Christmas week

Wow, its been a while since I last posted! I added a few posts so I hope you check 'em all out.

Christmas was great! The Sunday before Christmas was kinda crazy. I played the organ, accompanied the Ward Choir's 2 numbers, and sang in a musical number myself all in Sacrament Meeting. Dave had meetings in the morning, and was the only member of the YM presidency there. Primary was kinda crazy, too. We were way short in nursery workers, so I ended up in there, and Dave brought in the YM to help out too. It was busy!!!

After that we headed down to Pocatello for my mom's birthday. Monday morning we went to Rupert. Its been a long time since Dave's parents have had kids around on Christmas morning, so though we usually stay home for that, we decided to join his parents. We spent Christmas Eve with Dave's sister. Finger foods and family - gotta love it.

Christmas morning was great! Finally that morning it felt like Christmas. I was so excited I almost woke Ana up early. Ana loved her dolly stroller and her puzzles and books. Dave and I took a lot of video, and Dave's parents took pictures. (As soon as I get some pictures from them, I'll update this post.) Dave got me some stamps for scrapbooking/cardmaking, a cookbook, the piano book for the Ben Folds album Songs for Silverman and the High School Musical movies, since I love them. The piano book I've spent the most time with. His songs are hard, but such cook rhythms, that I love it. I love that album! I got Dave and I-pod, which he wasn't expecting at all. It was really fun to surprise him.

We spent a few days in Rupert and then went back to Pocatello for a day. We were home Friday afternoon and then were back in Idaho Falls for the Phippen family holiday party. Thanks Wenday for the gift certificate. We'll use it!

Overall its been a really fun, busy week full of family and good food. We've had a good week, but we are ready to stay home for a few day now. I have some cleaning and catching up to do this week, but we are all party-ed out for a little bit.

Rexburg Temple

On Friday night I had the opportunity to clean the Temple in preparation for the Open House. It was really neat. The temple is beautiful! Before then, I was debating whether to take Ana through with us when we go, but I decided it want her to go. She won't remember what it looks like, but I think that the more opportunites you give children to feel the Spirit, the more they'll recognize it as they grow up. And it starts when they are little. Anyway, it was a neat opportunity to serve and was glad I was able to gothat night. We go through on Thursday and I'm really excited!

Claire

My sister Teri had their 3rd kid and 2nd girl a week and a half ago. They named her Claire. The pictures are adorable. Wish we could be their Teri!

Another sister and my sister in law are both due with girls at the end of Jan./beginning of Feb. Its making me baby hungry!

Baby Blanket

I made this baby blanket for a friend/neighbor who recently had their first baby. Although I didn't go a great job on the stitching, I thought it turned out cute. I made it double layer since it winter. I love the pinks!

Yeah...

So, after Ana went to bed, Erin and I made these mini Christmas wreaths to take to friends and neighbors (the ones who are still around anyway). It was fun, they are way good. After making the first batch I went to the store and got some mint M&M's to use in decorating them. When I got back, Erin pointed out to me that I had a thin green marshmallow strand stuck from my lip nearly to the bottom of my chin. Yeah, I went to the store and even talked to the cashier for a while. Everyone knew that I had sniched while making treats.

Christmas Spirit?

I've had a hard time getting into the Christmas Spirit. I've been really behind in my shopping, and my decorating has been half-hearted. (I did get my tree re-decorated though.) I've been so stressed about birthday/Christmas shopping and I feel like my house is always messy. Its been hard to feel peaceful and at rest.

Tonight Dave and I got our Christmas shopping done. We even got a bagful of buttons from Porter's craft store (5 cents each or .99 cents a bag) for our button stockings. We found some really cute buttons in the bin. We got some fun ones and some normal ones. Here is a sampling of our finds.

I love the little tiny birds. They are my favorite of our finds. We found 6 of them. The little rocking horse will probably be used on our first boy's first Christmas. Since I graduated this year, I put a little "school-ish" button (a chalkboard) on mine. Dave and Ana have matching Christmas lightbulbs. I really liked the scissors, and the "poor man" one will probably be applicable for a few years more.

Tonight Dave and I watched the classic "Santa Claus is Coming to Town" and wrapped the rest of the Christmas presents. I am feeling a little more Christmas-y now. Still, it doesn't feel quite like Christmas yet. We're gonna clean the house really well tomorrow, and I think that will definitely help.

So, it's not my birthday anymore

Yeah, it's been a few days now. We had a busy weekend in Logan for Kris and Katie's wedding. Ana threw her first major temper tantrum, it was pretty crazy. Our church starts at 1:30, so we stayed in Rupert Saturday night and drove home Sunday morning. I had two meetings before church and we got here just in time to not be late. Between meetings I went to one of the boy's houses to make sure he was getting ready for church. I taught the lesson in quorum meeting, no other YM leader was at church. Ana was still cranky from Friday and Saturday messed up schedules. Not long after church we had a bishop's youth fireside where we watched Mr. Kruger's Christmas. By the time I got done watching that movie I decided that the day hadn't really been too crazy. It was one of my busier Sundays.

Anyway, that's a little of what I have been doing instead of posting...

Wedding and such

I've been a little slow updating from this weekend, but here we go. Dave's b-day was great. We headed down to Logan that afternoon for a wedding the next morning. We stayed at my sister's house. She took us out for dinner for Dave's birthday at a really nice place. (Thanks Shari, it was great!) We met Dave's parents there too, and it was a lot of fun.

Ana didn't take too keenly to sleeping in a strange place that night and threw a royal temper tantrum. Dave had never seen the like. I have, but this was Ana's first major one. It was interesting. We'll try to keep her on a regular schedule and try to avoid its repeat.

Saturday morning Dave's nephew Kris got married in the Logan Temple. Thanks again Shari for watching Ana! It was a beautiful wedding! Kris is 5 months older than me, and has been going to school up here, and we really like his new wife, Katie. We were so excited to be apart of their day. After a very yummy luncheon we headed to Rupert for the reception that night. It was great to be able to see everyone and spend time with Dave's parents. The highlight of the reception for us was seeing our nephew Justin carrying Ana around on his shoulders. He has Downs Syndrome and he got a real kick out of it!

A side note that made me feel really special: In the 3 years I've been around Dave's family, Justin hasn't ever really shown much interest in me. But as Justin was leaving with his mom and dad, he patted me on the shoulder and said, "bye." I think it was a first, and it made me feel cool.

We drove back Sunday morning and it was a crazy day with tons of meetings and stuff to do. Ana was a little tyrant from her schedule being disrupted, but now that we've been home a few days she's getting back to her usual self. It was fun to go down, but we'll enjoy the break for a few days.

B-Day

Thanks to everyone for the happy birthday wishes! Erin got me some cool underarmour pants for running/biking in the cold.

I used them today and they kept me warm in the snow while running! I guess maybe she wanted me to be a little more committed to running...

I also took my last final at 7:45am and I am done with the semester!!

Happy 25th Birthday David!

In honor of Dave's 25th birthday today, I thought I would list 25 facts/tidbits that I love about my husband.

1. He speaks Spanish. (This was actually the first thing that caught my attention.)

2. He is very smart. School comes easily to him. This has been a major blessing in our lives for the past 2 1/2 years.

3. I really believe he could do anything he wants to do and he would do well. It seems like everything he has tried his whole life he did well. For example, I watched this music video he made in high school for a friend's band, and I'm amazed at it.

4. He has more natural artistic ability than I do.

5. I have never seen a more affectionate, playful Dad. He loves Ana so much and often reminds me to stop and enjoy her. He's always willing to take her for a while when I need a break.

6. He likes being around friends and family. He's always been really close to his family, and likes going home. He gets along with my siblings too, which is important to me. He likes having company at our house too.

7. He's very concerned about whether he's doing a good job as Young Men's President. I think this is a sign that he is!

8. You wouldn't know it, but he was very shy when he was younger. His mission to Chile totally changed that.

9. He was really into Mountain Biking when he was in high school.

10. He wants to do a triathlon next summer.

11. He really enjoys fishing and wants to find a really good spot close to here where he can go. He's learning to fly fish.

12. He'll eat whatever I make for dinner, even if its not his favorite.

13. He loves fry sauce. He talked about having a "fry sauce fountain" at our wedding and serving cheeseburgers and fries. He makes really good fry sauce too.

14. He likes video games.

15. He likes the Simpsons.

16. I grew up thinking both 14 and 15 were evil. He's won me over.

17. He doesn't get upset easily.

18. He's a night owl. But, so am I. When we were engaged, we always said once we were married we'd go to bed early cuz the only reason we stay up late is to be together. It's never changed.

19. He wore a pink vest at our wedding, which I loved.

20. He's stubborn. I need that sometimes.

21. He'll eat anything taco flavored - taco soup, taco salad, chicken tacos, etc. And he'll eat the leftovers, which he usually doesn't do.

22. He is always willing to drive wherever we go. That is good, because I don't really love driving.

23. He thinks I'm good at a lot of things, even though I'm less sure.

24. He thinks I look good when I've just worked out. Maybe thats because every time I saw him when we first met, I had just finished a work out.

25. He's sitting on the couch right now trying to figure out what his birthday presents are. Its making me laugh. He can be such a snoop! I hope you like them honey!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!! I love you!!!!

busy, busy

We've been pretty busy around here. Dave's birthday is tomorrow so I braved the snowy roads and drove to Idaho Falls to get his present. I got to visit my sister and do a little shopping. Tomorrow Dave finishes finals and we drive down to Logan for a wedding. My other sis is taking us out to dinner for Dave's birthday and then she'll watch Ana while we are at the wedding Saturday morning. Still to do this Christmas season:

*Redecorate my Christmas tree. I undecorated the top for my sharing time this last Sunday, and Ana has slowly undecorated the bottom boughs. But since I don't have any other pressing things to do tonight, I'll try to make it look pretty again.


*Get buttons for our stockings. Every year we sew on a new button. I made them last year. Its kinda fun.


*Finish Christmas shopping. We still need most of Ana's stuff, our parents, and my brother and Dave's brother. And I need a couple more things for Dave. Yes, we're slow.


*Finish (start?) a blanket for a friend who is due any day with their first baby.

*Goodie plates for neighbors and friends. Maybe I'll be sending new year cards instead of Christmas.


Whew, where is December going?

I saw this today

Some of you might have seen this already



Erin said this is "wrong". I think it's pretty funny. What do you think?

First Snow!!!

If its gonna be cold, it might as well be snowy. I really like the snow. And today was our first reall snowfall. It snowed all night and all morning, so this morning I took Ana out in it for the first time. She had a hard time maneuvering herself. I'm not sure if it was from the snow or all her clothes. Here she is! (The pictures turned out really dark. I think our camera is dying.)

Our Town

So, I created something. I could do pretty much anything I wanted for my final project in my theatre appreciation class; I chose to make a poster for the play "Our Town" by Thornton Wilder. The set in that play basically consists of a few old chairs, two tables, and a couple of ladders. It's very simple. That's why I wanted to make this poster simple. I made it to be 11x17 inches, the regulation size if you want to hang anything on campus here. Now that I look at it again, I would kind of like to see the main "Our Town" text block moved up just a little bit. Oh well, I am done and I am sure it will be good enough.

Here it is:

Let me know what you think of it (Looks like you will have to click on it to get a good look). Of course it's nothing professional but I am pretty proud of it. I actually took that picture of the chair today.

If you are interested in seeing the play, you can get it on DVD. The version we saw was from 2003 starring Paul Newman. Bro. Hansen says it's a great version.

Dear Erin (or "I am a sweater")

So Erin and I took this random quiz somewhere about what crappy Christmas gift you would be. With a title like that you are just setting yourself up for disappointment. Who wants to be a crappy gift of any kind? Well, I actually didn't end up being disappointed. I can't believe I am actually posting these. Sometimes we take these quizzes for a good time but I can't really explain why I have such an aversion to posting results. Here it is:

You Are a Christmas Sweater!

Over the top, colorful, and totally flashy. You're not afraid to be a little tacky.

What Crappy Christmas Gift Are You?

I am a sweater. It mostly had nice things to say about me. Pretty good for a crappy gift right?*

Anyway, Erin was mortified when her results came back. She is a fruitcake. Although I am sure some of her family has been trying to tell her for a while, she took it differently this time. I felt bad for her when I saw her reaction so Erin, this part of my post is dedicated to you:

• -Fruitcakes have been around since ancient Rome. Not only does each individual fruitcake last an incredibly long time, the entire race of fruitcakes has proven it has what it takes to stick around. Fruitcake has been around longer than Ceaser Salad and was probably in existence even before Ceaser himself. That counts for something right?
• -In Egypt fruitcake was considered to be a necessary food for the afterlife. Whatever that means.
• -In 18th century England fruitcake was restricted to certain holidays and weddings because it was too sweet. Sweet, see that's a good one.

There you go Erin. I hope that helps you feel a little better about yourself. I got all these unquestionable facts from die hard fruitcake fan's websites and wikipedia. So, you know you can't question their validity.

*I am only calling a sweater a crappy gift because of the name of the quiz. Honestly, who doesn't have at least one sweater that they like? I have more than one. I guess the crappy part of this gift is that it is specifically a "Christmas Sweater" and you are getting it ON CHRISTMAS. I can't say that I actually own a Christmas sweater...

Crappy Christmas Present

You Are a Fruitcake!

You taste like nothing else in this world. And get ready, you're about to get tossed!

What Crappy Christmas Gift Are You?

Sure, Dave was a Christmas Sweater who is flashy and cool, and what am I? Fruitcake. I'm a little depressed over these results.

Things I am loving this pregnancy

*Starbursts and Tootsie Rolls
*Target brand "Wildberry" fruit leather that my friend introduced me to and then gave me a whole bunch of them.
*When Dave gets up with Ana and lets me sleep a little longer.
*Pretty bland foods - Steak and potatoes, chicken and rice, turkey sandwiches
*Apples, (but I can't just bite into them. I have to cut off chunks with a knife) and grapes
*Potato Chips
*Ana's nap time (aka my naptime)
*Eggs - I eat one every morning and sometimes I hard boil one in the afternoon too.

Things I don't like that I liked when pregnant with Ana:

*Pretzels
*carrots and ranch dressing
*mexican food

I've also been craving Italian food for a couple days now, but I have yet to eat any

I feel so different this time than I did with Ana, it makes me think we are having a boy. But I really can't imagine having a boy. I'm so used to girl stuff. We'll find out in a few months I guess.

Feelin Good

Wow. I have survived the worst part of this semester. I am so glad I am almost done with this week. I'll spare the details but it was pretty crazy the last few days.

I really like playing with Ana, it is a great way for me to stop thinking about stressors. I have a great time, Ana has a great time, and Erin can get things done easier. It is a win win win situation. Plus, I am having a great time and in no way do I have to feel guilty for playing with her instead of doing something dumb like homework. She is one of the best stress relievers I have (minus the occasional diarrea blowout and taco soup incident). When my schedule eased up today I sat down with Ana in our front room and she helped me wrap a couple of Erin's Christmas presents. Ana really likes the tape. We need to buy more.

We got our Christmas tree up on Sunday. It looks good. Maybe I will post a picture. Our stockings are now hanging on the wall, Erin made them and they are pretty much the coolest stockings ever. Off and on you can hear James Taylor Christmas songs playing and there is a general atmosphere of feeling good in our apartment as I sit here eating some ranch doritos and typing with Ana on my lap.

One last thing...

I would like you all to see this picture:

I won a bag of these at our family Christmas party a couple weeks ago. They are candy cane Hershey's Kisses. And they are wonderful. Apart from enjoying them plain they are also great dropped into a cup of hot chocolate and allowed (forced I guess) to melt. Mmmm...

Goings on

Its been a while since I posted. So, here's what's been going on.

*Erin: Sunday was a crazy day! I had sharing time to prepare, then church, then the Christmas Devo and then tithing settlement. I was so tired by the end of the day. Yesterday I was sicker than a dog. I threw up probably about 10 times and couldn't get off the couch. My mom and came up from Pocatello and did my dishes, emptied my bathroom trash, mopped my floor and made me something to eat. I even kept it down for about an hour or so. I went to bed at 9:00 pm. I'm feeling much better today, just so tired....

*Dave: He has been working like a dog. He had a huge test yesterday and was studying all day for it. I even made him go up on campus instead of staying home so that he wouldn't try to take care of Ana instead of studying. He did pretty well, so it was worth it. Now he has a paper to write and projects to finish before finals week next week. Good luck, Dave!

*Ana: Has been waking up early the last few days and won't go back to sleep. Then she's tired a few hours later and so is napping before noon. Then she won't nap in the afternoon. She's not eating very well either. I think her little incisors are giving her trouble. Also about her: she likes to play the drums - or rather, she likes to beat her hands on whatever and say "bff, ksh" like she was playing the drums. She's very aware of music whenever it is on. She dances and even sings. Only 6 more weeks until she's in nursery! She talks a lot, and loves to talk on the phone. She never stops moving and is so much fun to play with. Here she is sitting on my shoulder. (I cropped myself out because I look like I'm on death's doorstep.)

Noelco

I decided to use a festive video to reveal the answer to the most recent mystery photo. Let me give you a hint, the picture isn't a shoe shiner or blood pressure meter.




In case you are still unsure due to the wide variety of products offered by Norelco here is the original, full size mystery picture.

So, was that a pretty good one? Too hard? Well, not for Will and Wendy...

Foto update

If you look back a couple posts you will notice another picture to help with the mystery photo.

the cure had begun

I love children's literature. It is probably one of my favorite genres for reading. I especially love the classics - particularly the Newberry Winners. I haven't read the entire list, but many of the books were in my home growing up and some of them are some of my favorites. The Giver, Maniac McGee, Holes, and Number the Stars are way up there on my list of favorite books. The other night, I decided to pick up one from the Chronicles of Narnia by CS Lewis (Not Newberry winners, but still excellent reading) - The Voyage of the Dawn Treader.

There is a chapter in the book that is very touching to me. Up to this point in the story, a young boy named Eustace has been acting quite awfully on the voyage. He whines and complains and criticizes, and nobody likes him. At one point in the story, he gets turned into a dragon. My favorite part in the book is when he gets un-dragoned. Aslan the lion comes to him and tells him how to do it. He tries over and over again to un-dragon himself, but it doesn't work. He cannot do it on his own. Aslan must do it for him. It is much more painful and deep than when he had tried to do it himself, but when it is over, though he still feels raw and fresh, he is back to being Eustace.

Whenever I read that part, I think of how often I try to overcome my weaknesses on my own. I try and resolve to do better, but somehow, it doesn't work. We need to rely on the Savior help overcome our weaknesses. It is much more painful and deep than anything we can do by ourselves, but its the only way. Sometimes I think that if I keep slipping back into my old ways, it means I'm trying to do it on my own. That's probably true many times. But last night, the following paragraph really hit me hard.

It would be nice, and fairly nearly true, to say that "from that time on Eustace was a different boy." To be strictly accurate, he began to be a different boy. He had relapses. There were still many days when he could be very tiresome. But most of those I shall not notice. The cure had begun.

No matter what, we will sometimes still slip up. That gives me a lot of hope.

If you have not read these books, I would highly recommend them. Although I would recommend not reading The Magician's Nephew first. The order they are in now, though they are chronologically orgainized, is not the order CS Lewis wrote them in and I think it loses some of the magic reading TMN first. I would recommend reading The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe first and waiting to read TMN until second to last. Just a tip. Enjoy!

I guess I should still be doing homework...

It has been a little while since I posted. Things have been pretty busy this last week. This weekend is going to be pretty bad, and I guess pretty much all of next week will be crazy too, but AFTER THAT I will have a wonderful holiday vacation.

We don't have finals week anymore, we are just supposed to take our finals on the last day we attend each class. I have a couple finals to take on the 14th, my birthday, which is OK because I will be done with that by 2:00pm and will be able to go to a movie or something like that with Erin. So, we will have from the 14th through January 5 ... or 8 ... or some other day in January that is far away. I am not sure what we will do with all that time. Maybe we will get back to the plans we had over Thanksgiving break which were partially thwarted by Erin having the stomach flu on top of morning sickness. That was a bad day, but she is just great now. Promise.

It will be pretty fun not working at Melaleuca over the Christmas break, worrying about time off and all that. I might work as a student secretary for the psych department on campus next semester. I put in my application today and I have a pretty good chance of getting the shift I want. I'll let you know how that goes.

I am going to write my last lab report of my undergraduate experience right after finishing this post. My chemistry lab goggles now officially belong to Ana. She likes them more than I ever did.

Well, I ran out of things to say for right now. I think tomorrow I will put up a slightly different version of the last mystery photo to see if it inspires anyone.

One last thing. Sometimes when Ana is near me and there is music playing I grab her hands and help her pretend like she is playing the drums for the songs. Now, every once in a while, when she hears music she kind of slaps her legs and says "pff, ksh, pff, ksh" (I just realized I have no idea how to effectively write those sounds. If any of you know, educate me, please)

Giving Thanks

I realized that last week passed and in the busy-ness of it all, I didn't really stop to think about what I am thankful for. Today, I was thinking quite a bit about it. I am thankful for:

*The gospel. In particular, for the messages of General Conference and for the opportunity I have to be in the Primary. (1st counselor). I am learning so much from being with those kids and I love them all.

*Mine and Dave's families. Spending time with them last week I realize how great of friends I am with all of them. There is not much I love more than being with my parents and siblings or with Dave's. He has a great family, too. I couldn't have asked for better in-laws.

(Our families at our wedding)

*Ana. She has been so happy the last little while. I love playing with her, seeing her smiles, and watching her learn about the world. Its such a rewarding feeling.

(Ana in her winter boots and diaper. She loves her boots!)

*Our financial situation. We have been so blessed in this department for so long. Sometimes while I'm figuring out our budget, the numbers just don't add up. We always have more than we expected, and enough for our needs, and even a few wants. What a blessing!

*Mostly, I'm thankful for Dave. As I'm feeling better and his schoolwork picks up, I've been back doing things like before, and I realize now just how much he has been taking care of things the last few weeks while I've felt so crummy. He is such a good man and a wonderful dad and husband. I couldn't have asked for a more forgiving and loving guy. Thanks, honey, for all you do for me and Ana. I love you.

(Fishing fall 2005)

Mystery foto numero 3

It's a little blurry but worth a shot

I would really like a nice SLR type camera one of these days. What are the important things to look for in one of those?

The answer will be posted on Saturday... guess away

I'm back ... again

So, its been a crazy fun week! We left Monday afternoon, spent a few days with my family, including a very yummy Thanksgiving Dinner, and then went to Dave's parents' house until this morning when we came back for our church. Random facts about our week.

*Our camara's batteries died, and we kept forgetting to charge them, so we didn't get any pictures of the week.

*Tuesday we were supposed to go to my cousin's wedding in Salt Lake, but when Ana woke up at 6, I got up with her and ended up throwing up 4 times before 8. We decided not to go. I threw up 2 more times in the next 2 hours. Dave took good care of me, though, and by Wednesday morning I felt as good as...well, pregnant.

*Thanksgiving was great! We saw a lot of family and it was fun to hang out and chat with my sistas. Thanks Mom for a yummy dinner.

*Ana said "Granny" for the first time (That is what all the grandkids call my mom). She also can say "Grandma" and "Grandpa" (Dave's parents.)

*Grandma's Christmas Party was so much fun! We got to see almost everyone, Ana got a new ball and I got a cute Christmas tin and some yummy pepperment Hershey's Hugs.

*Ana ate a whole corndog by herself when we went to lunch on Saturday. I'm gonna hafta keep those around the house.

*I actually am feeling a ton better than I have for the last few weeks. I had been taking 1/2 a Unisom and a B6 vitamin (which my sisters swear by), but I forgot to take them with us and I actually think they were doing more harm than good. The Unisom made me so zonked that I couldn't function. So, I'm gonna kick the habit, and I should be feeling better in just a few weeks.

*I love the Holidays! I'll be the first to say, Merry Christmas!

Talk about border security...

So, I think this may be the best campaign ad ever...

Quick Thought

As I was cleaning up Ana's throw up just as dinner was ending I thought to myself, "This could have been a lot harder to deal with. Amazingly, taco soup looks pretty much the same after coming back up."

I'm back

Okay, technically, I didn't get all of the stuff done on my list. I still need to clean my room and mop my floor. I know what you are thinking - Erin, you had 4 days and you only got 4 things done - 3 of which were done on Wednesday. Its true. Let me 'splain...

Wednesday, I felt pretty crummy, but I still managed to get some of the less strenuous tasks done.

Thursday, I felt really icky. And, Ana came down with something as well. She wouldn't eat anything, and she had the runs all day and I was throwing up all afternoon. Dave had this major test in O-chem, so he was gone most of the day. He still helped me get started on the dishes that night. (Thanks honey!)

Friday, Ana is still sick. Dave took really good care of us, though. He got up with Ana in the morning and let me sleep. Ana threw up on him in the morning and still wouldn't eat anything pretty much all day. She was pretty lethargic. She fell asleep on the living room floor over an hour before her usual bed time and napped again for a few minutes in the evening. (See picture) She had the runs too. But I did manage to get the dishes done (except for a few things.)

Saturday (today), Ana was up at 6:00 am. I tried to put her back to bed at about 6:30, but by 7, she was crying again. Dave got up with her, but she just kept saying, "Mama," and I couldn't sleep hearing those little pleas. So I got up, and she threw up all over. Then I went to our Primary Program Practice, Dave put Ana down for a nap and finished the dishes, and we spent the afternoon watching past episodes of "Chuck" to get caught up with the current episode. Ana seems to be feeling better this afternoon, and she is eating, which is good. I'm pretty tired, and I felt that although my goal isn't completely accomplished, I wanted to blog instead of cleaning up all of our playing cards Ana found earlier this afternoon.

So, I'm only somewhat of a slacker. I am going to get the floor mopped tonight after Ana goes to bed. Next week is a busy week and I want the house to be really clean before we leave so that I don't come home to a mess. It feels good to finally be caught up with the dishes, and to have a clean bathroom. Those were the main priorities. So, now I'm going to enjoy my time checking out your blogs. Happy Blogging!

Diaper and Boots

She is starting to have opinions about her wardrobe...

There he was

So, I went to Broulims this morning to buy some orange juice and a few other things since Erin wasn't feeling well. It was fun. Ana went with me in her pj's and a hat. Anyway, as we walked out of the store we saw the guy from my business 101 video. For those of you who are very interested in details I have marked his approximate position, using my ms paint skills, on the following photo.

So, I couldn't remember his name for sure. I think it is Seth. I was going to stop him and ask him about the video - you know if he even remembers it, maybe wants a copy of his fine work. I didn't ask him. It took him a little bit to realize he knew me when I said "Hi" on my way by. He also had a girl with him, I just couldn't bring it up so I had to keep walking.

its time to get down to business

I have set some goals for myself. Over the couple weeks, since I've been sick, I've totally let my house go. It is getting bad. So, I told myself I'm not going to blog again (or play Cubis) until I'm done with the following list. And to be accountable to all of you, I'll mark my progress marking it when I get it done. Wish me luck.

1. Get all the laundry put away (done)

2. Do the dishes (done - thanks Dave!)
3. Mop the kitchen/dining room floor
4. Clean the bathroom (done)
5. Clean up our bedroom
6. Put all the stuff on the entertainment center and computer desk away (done)

Luckily, I have an awesome husband who has been great about helping me out lately. He helped fold the laundry this morning and he vacuumed the front room, and he almost always gets Ana out of bed and fed in the mornings, which is great! So, I'm not alone. Maybe you'll hear from me sooner than I think.

Go ahead and play

This is a fun questionnaire that I saw on my friend's blog. It was pretty fun to think about.

~How long have you been married? 2 1/2 years
~How long did you date for? 2 months to engagement, 2 1/2 more to marriage.
~How old are you? 23
~Who eats more? Who can eat more - Dave. But I probably eat more throughout the course of the day right now because I have to be eating constantly and he's gone a lot.
~Who said I love you first? Me
~Who is taller? Dave by more than a foot.
~Who sings better? I do, but I still really like Dave's tenor voice. (I've just had more practice)
~Who is Smarter? I think Dave is, but he just disagreed. We both do really well in school, but he just knows so much stuff about all sorts of things.
~Who has a worse temper? I do - definitely
~Who does the laundry and the dishes? Me.
~Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? We switch it up. We are cuddlers, so whatever is comfiest.
~Who pays the bills? Me
~Who mows the lawn? I always wanted to do it growing up, but I'm sure if we ever have a lawn, Dave will do it most of the time.
~Who cooks dinner? Me, unless we're having Taco Soup.
~Who drives when you are together? Dave. Very, very rarely I will if he's studying in the car or I just picked him up from class, but I don't really like driving when he's a passenger.
~Who is more stubborn? Dave says, "we could both argue about this all night and neither would give up their side."
~Who is the first to admit they are wrong? See last question. Neither one of us is ever wrong.
~Whose parents do you see more? Its probably about equal. We don't really keep tabs. We like them all.
~Who proposed? Dave.
~Who is more sensitive? Well, I cry over everything right now, but I'm pregnant. Dave always teases me that I didn't cry at our wedding. He's a pretty sensitive guy, but I'm probably more sensitive in general.
~Who has more friends? Dave knows so many people, but I have more close friends.
~Who has more siblings? I do. I'm one of 9, Dave's one of 7.
~Who wears the pants in the family? We're pretty equal.

Play if you want to. (Dave you can play too on your blog. We can see if there are any differences.)

Excitement

I don't really get excited very often. Well, I get excited enough but I never jump up and down or anything like that. I don't laugh out loud nearly as often as I think something is funny. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy laughing and do it quite often but maybe I am just wierd with what I laugh at. Erin says that every time we go to visit my parents she sees more of my dad in me. I remember my mom would always buy him funny birthday cards and be annoyed when he would just read them with a straight face and say "thanks".

A typical exchange after reading such a card:
-did you think that was funny?
-yes
-well then why didn't you laugh
-I don't know (followed by a fake chuckle)
(sometimes followed by a real chuckle at himself or situation)

Anyway, Erin sees more of him in me these days and I am ok with that. I like him. Here is a picture of him working in the garden. My mom sent it to me while I was on my mission... I need to get some more pictures I guess.

Today I wanted to write about a few things that I am a little excited about:

We get a week of for thanksgiving from school. We are going to a wedding, visiting my mission president, visiting an uncle I haven't seen for a while, spending Thanksgiving day with Erin's family and a couple days after with mine.

I really want to go fishing this Saturday, it's been a while

I would also like to catch a fish when I go on Saturday, it's been a while for that too

I have already purchased a couple things for Erin's Christmas present(s)... I would love to go into more detail but I know she will be reading this

Ana is cute, another baby is coming in June

We are going to spend Christmas morning with my parents this year, first time since being married

Ana found a few minutes amusement yesterday...

She walked into the front room and brought me the almost empty roll of wax paper. This is what I found a few minutes later. I didn't actually catch her sitting there, but it wasn't long before she returned to the fun!

All I have to do is swing and I'm a hero...

Ana wanted to hear some music and dance today. We had a good time with this song. The video isn't too bad either.



Good times. A more substantial post coming soon...

At the doctor

Wow, two posts in one day. I had my first doctor's appointment today. Everything looks great. What a relief! We saw the little heartbeat and everything. They did set my due date back a few days (which I figured would happen). I'm due June 15. So, I'm about 9 weeks along. Dave thought (or ate least joked about it) that we were gonna have twins. But there is only one in there and it looks good. Yay! If it goes like it did with Ana, I only have about 3 or 4 more weeks of feeling icky. I hope its not longer than that. I'm tired of being sick.

Cards

Our ward does a card club. I just joined for this month and actually it was the last month its going on, but it was fun to do the cards for this because it was both thank you and Christmas. We meet and exchange cards that we all made. Strangely enough, I had a doctor's appointment so I just dropped my cards off. Here are the cards I made.

The Christmas one is a little different than I envisioned, mostly because my sewing machine wasn't working and I didn't feel like trying to figure out what was wrong, but I still like them. Then I see the ones the other girls make and I'm not very creative, but its still fun to do them. I usually have a simpler style then others.

Cool Socks

Ana wanted to wear my socks for a while today.
We let her. It was pretty funny.

Triscuits - heart healthy

So, was that just too easy?

Don't worry, I'll keep practicing...

Mystery Foto 2

I know this is what you have all been waiting for...

Here you go:

Guess away!!!

a little random

*pregnancy brain is starting. last night while dave and i were playing "5 crowns" (a card game), i dropped a bowl of salsa and it got all over dave. then as i was sitting here, i spilled my water and my salad within about 5 minutes of each other.

*Ana can say "key" and "coat." she learns new words every day. its really cute.

*this weekend is stake conference. i always like it, but i'm having a hard time getting going before 12 or 1, so we'll see how it goes tomorrow.

*dave cleaned up the front room and vacuumed tonight. that was nice of him.

*i still need to do dishes and some laundry and clean the laundry room tonight. how fun!

*i better go get busy.

*here is another pic of Ana playing outside the other day.

Happy Halloween

Ana is still a little young for trick-or-treating, but our ward didn't do anything for Halloween, so we decided to have a Halloween Party with a few friends. We dressed up, played the Wii and ate good foods like little smokies and chips and salsa. It was really fun! I couldn't find our camera, so I'll have to wait for my friends pics to show my costume, but I got Ana dressed back up this afternoon and let her play in the leaves. (Can you belive its November and its not snowy?) Her hair doesn't look quite the same as it did last night, but as soon as I get a picture from our friends, I'll post it and you can see mine and Dave's costumes, too. (I like any excuse to dress up.)

I made Ana's skirt. Its supposed to be a poodle skirt, but I decided to do a flower instead. I was dressed up 70s, and I was trying to convince Dave to do another decade, but he wasn't up for it.

After the photo shoot this afternoon, I felt good enough to go for a walk, so I bundled Ana up in her coat and walked down the street. It was cold, but really refreshing!

Ben Folds

I like Ben Folds. I wasn't as big a fan of 'the 5' but I like the solo stuff a lot. This song is interesting. It's been around for a while but I just saw the video for it for the first time today. I really like the opening piano part with the cello. The song is called Jesusland, which may be offensive to some people, but looking past the title, if they can, those same people would probably agree with what he is saying. Take a look:



So, what do you think? Do you think it is inappropriate? What exactly is he saying?

15 month check up

We took Ana to her 15 month well baby. If you remember, her last appointment the doc was concerned because she was so underweight. But she is 19.2 pounds and 31 inches tall. The doc just figures she'll be skinny like her dad and not too worry. Developmentally she's fine. They asked if she can say 5-15 words. She says about 25. recent additions: "cookie" and "bubble". She walks great, carries things, pushes, pulls, etc. And she babbles all day long. She's looking great!

Love Package

Dave took Ana to the store this evening. I thought he was just going to get a movie to watch, but he came back with this:

Isn't he cool?

Educated voting and what not

What is the best way to be an educated voter? I found this the other day and thought it was interesting. How do you find the the information you need to make your voting choice? Really, tell me, I want to know.

It's not the money, it's the recipes...

Erin recently bought me the new Fountains of Wayne cd. This is the video from the first track on the CD.



Didn't turn out exactly like you thought it would did it? I haven't spent the time with this cd that it deserves, I need to get it into the cd player in our car. I think I'll do that right now...

I love this song

This song was mentioned in the comments of this post, and I saw the video of it tonight. I cried. I know some may not like country, but if you're a parent, you'll appreciate it anyway...

Sunday Morning

I know, I'm a little behind the blogging. And I don't have any new pics to post and so much to tell about. Today, I'll just tell you, for your amusement, about my Sunday morning. It really is funny in retrospect.

The morning started out like any other. I felt like puking, got a bowl of cheerios down, and got breakfast for Ana. At about 10:30, I wasn't feeling so well, so I laid down in bed for a little while. (We have church at 1:30). About a half hour later, Dave broght Ana in the room so he could get ready for his meeting at 11:30. Just as I was deciding to roll out of bed, Ana pulled on our dresser just right and it tipped over on top of her. She started crying, Dave darted in from the front room and I jumped out of bed. Luckily, a CD player on the floor caught a lot of the weight, and she is just fine. I think she has a bruise on her cheek, but thats it. Okay, move on. I was asked to do sharing time last minute, so once Dave left for his meeting I put Ana in her chair for her snack and started working on it. Once Ana was done, I put her in the tub. After a few minutes, she started acting like she was going to poo, so put her on the toilet while she cried out her poopy. I went to get wipes, and while I was wiping her bum, my Visting Teacher called. While I was talking to her, Ana walked away, and I noticed a small pile of poo by her, and back in the bathroom. Okay, I'd have to call my VT back. I wiped Ana's bum, put her back in the tub, cleaned up her small piles and call my VT back. After I get done talking to her (its a little after noon by now), I look in the tub and there is runny poop all over. And Ana is playing with it. "Okay, Erin, don't puke, don't puke." Get Ana out of tub, put diaper on her. Scour tub. Gag and dry heave. Scour tub again. Fill back up and put Ana back in. Okay, by the time I get Ana scrubbed, again, and out of the tub, its 12:45, I'm still in my pjs, I haven't got past defrosting the hamburger for dinner, my sharing time wasn't done and Ana and I still need to eat lunch. So, I start making dinner, when the phone rings. Its the Primary chorister, she's sick and won't be at church. "Okay, bring your stuff over, we'll take care of it." Then Dave called, "do you need me to come pick you up?" he asks. "I need you to come home." So he gets home, fed Ana and got her dressed while I finished dinner, finished my sharing time, got dressed, put on some mascara and brushed my hair, got our church bag together, and tried to eat a PBJ without barfing. We got to church at 1:35, and walked up to the front row - the only empty place. Whew, we made it. Another Sunday morning.

93%

I only missed one question on the multiple choice section of my O-Chem test I took today. I guessed on at least 3 questions so 66% guessing is ok with me. Probably Monday or Tuesday I will get the results back on the write-on portion. I will probably end up with an A or A- on the test. That feels pretty good after the last test.

okay, my blogging is lagging a little (or) I have a really good excuse

I debated whether to confess my little secret to the blogging world. But, I think its time. Mostly because it is consuming most of my thoughts and actions right now, so how can I not blog about it? I am a little nervous, because of my history, but I suppose I'd probably want to blog about that too, so here it goes...

I'm pregnant. About 8 weeks. Due the first week in June. Haven't gone to the doc yet. I'm actually really, really excited about it. See, I had a miscarriage earlier in the summer. It was really hard on me. For one because all of my married siblings were pregnant at the same time, me included, and then I miscarried and they are all still pregnant (well, except the two that just had babies...) One sis is due in Dec, and another sis and my bro's wife are due end of Jan. I was also due the end of Jan. But, at about 9 weeks I had a miscarriage. I also had a miscarriage before Ana.

So, why, Erin are you choosing to write about your pregnancy? Because there is a big difference between this pregnancy and my miscarriages. A difference that was also there when I was preggers with Ana. Both times I miscarried I didn't feel any morning sickness, fatigue or any other symptoms. With Ana I was dead tired and mildly puke-y for the first trimester. So, with this pregnancy, before I decided to spill the beans, I wanted to be sick. At first I thought it was in my head... That I was wishing to be sick so I noticed every little queasiness or bout of fatigue, but last week in hit me. I am definitely pregnant. I hardly have energy to read blogs, much less clean my disaster home or do my dishes. I was so tired this afternoon that even though Ana was awake, I let her wreck havoc on my home while I dozed for 15 minutes. I usually feel really queasy in the morning, mildly so in the afternoon, and pretty good by evening - except by then I'm dead tired and can't bear the thought of an hour's worth of dishes to do. Which is why I decided we are going to use paper products until the dishes are done. And probably for a while after that.

So, there you have it... My little secret. I suppose if history repeats itself, I'll blog about that too. But I feel like this one's a keeper. Hopefully...

it's about time

It's time for another post. I don't really have anything amazing to talk about today though... Let me think...

Well, while I am thinking I will just tell you that there is another mystery photo on its way. I haven't taken many pictures like that but it will be a fun time.

I still haven't thought of anything great to tell you about the last couple days so I will just tell you a little about what I did today.

At 6:00 AM I went on-campus to continue training for the research I get to be involved in until April when I graduate. Right now I am working on becoming reliable compared to experts at measuring certain stuctures of the brain from a bunch of MRI scans we have. Here is a sample of what I was looking at for my first 1.5 hours of the day.

I came home after going to one class from 7:45-8:45. Then I took a quiz online for about a half hour, ate a bowl of cereal and went back on campus.

On campus again I did my pre-lab for O-Chem lab, read through the real lab to make sure I didn't mess up when the time came, and walked across campus to turn in some registration stuff for the scouts in our ward to get a required merit badge in November.

From there I went to O-Chem for an hour, then stress management, then back to O-Chem lab from 3:15-5:40.

Erin picked me up from class, Ana laughed when she saw me, yelled "dada," ran to where I was and gave me a hug. She's cute. Then we went to Arby's for some curly fries and stuff like that.

I got back home at 7:00pm and here I am now. I still have to read Hamlet for class tomorrow, I haven't started, so that's pretty much what I will do until I can't stay awake anymore. Tomorrow I start at 6 with more MRI's!

Ana Update

*She's 15 months old now. Crazy!

*She's generally happy now that she can walk. She walks all around the house, making a happy mess as she goes.

*She can say about 20 words. Her lastest additions are "uh-oh" and "fishy" (for goldfish crackers).

*She jabbers all the time. The other day she was playing in the kitchen and I said "Ana, what are you doing?" She came around the corner and jabbered some answer, and then turned right around back into the kitchen to continue playing. (Apparently, it meant "I am unrolling the wax paper mom...")

*I made this toy for her today out of a mixed-nuts can. I put a slot in the top and she loves to put game pieces in the top. She played with it forever today.

*She likes her new coat. And its a good thing because its getting cold in Rexburg.

*At play group, she just likes to watch the other kids. I always thought she'd be more fiesty, but if someone takes away her toy, she just looks confused.

The things I learn in O-Chem

Today in O-Chem my teacher played this video at the first of class.



What else can I say after that? Nothing I could type now would ever seem funny after what you just witnessed.

date night (a.k.a We have the best babysitter)

For his general arts requirement Dave chose to do a theatre appreciation class and therefore is required to go to all the plays on campus. Its great, because I really enjoy theatre and its a great excuse for a date. Last night was the first one: Wait Until Dark. It was really good. I'd seen the movie years ago, but hadn't remembered anything except that the heroine was blind and at the end her apartment was dark. Seeing the play was really cool, though because when she darkens her apartment, the entire theatre was in complete darkness. It made it kinda spooky and intense, but not too scary, as I don't really like scary shows. It was a lot of fun.

What is even better, I don't have to worry about Ana while we are out. Our neighbor's daughter just turned 11 and she is the best babysitter ever. She loves Ana and when she comes over, Ana runs to her. She even cleaned up Ana's room and vacuumed the hallway. She takes such good care of Ana and Ana loves her. Its so nice not to have to worry about what is going on at home when I'm out on a date.

usedtocould

When I was in high school, I used to spend most of my time down the street at the Hicks home. We would make short movies, music videos, watch movies, play music and all sorts of other stuff. Jared taught me to play the guitar and we had a great time with it. I also played the drums a little bit with them. The first song that I ever played just like the drummer in the real thing was from Material Issue - Valerie Loves Me. Maybe not "just like" the real thing but you get the idea.

Things have been busy for me since I got married and we've had a baby. Now that I am not working for a little while and have a little more time, I am realizing that I miss that more musical/creative part of me. I am interested to see what you think of the song. The video that was good quality on youtube doesn't allow posting in blogs and all the other versions of the video have sound that is horribly off, and it annoyed me. So, I found this wonderful youtube gem of a dancing mechanical mule set to "valerie loves me"

It may be wierd but we are mostly focusing on the song right?



When I used to play a lot I knew mostly Weezer songs, Fountains of Wayne, Everclear, some Beatles, a couple songs from the Cure, and Material Issue as well. I knew every song the band 'For Now' played (i was in it) and a few 'Fixit' songs as well.

Oh well. Enough of that. I need to go visit my friends again.

txting epidmc

Okay, I have to rant a little bit. Its true I have sent a text message or two in my day. But thats probably about all. I think the text message craze is undermining the importance and art of communication. I was perusing the Scroll (school newspaper) today and I came across an article about texting. Allow me to quote a student featured in it: "You can do it in class, in the library, while you're talking to other people, or even in the two seconds it takes your date to get in the car." Automatically I thought to myself, "that would be the last date I would ever go on with that guy." Besides the obvious rudeness of texting while on a date with a girl, why is he just waiting in the car for his date? I think it is very sad that communication with others has been reduced to this. This guy (and it was a male student, a Business major, evidently, but that is another post...) obviously knows how to make those around him feel important. Dave and I have a friend who got dumped via text messaging. Of course, they also got together via text messaging, and most of their relationship consisted of it. Now, I do think texting has its place - but 27 out of 100 students admitted to having 10 or more text conversations a day. A girl featured in the article said, "It's nice ... when you don't really want to talk to someone." I think with the loss of communication came the lost art of common courtesy and compassion. Well, I could go on, but I think I've got it out of my system now...

At breakfast today...

Some of you may think these sausages look/are gross. You may be right, but I definitely don't agree with you. They are 100% processed, pre-cooked, greasy goodness. I do like them a lot but that is not the only reason I am posting about them right now.

After I got back from class this morning I put a few in the microwave for breakfast. (No, I didn't eat before class. My day started at 6 today and I didn't have time. I'm working on it.) Anyway, as always, Ana really wanted some of the sausages because if Dad is eating some, they must be the coolest, best food ever. I fed her a few pieces but wouldn't let her hold them because of the aforementioned greasiness and the fact that we still have some half folded clean laundry on our couch. She started trying to grab the pieces I was putting in her mouth and just as I thought to myself something like "She will just have to accept that I am putting it in her mouth for her..." - I don't remember what I was thinking exactly, basically something about me being in charge - so, just as I thought that, she grabbed the piece of sausage from my hand and ran away giggling with a huge smile on her face.

Our 15 month old baby outdid me. Maybe I should get used to it...

Confession #3 - Am I the only one?

Or do other moms have a problem with over-emotionality. For example, I was driving through the Wal-Mart parking lot, perusing for a spot, listening to country radio. A song comes on about a boy who is asking his girlfriend's dad for her hand... The guy sees all these pictures of her as a little girl - dressed up as Cinderella, playing in the sprinkler, riding a bike for the first time, etc. And he realizes that in her dad's eyes, he's just stealing Cinderella. So there I am in the parking lot, listening to this cheesy song, bawling my eyes out. It was pathetic really. Things like this happen frequently, particularly when involving family tenderness. Hallmark commercials, and even my friend's wedding do it to me too. (Dave is always quick to point out that I didn't cry at our wedding, but I cry at everything else.) So, I ask again, am I the only one?

I can hear the bells (or) my husband is really cool

I was really tired yesterday, so I laid down to take a nap while Ana was napping. Dave left to go to Hollywood Video to rent a Wii game. When he came home, he had a surprise for me. THE HAIRSPRAY SOUNDTRACK!!!! He knew how much I loved it, read my post and decided I needed it. Isn't he cool? I love the CD. Thanks, Dave. You are so my favorite husband ever!

You can't stop the beat

Dave and I went on a date last night. Shocking, I know. We don't venture into that realm much. Mostly because we usually decide we want to go only a few hours in advance, and then can't find a babysitter. But, last night we put Ana to bed and went to the 9 o'clock show. Dave's nephew (and finacee) came over and watched a movie at our house, and we brought them milkshakes.

Anyway, we saw Hairspray, and I loved it. Here's a run down... First of all, its a musical (rated PG) so that makes it about 10x better in my book. John Travolta plays an overweight a woman (by the by, the part he played has always been played by a man on Broadway), Christopher Walken as his/her husband and Zac Efron (from High school musical, and we all know how I feel about that) the heartthrob of a teenage dance show in the 60s. Overweight Tracy Turnblad gets to dance on the show, changing the face of the show forever, much to Beauty Queen Michelle Pfieffer's (and daughter) dismay. Add the racial turbulance of the era, featuring Queen Latifah and Amanda Bynes who falls for a black dancer (much to her Christian mother's dismay). Music, dancing, and a whole lot of fun! I loved every minute. I'm pretty sure I want to own in when it comes out and I think I might just convince Dave that I need the soundtrack. And I'll listen to it all the time. And I mean all the time. And I'll probably be dancing too. Just so you know.

PS - Dave, we really should go on dates more.