October 31, 2010

October 31, 2010

Dear Family and Friends,

Happy Halloween! This has been a big week here for us! Monday was a pretty normal day. I did a small amount of shopping and a few other errands, but mostly I stayed close to home. That night we had FHE and B-man invited a friend at the last minute. We talked about another fundamental of following the prophet. I have no idea what the little boy was thinking, but it was kind of fun to have him there asking questions that an adult might be too shy to ask about prophets.

Tuesday morning started out like every other day. Except I was a lot more achy and was having some contractions. Mostly I was in denial and tried to get things crossed off my list. I took the car for its safety inspection, vacuumed the car, and ran to Wal-Mart etc. I did take a nap while J was sleeping, and woke up feeling better. We ate lunch and then went to deliver something to a friend. We stayed for a while until it was time to go get B-man at the bus stop. After a snack we went downstairs and chatted with M on the webcam. While we chatted for about forty minutes I had three contractions. They were painful enough to make me wince and show M how uncomfortable I was. We made some plans on how to get him “just in case” before signing off. We then went upstairs to work on homework and I made a salad for dinner. We then headed off to dinner at a friends’ house in our ward. They live super close in our neighborhood but I really didn’t want to walk and have any more contractions come. Dinner went really well. Although most of the time I was having contractions. There was no clock visible so I couldn’t really time them. I tried to sit down all of the time. The contractions really started to hurt, and I started to get really anxious. Before I left I admitted to the family that I was a little nervous I was in labor, and asked for a blessing. We then went home (6:30 ish). Once I got home I decided that I at least needed to go to the hospital and make sure. Mostly the thought of getting the boys to bed just was undoable at that point. I started calling all the people that I needed to. I called a friend to watch the boys, she ended up driving over. I called my mom, M’s mom, and my friend who was going to come to the hospital. I started throwing some pajamas in a bag for the boys and packing my bag. While I was doing this my friend was here helping to watch the boys. During this it was getting hard to walk or talk during the contractions, but I still had no idea how far apart they were because I was too busy getting everything organized. My friend asked several times if I wanted a ride to the hospital and I always refused. I was sure I would be okay and this was a false alarm, but at the last second I changed my mind and hopped into her car. The last thing I did before leaving was wake up M and let him know that I was going to the hospital. I was kind of a basket case during these thirty minutes of packing. This was not how it was supposed to be happening. She drove straight to the hospital. While on the way I got a phone call from my friend who was going to be at the hospital letting me know she would just come right away instead of waiting for an update from me. I’m so glad she did. She pulled up and after a little debate I decided just to walk in. The boys were still in the car and we couldn’t leave them alone, plus it was super close. I just hurried in in-between contractions. While I was walking in I could tell I was further progressed than I thought. I waited a few minutes for help and the contractions started coming very close together. Luckily the doctor was at the hospital already and was able to come right away. When he checked me (I had been at the hospital about 5-10 minutes) I was at a 9. He was so cute and helped me get in the wheel chair and wheeled me down to the room. Then everything started happening super fast. I called M to let him know I was going to be having the baby and left him on speaker phone. My friend arrived a few minutes after getting into the delivery room. The room filled with people, they broke my water, and four or five contractions later I had little RM. M was on speaker phone the whole time during the birth and for several hours after the delivery. I was so anxious about having the baby without him, but once RM was here I was very relieved that everything had gone okay and it was over. For the worst case scenario everything went really, really well. My kids were covered, I had M on the phone, and my mom would be coming soon. Apparently it was a VERY busy day, because they let me hold and keep RM for almost four hours after the delivery. It was wonderful. M and I were on the phone until he had to go to work. I felt bad for him that he was so far away. We were so thankful for technology! If I had planned better we could have had him on the webcam…

Wednesday was recovery day. A few friends visited me during the day. The boys were brought that evening by a friend. They were so cute with RM. B-man just wanted to hold him, and J was most excited to sit on my lap and eat a roll. Once he noticed the baby he got really excited and tried to feed him some of the roll that he was eating. I really missed seeing my boys during the day. I was so grateful to all the people that were helping. I’ve never been in a situation like that before where I just had to accept the help and had no control over what was happening. I don’t know what I would have done without the wonderful friends I have made through the gospel. That night my mom arrived. Of course her flight was delayed, but I was just happy to know that she was safely on the ground in the same city!

The next morning I started getting things organized to go home. M and I finalized the birth certificate, and then I packed the bags. My mom got B-man off to school, and then a friend came and got J so that my mom could help get us home without another little person to worry about. Getting home went very smoothly, except that they forgot about me for a while and left us waiting for the last little check-off to leave. Eventually we made it out to the car and then drove to get J. When we got home he went to bed for a nap. The rest of the day was pretty quiet. My mom took the B-man to soccer practice in the evening and we had a late dinner.

Friday is a blur. Most of the morning was spent at the doctor’s. I took RM for his first little checkup and they wanted another check for jaundice. I knew he didn’t need it, but I had to comply. I went to the hospital, but they sent me to another place because of insurance. I hated having RM in that germy place. At the second place I got the distinct feeling that the first fellow had not worked with a three day old very often. I got really nervous when the heel stick didn’t work and they started talking about finding a vein on his arm. They even looked but of course couldn’t find one. Luckily they didn’t stick him. The other worker came in and after a double heel stick and almost an hour of squeezing the heck out of his heel they finally had enough. I was SO happy to finally take him home. He was such a champ and even fell asleep during all that squeezing. Later that night we carved pumpkins. B-man wanted a Darth Vader pumpkin and my mom did a very good job with his request.

Saturday was nice and slow. B-man had a soccer game and my mom took him while J was sleeping. It was a very cold day, but he played hard and had a good time. The rest of the day was pretty quiet. Later that evening my mom took the kids to our ward trunk-or-treat. At the very last minute (unbeknownst to me or my mother) B-man invited our next door neighbor to come along. It worked out okay, but we had to have a chat about asking adults before inviting friends somewhere. I had meant to go and pass out candy during the trunk-or-treat portion of the activity, but by the time I got there the activity was over. It’s probably better anyway.

Sunday morning was nice and quiet. My mom took the boys to church, but didn’t get to enjoy the last two hours because of J and his wiggles. After church we had dinner and got ready for trick-or-treaters. B-man was thrilled to be the person passing out the candy. It worked out perfectly because he never even complained about not being able to go out trick-or-treating.

All the rest of our time has been spent snuggling with our cute new little baby and trying to snuggle with my other children so they don’t feel displaced.

We love you all!

R, M, B-man, J, and RM

October 24, 2010

October 24, 2010

Dear Family and Friends,

Monday was a pretty quiet day. Not a lot going on. I wasn’t feeling too great, and spent most of the morning and afternoon trying to figure out how to get rid of my sinus headache. Thankfully by the evening I had found a little relief. Not a lot, but a little. We had FHE and B-man chose an article from the friend for our lesson. I was happy to comply with his request.

Tuesday morning I had a presidency meeting. We had a productive meeting, although it feels weird to know that a lot of the upcoming things I am going to be out of commission for since I will have a new tiny baby. I hope I am ready! The rest of the day I worked on things around the house. Then that evening we went to soccer practice. The field was wet and it was pretty cool outside, but it didn’t slow B-man down much.

Wednesday morning I had a doctor’s appointment. Everything looked good and we were able to talk about dates and things in the next couple of weeks. I also met with the birth certificate registrar at the hospital so that I would have less work when I have the baby. That evening we went to dinner at a friend’s house. It was a great way to spend the evening. We had no mutual that night because of a youth temple trip on Saturday.

Thursday was a very busy day. I spent most of the morning working hard to get the house clean. Mirrors, sinks, picking up toys, etc. Then in the mid-morning I watched a child for a friend while she went on a field trip with her other child. Most of the time both of the kids were asleep so it was a very easy swap. Both J and his friend woke up about the same time and so we had a fun little lunch with them and then they played for a little before my friend came to collect her child. The rest of the day I spent finishing up the house. Right after B-man came home I met with our realtor and a home stager that went all through the house and each of the rooms and told us what we needed to do to make the rooms look their best. Thankfully the list is not too long or difficult. We then ate a quick dinner and headed off to soccer.

Friday was a nice slow day for me. It was kind of nice to have a super clean house and to be able to relax and enjoy it. I was most excited to finally get a couch out of my house. It was listed on several sites for free, and I finally had someone actually show up to get it. I can’t believe how often I was stood up over it. I ran a few errands just to get out of the house. That night I went over to another friend’s house for dinner. We had pizza from a local place. It was a great night, but J was so hungry that by the time we ate he kind of refused to eat anything. Kids are so strange sometimes. He did a fair amount of screaming, but eventually he calmed down enough to eat something.

Saturday morning we had a relaxing start. B-man even slept past seven which is something he rarely does. (Perhaps because he was sleeping in my bed…) Our first outing was to B-man’s soccer game. He played great, and had a good time learning how to play offense and defense and the difference between the two. After his game we rushed over to the church. I was hoping to make it to at least a portion of a baptism for two children that I know. Sadly the meeting was over, but people were mingling and visiting so I could at least congratulate them. I left B-man with a friend and then ran to Costco quickly before heading back over to get B-man and his friend. We then drove to the airport in our city so that we could watch an Air Show that was being put on. Admission was free, and it was a pretty impressive show for such a little airport. I think we all had a good time. I should have brought some water and snacks, but the kids made it through okay. We left a few minutes early to beat the traffic and get B-man’s friend home on time for some things that he had going on. We then went home and relaxed and played. Eventually we were able to chat with M and see how he is doing. Having the webcam makes it a lot easier for the boys and M.

Today has been a good day. The morning was low key and relaxed. I worked on things for dinner and we were able to chat with M. Sometimes on Sunday’s it is hard to work out a time to chat. Church went well. I am happy that next week I will have my mom here to help and I won’t have to do all of church by myself. Those three hours can be exhausting. After church we came home and did a few final preparations before two families came over for dinner. Both of the families have been so helpful while M has been gone and I wanted to try and do something in return. B-man was in heaven to have so many friends over.

We love you all!

R, M, B-man, and J

October 17, 2010

October 17, 2010

Dear Family and Friends,

We made it through another week. That is reason for celebration in my book. Our week has been pretty slow because we’ve been sick fighting off colds. Monday morning we had a fun breakfast that included my aunt and uncle. We were all excited to have some company in our house. B-man and J both loved the little surprises that they brought for them. All too soon they had to leave for the airport. It was sad to see them go. The rest of the day we had off for Columbus Day. We went to the park, and tried to have a fun day. For FHE that night we talked about another “Fundamental of Following the Prophet.”

Tuesday I started to lose the battle with a cold that I had been fighting off. That afternoon I took J to the doctor for a last follow up from the pneumonia/ear infection. He passed with flying colors. He and B-man also got their flu vaccine. That evening dinner was super chaotic. J was a basket case. It wasn’t until we were at soccer practice that I realized he might have been sore from the shot. Oops.

Wednesday I was really miserable. My cold was making me miserable, and poor J was also not feeling that well. He seemed to be handling it better than me though. I spent as much time as possible sleeping or sitting. I also did a little bit of complaining to M. I had a very thoughtful friend bring me some hot soup. It was a life saver!

Thursday I felt a little bit better. I was so happy. Still far from 100% but so much better than the previous day. It was rainy, and so it was easy to take it easy and not do very much. I was grateful that soccer practice was cancelled so that we could be very relaxed.

Friday was another relaxed day. After school we put B-man’s bike in the car and drove to a friend’s house. The boys all played and rode bikes outside until they got too cold, and then we headed indoors for a while too. After we left we stopped at Costco for dinner and then headed home. We ate our pizza dinner and then everyone went to bed.

Saturday morning we skipped garage sales. Instead we went to a training meeting for the Young Women leaders put on by the Stake Leaders. I was grateful for the children’s class they had for B-man and J. We came home from the meeting and J took a nap while B-man got ready for his soccer game. I had to wake up J from his nap for the game; I always hate doing that. B-man’s game was at a new field, and so when we got there I was a little confused. I ended up parking in the wrong area, and then we had to walk a long ways to his field. When we got to his field there was parking six feet from the field. That was a little frustrating. The game went well. They boys were down by two for the first half and then came back in the second half to win 4-2. After the game we came home and tried to chat with M. Eventually we were able to connect. Later in the afternoon we went to a friend’s house for dinner and to play for a while. It was a great way to spend the rest of the day. We came home and had just enough time for baths and bed.

Today started out slow. I had no meetings and no lessons to prepare for so I spent the morning working on some dinner stuff and playing with the boys. Church is always crazy even with M. Without him the craziness just escalates. Somehow by the third hour J has calmed down and doesn’t mind being on my lap as much as he does the first hour. After church all our leaders had a meeting with the Stake Young Women presidency. I had a friend that volunteered to take my boys so that I wouldn’t’ have to worry about them during the meeting. It was very kind. After the meeting I went home and got some side dishes and then headed off to the home where the boys were. It was a great dinner. We then came home and quickly got the boys in bed.

M is doing well. He is working very long hours without any days off. We sure miss him!

Love,

R, M, B-man, and J

October 10, 2010

October 10, 2010

Dear Family and Friends,

The week has come to a close. I am happy to see another week go by. Monday I ran errands. For FHE that night we talked about one of the “Fourteen Fundamentals of Following the Prophet” that was mentioned in Conference. I think I will just do those for the next several weeks to keep it easy for me.

Tuesday there wasn’t much going on. I planted three of the four new boxwoods that we bought for our front yard. The first bush was the hardest to get in because it was where the dead bush had been, but the next two went more quickly. I had to stop though so that I could get cleaned up before J woke up. We had soccer in the afternoon. I forgot a sweatshirt for B-man and he was pretty cold at the beginning. Fall is lovely, but I am never quite sure how to dress my kids for the weather.

Wednesday was supposed to be rainy so I skipped going to the farm. In the end the weather was fine and I could have gone. Oh well. I did have a doctor’s appointment. A friend watched J for me, and he took a long nap so I got to run and get some extra errands done. It was really nice! I also started having issued with either a cold or allergies. I’m still not quite sure which one it is. Right before bed we had a fun web chat with Grandma Elna, and then the boys went to bed.

Thursday was a very busy day. Too busy. I should have eliminated something so that I wouldn’t have felt so crazed at the end of the day. In the morning I planted the last of the boxwoods. It was only one so it went pretty quickly. Right when B-man came home from school we picked up a friend’s boy, and then went to the farm. We went to pick our pumpkins for Halloween. B-man took a long time finding his pumpkin. I found the most perfect one and tried to convince him, but he was really looking for the biggest one he could find. He tells everyone that he got the biggest. After picking the pumpkins we headed home so that B-man could get to soccer. I planned poorly though and misjudged how long it would take at the farm. By the time we got home and dropped off the other boy we didn’t really have enough time for dinner. Luckily it was leftovers so we just heated up enough so that people wouldn’t be starving and were a few minutes late to soccer. J loves soccer practice too. He is always dribbling one of the balls onto the field. After soccer we came home and fed everyone more. By this time I was pretty tired and frazzled. I just wanted everyone in bed, and it is still a lot of work to get that to happen. Especially since they needed baths too. We made it through the night somehow…

Friday was a slower day. I got some pansies in the morning and then ripped out the petunias and replaced them with pansies while J was sleeping. After school we had a good time chatting with M on the web cam, and enjoying the beautiful weather.

Saturday morning we went to garage sales. It was a pretty slow day, but at the last house I found a couch. I almost didn’t get it because I didn’t want to have to figure out how to get it into my house, but it was such a steal that I couldn’t pass it up. I begged some help from some friends’ husbands and they were very kind to help. At first they couldn’t fit it through the door and spent a lot of time trying to take off the feet. Eventually that was taking too long and in a last ditch effort they tried a different angle and harder pushing… It worked. I was so happy to have it in and to be able to let them get home. Now I just need someone to come take the old couch. I have it listed on Craigslist for free, but people are very annoying and keep standing me up to pick it up. I have only had this problem with free stuff, not the things I sell. In the meantime I have seating for twenty in my tiny basement. (That is a little exaggeration, but seriously three couches in a very small area.) After lunch we went and vacuumed the car at a car wash. We then braved traffic and headed to Costco before going to a friend’s house for dinner. Dinner was fun, I was so thankful for some adult conversation.

Today has been a good day. I am waiting for my aunt and uncle to arrive. I love having visitors! The morning was pretty relaxed. I worked on my lesson, and tried to find someone to get this couch. (No luck.) Then we went to church. J was crazy in Sacrament meeting, but calmed down during the other two meetings. While I taught he played in the back while one of the other leaders watched him. After church we hurried home so that we could be there when someone came to get the couch, sadly they didn’t ever come, or call, or email. We ate a tasty dinner while waiting and then went on a walk after.

M is doing well too. He is working crazy long hours and staying out of trouble. His room is tiny, but the food is great, so he is keeping happy.

We love you all!

R, M, B-man, and J

Sea World

We have been saving up to go to Sea World for quite a while. We waited until M was in San Diego before going, and with all of our sickies that week I was worried that we wouldn’t make it at all. But we made it, and it was a great day!

We were thrilled that my brother Skate could come with us. It made the day even better.

Sea World is all about time management. You have to plan your day around the shows and when they are happening, and when you can get in to see them. The shows were all great. B-man loved the seal and sea lion show. It was pretty hilarious.

This is how we looked during the shows…

We also had to visit the sharks. That is always a fun adventure. B-man really didn’t want to be in this picture.

We also spent a lot of time at the dolphins. We kept trying to get them to come over and play with us, but with no luck. B-man also LOVED the stingrays and spent probably an hour petting them. That was also the point in the day when J took a nap.

At the very end of the day the big boys went on the roller coaster. J and I were waiting at the bottom to take pictures. Just as they were starting the ride, it stopped. They were stuck at the top of this hill for quite a while before some workers finally came and helped them get down. B-man had a good attitude about his failed attempt at a roller coaster.

After the roller coaster we headed over to see the cold water animals. The walrus decided to put on quite a show for us. I promise I am not the one making all the annoying noises.

We then decided we had to head home. We were all pretty hungry and Grandma D had a delicious dinner waiting for us when we got home. We did stop for a quick picture before leaving the park.

October 3, 2010

October 3, 2010

Dear Family and Friends,

Here’s our week in review… Monday was a rainy day. We did a few errands, and stayed fairly close to home. That night for FHE we decided to do a little family fun and took B-man and J to Chuck E. Cheese’s. It was a fun night. Later that night when the boys were in bed I went shopping at “Home Goods” with a friend. I didn’t get anything, but I got a lot of ideas…

Tuesday started out rainy and then got better. I love the cooler weather we’ve been having! That afternoon B-man had soccer. At the very last minute I decided to go. Then we came home and got the boys to bed. I then went to our book club. We discussed “Mockingjay,” the last book in the hunger games. It was a good discussion, but I left pretty early to be home with M before he left. I feel like I need to soak up all the time I can with him. I know when he gets back our lives are going to be so different and crazy!

Wednesday M took the van to the shop to get a few things replaced. We love our mechanic! They are cheap and honest. It was exciting to have the problems fixed on the van. It was all very weird random things that didn’t affect how the car ran. Like I had no dashboard lights and we couldn’t figure out why. But now I do, and it is wonderful! While the car was being worked on J and I went to the farm. We picked cherry tomatoes and edamame. That night we had mutual. We did a little event with all the young women and their mothers. We played some fun games around the theme of “Family Ties” and had a great time. I left a little early so that I could go visit teach one of my women. We ended up visiting on her porch because she had no carpeting (it was ripped out) and she didn’t want us to see. It worked out better than I thought it would.

Thursday was a very rainy day. Seriously rainy. We stayed fairly close to home. B-man’s soccer practice was cancelled because of all the rain.

Friday was a frantic, but fun day. In the morning a guy came to look at our windows and give us an estimate of what it would cost to fix them. They currently have issues with opening and closing. After he left I waited for a babysitter to come to our house. I was going to go meet M and his office for lunch. I started to get really nervous because she was very late. I didn’t want to pay for a babysitter when I would miss the lunch! Thankfully they were able to push the lunch back enough so that I still felt like it was worth it. It’s always nice to see people from M’ work so that I can put a face to the names that I hear. When M got home we did a few random things. One was that we bought some plants for our front yard. The plants were way overdue, but they weren’t on sale like I thought. I got pizza for dinner for the kids, and then we had a picnic on the front grass while M took out a bush that didn’t survive the snow and heat. It was hard work for a guy that has been fighting a cold all week, but he got the root ball out just as I took the boys in for a bath. After the kids were in bed M packed for his trip. He got everything packed quickly and then we had a few hours before he had to leave. He got a taxi to the airport and was off and away. I was very sad to see him go.

Saturday was a busy day. The boys were both up early and so I took them to garage sales with me. I found some great things, and was sad that I had to cut it short for B-man’s soccer game. The soccer game went really well. Their team was winning by so many that during the third quarter B-man played on the other team as an extra player. (Five on four instead of four on four.) After the game we had the snacks and passed them all out and then tried to get to the car. It was seriously tricky. I don’t know why it was so much easier getting to the field then getting back to the car. But carrying J, the cooler, and my purse just about did me in. I was very sweaty by the time I got people buckled and the car packed up. We then rushed home to watch General Conference.

Once we were home we set up a picnic downstairs and ate sandwiches while trying to get Conference on. It was a little hectic for a minute because the sound wasn’t working, J was freaking out, and I wasn’t sure how to get it all fixed. But we made it through. I watched Conference on the internet while the boys played around me. It was a good system. In between sessions we went to park to enjoy the perfect weather and to get out some wiggles. We then headed back at just the right time to watch the next session. We had another picnic downstairs for dinner.

Today has been a little more relaxing. We had a fun breakfast and spent the morning playing and enjoying not having to go anywhere. This time I fed everyone before the session started so that there would be less crumbs to clean up… After the first session we went on a long walk around the neighborhood. I then got dinner ready to cook the next session started. All I had to do for dinner was turn on the stove and let everything cook. So we could have dinner right after the last session. We also got to video chat with M and some of my family, which made the day extra exciting. Video chat is so great!

We love you all!

R, M, B-man, and J