What You've Been Missing...

We had a baby! A Boy! {I know, not too surprising, but work with me here} December 18, 2009.

And my labor was hard...er than my others. But humor me, I was in PAIN! And the unflattering picture proves it. {Bless Shane for taking this picture...}

I know it looks like I'm sleeping--but I'm thinking I'm about to die, trust me. I was so ready to push, and I was waiting for my doctor to get there. I really thought the nurses were going to be catching my baby at any moment {TMI, no?} I got through it though, with my doctor. There was a scary moment for me when the cord was around the baby's neck, but after that was taken care of he was perfect--although a little blue.

He was the cutest little thing--and very tiny! 6 lbs 8 oz, 19 inches. I was amazed by how perfect he was, and felt more grateful than ever for a healthy little baby. I truly appreciate the miracle of bringing babies into this world. Oh, and see that puff of ratted hair on my head? I call it the evidence of a hard labor. But, you'd think Shane could have told me to fix it before all of the picture taking {and yes, that means it shows in every picture we have...see}

Baby Cole...meet the world

Okay, so here's the deal. With both of my girls, I have some very cute hospital pictures. And yes, I'm bragging a little. I was so happy getting some good shots of me with my babies where I didn't hate how I looked. Until now. Oh my gravy {new favorite saying...}, I'm blaming it on having a boy. I looked horrible. And there is not one good picture of me at this hospital. And I find it quite sad. But, it is what it is--and I'm brave enough to show you. See...

I love staying at the hospital. And I know that not everybody feels that way. But, I do. It's so relaxing for me. This time, however, the girls were not able to come and visit. Because of new hospital restrictions {thank you, Swine flu} they were not able to come see their new brother. Which made me very sad. But, at the same time, because of limited visitors I was able to really rest, relax, and enjoy one on one time with both Cole and Shane. And I really enjoyed and appreciated it. But, when it was time to come home I thought Cole looked so cute {and TINY}. I was so excited to get home and let the girls meet their new little brother. After all, we've never had one of these before....

Oh, and...

We moved. I know, I was surprised, too.

Last November, Shane and I had the overwhelming feeling that we needed to lower our debt. See, this whole economy-in-the-crapper thing has been a long road for us. And I'm not blaming the economy or anybody else, but not knowing when real estate was going to bounce back had Shane unsure about work. Then it just so happened someone came along looking for a house. And when they heard we might be willing to sell--well, they wanted it. And this was all decided in a matter of days {and we consider ourselves extremely lucky, especially in this economy, because this is the second house we've been able to sell without even listing}. The best part was, these folks needed a home by December 1. Yep, we had two weeks to be out. And did I remind you that I was 8 1/2 months at this point. I really don't suggest this situation.

So, my parents were kind enough to put us up in their basement {which is not like a basement at all--we have 3 bedrooms, 2 baths, our own laundry room and kitchen--perfect}. We {and by that I mean mostly me} started packing immediately. And with lots of help from family and friends, we made it. I ended up being as swollen as a marshmallow girl from being on my feet so much, but I felt like it was still better than trying to do it after the baby came. Also, being done by December 1 gave me a couple of weeks to recover and rest before baby!

It was a long, frustrating journey to get the house that we wanted, but we finally got it. We bought a foreclosure just around the corner from our old house. We felt great about it because we could stay in the same school/ward, and the mortgage would be about half. The "new" home had been sitting empty for a couple of years, and there had been some vandalism, so there was alot of fixing up to do. We basically decided to just redo almost everything, and we are still coming out way ahead debt-wise. I was dumb and didn't take a whole bunch of "before" pictures. These were taken a while ago. The house is almost done {yep, it's May and we're still not in}, so "after" pictures will be coming soon. But here's a peek at what we got ourselves into.

The dining nook...my favorite part of the house {there will be a new light fixture}

Cole's bathroom {main floor bath}...as you can see, Shane ripped out everything

Fireplace and mantle are going to be redone

Kitchen...cabinets are staying, just being refinished to a darker color

Back! I think...

Wow! It's been almost 8 months since I've blogged. And, admittedly, I haven't missed it all that much. It seems like most {no, not all} of my blogging girlies, and guys, have abandoned the bloggin' business. Which made the game not so much fun anymore. But, I've realized one thing. When I was blogging I was 10 times better at taking pictures and recording our family memories. And that is important to me. So, I figure, this is the best way of motivating me. It's not my family journal, nor my personal one, just an outlet and a place to share our lives with our friends and family.

The last few months have been crazy, to say the least. I feel extremely overwhelmed and busy just trying to manage my little family. It's frustrating to feel like it is so hard for me when it appears to be so easy for so many of you. I admire {and question...} those of you who always have perfect houses, are on time to everything with kids in matching outfits, serve a well prepared meal at the table every evening, pull off successful date nights every Friday, are the first ones to have your yards looking summer ready--flowers already planted, make it to the gym for an hour everyday, and are looking beautiful, ready for the day, and at the grocery store and running errands by 9:00 a.m. I don't know if I'm doing it wrong, but I've decided to be happy with whatever progress we make each day. If the baby needs to be held all day, I will enjoy it instead of stressing over the house/dinner/errands {easier said than done, right?} So, I'm going to try the blogging thing again. If it happens, you can probably bet that my house is messy and the kids will be eating PB&J for dinner. And I'm totally okay with that...

Catch Me if You Can

I have a lot of catching up {blogging} to do. And I also feel like my little one is growing up so fast that I can't even catch her. I just got copies of preschool graduation {last May}, and it made me sad to think that we are already in week 3 of kindergarten. And she hasn't looked back for a second--she is still as excited to go to school as she was on the first day. And she is still excited to come home and do her homework. And I love it, and hate it.

But, back to preschool. This graduation was so cute. They did a safari theme, dressed the part, had snacks to share, and went on an animal search {this is the cutest idea for a birthday party, by the way}. They sang us songs, did a little show, and I cried just a little bit. It was precious and fun.

I've said this before, but thank heaven for Mrs. Weber. Carly absolutely adored her {and still asks every day to go and visit her}. We couldn't have asked for a more loving, kind, patient and creative teacher.

I have to do this post today. Because there is a chance that BYU will handle Oklahoma, thus giving them bragging rights. But, for now, my Utes are the team who has proven they can beat top 3 opponents. So, this is for all the Cougar fans who still insist that 1984 is relevant today, and that BYU football is still king in the state of Utah.

GO UTES!

For the record, I don't think BYU can beat Oklahoma. But, if they do, I will be the first to give them credit.

Also, Shane approached me earlier this week about making an agreement to support each other's teams instead of hating. Interesting coming from him, since he is much worse than myself. And while I couldn't agree not to hate, I did agree to keep it to myself. Until today. I guess I'm going to be trouble. But, whatever. I'm not going to cheer against the Cougs today, and that is an improvement.

It's Shocking, Really

Several things have changed around here.

First, blogging has become a "chore". Something that once came easily and frequently now seems like something I don't have time for. And it's weird. Because I really do want to keep up with the old bloggin' bus, but somehow the days and weeks just pass me by. And I have lots and lots to post about, but, oh, the time it takes...and I'm not sure why I have less time than I used to, but I do.

Second, summer is over. And I still can't wrap my brain around that fact. And I love fall the most of all the seasons, so I'm happy...but it's crazy how fast the time goes. We did have lots o' fun this summer {and a broken arm}, and maybe I'll get around to putting some pictures up, because I know that everybody is dying to see them {even if they are old}.

Third, my baby starts kindergarten tomorrow. And I'm feeling very anxious about the whole thing. Like she isn't ready to be on her own, and that she'll get lost, or not know bus safety, or forget her backpack... And I don't remember feeling all of these emotions when I sent my first off to school--but I'm sure I'm just forgetting. But just to help with all of the stress, tomorrow I'm going to send her on her merry little way and head on over to get myself a pedicure. For the sake of my mental health. And because I now have free afternoons--and that is going to mean alot of me time.

Fourth, my oldest is now a third grader. And she thinks she is an expert when it comes to school. She's got it down. She has assured me that she will take care of her little sister for me. And I believe her. Carly will be in good {and maybe bossy} hands. And I've learned that she no longer cares about my opinion in what she wears. She chose her first day of school outfit, and there was no turning her mind around. But, as it turned out, she looked absolutely adorable--and too grown up.

Because my last post was in favor of Cougars, I just had to make up for it.

It's getting to be that time of year again. And I can hardly wait. And videos like this one get my blood pumping. TCU, we're coming after you. It's going to be another great year...

**For the record, Stevenson Sylvester is my 2009 Ute crush. But how awesome is Robert Johnson? I love how at the 1:10 mark he hands the game ball to a Michigan cheerleader, and at about 1:30 he hurdles his opponent. What a guy!

In honor of Shane

I decided to do a Flashback Friday post because it has been oh, so long. While browsing through the pictures on my PC {we got a new one, so there aren't very many pics on there yet}, I saw this. I laughed because I didn't download this. Which means that Shane must have. And it must have been recently, because this computer isn't very old. Which also means that he was checking himself out for some reason. Which I find to be very funny.

So, in honor of Shane, we flash back to 2001, which was Shane's senior season of baseball at BYU. There wasn't much else as important to him as baseball. And I also loved that he played the game. Even if it was for BYU. I always thought he looked really cute in his uniform, and it brought me great joy to see him play well. We made some great memories and some fabulous friends.

I will have to ask Shane what the reason was for him downloading this picture. I'm sure there is a pretty good story, as almost everything he does is crazy funny to me. Also, this will be the last favorable BYU post I do. I can almost taste football season...and we all know what that means.

So far...

This is the news that we got almost a month ago. I was able to go in for an early ultrasound at about 15 weeks, and they told me that our baby looked like a boy. Shane said he was sure--I'm still not so convinced. I was positive I was having a girl. But, I have another ultrasound {the BIG one} in a week, and whatever they tell me I'll believe. As for now, I'm looking for boy names and getting excited about all of the "boy things". I'm excited to be able to do and buy all of the things that I haven't been able to yet {I'll get to shop on the OTHER side of the store for once!}. That is, if we're actually having a boy...stay tuned.

I'm Feelin' Groovy

Just because I know you've all been missing me, I think I may jump back into the land of blog. I can finally lift my head again and am back to functioning {somewhat}. Now my life is about catching up on the last few months. So, of course, I'll start with the blog...

So much to catch up on--the end of school, parties, summer, 4th of July, baby news, 11th anniversary, etc. etc.

But, first, for those of you who may be living in a bubble and haven't seen this...{make sure to turn my music off, at the bottom of the page, before you start the video}

This should make you laugh. I did. And now Shane is really wondering why our wedding was so lame. I think he'll be begging my last single sister to use this approach so he can have a moment of glory. {I wonder if the temples will start to allow Chris Brown soundtracks...?}

My Life

A whole lot of this

and more of this

because of this

I'm really excited. And terrified. And marking December 25 on my calendar--but not because of Christmas...{seriously, December 25}

Miss Ashlyn

Back in February I posted Carly's birthday photos. In March, it was Ashlyn's turn. And this was her big eight year old/baptism session. And it was so much fun. We had to cancel her initial appointment when she got pnuemonia, so when she got to feeling better she was very excited to have a day just for her. We did pictures and dinner at Purple Turtle {her request}.

I absolutely love Jessie O'Neal. Thanks to her for all of our amazing photos. I can't wait to do some fun things with the prints.

Sisters

I was lucky enough to be able to grow up in a family with 4 girls. And I thought it was the best. And now I am so lucky to have two cute girlies who will be the best sisters to each other. These two sure know how to bug the crap out of each other, but most of the time we laugh and giggle at how goofy they can be together. And when they get each other giggling, it can go on and on and on.

Bigger than Big

So the final two are set. And I couldn't be happier about it. I wanted Danny to go before Allison, so the universe has corrected itself this week. So, who will win? Adam {oh, so good looking--strange, yes---but pretty} or Kris {I totally wouldn't be disappointed if he won}. I'll be anxiously awaiting the finale on Tuesday.

Now, what's Bigger than Big? Tuesday can't come fast enough for me. But not because of American Idol. I'm more excited about what's coming AFTER American Idol. GLEE appears to have all of the makings of Meg's favorite kind of entertainment. High school AND singing. They had me at "Don't stop believin". Seriously, you could sell me on anything if that was your theme song. The most exciting thing about American Idol the last few weeks has been the previews for what I think will be the highlight of the fall season for me. And those nice people at Fox are giving us a little taste next Tuesday. Just so we can be sitting on the edge of our seat's until September.

The Partridge Family {minus David Cassidy}

Oh, the joy of family photos. I have a love/hate relationship. I stress about the pictures, and making sure that everybody looks good, so much so that my family hates me by the time we get there. But I love getting a great photo. It's a crap shoot, because sometimes you do, and sometimes you don't.

On this particular day, we spent a good amount of time getting the girls ready, only to have them show up at the location and start running around playing with dogs and rolling in the grass. It about made my head explode but what do you do. All in all, we got some good shots, and some funny shots. When you are trying to get a family photo with a bunch of silly munchkins you take what you can get....

The Belliston Family

The Guymon Family

The Sharp Family

Pluggin' Preschool

I have to do a little advertising here on the ole' bloggity blog. Carly's preschool teacher is now enrolling for next year and I wanted to give a shout out. If you are currently looking for a fabulous pre-school for your four year old {sorry, no 3 year olds} I can't say enough great things about Mrs. Weber. She is just down the street from me, in the Highland area, and has been the greatest thing for Carly this year. In fact, I have been told several times that I am not as fun as Mrs. Weber {and that Carly wants to live with her, and that she loves her more than me etc. etc.}. She has 2 sessions, a morning and an afternoon, and allows 6 children per session--which I think is the perfect number for a group of little people. She currently charges $95/month {I don't know if that is changing or not} and school is T/W/Th for 2 1/2 hours. So, check out her website HERE and give her a call if you are interested. I promise you won't be disappointed! And feel free to call me if you have any questions...

The pre-school is run out of her home, and she has a couple of rooms in her basement decorated so cute for the kids. They get lots of learning experiences and also some free play time which they absolutely love because her play room is to die for!

The Grand Finale

Here are the rest of our fabulous Disney memories. Bet you couldn't wait. Again, be forewarned, there are many, many pictures below {however, they include very cute children having lots of fun, so maybe you should watch}

Jazz Games are Boring...

I'm thinking of moving to Boston and becoming a Celtics fan--just for the jumbotron entertainment. Those Bostonians have some mad dancing skills. I want to adopt this kid and have him dance for me every day--he's 7 for crying out loud! {again, pause the blog music to fully enjoy}

I was going to do a Flashback Friday today, because it has been the longest time. But I'm lazy today. And I'm serious about wanting to adopt dancer boy. Even though his mother looks like a capable and loving parent. And also because the Jazz really do stink and I've never seen this kind of entertainment at a game before. And, yes, I'm fully aware that this opinion will not sit well with my husband. Or my BIL.

It's been awhile...