Baby's first pictures

Today we got our second ultrasound and second look at this new little guy that will be joining our family. (The first one was a few weeks ago when I paid to see what gender he was.) Today's appointment was the regular 20 week ultrasound to measure him and everything was perfect.

I love ultrasounds, for a little peek into their world at the moment, and to get to know them better. For me it has always been the turning point in the pregnancy, the part when it all becomes real and I give myself permission to start nesting for the baby.

This little boy was a mover and gave the technician a run for his money trying to measure him. But everything measured right on time and was looking as good as we could ever hope for. Now I get the pleasure of buying for him and making sure everything is just right for him when he arrives. Oh, and I guess I need to pick out a name for him as well. Too bad the technician couldn't help me out there. :)If you look close you can see the tip of his "big nose" and his upper lip.He made sure we knew he is indeed a boy.His feet on the left and his legs leading to the right.We waited for him to open his fist and this is the most we got. He almost looks like he is doing the "live long and prosper" Star Trek signal.

Time to Par-tay!

I don't know about you, but we had a fantastic Christmas this year. We started partying the 23rd and didn't stop until late Christmas night. On Christmas Eve, we woke the kids up early while we were staying over at my parent's house to take them to our traditional Denny's breakfast with the rest of the fam. Then we got cleaned up to go to see The Princess and the Frog with the family as well. The boys were so happy to sit by their cousin Tanner and their Grandma "B" and they did wonderfully during the movie.Emmi sat next to me and next to her cousin Lauren. This was Emmi's first movie and the very first time that the 5 of us have been to a movie together.
These cute cousins are turning out to be such good friends and wanted to hold hands all the way out from the movie.Of course we took the kids to my grandmother's house to see the Santa, whom I have seen every Christmas since I was born. Just like our other encounter with Santa this year, the boys were great and Emmi struggled. It reminds me of myself when I was little. :)After a delicious meal at my sister Abby's house, we headed back to my parent's house for presents and dessert. Me and my little sister Erin took a minute to take a belly shot. She is due in March with her first, a boy, and I am due in May with a boy as well. I have to say that being pregnant with her has made this pregnancy all the better. I can't wait to see these 2 little boys play together and wear their BYU onesies that I bought them for Christmas. :)The grandchildren anxiously awaiting their gifts.Here is Tanner, Keaton, Emmi and Sam in the jammies that Grandma and Grandpa gave them.I had to take a picture of my parent's puppy. She is a shihpoo and her name is Princess Buttercup, (from the Princess Bride). She is a handful, but she sure is a cute little thing. This is the type of dog that I will get if I ever get one again.Keaton Christmas morning at our house. Santa surprised him with a Gameboy. Sam with his new Batman Cave. Keaton and his new Legos.Emmi with some of her princess dress-ups and new dolly that she got from Santa. I think Santa did real good this year.Later on Christmas day we went over to Chad's parent's house for a yummy lunch and to open more presents. Emmi is all about Disney princesses this year. Here she is modeling her new Cinderella dress and Sleeping Beauty jacket that she got from Grandma and Grandpa.The boys both got big construction trucks.Emmi and her girl cousins, Mccall and Brinley.

Needless to say we got spoiled in the midst of all our partying. I think that I can speak for my little family when I say that we can't wait to do it all over again next year.

This December we...

have played in the snow. We got dumped on for a few days straight much to the kids' delight. They were more than happy to go out with me and try to shovel the driveway.We attempted to make a gingerbread house for family night. Chad and I couldn't get the walls to hold so we moved on to plan B and let the kids decorate the pieces of the house. They seemed perfectly fine with that and so were we.We attended the first official Christmas party of the year, our ward's Christmas party. The boys were eager to tell Santa what they wanted, Emmi had a moment of doubt.We took the kids to Temple Square via Trax and to their favorite place, the Church History Museum. We headed right to the children's exhibit and it happily entertained the kids for most of the night. We ended the night by going out to dinner. This will have to be a family tradition.Last but not least, Sam, Emmi and I went to see Keaton in his school's Christmas music program. I taped them singing "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Deer", but I am having technical difficulties and it is not wanting to upload... sorry about that.

It has been such a fun month, with still much partying and fun things still ahead. Bring on the holiday.. I think we are finally ready! Merry Christmas!

And the doctor says....

IT'S A BOY!!

Due May 13th 2010

Stockings!

This is what I have been up to lately. A few years ago I decided to make the kids Christmas stockings. I was shown by a friend these adorable patterns and just loved them. The stockings are made of flannel and the black front and pieces are done in wool. That year I made the Santa and the snowman for Keaton and Sam. At the time I had just found out that I was pregnant with a girl, so I bought the angel pattern as well, and then thinking that most likely I will have a fourth baby, I went ahead and bought the baby Jesus. Well, a couple of years have flown by and I still hadn't made Emmi's. She asked for hers when we got out the Christmas decorations and so I knew that I needed to make hers this year. Since I am expecting our fourth and I was already making Emmi's I went ahead and made the new baby one too. I am so pleased at how they turned out, with only having taken sewing once in junior high and because everything was done by hand. Now if only I had the energy to make 2 more for Chad and I .... well, that might have to wait a year or two. :)

Carnage!

This is Keaton, waiting with me at the Dr.'s office at about 8:00 last night and this is what happened.... After dinner, the 3 kids ran off to the boys' room and were playing together. They were being loud, as usual, when I heard a cry from Keek. This is usual as well, so I just waited to hear what had happened this time. Then out comes Keek with blood dripping down his forehead, past his mouth and his nose. Oh it was bad!! I ran and cleaned him up to find a huge gash and a second little scratch. I guess Sam threw a plastic Nerf gun at him. I can't believe a plastic gun would do that much damage!

Luckily for me our pediatrician now has "after hours" and is open until 9 on weekdays. They numbed it up with some gel and put 3 stitches in the right one. The left one didn't need any. He was a trooper and didn't cry at all at the doctor's office. While we were waiting we got to watch "Up," which I could tell made Keek more relaxed. When we got home, the first thing Keek said to Chad was "Did Sammers have a time-out?" I don't know if Chad really gave him one or not, but he sure deserved one. Then as I was tucking Keek in bed he said, "Tomorrow we can pray for my head, that it will feel better and that Sammers won't be mean." It was very cute how he realized without any prompting from me that we need to pray that his cut will get better. I guess he is listening when as a family we pray for our friends and family that are hurt and sick.

Today he is doing just fine and wanted to go to school. Oh, I tried to get some after the stitches shots, but the lighting was really bad by that hour. He does look much better now.

My Little Goblins

We have Darth Maul, (who doesn't have his mask on because I couldn't get Emmi to stand next to him with it on), Snow White, and Indiana Jones. I got to take them out this year and we had a blast trick or treating. I hope you all had a happy Halloween too! Trick or treat!

Just Wait.

As you all are now aware, I am expecting my 4th child. That in itself is not terribly amazing, but how it all happened is a testimony to me of my Heavenly Father's love and concern. As some of you already know, having children or better yet, conceiving, hasn't come easy to me. On my own it took a year to get pregnant with Keaton. I wasn't willing to put that many years between my kids and took Clomid (a fertility drug) with both Sam and Emmi and it worked the very first month with each. I thought I had it all figured out. I could get pregnant when I wanted to and wouldn't when I didn't. I guess I had forgotten who is really in charge when it comes to babies.

We started trying for another child a few months after Emmi turned 1 and to no avail. This past year I have been on and off Clomid, with even a double dose one month. Still nothing. Frustrated and very tired of getting my hopes up each month Chad and I started to think that maybe this was our answer. We should be done. There are no more. We started talking about birth control, and how nice it would be to be out of the baby stage, but it still didn't seem right. In my prayers I kept hearing "Just wait," but I wondered for how long, and what that exactly meant. Was a baby really coming? Or was I waiting for a confirmation that our family was complete? I really didn't know. Chad didn't know, and of course thought that I should know.

So I stepped back and waited like the prompting said. No Clomid, or preventative measures, just waited to get an answer either way. I think both Chad and I had put babies out of our heads for awhile. And the more time went on the more I started to really like the idea of being done. I liked the idea of being done with diapers, nursing and of course pregnancy. The next thing I knew I was sold on the birth control and called up my OB-GYN to send me in some birth control. He said I had to wait until my period started, which I hadn't seen since that last failed dose of Clomid. So there was my birth control, waiting at the pharmacy and me, waiting for my period.

Well, the 2 month mark came and went, (which is normal for me) and I told myself to give it 1 more week and then take a test. By this point I was starting to feel the twinges of nausea and my suspicions were high, although I really tried to not get my hopes up. That week and even another went by before I got the courage to take the test, which was immediately positive.

This is what humbles me. With my last 2 babies Clomid helped me get pregnant on the very first try. This last year after 3 single doses and 1 double dose, nothing, and the month that I don't use anything I get pregnant. This tells me that the magic isn't in the Clomid, it is in my loving Heavenly Father. Without his help, I would not have babies. For some reason that I cannot see, I was supposed to get pregnant that month and Heavenly Father knew it. I am so grateful he watches out for me and my family, and that he told me that I should just wait. I am also very excited to meet this little one and see just why it was important for (her/him) to join our family.

What's new at our house

I'll just let Sam tell you...

Goodbye Snowies...

...hello Fall. I think it is official sitting here listen to my sick husband cough away, that summer is over and fall is here. Until our house got hit with the bug, I was really starting to enjoy the cold weather and everything that goes with it. Now that I think about it there are some definite plus and minuses to this season.

The Minuses (-) :
1. The closing of the snow shack. Already me and kids are looking longingly at the spot where the local snow shack stands in the summer.
2. No more sleeping in. School has started and that means I have drag myself up earlier than I would like to in order to make sure Keaton gets on the bus. Booo!
3. My beautiful flowers and vegetable garden die. Once again I have a bare yard with no color or variety and my lovely garden that was just really starting to produce vegetables didn't survive that first frost.
4. The sicknesses. I am not a mom who likes to get up in the middle of the night and it seems I have to much more during this wonderful season. I worry about the kids and feel helpless when they are hurting.
5. The cold temperatures. When it gets cold outside it also gets cold in my unfinished basement which means the kids are confined and running wild in my family room all day long. We all seem to go a little stir crazy.


The Pluses (+) :
1. School is in. I do not enjoy waking up early, but I am very much enjoying the time when the boys are in school and I have some one-on-one time with my baby girl.
2. The fall smells and sights. Who doesn't love the warm fall aromas and the beauty of the changing leaves? We have been enjoying the apple and spice scents for a few weeks now.
3. Football. I have to admit that I was really looking forward to this one this year. I couldn't wait to be there at the games with Chad and his family and cheer on the Cougars. There is nothing like going to a football game.
4. No yard maintenance. Although I am sad that my flowers have been all cut down and my garden cleared, I am even more glad that the day is fast approaching when the water will be turned off and weeding will not be a weekly chore of mine.
5. The holidays. Every year I get a kick out of dressing up the kids for trick-or-treating and seeing the excitement in their faces. I am also a sucker for the big turkey dinner and seeing my extended family.

Taking everything into consideration, Fall is fast becoming one of my favorite seasons. What (+) or (-) would you add to the list?

RaNdOm UpDaTeS....

For those of you who are not also on Facebook and haven't read my posts about Po, my dog, yes I sold him. All it took was him to poop on my bed one more time for Chad finally to say that he wouldn't mind if I got rid of him. The kids were mostly all on board too. Keaton said, "Yeah, take him back to his Mom and Dad" without any sadness in his voice whatsoever. Emmi didn't even notice he was gone. Sam was the only one who put up a fight. He told me that I couldn't play the Wii If I got rid of him, (the same threat I give him when he is naughty).

One week after a frustrating woman gave him back to me after only a 1-hour trial (not long enough for a proper trial in my opinion), I found another woman who took him home. Now it has been over 3 weeks, and I am still very much happy with my decision. The kids have all but completely forgotten about him and I am so glad that I don't have to worry about him anymore. Hooray!Last week I took Sam to get his first cavity filled. I have to admit that I was sooo nervous that he was going to be a nightmare and wouldn't let the dentist do his job. Well, I was totally wrong. The cute dental assistant told him he was going to wear a funny elephant nose (laughing gas) which he wore proudly, and it was smooth sailing from there on out. He didn't get a shot to numb the tooth, just the laughing gas. The cavity was done in no time and with no sign of tears. I was very proud of Sam that day, but I am still hoping that we don't have many of these visits in the future.

Soccer pics

Only one more game, and Sam is done with soccer. He is just finally starting to really get the hang of it too. Oh well, I guess there is always next year.

School is finally here...

I know that I am a little late with this post. Most of you have already put up pictures with your little ones in their new school duds. I guess I am just slacking off and enjoying this new schedule of mine. I love a schedule. And if that schedule happens to mean that 2 of my kids are gone at some point of the day it is even better. :) Some of you may say that it is terrible of me, but you must not have 3 or more children 6 yrs. old and younger in your home. I tell you that it can make a person crazy to care for that many children all day long. Every mom can use a break and I'm no exception. Keaton started 1st grade a couple of weeks ago. This is our traditional pre- father's blessing picture taken the night before. ( I think Emmi thought she was getting one too.)
I don't know why pre-school starts weeks after everyone else, but it does. So Sam had to wait for what I'm sure felt like years for him to finally have his turn at a father's blessing. It was a special occasion because we were at my parent's house the night before, and got to have them there for the blessing.
During the blessing I kept hearing these thunking noises. I opened my eyes and saw his feet like this on the table, but with his eyes closed of course- kid you not. We all got a good kick out of it. The boy cannot sit still.
This is Keaton as we were walking down to the bus stop on the first day of school. You can tell by his eyes that he has actually just spotted the bus going by. Lucky for us, it wasn't his bus.. whew!
Here he is in line. I have to admit that I was almost about to tear up at this point, knowing that I wasn't going to see him at my counter for lunch, to think that he is a big boy now and can handle the full time school. Me, Sam and Emmi do miss Keaton. I especially do when I keep getting pestered by Sam to play Wii with him all day. I didn't realize how nice it was to have 2 boys that play so good together. However, 2 days a week when Sam is in preschool I am left with only Emmi for a few hours and it is wonderful. Lately, I have been using it as my day to do my grocery shopping, and it has been such a better experience.

You probably noticed that I didn't post pictures of Sam's first day of school. Up until I uploaded these pictures, I honestly thought I had taken some. But yeah, I didn't take any and I feel crappy about it. Next year, when Sam starts Kindergarten I will make up for it... so stay tuned.

So, you may ask, what exactly (besides pestering me) does Sam do all day while Keaton is at school? Well, he has a new hero and his name is Indiana Jones. My father let us borrow his trilogy and we will more than likely have to buy him a new set. We thought that they might be too scary for the kids, but no, the Temple of Doom is actually Sam's favorite one. In the past few weeks Sam has turned every toy that could possibly look and act like a whip into one, tried to climb my fireplace more than a dozen times, and is constantly asking me to buy him a real "Indy" costume for Halloween. We watch at least one of the movies during the morning, with the record at 3 right now. I can't complain. If it keeps him occupied there aren't a whole lot of other movies that I would rather have to watch.