How to catch up?

It is time for my yearly post. So much has happened and yet I feel like nothing has changed. I am not exactly sure where to begin, so I will try to post a little by little every week. Of course, I know the only one who is possibly still reading our "blog" is my Mom. This one's for you!

A quote from James Thurber sums it all up,

"Boys are beyond the range of anyone's sure understanding, at least when they are between the ages of 18 months and 90 years."

I will definitely receive some flak for this photo, I just don't care. This sums up the experience I have with my son on a daily basis. My initial assumption is that Morgan is a "typical" 2 year old, but as I have very limited experiences with 2 year old boys...I honestly don't know for sure. I can only hope that other moms (not for their sakes, but for mine) wake up with salt poured all over the floor, cabinets -and walls- used as coloring books, milk spilled on the table from morning cereal...I could go on. However, for every ounce of "trouble" this child inflicts on our lives he brings twice as much JOY. I wish he were a snuggler, because I can't get enough of holding him and smooching on him. When he is an angel he is irresistible. Physically he has changed a lot over the last year- he has become very ACTIVE and can do a lot of physical activities that McKenzie still hasn't mastered. He weighs only 2 pounds less than her and is less than a foot shorter.

He loves furry things, four-wheelers, candy, presents, cars, making loud noises, "reading" books, our dog bones, Daddy's hats, and coloring on everything. All of these things can't add up to his greatest love of all- McKenzie. He can't stand to be away from her for more than ten minutes and it is a mystery to almost everyone- because she has made it her life mission to make him miserable.

His personality makes him most special. He is by nature a "ham". I have never seen him being "shy" and can't imagine him going anywhere without making instant friends. He is incredibly helpful and independent. At times he just "zones" out and becomes quite pensive- very interesting. He has my quick temper, lack of communication, and ability to turn the other cheek. He has Heath's energy, sensitive nature, and curiosity. Morgan, I am quite confident, has a strong heart and will continue to be exactly who he is for a long time to come.

Look, I Still Blog...

Honestly, one blog every 8 months is sufficient for our rather stale lives. Some things have changed since April (mostly not though)...

Heath:
Shameless Plug: *If you or anyone needs a dent(s) removed from a vehicle- I know someone. No more working at a restaurant. Heath is now working as a paint less-dent remover, which has interesting hours and a really cool car attached to it. He is currently working on a very special project that has a very large amount of secrecy surrounding it- McKenzie tells me "it's" a horse, I have no clue. Confused? Me too. The deer hunt this fall was unsuccessful (no tears were shed by me). Tip: when the deer live in your backyard I think they are "on" to you.

Me:
I am a "teacher". My life is filled with grading papers, cutting, pasting, planning, copying, etc... I wish I got paid by the hour. I love my job though- there really is nothing like being in charge of a group of children all day long and feeling good about what you "do". If it weren't against the law I would post a picture of the class on "red" day (it looks like someone vomited U of U in our classroom). I am running the Ragnar (apparently) in June. Also, I have taken up a new hobby: real-life bumper cars. I've also decided that I need some items to add to my dinner menu, it is difficult cooking every night.

McKenzie:
As cheerful as always McKenzie is clearly cut out for being a girl. She will be getting married in the spring to a lovely boy named Afton. I've only met him once (while eating his go-gurt during the zoo field-trip lunch picnic) but he seems able to tolerate her drama so he's "in". McKenzie is enjoying her preschool time and will continue her dream of becoming a world renowned dancer (or princess, whichever comes first) one dance class at a time. Her hobbies include, but are not limited to: torturing Morgan, singing, talking nonstop, torturing Morgan, playing with princesses, watching movies, being tortured by Morgan, painting fingernails, and crying.

Morgan:
Boy. Boy. Boy. Into everything. Sticky, stinky, silly, adventurous, handsome, sweet, needy, spoiled, boy. Morgan didn't start walking- he ran. He climbs and is taking his time with the talking- I blame the tumble off the bed onto the hardwood floor when he was an infant as part of the problem, but more likely it is the binky (pacifier) he clings to like a bald man to his toupee during a windstorm.

Morgan Turns One

My sweet little blue-eyed boy reached his first-year milestone on April 8, 2010. Here are some photographic highlights:

Before:

After:

Easter 2010

Easter was fun, we had Heath's parents down from Wyoming. It snowed like 10 feet, so the egg hunt was inside and fairly uneventful. Did I mention there was candy?
I ate it and then I had gas.

"Sharing"':

A little girl and her bike...

Together, sometimes...

Another successful Christmas. This year we spent our time in Wyoming with Heath's family: above is a picture of us on Christmas Eve.

School has started again for me. Another full-time semester, and more work than I care to share with others. I work part time at the restaurant as a server, still. I am with my two children and husband with what little time I have during the day- I am so grateful for the love and support of all my family and friends!
This past year has brought some changes for McKenzie- such as: potty training, turning 3, seeing the princesses, being a princess, playing with princesses, talking like a princess, watching movies, (OK- so not very many of those are changes, but she is grown up before our eyes)...She has a big personality to go along with her big smile!

Morgan is 9 months old. He is in the 90% and above for height, weight, and head size. He wants to be mobile but lacks the basic understanding of how to work his body (thank goodness). Our family dynamic has changed completely since the birth of Morgan last April- we are so happy to have him... Such a good boy. Also- he has four (almost five) teeth now.

Heath is working as Manager at the restaurant. He is excited about a new job he just started at a local academy for older kids- he will be teaching them to fly as part of their extra curricular activities. He has only been an employee for one week and has yet to know if he really enjoys the job. The big deal is- he gets to fly everyday!

Thanksgiving 2009

It was Morgan's 1st Thanksgiving! Our holiday was spent at The Parents' House with family, friends, new faces, and food. Sadly, there were no left-overs which is really the only reason to make all of that food. Cold turkey sandwiches are my favorite.

Happy Holidays!

Halloween 2009

Yep, that is my son in a Raggedy Andy costume.

McKenzie wanted to be a Little Mermaid.

I found the costume online and I could not resist!

Also, they can be used as blackmail pictures later.

We went Trick-or-Treating, the real way- not the fake "out of the back of the car-treating". McKenzie had a blast- we all did.

...I Still Live & Breath...

Life is fun. I promise I didn't drop off the face of the earth. School is my life right now, besides my family and work- all of which keep me very busy.

Heath takes care of both of the kids while I go to school everyday in the morning. I have a wonderful husband who isn't afraid of being with his two small children. I appreciate his love and support.

I am taking 16 credits this fall- it's a lot of work. I get to start teaching with my partner, Heidi, in November. I am really looking forward to it (knock on wood).

McKenzie is a lovable yet challenging little 3 year old. I can't believe how hard it is raising a toddler. She is taking dance classes once a week- SHE LOVES IT! She has quite a personality, already. Who said girls are easier?! Did someone really say that?

Morgan is one of the sweetest babies I've ever met. :) He can roll from front to back and back to front. He likes to talk and laughs a lot. He is eating rice cereal, oatmeal, and formula. I'm not sure of his exact weight but he is very large and handsome.

Pecked to Death by Chickens...

Dearest Daughter,

I CAN'T believe you are three years old! Your strong will and gigantic personality keep all of us on our toes...Remember, no matter what, you are LOVED and CHERISHED by your family and friends (with the exception of an accident every now and again- you are potty-trained)...
Thank you for bringing love, laughter, happiness, excitement, adventure,

and sometimes challenges into our lives...

Love,

Mommy.

My Heart Is True As Steel

My BEAUTIFUL little girl

reminds

ME...

Every woman: should

have a princess day...

And bask in

her GLORIOUS
shoes...

-I CHerish HER-
-I WondeR Her-
-I BelieVe HeR-
-I LoVE hER-

July 8, 2009

Morgan is 3 months old today!

Weight: 16 lbs.

Height: 25 inches

He sleeps through the night, mostly. He laughs and coos A LOT.

Smiling is his favorite pastime.

What a strong boy he is- holding his head without help and kicking his legs like he's running a marathon.

We love him so much!

RIP Michael Jackson

I am not a perfect person, I know this. Not everyone I know believes the same things as me, thinks the same way I do, or would make the same decisions I've made. Here are some things that I've been thinking about the past few days...

1. Shampoo: Is there really that big of a difference between all of the shampoos? I buy the not cheap/not expensive kind that is meant for blonds-natural or not. What is the ingredient used that makes it exclusively helpful for blondies? Or is this an example of the consumer (me) falling for the crap being fed to her? There probably isn't a difference- it is all psychological.

2. Facebook.

3. I have watched every episode of Jon & Kate Plus 8. Is it stupid that I liked this show? Don't answer that. I feel like such a sucker, because now it seems like Jon & Kate are purposely exploiting their small children for money, when before I thought it was just a way for people to see what it was like to raise multiples. What happened?

4. Since when did manners go out the window? Would it be too much to ask for someone to appreciate the nice things people did for them- all out of love? Seriously- a bunch of persons that I know did something really great for one particular person this weekend and I don't think any of them were ever thanked. NEVER underestimate the importance or weight of a heartfelt "thank you."

5. Speaking of weddings, I have been presented with a somewhat peculiar request (more than once), I am wondering if it is normal or if I am justified in being a tiny bit annoyed by this reoccurring scenario: I have been invited to a bridal shower for someone I have never spoken to in my life, and this person is having a "small" wedding- which means that I won't be invited to the reception. Now this may not seem like a big deal to most- this is the FOURTH time this has happened to me- being invited to the bridal shower and not the reception and a couple of times I didn't even receive an announcement so I'm not even sure the couple went through with the wedding and what really happened to that ten dollar gift that I gave you that took me 4 hours to find because the parking lot at target was filled with toddlers running everywhere and forget trying to get the damn registry thing to print and is this the right color of towels or is it the darker shade of red and why can't I find the matching dishcloths? Perhaps this is a new thing to do- even though I believe it to be a smidge (that's right, I wrote the word smidge) on the side of tacky. If you aren't going to invite me to your wedding then I'm probably not important enough (and I'm not) to be invited to your bridal shower- you must be slightly desperate to be inviting me anyway since I have no money and can only afford to get you a "small" gift. Maybe these people feel sorry for me because I have like three friends and think that I have no life which is obvious after reading this post and in that case: I'd rather not receive your pity-invite thank you very much.

Take That Chuck Norris

The month of May has come and gone.

It has brought about our five year anniversary, the one month status of our son, a fun party at my Mom's house, a visit from Heath's parents, going back to work from maternity leave along with the last day of school, a trip to TPI, the arrival of my AS diploma, and the start of a new job. Everyone is healthy and oh yeah- we are surviving just like everyone else.

McKenzie is a vigilant helper. Whenever the baby starts to cry she shoves something, anything in his mouth. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't.

Morgan is now 1 month. He sleeps up to six hours during the night. He eats a lot. He cries when he is distraught.

Our trip to Thanksgiving Point: the car show, and a pony ride. The candy store sure has changed...

Dave & Carol meeting their new grandson for the first time! I love this picture- I think he was a little surprised by the camera flash.

Five Years

Happy Anniversary to my sweetheart.

I am a lucky woman to have a man such as yourself.

I can't wait for the next five years!

It wasn't a girl...

This is our son, Morgan Lee. The birth story is nothing too exciting- I was induced and around 12 hours later I pushed this big guy out (with the help of my friend Mr. Epidural).

He was: 8 pounds and 15 oz.

20.5 in.

He really is such a sweet boy. On Easter we found out that he has jaundice and he has had to be under the bili lights ever since. It has been hard on all of us. Thank you to my parents and wonderful husband for taking care of McKenzie and me!

Another update...

I had my final Dr. Apt. today before the baby comes. I am almost fully effaced and dilated to a three. We are hoping the baby comes on it's own (possible this weekend and all positive thoughts are welcome) but if it doesn't- I will be induced on Wednesday morning.

The longest post I've ever written...

I really do like blogging still. The problem is, I've been so busy that it has been last on my priority list.

Here is an update of what is going on:

-McKenzie-

1. Still in the process of potty-training, she does ask to go to the bathroom about half the time and only for #1. I'm still debating about starting her in preschool this fall, I wish I could see into the future: that way I could know for sure if she will be ready. Such a hard decision.

2. She sleeps in an actual big-girl bed now and loves it! (knock on wood)

3. I think she is in for a big shock when our little baby arrives.

-Heath-

1. If anyone likes warm weather, it is my husband. He is not the type of person who can stay inside for long periods of time without becoming "cranky". This winter has been hard for the two of us and we are especially looking forward to it being over.

2. He is enjoying flying at Diamond more now.

3. His boss bought him a share of an airplane which he uses whenever he can, honestly he can't get enough of it.

-Me-

1. My due date is April 5 (this Sunday). I have small contractions every now and then, nothing constant. I've decided not to have my cervix checked which my doctor is fine with so I have no clue if I'm dilated or effaced. He seems to think this baby will be about 7.5 pounds possibly a bit bigger. The heartbeat sounds good and it kicks A LOT. I can tell that my body and mind are preparing to give birth what with the CRAZY organizing/cleaning. All I can think about is making sure everything is ready for my trip to the hospital. I don't sleep well at night and leakage of bodily fluids from pretty much every orifice of my body is occurring. I can't complain though, this pregnancy has been a breeze compared to last time and I'm enjoying every lasting minute. I think we are all excited to finally see the baby and know what it is. (I want another girl, Heath of course wants a boy). We have no names officially picked out. I wanted to deliver in April because I think diamonds are a fantastic birthstone (I know it's vain) and my Mom's birthday is April which will make it twice as special!

2. I work everyday still and all of my coworkers are so nice to me. There are bets being put on my delivery date. I plan on working until the end of this week which will start the beginning of spring break.

3. My school term is over at the end of April and my instructors have been very understanding. I have been accepted into the teaching program for Fall 2009, which I'm so excited about!

*I will post something as soon as I can (as far as the baby is concerned). My doctor is leaving next Thursday for an Easter vacation and if the baby isn't here by then I'm thinking of inducing- I don't know for sure.

Thanks to everyone, I hope you are all doing well!

The Worst is Over...

It's Spring, I can't believe it.

I'm so happy!

Sweet Dreams

Let us hope that the next child loves to sleep as much as this one.

So peaceful...

Happy Valentine's Day.