many thanks to Equate day and ny-quil-type products.
The weekend was insane with events, all of which I had extremely limited energy to "do" the way I wanted to...


#1: Happy Birthday to Lily -she's such a love, and just turned 2.
The Birthday Girl!
Here's Lily and her BFF Noah playing with balloons!
Ella's hair looked fabulous, however, it had to be re-done 3x. NOT practical.
Here's the Milly-Kisses.

#2: Happy Anniversary to Mom and Dad -the big 35, VERY impressive, love you two.

#3: Happy Father's day to Lance, Donny, and of course my Pops -thanks for all you do.

Can you feel the love? I think he's trying to give me some "dap" -but I'm sure that's not the right term these days... Knuckles? "Bump-It"?

Now that the computer is trying to cooperate, we'll be speaking only words of love about it, so as to not offend the great technology gods. This could be the beginning of many more wonderful blog entries that include pictures! Hooray!

Friday, June 19, 2009

Bronchitis

It sux.

Wednesday, June 17, 2009

Calling any computer genius?!

SHAMEY SHAMEY SHAMEY. I should have gone to Mom’s a LONG time ago once we discovered that the crummy computer at home isn’t going to turn on without some serious help from someone who knows what he’s doing (ahem, Allen? SOMEONE???? Surely one of my readers has a knack for fixing computers for cool chicks -for FREE?!)… Thus no blog updates, which is sad for everyone, right?! Anywho, here’s the catch-me-up. The weekend was CRAZY busy, but that’s how we like it.

Lance’s sister Candace and Scotty got married. Um, yeah, they were married before. I guess when stuff goes downhill and you can get a non-contested divorce finalized within weeks, being separated for just over a month took a BIG toll… They’ve been together almost as long and Lance and I have. Kinda funny –but very romantic- that they had this special day to bring it all back together. I'll post some pictures on that later...

We had my work party, for which I completely missed the boat on taking pictures. You didn’t miss anything. The food was terrible, and unfortunately because of rain/ grumpy kiddos we took off pretty quickly. What happened to the good ole’ days when companies sprung for some cheap Lagoon tickets? *I miss Boyer!

On Saturday morning we found out that the fam-dam-bly is official expanded by one, as Phoebe Alexis made her way into the world! Congratulations to Dave, Lexie, and Noah on their new addition!

I love blogs. I love that there is a way to stay updated with my friends and family using modern and quick technology! I love that I have an outlet for the digital pictures I take! I love that I can have this published and actually hold it in my hands! I love even more that I have this record of our lives for my children –that they can see so much of their lives from the unique perspective of their mother. It’s a wonderful thing! Long ago I used to be an avid journal keeper. If you look in my living room, you’ll find a stack of journals –probably around 10 or 12 that chronicle my life as a tween through early 20’s. Some of it isn’t pretty, and I haven’t decided whether or not the journals will ever be read by my children. I’m such a different person now, and as I grow and as they grow, my experience and perspective will also differ. I’ll have much more wisdom to offer in time rather than reading the emotional crummy mistakes and crushes from a different era. …Not to say it wouldn’t be entertaining. I just think that this forum is excellent –it’s diplomatically (heh) written with them in mind –they get the best of the experience at present and the writing really is for them. Blogs ROCK.

Thursday, June 11, 2009

The never-posted Easter dresses!

I never got these little girls pictures posted with their Easter dresses, so here you go! My awesome and INSANELY talented friend Joni hooked me up with the flowers for their hair. I didn't get a great picture of Ella's -which is a HUGE pink one that you can see peeking around the corner of her head. I think I win for 'biggest-flower-in-my-kid's-hair', and it's a title I wear proudly!!

Yeah, it was a sunny day, so 3/4 of the pix have eyes CLOSED! Grrr!
I want to thank Lance's parents SO MUCH for getting the girls these dresses! Debbie had called me before Easter and said she'd like to take me shopping for them -a mom's dream come true! We went to lunch at the Olive Garden, then headed to Kohls and found these treasures!
Yes, I put PINK & A BRACELET on Ella. Someday she'll thank me for forcing the "girly" aspect on her... Right?

Wednesday, June 10, 2009

Resignation

The struggle with figuring out my scheduling/ health/ work/ marriage/ child care dilemma is over. I have taken the ever-scary step of tendering my resignation with my job.

My last day will be July 10th. Lance and I have been in discussions over this issue for months now, and he’s actually VERY excited for what it will all mean for our family. The way it works right now, I wake up around 4:45AM and am ready by 6:00AM (time negotiable based on hair-style) for Lance to get off work and come home. At this point I cruise in to work. I work from 6:30ish to 12:30ish (part-time). When I get home, my little family has a few precious moments together (MUCH more than when I finished at 3:00PM with the fly-by hi-by) before Lance goes to bed and I’m on my own with the kiddos for the night. Going forward, Lance will be able to come home from work and actually go to bed instead of being responsible for two (soon to be 3) little loves (i.e. getting Ella to/ from school, chasing toddler & busy-body Mia, and wrangling a new-born) for six hours before I come home again. He’ll be awake by late afternoon, and we’ll have all evening (he starts work at 10) together as a family. This means SO much to us as a family –and more importantly, as a couple.

There have been a few contributing factors that brought me to the decision to quit my job. First, there are no benefits that I’m using from my company –and it doesn’t even offer short-term disability or maternity leave, which means I’d contribute no income after baby anyway. Second, I am starting to become less reliable as my headaches and health continue to play a huge role in whether or not I can actually make it in to work for the day. On this note, I want to be SURE that I leave in good standing with the company so that -should the need arise- I could come back. Third, Lance’s job is about to pick up even more –and he will be working up to 7-days a week. This makes it VERY difficult for his sleeping schedule, as well as child-care if he’s scheduled a double. This problem would be eliminated and he’d be much better rested and able to work what he needs to (quickly making up my paycheck with his extra time available as well). Fourth, I’d be facing time off for the baby, then for my hysterectomy (hopefully soon thereafter –story for a different day), and we’d also be facing a scheduling conflict because Ella goes to kindergarten in the fall. This would all require time off as well as serious schedule adjustments for us to work out if I continued working. Fifth –and MOST important- I can’t imagine regretting the extra time and attention I would be able to give my children. Lance agrees from his perspective as well, as they would get the “first” of his day (waking in the afternoon and spending time with us before work) rather than the tired “end” of his day, which for any parent means more quality. …It’s just the way it is. This also opens the door for Lance to see Ella after school –with his current schedule he wouldn’t be able to see her at all after school, and his time with her would be drastically reduced (which he dreaded the most). So, all signs point to this decision.

The FEAR: There are many. I fear I won’t be the productive and incredible mom I envision I could be. I fear the financial burden all being on Lance’s shoulders could be too much and that he could resent me in the end for having to carry it. I fear that without the social interaction and skill-upkeep that I get daily from my separate work identity that I could lose a piece of myself that I need to keep alive and active for future employment (kids won’t be home with me forever –they go to SCHOOL!). Lance and I have a contingency plan, as I am going to be investigating school options for myself. I don’t see myself getting a degree (unlike EVERY OTHER MEMBER OF MY IMMEDIATE FAMILY), but I would love to certify as a paralegal or something similar with a marketable skill set to add to what I have already. …I’m an excellent employee. :)

My new job is my home. My home has, admittedly, taken a ‘side-car seat’ to work, as I have balanced the two since I had Ella. Not working wasn’t an option (VERY rare in this day and age to survive on one income), so we did what we had to do. Now there is a new focus, and that’s the piece I’m actually VERY excited about. I have plans on how I want to run and organize my home –on how I want to plan and execute fun and educational activities for my girls. I even day-dream about becoming more interested in cooking, but let’s not get ahead of ourselves… I realize that the pregnancy brings with it many physical limitations (most notably fatigue & general PAIN in the nether-region) but I want to put my heart into this decision and embrace the opportunity in front of me. Wish me luck!

Tuesday, June 9, 2009

Happy Birthday Aneesa

I realize that I have blogged Aneesa's bithday before... It's interesting to see such a record of a year of my life. I'll write more on that later. Meantime....
Here's the beauty at her 7th birthday party over the weekend! This is Lance's sister Candace's daughter. She and Ella get along -we hope they get closer as they get older when the 2 -year age gap isn't so big to them...
Here's our messy-faced baby Mia.
Candace made this cute cake!

I thought this was a cute shot -it's Lance and Scotty chillin' with Ella and Chaz at the swings. There's nothing better than time at the park!

Monday, June 8, 2009

Eye Goop

So you can't see it in the restaurant picture, but Mia's eyes were FILLED with eye goop. I got it yesterday. You know, I haven't had eye-goop for as long as I can remember. I remember eye issues with some serious allergic reactions I've had, but never goop for goop's sake. NO BUENO. Last night I woke up and couldn't open my eyes at all.

I felt a lot better today, so I didn't go to the doctor. Lance feels like crap right now too... We feel REALLY bad about dragging Mia to SLC last weekend if she was feeling like this! Thank heaven she's too young to whine, because we're sick of listening to ourselves.

:)

Friday, June 5, 2009

Twin! Oh Twin!

Oh man, I look TERRIBLE in this picture, but HOW MUCH DOES MIA LOOK LIKE ME??? I swear, she's my little twin. Last weekend we went to SLC and hung out with my siblings (shout out!) and we went to dinner to this super tacky-but-delicious southern-style restaurant. Good stuff!
*And for those who don't know that "twin" quote, time to brush up on your OVERBOARD!

Wednesday, June 3, 2009

The Glucose Screening

Hypoglycemia is characterized by a drop in blood glucose to a level where first it causes nervous system symptoms (sweating, palpitations, hunger, trembling, and anxiety), then begins to affect the brain (causing confusion, hallucinations, blurred vision, and sometimes even coma and death). An actual diagnosis of hypoglycemia requires satisfying the "Whipple triad." These three criteria include:
Documented low glucose levels (less than 40 mg/dL (2.2 mmol/L) often tested along with insulin levels and sometimes with C-Peptide levels)

I tested 35.

Symptoms of hypoglycemia
Reversal of the symptoms when blood glucose levels are returned to normal.
Primary hypoglycemia is rare and often diagnosed in infancy. People may have symptoms of hypoglycemia without really having low blood sugar. In such cases, dietary changes such as eating frequent small meals and several snacks a day and choosing complex carbohydrates over simple sugars may be enough to ease symptoms. Those with fasting hypoglycemia may require IV glucose if dietary measures are insufficient.

I'll be talking to my Dr. later for more details, but it explains a lot...

Monday, June 1, 2009

Mary shots

Mary is a fantastic photographer. I had to steal some of her phots taken over Memorial Day weekend... Here's our little Milly-Biznoodlevich. I think it's one of the best shots I've seen of her. :)

It's me!

It's me an my struggling Mia -sometimes she isn't feelin' the love.

Here's me and baby Tessa! She's feelin' the love, man. See Sarah? She does like me sometimes!