Merry Christmas

TEST

Sweet little thing

Yesterday I was headed down to the car with my two boys in tow. We made our way down the Elevator making a couple stops before we hit the ground level. Micah quickly made friends with two of the people that rode down with us, our new friend Marge and the self proclaimed Man with a cane. Marge walked with us down the long hallway and held the big double doors open for us. I walked to the second elevator that we need to take to get to our car and I noticed Micah was still at the double doors. I beckoned and bribed for Micah to catch up to me so we could catch the elevator. The whole time I could hear Micah calling out to someone in his sweet little voice, "Come on man, come on, I'm waiting for you, I'm holding the door for you man." I walked back to the doors to see who Micah was talking to. It was our new friend "The Man with the cane." Micah was patiently holding the big heavy door for his friend who was going as fast as he could (which wasn't very fast) to get down the hall. I was so touched by Micah's kindness. I couldn't help but think that this was such a beautiful Christ-like moment, Micah was showing love to his neighbor.

The Truth

Okay, everyone keeps asking me how I like it out here in Virginia. The truth is I LOVE all of the friends I have made. If I didn't have them I would be miserable. With that said, I am SO HOMESICK! I feel that I have had one too many encounters with the rude people of Virginia.

I feel as though this area is not very child friendly. Just the other day Micah was running down a long, wide hallway in our building and a man started yelling at him telling him he shouldn't be running inside. I felt really angry because I told Micah he could run, besides us and the man the hall was empty. One more story for venting purposes. I had to take Sam to the department of heath to get his next round of immunizations. While we were waiting for our turn, I let Micah look out the window down at the cars. It was time for us to be seen and Micah was not interested in leaving his spot at the window. After failing to persuade him to come with me, I just scooped him up and took him to the back with me. He was obviously angry with me, he began to yell at me and hit me. I looked at him and sternly said, "Micah, I don't hit you, please don't hit me." After waiting in the patient room a little longer, the nurse finally came back with Sam's vaccines. Once the door opened Micah booked it out. She told me not to worry about Micah and to hold Sam while she administered the vaccines. I am sure this nurse has done hundreds of vaccines, but I was very distressed by her technique. There were four vaccines, after she took her time with the first one (poking Sam, cleaning the blood applying the bandage). I asked her to just get it over with and handle the blood and bandaging at the very end. As you might imagine, she did not appreciate me telling her how to do her job :-). After a little spat (very little) she took my suggestion. Sam was a wreck once it was all over, I could not console him. I was feeling very stressed out because I couldn't comfort Sam and Micah was up to who knows what!? The Nurse told me to just take a seat and try to feed Sam, and She would keep an eye on Micah for me. While I did this, I could here her outside chastising Micah,

Nurse: DID YOU DO THIS?, DID YOU DO THIS? ( I have no idea what was going on outside).
Micah: NO!
Nurse: Your Mama says she doesn't spank you, if you were my baby I'd spank you!

The Nurse came back in and told me that I need to change my parenting techniques. She continued to tell me that Micah was the one in control, not me, and I should start spanking. I felt that her judgments were harsh and unfair. The situation was more than I could handle. I don't mind so much that she was criticizing my parenting, after all I probably deserved it for trying to critique her. But she was completely out of line for yelling at Micah. I was so angry that I left nearly in tears. At This point I am planning on writing the department of health about their less than friendly employees (this is only one of several experiences there).

Thanks for letting me vent a little.


My little trouble maker and his sure to be partner in crime :-)

Guess what? It's Ryan's Birthday!

Happy Birthday to Ryan. I wan the whole world to know how wonderful Ryan is, it's really hard for me to be specific, I'm not very good at being gushy. All I can say he is a great husband, Friend and father. Happy Birthday Ryan.

For Ryan's Birthday we spent the day at home enjoying each others company and trying to enjoy General Conference. Micah woke me up bright and early, so we decorated our apartment and made a yummy stuffed french toast breakfast for Ryan. Micah keeps running up to Ryan saying, "guess what daddy?... It's your Birthday!"

How I spend my days

It isn't uncommon for people to ask me or other stay at home moms what we do all day. I wondered the same thing before I stepped into this role. And some days I still ask myself that same question (usually it is with a more exasperated tone "what did I do all day!?"). Thankfully, I have photos that serve as a great reminder of how I spend my time.

The photo booth pictures are from the last time Micah and I went to the Living Planet Aquarium. Micah and I spend a lot of time reading books, going to the park, playing with trains or building with his blocks. Micah is also a really great help around the house.

This is a photo shoot during tummy time with Sam. Sam and I spend a lot of time cuddling, looking at our reflection in the mirror, and babbling to each other. Sam loves to be a part of all the action going on around him, he is practically attached to my hip. :-)

My Sunbeams

I have more to post, which I will do soon, here are some fun pictures from the last week. :)

Sam reminds me of a Sunbeam, he is so cute!

Micah is in awe of the Washing Wamingment aka Washington Monument

Mindy Gledhill - Anchor

Maybe some of you out there already know Mindy Gledhill, I just heard of her. I saw this video a few days ago and I can't get enough, she is so talented!

We love our little Sam

Here are some photos we took (Ryan and I took turns). I wanted to get some nice pictures of Sam before he grew out of his blessing clothes. I think they turned out pretty cute.

One Year older and Wiser too!

Thank you to everyone who made me feel so much love on my Birthday, I had a very *wonderful day. Thank you especially to Ryan. He got me everything I wanted and didn't even spend a dime! How great is that!? I asked Ryan if we could have a few friends over (a few of the people we have met since we have been out here, but already great friends) for dinner and games. One of my friends offered to make my birthday cake. She made the most amazing German Chocolate Cake, it was so tasty. I also asked Ryan if I could have this head board and base board that someone in our building threw out. We found it on the loading dock (to be taken with the trash). He was a champ and got that for me too. I can't wait to paint it so that it will match our bedroom. And last of all I asked for Family pictures. We still haven't done them but he has promised them to me, I am so excited to have them done. They will be a self portrait, so we are getting great pictures and saving a bundle!



You know the movie That Thing You Do? Well there is a part in the movie when the Wonders are trying to come up with their band name and one of the band member wants them to be called the One-ders. I just spelled wonderful with an O-N-E, oops. :)

Bath TIme

Last Friday while giving Micah a Bath I decided to throw Sam in too. I was skeptical about how it might go but both boys needed a bath and I might as well get it done in one shot right? Much to my surprise, Sam was loving bath time. every time Micah would splash Sam would burst out a good gutty ha ha laugh, It was the best!

100th post!

Yeah we are all settled in to our new apartment and adjusting to living in Virginia. rewind. You read this correctly the first time. we are all settled into our new apartment. perhaps you are wondering what happened to the cute little house we were planning on moving into. You know the cute little house with a sun porch, a library and a park that were closer than a hop skip and a jump away. Well I am sad to report that little house just wasn't ready for us.
The following will solely be an explanation of our experience, I promise I am NOT complaining. We arrived in Washington D.C. on 8/15. We woke up bright and early the next day to go to church. After our meeting we were able to round up a lot of help for our moving day (which was suppose to be Wednesday that week). After church we met the Realtor and had a tour of the house. We loved it and told him that we wanted the house. The following day we were planning on signing the lease and working out all the other details so we would be ready to move in. We also received a call that the moving truck would be arriving 1 day early meaning Tuesday, the very next day Tuesday! We had a very hard time reaching our Realtor and his colleague (who had our paper work) all day. We had called multiple times through out the day and Ryan and I were both starting to become very anxious, frustrated and very irritable. When we finally reached Stan (Realtor, I have changed his name for his protection, lol) we informed his that our things would be arriving a day early, He told us that wouldn't be a problem and he would have someone call us so we can get everything squared away. Several more hours later it was dinner time and we still hadn't heard anything. Just as we we're packing up to go out and find something to eat the phone rang, it was Stan! Ryan seemed very unhappy as he sat and listened on the phone and I knew right then that we weren't going to be moving into that cute little house. Apparently the Landlord wants to do work on the foundation of the house before anyone moves in. This project was estimated to take 5 days. We didn't want 5 days to turn into 2 weeks or a month, etc. so we decided not to wait to move in. We made a few calls and got a few suggestions of places we could go check out. unfortunately all of the apartments we were calling were done showing rooms for the day, or no one had rooms for immediate move in. After a couple hours we received a call from someone we had met at church the day before. He and his wife had a few appointments lined up that night for apartments they were going to go see, and invited us to come with them. We went and met them immediately. To my surprise we were looking at apartments in a High Rise! One of them was still occupied and the other was available Immediately. The apartments were much farther than we wanted to live but we heard that they offered a free shuttle to the metro, they also have a pool and a fitness center. The family that had invited us to tag along with them also invited us to come look at their apartments and they gave us dinner ( I can't believe how wonderful and helpful and kind people have been out here). Finally at 9:00, we got some dinner (4 hours after we had intended to eat) and tried to make a decision about where we were going to live. Ryan and I felt so much pressure to pick a place, it was too hard to choose that night, so after sleeping on it we decided to go with the high rise. We are very pleased with our decision so far. My BIGGEST complaint (now I am complaining a little) is that because we were moving in immediately, the landlord didn't have the apartment cleaned up for us. I can handle most if the dirty work but the carpets are so filthy. We have done some cleaning to make ourselves feel a tiny bit better, but we still don't feel comfortable enough to walk on it bare foot; except Micah who only wants to go around bare foot). Our main goal at this point is to finish unpacking all of our rooms, so we can get the carpets cleaned. That it our move in story, I could probably go on and blame the Realtor, or the Landlord, or the moving company, but why? The fact of the matter is it didn't work out. And most importantly, we are very happy in our new place.

This photo is not for the faint of heart


These dirt little feet are a daily occurrence, this is after a few hours of playing on our dirty carpet. I feel like I am constantly washing Micah's feet

The First day of school

Ryan has officially finished his first week of school. We are all really proud of him for braving this new adventure, and so grateful that he is sharing it with us. Good Luck Ryan we love you!

And we're off!

The first day of Driving was dull as far as scenery goes. It was wonderful as far as the kids go. Sam woke up every few hours to eat and Micah watched movies and ate his snacks. They have been so pleasant and adorable the whole trip, these boys really know how to charm me and Ryan.
After a full day of driving, we decided to stop in Cheyenne, WY. This was the most eventful part of the day. After several phone calls and about 45 min later we found a motel with a vacancy. We booked the room immediately and drove straight to the motel. When we arrived Ryan ran into the office before making final arrangements Ryan came back to the car and asked me if wanted to see the room. I should have taken this question and a sign that it would not be a good place to stay. Instead I said, “I don't need to see it, go ahead and get it.” We grabbed the boys and took them into the room. We left just as soon as we arrived. There is really no point in grossing you out with the details.

Nebraska was also boring to drive through. We stayed in Omaha on day 2 with my cousins, which was mot boring at all. It was really good to see them. But I have to say, they have one busy household. :-). Before hitting the road for day 3 Micah and I went to Omaha's Henry Doorly Zoo with my cousins. This Zoo is huge, and very impressive. We didn't have that much time, so we decided to hit the jungle exhibit and the aquarium. We had a lot of fun. That night we drove through Iowa and stopped for the night in Nauvoo, Illinois. We were really tired but we really wanted to find the temple before we went to our hotel. Not surprisingly it wasn't hard to find at all. The following morning we toured Nauvoo, unfortunately it was way too hot, so we didn't hang around for very long. The rest of the week is a blur.

We mainly just drove, we only stopped to feed children, change diapers and sleep. We packed a lot of good treats so we didn't really need to stop too much to eat. We worked it out so that we were only eating our 1 meal a day. This was nice because neither Ryan or I are big on fast food.

The next 2 days we drove through Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Maryland and we finally reached Washington, D.C. On Saturday night. We also spent the most money those last two days. The main reason for the expenses was Toll Roads. I could not believe how much we paid in tolls. I'm pretty sure we spent about $80.00 in tolls! The second reason is because we decided to go out to a nice place in Chicago for a Chicago style deep dish pizza. The pizza was really good but, I don't think we'll be doing that again soon. The pizza was a little bit out of our price range, and Micah and Sam were both very fussy (biggest understatements of the year) in the restaurant.

Can you tell how happy we are that we have finished our long journey? Little did we know.... (More to come)

Our bags are packed and we're ready to go.

Stay posted for a photo diary of our Road trip across the country! :)

I can't believe it is already August. Ryan starts school in just a few weeks, which means it is time to move our little family across the Country. We packed up all of our belongings into a moving truck yesterday and we will be making a week long drive to our new place in Arlington, VA. Today is August 5th, we are leaving on the 9th and our belongings won't arrive in Virginia until the 18th! I am nervous about how I am suppose to get all settled and organized with out Ryan being around. He will have orientation all the week of the 16th. Who on earth is going to help me unload that Huge truck!? I'll tell you who, the Elders Quorum. I am so grateful to have the LDS church in my life, besides the gospel being AMAZING, the people are wonderful and I absolutely know that Ryan and I can count on the members of the church to help us when we get to Arlington. It's also comforting to know that we have a few family and friends fairly close and I know they will certainly help where they can.

Other updates

Micah is as cute as ever. His vocabulary has exploded and he has turned into a chatter box. Like any 2 year old, Micah has a mind of his own. He has so much love and enthusiasm for living everyday to it's fullest. He is such a caring big brother. If he hears his Sam crying he stops whatever he is doing to go check on him. Micah's favorite game to play right now is to throw all of the pillow from the sofa onto the floor and jump into the pile of pillows. He he has a special interest in letters and numbers and is a little whiz at naming his letters and their sounds. I love the new level of communication he is capable of. It is so great to hear him vocalize his thoughts and feelings. I LOVE MY MICAH!

Sam is the sweetest little guy. He is getting big fast, he is already 2 months old. He has been such a smiley guy lately and he is so talkative (in his own cooing way). He still loves to sleep quite a bit and he hardly ever cries. Sam had his baby blessing on Sunday. He looked adorable! I owe my parents and in laws a BIG Thank You for helping Me and Ryan put the blessing and the lunch afterward together. Everything was perfect. My only complaint is that I misplaced the shoes I made Sam to go with his blessing outfit. I found them when I did laundry the next day. Oh well, I still plan on dressing Sam up again in his outfit and getting more pictures.

He's Here!!!

Our little Samuel Ryan Taylor is here! He was born May 26, 2010 at 8:03 am. He was 6lb 3 oz. I can't believe how fast time flies, He is 7 1/2 weeks now! Sam is such a good baby, he eats well, sleeps well, only cries a little bit, and seems to tolerate his big brother's tough love approach. We are all adjusting to our growing family but despite how hard it can be at times we are certainly a happy family.



Sam's birth
During my last few weeks of my pregnancy I switched providers and decided to go see a nurse-midwife. I loved my midwife and really felt as though she was very respectful about my hopes and expectations for a natural childbirth. As I was going to each check up we did the same old routine, check the babies heart beat and measure my belly. My first few appointments everything was perfect, then at my 36 week check up I was measuring the same as two weeks before, which was not good because that meant that I hadn't grown. So I went and had a non-stress test and had my fluids checked. The baby was doing fine and I had plenty of fluid. Two weeks later I was still measuring too small so I was sent to get an Ultrasound and non-stress test. I went to get the Ultrasound and the non-stress test on Tuesday May 25, the stress test was great, Sam seemed to be doing well but the Ultrasound was a different story. Sam's abdomen was measuring too small, and the Doc that reviewed the Ultrasound said that Sam was probably not getting enough
nutrition and that he would recommend a repeat c-section ASAP. Just then I felt as though I was trying to hold onto a stack of papers in a whirlwind. Can you imagine how hard that would be? Everything you are trying to hold onto is flying away from your grasp. I really felt helpless, flustered and as though I was being robbed all at the same time. I asked the Doc if I could try inducing labor naturally, he didn't believe that was in the best interest of the baby. He thought because of the lack of nutrition he wouldn't be able to tolerate labor and I would most likely end up with a c-section in the end. I should mention that this conversation was had with the ultrasound Doc and not my midwife or her back up Obstetrician. I felt very upset and I went to my midwifes office and hoped that they would be more open to me having a natural childbirth. I spoke with my the back up ob, and he had the same recommendations for me. I was told I could choose to do whatever I wanted, but after I was presented all the facts, how could I choose to have the natural childbirth that I had prepared myself for when the health of my baby was on the line. I couldn't do it, it felt too selfish. I agreed to have a c-section. To my surprise Dr. Nielsen (my midwifes back up ob) was trying to schedule me in to have the surgery that very night. This is where I had to put my foot down. I was very red faced and had two puffy sacks under my eyes from crying, I was still surrendering my hope for a beautiful natural childbirth. There was no way I was going to have the surgery that night; we scheduled it for the next morning. After the disappointment wore off I started getting really excited about the fact that "this time tomorrow" I would be holding my baby boy. After getting some blood work done and receiving an armful of wristbands to prepare for my surgery, I went home and started the other preparations ie. find a babysitter for Micah, pack our things, and clean up a little. We took Micah to stay with his Aunt and Uncle Sara and Weston and took our last picture as a family of 3. Ryan and I went to dinner then headed home to get ready for the day to come. I didn't sleep at all that night.



The next morning we arrived at the hospital at 6:30. Everything was much less chaotic than my first cesarean. I was prepped for surgery and after I was all ready, Ryan came into the O.R. My Mom works at St. Marks Hospital (where I delivered) so she was standing right outside the O.R. Ryan and I were getting very anxious behind the screen because we knew my body was being cut into.


It was after a few minutes I was told I would feel some pressure. I felt the pressure and then I heard the most beautiful sound I have ever heard in my life. I hear my little Sam cry and I couldn't help but cry myself. I could not believe the emotions that came over me. I wanted so desperately to hold my baby right then, of course since I was numb and my innards would have fallen had I tried to get up, all I could do was lay there. They brought Sam around so I could see him and I was so amazed at the beautiful little boy in front of me. Sam was perfectly healthy and I couldn't have asked for anything more.


After the surgery was complete I went to my recovery room and got to hold and nurse my little boy. It was wonderful.

Cuppy Cake

Micah's favorite book right now is Cupcake, by Charise Mericle Harper. Unfortunately I have maxed out on renewals at the library and we had to return it. The story begins by telling you all the ingredients that go into making cupcakes and how a special little vanilla cupcake was born. Today Micah sat down at the Kitchen table with a measuring spoon and asked for flour, sugar, eggs, milk, and baking powder. All the ingredients that are listed in the cupcake book. I'm pretty sure he wanted to make cupcakes. :)

A few days ago Micah wanted to read Cupcake, so I asked him to read it to me. He wasn't even following the words or showing any signs of reading, but he narrated the first page to me perfectly. I was very impressed by how well he has been listening to the story. I'm going to have to find a copy for my little guy. It really is a fun story.

3 weeks (or less) to go!

almost 37 weeks here 05/10

Here is the most recent belly picture. I can't believe how much smaller I am this pregnancy. Can you tell I have had more spontaneous behavior? I asked My Neighbor Val to chop off my hair. I'm really happy with the way it turned out.

It's getting hard to believe that I am going to have two little ones to care for soon. I really like that it's just me and Micah together each day. I think I am going to miss that. I am very excited to have Sam around, but I wonder if I'll be able to give both of my kiddos all the attention they need. I really hope Micah will be okay with the adjustment.

These two pics were taken at 35 weeks of both of my pregnancies. Can you believe how BIG I was with Micah! The little measuring tape I am holding on the right was cut on the day of the picture on the left. YIKES!

Micah 12/08 Sam 05/10

With toddlers there's a surprise around every corner

This is what happens when you leave markers out while you are fixing dinner.

First of all, I love my midwife. I am so excited to have this baby! And I may have a Doula too!

I have had a lot to post so I am going to continue on with my check list. Today's topic is all about Micah! Oh how I love my little Micah. I can't believe how much he is learning and growing. Yesterday I put a pair of pants on him and they fit perfectly, that same pair of pants was falling down to his ankles just last week. Today when I called for Micah I didn't hear little feet pitter pattering my way, instead I heard "What Mommy." I have noticed that Micah is trying to find a place where he can be my little baby and my big boy at the same time. We tried potty training, but despite how ready I think he is, he is just to afraid to park his little tushy on the toilet.

The most recent thing that Micah has surprised me with is his ability to recognize all the letters in the alphabet, and he knows the sounds that most of the letters make too! It is amazing to see him grow up.

The surprising things Micah has said recently:
- Mommy, I poopy, change Micah. (Don't you dare tell me he's not ready to potty train)
- COME ON JAZZ!
- Daddy come here RIGHT NOW!
- stupid dog. (Micah learned this one from Toy Story, he use to yell it until I told him that I don't want to hear him say it anymore. Now he whispers it under his breath when he gets mad).
- Whoa, Big One! (usually talking about airplanes or trucks).

The list could go on and on. You'd think that we yell at our house a lot. To be honest I think Micah has picked up the yelling from other kids. And I have decided that Micah can ONLY watch PBS shows. I love all the fun Disney shows, but I think we better hold off a little longer for Micah's sake.

The Business of being born

January 2010, (I don't have a recent prego pic :)

Let me first begin with recording my experience with Micah's birth. Micah was due on January 15, 2008. My pregnancy with him was wonderful. The hardest part was my last Trimester when I became SO INCREDIBLY ITCHY ALL OVER! Other than that everything was great. I was 2 days over due and like any full term mother, I was feeling very ready to have my baby.

I worked up until the day I had Micah. I made it into work bright and early (6:00 am). After a few hours I was just ready to go home, so I did. I went home and slept for hours, woke up showered and took a good look at my apartment. I decided it wasn't clean enough so I made my way in and out of each room cleaning every last inch of my apartment. I remember feeling contractions while I was scrubbing the bath tub. The contractions continues through the evening but I hadn't started timing them yet. I made dinner and then let Ryan clean up. After we ate I started timing my contractions. They were about 2-4 minutes apart, I tried to lay down and rest to make sure it wasn't just false labor. After a couple hours of rest and contractions staying at about 2 minutes apart we wen to Mt Timpanogos Hospital. When we arrived a nurse had me change my clothes and checked to see how far I was dilated. I was only a one and a wiggle! The nurse reassured me that she would watch me for an hour and if I didn't make any progress, I would be sent home for the night and then most likely have a baby in the morning. After we had only been there about 15 minutes the same nurse came in and asked me all kinds of questions, and then the next thing I know she is sticking an ivy in my arm and having me turn to my side. A few minutes later she tells me that the babies heart rate is going down with every contraction (that is normal) but is not bouncing back to a safe range. She said I will be staying in the hospital and she checked me in. A second nurse came in and gave Ryan some clothes to change into.

The next series of events happened so fast that the excitement I felt to have a baby tuned to fear. The Nurse that I had been helping me from the moment I arrived, came in and announced that my Dr. was on his way and wanted me prepped for a c-section. I was then told that the there wouldn't be any time for me to have an epidural for the surgery so I would be put to sleep completely. On top of that I was told that Ryan would have to stay behind and I was wheeled away to the operating room. I don't even think I got to give Ryan a hug or a kiss before I was rushed away. While in the O.R. I was laid half naked onto a surgery table, received a catheter (can I say ouch!), and had a mask placed over my face. The nurse told me she would make sure that my chest was covered so that I felt more comfortable, what a foolish thing to say, I was way beyond comfortable! Then the Anesthesiologist came over, pinched my throat and I was out. The next hing I know I was being waken up by a nurse. She told me that my baby was taken to the NICU and I would get to see him soon.

I was taken to a hospital room where my family was waiting for me. It was good to have them there but Ryan was missing along with mine and his Dad. I was told that they were in the NICU with Micah giving him a blessing. I asked again when I would get to see my baby and I was reassured that it would be soon. Ryan finally came in and showed me a picture of Micah. Yes the first time I got to see Micah was a photo! I thought I would feel something special but I felt nothing when I looked at the picture. I wanted to meet him, yet I still didn't have the feelings for my baby that I had heard other moms talk about. I was then taken to a more permanent room and told to get some rest. I was getting so upset, I still hadn't seen my baby, my family had gone home, and I was still delirious from the drugs. It was the next morning, 11 hours after I had had him that I finally go to go see Micah. It was three days later that I got to hold him, 4 days later that I got to nurse him, and 17 days later that we got to bring him home. For those of you who don't know, Micah was in the NICU because he inhaled meconium and his lungs were partially collapsed.

Since having Micah have have been determined that my next baby was going to be a vaginal birth. The only thing I knew for sure that I needed to do, was to find a provider who would allow me to have a VBAC (vaginal birth after cesarean). The next step I took was getting my body baby ready. I got into the best shape I have ever been in in my life. I have managed to stay very physically active through out this pregnancy, which I feel has been and will continue to be very beneficial to me on so many levels. I was feeling as though I had covered all the bases, but as the babies due date is coming up and after all the research I have been doing, I started feeling there were a few more measures that needed to be taken. I felt that in order to have the birth that I want, not only a VBAC but also a natural birth, I needed to find a new provider. I made the last minute decision to switch to a nurse midwife. I kind of think it also has to do with my impulsive pregnant brain. For now I am very happy with my decision, but we'll see if I feel the same way after my first appointment with my midwife tomorrow. I have also borrowed a few things from my friend Camy to help me with Hypno birthing (not as crazy as it sounds, I promise). I am feeling much more in control of things which makes me very Happy! And did I mention that this pregnancy has bee wonderful too? I absolutely love being pregnant!

To what do I owe the credit of my new impulsive behavior?
- Ina May's Guide to Childbirth, by Ina May Gaskin (I highly recommend this)
- The Business of Being Born, Documentary ( I highly recommend this too!)
- Various articles
- Very supportive and experienced friends and family :)

Back to Washington, D.C.!

Washington, D.C. April 2007

The decision is made, and we will be off to George Washington University in Washington, D.C. We are very excited to be able to go back to D.C., but I have to say I am very nervous to go with two little ones. I think the hardest part will be to move away from our family and friends. So the rest of this post might seem to be all over the place, but it makes sense to me. :)

Ryan has a compilation of different songs he collected from different Elders when he served his Mission; he served in Washington D.C. (North mission I believe). Music is such a big part of Ryan's life and so I am not at all surprised that he has this compilation. One of the songs on this CD Ryan and his freind wrote, It's called Back to the Mountains. They wrote it as they we're coming to the end of their service missions and about to return home. For Ryan, home was Utah.

It seems we have been preparing to go to law school forever. Now everything is coming together and we are actually going to move our family across the country and pursue this next phase in our lives. The reason I mention the song above is because I think it is so ironic that Since Ryan has been home from his mission he keeps being pulled back to Washington. First for his Internship with the Washington Seminar and now for Law School at George Washington University. It seems Washington, D.C. is not finished with Ryan yet (you know like in LOST).

Micah's favorite things

Surprise, I haven't been very good at posting my favorite things. Well I decided that since I haven't written much about Micah recently, and because he is one of my favorite people in the whole world, I would post about his favorite things at 26 months. There are so many it's hard to decide where to begin.


Favorite Toys:
Trucks
Cars
Trains
Curious George monkey (his name is Monkey)
Basketball hoop
Blocks

Favorite Books:
Go Dog Go by, P.D. Eastman
Cars at Play by, Rick Walton and Ann Walton
Me too by, Mercer Mayer (Micah also LOVES all of the critter books we own)

Favorite Movies:
Cars
Bolt
Toy Story
Your baby can read

Favorite things to say:
"(Mommy, Daddy, etc.)... come on!"
"What are you doing...(Monkey, Daddy, etc.)"
"That Kind"
"That way"
"That one"

Favorite games:
Connect four
Bouncing on my knee while I sing him the Humpty Dumpty song we learned at the library.
Building tall towers and tunnels for his train.
Running around in circles. This literal, he loves to go around in circles screaming "go around again."
Hiding games

Favorite Chores: (yes Micah has favorite chores)
Dishes
Laundry

Favorite places to go:
Grandma and Grandpa's house (Ryan's parents)
Nana and Papa's house (my parents)
Nursery
Library
Living Planet Aquarium

Favorite things to eat:
broccoli
asparagus
all fruit
cookies
brownies
chicken nuggets
french fries

Misc Favorite thing:
I just got into using essential oils by doTerra (I am selling them too if your interested), and they have a great blend called On Guard. I have been rubbing a drop on each one of Micah's little feet every night before he goes to bed. He LOVES when I do this for him. If he sees my box of oils within grasp and unattended he is all over them. He also enjoys when I pull them out just so he can smell them.

Still waiting

We haven't heard from any other schools so far, but I do have an update. Ryan recieved a confirmation from University of Washington (Seattle. Washington), that they have received his application. I didn't add University of Washington to the first list because Ryan and I thought that because one of his letters of recomendation was sent after the application deadline, his application wouldn't be considered complete. Therefore, we thought he wouldn't be considered at all. Thankfully all of his hard work was not in vain, and they are currently reviewing his application.

Another update. Today Ryan and I went to an admitted students reception for George Washington University. The reception was held at the Grand America, it was really nice. The staff and Alumni did a great job of selling the college. Of course if we do leave Utah for school, GW would be my first pick. The reception was really great for Ryan, he was able to address his concerns and get some solid answers. I got to speak to spouses, after today I am starting to feel more excited for this big step in our lives.

Where are we going?

"Where are we going?" This is the big question on our mind. Ryan has been working very hard the last couple years to prep himself to get into law school. He did a LSAT prep course, took the LSAT, filled out applications for 10 schools, wrote a re-wrote many essays, and dropped a lot of cash-money for the applications. We did get a few fee waivers at a law school college fair, which helped a lot. Now that Ryan has done everything he can do, we are left with anticipation as we wait for responses.

Results so far 3 down 7 to go:

University of Illinois- Waiting List
George Washington University, DC.- Accepted
University of Utah- Accepted
Brigham Young University
University of Colorado
Boston College- Not Accepted
Notre Dame, Indiana
Emery University, Georgia- Waiting List
Duke, North Carolina
William and Mary, Virginia- Waiting List
University of Washington, Washington (new)-

Micah turns 2!

Wow Happy Birthday to my little man! Micah turned 2 last month and we had so much fun celebrating with him. We had a small party with mine and Ryan's immediate family. We had a yummy homemade pizza dinner and did the traditional party things, open present and eat cake of course. After all the practice he got at Christmas time, Micah knew just what to do with his gifts. He was so delighted to see a pile of presents just for him. He got a lot of great things from his aunts, uncles, parents and of course grandparents. The hard part about presents at this age is after unwrapping one gift, kids (or at least Micah) want to open the package and play with the toy inside right then. It took a while to get through all his gifts :). Ryan and I pulled our gift to Micah out last, it was a good thing too, because he loved it and was completely consumed with it (the story bellow explains the gift). We got him a Basketball hoop.


After presents and a lot of coaxing Micah, we moved onto the cake. I made a Curious George cake for Micah, he loved it. After we sang to him he blew out his candles and grabbed his little monkey off the cake. When he was finished with his monkey he tried putting it back on the cake and smashed one side of it, whoops.


The days following Micah's B-day we're hard. He kept getting frustrated with his new toys because he was still trying to understand how they all work. His tricycle was upsetting him because he couldn't reach the petals, he still can;t but is happy to let us push him around on it. His train was a little hard to assemble, thankfully he is able to put it together now. And last of all, he had a major melt down every time he missed a shot when he played basketball. Now he just says "missed" in an upbeat voice and tries again, so cute :).

Over Christmas we were spending time with our friends Elliot and Kristin at Elliot's sister's house. They had a Basketball hoop and Micah played with it our whole visit. After that night I spent a lot of time searching out Basketball hoops. There are plenty out there in the world but we don't have the cash money that the world wants. So of course I was vigilant and kept checking on KSL Classified adds. I found a lot of people asking near retail price for toddler hoops that they have had for years (I don't get that). Eventually I found a great hoop with balls included for only $12! I called immediately and picked it up the next day.

Snickers Cookies one of my new favorite things

Last week we had our Down-N-Out diner dinner, which went very well by the way. One of my friends provided Rollo cookies and Snickers cookies. Everyone that was serving wanted to snatch one of those tempting suckers all through the night. We had men coming back asking for one more, which of course we gave into them. We even had guys just come back to compliment the cookie chef and ask her for her recipe. After all the hype, I knew this was a cookie recipe I needed to get my hands on. Micah and I made the cookies the very next day. They only lasted a few short hours, we gobbled those babies up so fast that I was left wanting more. I think I'll have to wait for a special occasion though. I don't want to know haw many calories I consumed last weekend. Have I enticed you? Well here is the yummy recipe I got from my friend Angie. Enjoy!

Snickers Cookies
1 cup butter
1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup peanut butter
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
3 cups flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
48 mini snickers (or cut fun size in half)

Beat butter, sugars and peanut butter until fluffy. Add eggs and vanilla. Combine dry ingredients. Wrap dough around snickers and form into a ball. Dip top side of cookie in sugar. Put on cookie sheet, sugar side up. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes. Melt chocolate chips and drizzle on cookies when cool.


Another one of my new favorite things is having a little helper. Micah is always pitching in to help me do whatever it is I am working on, from dishes to scooping wheat out of our 5 gallon tub to a more accessible bowl. Last week was no exception. As I was forming my pretty little cookies and dipping the tops into sugar, Micah had his spoon and was throwing dough down all over the cookie sheet. As I went to dip another one of my cookies in the sugar I noticed that my sugar cup had gone missing. I quickly found the cup on the floor and an extra 3- tablespoons of sugar in my dough. I don't mean to point fingers, but I think it was Micah. Oh well a little extra sugar never hurt anyone, right?

Catching up on Christmas

We had a fantastic time celebrating Christmas all through December (2009).
To keep things short and simple, here is a summary of what happened.
- Forgotten Carols w/ Taylor's
- Light's at Temple Square w/ Pappas'
- Down-N-Out Diner Blanket Drive
- Down-N-Out Diner Holiday dinner
- Christmas party with Utah Business Magazine at Carver's
- Church Christmas party with a yummy caramel apple salad
- Shopping
- FM 100 holiday concert series
- Christmas party with the Pappas clan
- Christmas Party with the Taylor clan
- Watched Frosty the Snow Man and Elf a million times with Micah
- Watched other Holiday Favorites with my man Ryan
- Lots and Lots of Baking
- Christmas Eve brunch with some of my best friends in the whole world
- Christmas Eve games with Ryan's fam
- Christmas eve dinner with the Pappas' (An amazing El Salvadorian style turkey dinner).
- Christmas morning at home with my little family (Loved it!)
- Splitting the rest of Christmas day with between our families
- Awesome New Years eve game night
- And Much much more.
- And of course trying to teach Micah all month long that Christmas is the time of year we celebrate the birth of our Savior. Maybe he'll understand this concept better next Christmas.

This year was so fun because Micah was old enough to understand what was going on. He loved receiving every single gift that was given to him. The best reaction Micah had was to a Blanket that he got from my cousins Julie and Karen. He wrapped himself up in the blanket and ran wild. Word's really cannot explain how much joy he got out of his blanket, it was the cutest thing ever. And it made me feel so happy that Julie and Karen were able to sense his appreciation for the gift too.

To make things a little more festive in my apartment I made a fireplace to hang our stockings on. I also thought it would be fun to get a classic family photo with our fireplace. Although the picture is far from classic, we had a lot of fun with our fireplace.


Merry Christmas over a month later!

It's raining men!

The results are in (and have been for a couple of weeks now, sorry).


We are so excited to have another little boy on the way. In all honesty we really did not care about what we were having, we are just so excited to see our little family grow. With that said, I have to share a funny little story. After I got home from my ultrasound I gave my parents a call to tell them the good news, keep in mind that this was two different phone calls. I called with the usual greeting "Hi, how are you.... Well I just got back from my ultrasound, can you guess what we're having?"

Dad Response: "I think it's a boy." "Yep" I replied enthusiastically (or so I thought). "Oh, it's okay Lindsay."

Mom Response: "Um, a girl." "No, it's a boy" I said happily (I thought). "Oh, It's okay Lindsay."

I just thought it was so funny that both my parents felt as though they needed to comfort me. I am so excited to have my little guy on the way, I can't wait to see him, and smell him, and hold him and nurse him and... oh the list could go on and on. I just wish we knew what to name him. Any more suggestions out there?

Flash Back Friday

I have been wanting to post more but I feel very behind. While I try to organize my thoughts and decide where to begin, I thought I'd give myself a small and easy push. That is why I decided it would be fun to do a "flash back Friday" post as well as "my favorite things" post, we'll see how this goes.

Remember this little gem? I have come to know this piece of furniture as the clown couch. Though it may seem as if nothing else in the world could compliment this piece I am happy to inform you that there was an identical love seat that sat next to this couch. You may be wondering how did we ever end up with this eye sore? let the story begin.


It was October 2005 and I was at a bridal shower with my friends, meanwhile my husband-to-be was out furniture shopping. I gave Ryan a call after my Bridal shower to say hi, he asked me to come by our soon to be apartment because he had a surprise. When I entered the apartment I had no words, this couch knocked the wind out of me! This is probably the reason we kept the couch for the first couple years of our marriage. The couch itself was in really great condition and very comfortable, that was one plus side. Eventually I couldn't handle the colors and patterns any longer, so I started making plans to reupholster the beast. Luckily I didn't have to take on the job because we received a great set of hand-me-down couches from my in-laws.