Kyla's 2 weeks old. She now weights 8 lbs 3 ozs. and 20 inches long. It's amazing how much they change in two short weeks. Since we have had Kyla we have had a lot of family visit which means lots of help and lots of fun. For the past two weeks we've had visitors everyday and I can honestly say I'm kind of bored now. My parents came for 3 weeks and now I'm missing my personal nanny and chef and now I'm asking myself, "what's for dinner, and who's gonna do the dishes?" Something I haven't had to worry about all month. Leanne and Bruce came for a few days and helped watch the kids and wash all the girl clothes and go to doc. visits. Chelsea and Leanne came down for a day and a half and we played with the kids at the pool and fat man's crack. My Brother Tim, Lindsey and their boys came and Jared and Krista came as well which means more swimming and fun with cousins. It was so fun to see everyone one and we are so glad that they all got a chance to meet our sweet baby, and so glad we got some extra help. Come back, we're bored!!!!
Sunday, August 29, 2010
BIRTH STORY
On August 11th a week and a half before my due date I went into the doc. office and had my membranes stripped for the second time. Dr. Thompson and I decided that it was a good day to have a baby. He didn't work the next day and I just really wanted to have a baby. I was dialated to a 4 so he said at the sign of any contraction to go to the hospital to see if they would admit me. For the first couple hours there was nothing. My mom and I went to pick Ty up from his first day of school and we were a little early so we walked around the school a few times. When we got home we went for a walk and walked and walked. A few contractions started to come but only as pain in my back. By the evening they gradually got closer together and were just a few minutes apart but still it was just in my back and not to painful, it was about 8:30 and we had put the kids to bed and then Justin gave me a blessing and then we called our cousins Alise and Zed to come hold down the fort. When we got to the hospital the nurse checked me and said the baby was posterior which is why I was experiencing back pain. She watched the contractions for about an hour on the monitor while she decided whether she was going to admit me. They got farther apart but more intense. Around 1O p.m. she called the Dr. and he said to keep me. I knew he would and I was so glad because I didn't want to go home and have to come right back. At around midnight I was ready for an epidural, which is heavenly people, heavenly. I have loved all of my delivery's and would deliver a baby for someone everyday if I could. I love to sit back and relax and watch the miracle happen. The epidural was slowing down the contractions and the baby was not turning or dropping down so they decided to put me on the pit. This got thing going and around 3:30 they called the doc. to come in. He hung out with us and the nurse for an hour in the room and we all just had a nice chat. The nurse was so nice and had worked for the doc. so they had a nice time chatting as well. Then all the sudden I needed to throw-up. Kind of embarrassing throwing up in front of a room full of people. By then I was fully dilated and ready to deliver at around 4:30 he said that the baby still was posterior but he could try to turn it while I pushed. So I pushed for a few pushes while he turned it and at 4:39 a.m. the baby came right out. Although it has always been so fun to see my little babies for the first time, this time was so different. We didn't know what we were having so the excitement in the room was very high. The nurses and doctors and my parents were in the room and had all placed their votes on the board. It was tied 50/50. Justin and I stayed neutral because we felt it could go either way, we switched from day to day. The doc. said he thought it was a boy because the heart beat had always been slow. And then there was the Chinese birth calendar which said girl and was right on all my other kids, so I was torn. We were going to be thrilled either way, so when the baby came out and the cord was covering the privates we all took a breath and there it was A GIRL! So fun!! My mom was in disbelief since she had all boy stuff that she would need to return. She weighed 7 lb. 7 ozs. which is almost a pound bigger then our other babies and it is all in her cheeks and double chin, oh but they are oh so yummy. The first thing Justin said was, "we don't have a name!" We hadn't really picked out a name for a girl. We had thrown around a few but never really settled on one for one reason or another. So when she was born and looked just like her brother Ty when he was born the name Kyla seemed to fit her best. Our neighbor's little sister's name is Kyla and I loved it the moment I heard it. They put her on my chest for skin to skin contact right after she was born and then they waited a little bit to cut the cord. A few hours later Justin got up and went to work for a few hours my parents went back to our house to watch the kids and then Justin's parents drove down and came to the hospital to see her. And then we checked out at 10 that night. I think we were there a total of 18 hours, the minimum amount of time they want you there. We didn't want to stay any longer then we needed too.
Monday, August 23, 2010
It's a GIRL!
Today is my due date, yet we've been enjoying this little surprise for the past twelve days. On August 12th Kyla joined our family and we can't get enough of her! Sunday, August 8, 2010
They're coming to America!
Justin's parents have been serving as a mission president in the Japan Nagoya mission for the past 3 years. On July 6th they returned home. As you can imagine we were all excited to see them.
All the gradkids. They sure grew since they last saw them.
They're here!
Hugging Grandpa for the first time!
Aren't they cute!
Family at the Homecoming dinner.
All their kids and grandkids!
These were all the missionaries from their mission in Japan that attended their Homecoming. They gave such great talks, it was a great Homecoming. They have some amazing stories to share and learned a lot. We are so grateful for their example and we are so glad to have them back in the states.
Friday, June 11, 2010
All in the month of May
On the last day of April Taycie fell off the slide in the back yard and split her chin open. I thought she needed stitches because the hole was on the inside and the outside. And it was pretty bloody. I called Justin in a panic and he hurried home. By the time he got home it was looking much better. The inside was almost completely sealed and the outside under her lip had sealed up quite a bit so I super glued it back together. Sad to say she has her first little scar. I would have been more devastated but I couldn't help but think of this little girl Salenna in Ty's Kindergarten class (who he says was his girlfriend on his first day) she had just been attacked by their neighbor's dog and had to get 900 stitches in her face. Bless her heart! All the sudden Taycie's little scar didn't seen so bad.
That night we went to watch a Jazz game with our friends and the kids watched a movie outside.
These two little guys didn't last long.
At the beginning of May we went to the Cotton Days celebration. There was fireworks, a parade and booths and it was a really fun little celebration that lasted all week long. We look forward to it next year.
We made it to Jumping Jacks. A kids bouncing heaven! The kids had a blast!
I had a great Mother's day. Justin and the kids got up early to make me a yummy breakfast in bed. They made me cute cards and Ty wrote me a song. I got jewelery and I.O.U for a grill that we will be getting for Father's Day as well. Then we headed off to church where I got the best present ever! My mom walked in and I couldn't believe it! My brother had just graduated from Utah State the day before and I had talked to her on the phone that night. She was driving while I talked to her but I had no idea. When she walked in I had to do a double take, I thought I was seeing a ghost. It was so fun to have her here. She saved the burnt Roast that we had thrown in the crock pot and helped with some projects around the house I needed to finish. What a life saver she is! She stayed for four days and we had fun on walks and drives and going to the pool. She watched the kids while I went shopping for my birthday and out to dinner and to the temple with Justin. It is always a pleasure to have her here. We hope she drops in frequently!
The neighborhood had a street BB-Q. We love our neighbors, they are all so great! We especially love our neighbor and cousin Alise!
On the 20th I celebrated my 29th Birthday! Crazy to think this is my last year in the 20's. I had such a great day. Justin decorated the house and got me some CD's and treats. He brought home a rose from my dad, which is tradition. My friend Dani offered to watch the kids so we went to dinner at Benja's for some awesome Thi food that I had been craving. After Justin took me to his office and gave me a treatment and then we went to set up for the What Women want expo and we just had a really good time being together! When we got home we had some pie and ice cream with the kids (I'm not much of a cake person, so Justin bought me some pies). The next day Dani called me and said that our cousin Brooke was in town and they wanted to take me to lunch. I dropped my kids off at the neighbors and we went to the Pasta Factory, one of my favorites! Brooke, Alise and I had fun hanging out at the pool and going to the Women's Expo.It was funny because when we were at the pool, Ty kept saying, "This is the best day ever!" He was right it was a pretty great day!
This baby feels like it is going to fall out any day now but I've still got about 9 more weeks to go! It made me feel good when a lady asked if I was having my first baby. I told her it was my fourth and she she about had a heart attack. She asked how old I was when I told her I was 29, she couldn't believe it. She said I looked like I should be having my first. Thank you nice lady, that made my day!
This pictures is funny because it is Ty, and he went to school like that! A bunch of girls at the bus stop got together to do our toenails. Ty and Jake snuck into the garage and did their own. I didn't have any remover so he went to school like that. When I asked him if anyone said anything about his toes he said, "yeah my teacher took a picture!"
At the end of May Ty graduated from Kindergarten. My brother Alex graduated from highschool that same day so I was sad we didn't get to make it up to see his, but Ty was looking forward to their water party at school and graduation. They sang a bunch of songs and then they handed them their diplomas and we watched a slideshow from the year. After we asked him were he wanted to go for lunch and he said McDonald's, so McDonald's it was! We are so proud of him, he survived those two months at a new school like a champ. He even went through a few girlfriends in those few months from the love notes that I would find in his backpack from different girls professing their love. There must be something cool about the new kid in school!
The weather was so perfect the whole month of may. The pool across the street opened at the beginning of May and we have lived in the water since. If we are not at home you can find us at the pool, the splash pad or the community center.
In our exploring we have found lots of fish and duck ponds.
We are pretty sure that we found Shrek's pond. There was even a orange cat running around. The kids thought it was great, when all the sudden Puss and Boots appeared out of nowhere, they chased it around through the bushes for awhile hoping it would lead us to Shrek! Maybe next time.
Ty started baseball in May and just had his last game. He had games every Tuesday and Saturday and practice on Wed. so it kept us pretty busy.
For Memorial Day weekend our friend Dani invited us to go fishing up by Zion's to Kolob Lake. We forgot what it was like to be cold because it was 40 degrees and there was snow. We didn't catch any fish but everyone else in our group did. We were glad to get back to St. George where it was 25 degrees warmer.
Our cousin Kate, who is attending BYU, and her friends came down for the weekend. Unfortunately their car broke down on the way and broke down on them after they got here so they had to spend most of their time at our house. But we enjoyed having them here. We took Kate to catch frogs and we caught quite a few. On Sunday we asked around and their was a professor from BYU who was visiting and volunteered to drive them home if they needed a ride. They did end up riding home with them and after their car was fixed another man from our ward offered to drive it back to Provo. So everything worked out in the end!
We ended the weekend with a trip to IHop for some silly face pancakes, and that makes for a happy weekend!
Ty lost his third tooth on June 8th. It had been wiggly for a few weeks and we kept trying but it just wasn't ready. One night he walked in and said, "I think my tooth is ready, it is REALLY wiggly." I grabbed it and it fell right out. Now we are just waiting on the top wiggly one.
We have been having so much fun together! I sure love this little crew!
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Crazy few months!
Packing in a winter wonder land. Jake couldn't have said it better, "Get me out of this North Pole!"
I know I never thought I would be moving for the fifth time in eight years of our marriage. I never thought I would live in St. Louis, and not just live there but love it! I never thought I would grow to love Richmond as fully as I do today. And I giggle because of the great memories we had in all of them. All the places that we have lived have been perfect for us. We have grown as a family and become closer because of it. I can't imagine living the past eight years any other way. I know we were meant to experience all of those things and I know we are meant to be in St. George. Hind sight is 20/20 and as I look back on the last few years the things that didn't make sense now make perfect sense. We had a great opportunity to buy our dream lot in Cache Valley and when we went to close on it just didn't feel right. Later we tried to get a home loan and it just wasn't working. Other business opportunities on the side that Justin tried to pursue like a health store and sports complex somehow just all seemed to fall through the cracks. At times we felt frustrated and confused like nothing was working out and we couldn't figure out why. But know we know that these doors were closing because we were being led to another door.
For Valentine's day we took a quick trip to St. George. There is a special place in our hearts for St. George. While I was attended school at Dixie College Justin would come to visit. Some of our fondest memories we have of our dating days took place over looking the St. George valley and talking about our dreams. It was there that I knew I someday would marry that boy and all of those dreams would come true, and my world just felt right.
Well on this little vacation a few months ago, little did we know that we would be staying right below Justin's future office.
(Justin's office)
As we drove around we saw people riding their bikes, running, hiking, swimming, playing tennis, all the things we had been longing to do for so long. Justin and I looked at each other and said, "I love it here!" My heart ached to be back in St. George. The day after we returned back to Cache Valley Justin was talking with a doctor in Salt Lake about his weekend in St. George, and as luck would have it this guy mentioned that he knew a practice who was looking for a new Dr. and said he would give him his name and they could get in contact with him. Well with in a few days we were on our way back to St. George for an interview. We thought we would give it a shot, if even just to ease our minds. They loved Justin, what's not to love, and they wanted him to start in a month. We debated all the way home, making lists of pros and con's. We weren't looking for a job, Justin had a thriving practice in Cache Valley, our families were there. It was all just a little surreal. We crunched numbers and compiled our lists and went home and we prayed on it. That next morning we both looking at each other and knew exactly what we needed to do. We needed to take it, it was just too good to pass up, and just felt right. We knew we would need to move out of Justin's parent's home in a few months but this was sooner and farther then planned, but it was perfect timing.
Due to unfortunate circumstances at work, Justin had to leave his office in Cache Valley sooner then planned and within five days of the interview his uncle dropped everything to come and help. He drove up from Cedar City and helped him move all his stuff down to his new office. This was a very trying week on all of us, full of a roller-coaster of emotions. He called his new office and they said he could start right away. Justin lived in Cedar City with his amazing aunt and uncle for a few weeks and then some great friends for a week while he looked for a place to live. Luckily I have an amazing friend who is like a sister to me who lives in St. George who helped him find an awesome place to rent two doors down from Justin's cousin, with lots of little kids in the neighborhood and a community pool.
(How cool would it be if we lived on Traveller Terrace. We even learned that it is one Justin's relatives private drives.)Unfortunately I had to stay a few more weeks in Cache Valley to pack and clean and get everything squared away so that the kids and I could move down over Ty's spring break. It has all happened so quickly and so out of the blue that it was like a whirlwind just blew us here. I couldn't have survived the past few months without family who came up to help load all our stuff and my amazing parents who slaved away day after day for weeks cleaning every nook and cranny of my in-laws house and packing all my stuff. They really went above and beyond. I don't know what I would do without them, they are my lifesavers. My brothers even sacrificed a lot of their spring break to help move us in, they were all so helpful, and I love them so much! I will miss them so much, but we are all hoping to move them all down here sooner then later!
Being greeted by the sun was a welcomed change from the snow! It's amazing what a little sun can do for the soul!
I know the Lord works in mysterious ways and answers our prayers. We love Cache Valley and there is alot of family members and friends who we will greatly miss, but St. George is perfect for us! We are excited and look forward to exploring and experiencing new things. We have loved every minute since we have got here. Here are a few of our adventures from the past month.
We arrived late Friday night and the next morning was Easter weekend. We were lucky the Easter bunny even found us! We even managed to make it to the community Easter egg hunt.
Over spring break some of our good friends came down and we were able to spend some time with them. We went to a fun Pirate Pizza Island restaurant with an arcade and slide. We also got together with them and a bunch of our other friends from high school at Dani's for a BB-Q, it was so much fun to see everyone.
Ty started Kindergarten at his new school and loves it! His favorite part is the snack and less homework!
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We were lucky after we moved in we got a flyer that our community was having a yard sale that Sat. we had a ton of stuff that we no longer needed that we were hauling to D.I . so we decided to see if we could sell it. We make $200. and we bought this jeep from our neighbors. It is the best $40. ever spent, the boys LOVE IT! This is where the boys want to spend most of their time.
And they are off!
Our aunt Denise told us about this beautiful canyon that is just two minutes from our house with creeks, trails and and 100's of frogs. We had a good time hunting for frogs, we even caught a few. Taycie discovered the joy of cat tails and skipping rocks. The kids didn't want to leave. We are glad it is so close.
The first few weeks we lived here there was a bird that would bang over and over into our window. The windows are tinted from the outside so that you can see your reflection from the outside. The bird thought that it was running into another bird I guess. We lovingly called it Crazy Bird. Every morning I would hear the kids say, "Crazy Bird's back!" They got a kick out of watching it ram over and over into the window. I'm sure it died of brain damage.
Justin's secretary gave us some free passes for miniature golf at Fiesta Fun. We had so much fun! We may just have a few pro golfers on our hands.
When the boys are away the girls will play. Justin and Ashton both were gone one weekend for seminars so Dani and I took the kids to the kite festival. It wasn't windy enough for much kite flying but we had fun watching the entertainment and playing the games.
We have been spending A LOT of time swimming at the Community Center down the street. They have the largest aquatic center in Utah and it is so much fun! The kids beg to go swimming everyday.
This is the Place!
And as we have come full circle back to the spot overlooking the St. George valley as we did 10 years ago, talking about our goals and dreams, once again it just feels right! Justin's practice is doing better then we imagined. In his first his two months of being here he is already seeing as many patients a day as he was seeing in Cache Valley. I'm so proud of him. He's been working so hard to get his name out there, and all his hard work is paying off. We feel very blessed! We are excitited to see the ways our family will grow and to see our dreams come true here in St. Gorgeous (as we call it) together!
