CARN-ival Ride

Avery's 2nd Birthday Party

2011-09-20T15:12:00.004-06:00

Now that August is over and we are almost more than halfway through September, I am finally getting around to blogging Avery's birthday. This summer has flown by so fast that I have barely had time to breath and now that I am 9 months pregnant I literally can't breath. July came and went with family in town for the Aspen Grove reunion and me working as much as possible to earn some extra cash before this baby is born. I hardly had time to get ready for Avery's birthday which I swore I would not go overboard on this year but failed at keeping that promise.

For Avery's 2nd birthday, I thought it would be fun to do a bubble themed party at our pavillion so the bazillion kids that came would be entertained while the adults could socialize. I had a vision of this elaborate bubble extravaganza with different stations but literally had no time to prepare so was a little bummed that it didn't turn out like I had planned. I also didn't get many pictures including the decorations and the soda bar. But you can just imagine that it looked great, right?

I had food set up on one side of the pavillion which consisted of chicken salad sandwiches, fruit, vegges and chips. To drink, I had water and set up a soda bar which sadly I didn't get a picture of. The food was home made by my mother-in-law, Diane and was absolutely fabulous as usual.

My dad with his Italian Soda.

On the other side of the Pavillion, I set up a dessert station that consisted of the birthday cake made by my sister-in-law Brooke (amazingly yummy!) and candy that consisted of "Things that Pop" like pop rocks, popcorn, rice krispy pops, lolly and lemon pops, cream puffs to pop in your mouth and gum balls.

Some of the decorations

The party started with me running back to the house to get Avery up from a nap so we were late. Once we got to the party we ate yummy food. While we ate the kids played in the bubbles and then we sang Happey Birthday. We have been talking about Avery's "Happy Birthday" coming up on August 4th and singing Happy Birthday for weeks leading up to this day so Avery was pretty excited.

Instead of having different bubble stations, I ended up having one area for bubbles. I made a human sized bubble with a pool of bubble solution we made and a hoola hoop. My dad had fun and the kids loved it. I think every kid played in the soapy pool and about 3 kids fell in, including Avery. I now know that if you add glycerin to the bubble solution it will work better.

My Nephew Tanner, Niece Finley and Avery playin with the bubbles

My dad playing with the human bubble making the little kiddo's laugh.

Yvonne with her kids, Anthony and Ellianna

Avery playing with McKenzie

Kara Williamson. what a little poser

The Allen boy. He was actually really good at making big bubbles.

Finley

Avery Allen or is this Riley? I can't keep them straight.

This is the 1 minute Avery acted interested in opening presents. she just wanted to run around a play. Thank you everyone for the great gifts and for coming to Avery's birthday.

Brielle Williamson sporting the birthday crown.

The kids chasing each other.

Jace Burrup

After cake and Ice cream we opened presents and everyone went over to the pool to swim. I think the party turned out great and the kids had fun and that is all that matters.

I had bubbles to give to the kiddos as a party favor. We forgot to give them out so Chris took them over to the pool and I think people who weren't part of the party took some because they were gone in seconds and I should have had some left over. Oh well some kid will be happy. Thanks to everyone who came and supported Avery and me on her special day. I can't believe two years has gone by. Kids really do grow up fast.

And the grand finale to the birthday bash, Avery wouldn't put her clothes back on after swimming. All she wanted to do was play with her balloons and bubbles in the nude. That's the spirit!

Bi-annual Update

2011-06-14T22:36:00.013-06:00

Okay I admit I am a horrible blogger so here is our update in in 60 seconds...

I am currently working in the Emergency Room as a nurse at American Fork Hospital. I hate leaving my family but I love my job. Chris still works for Hewlett-Packard in his home office downstairs. I can't say he loves his j

ob as much as I do but he has more perks. Avery's loves her job as a kid and she is really good at it. She has to be the smartest little girl I have e

ver met. She isn't even 2 years old yet and she can sing her ABC's all the way through, count to 13 (not 10 but 13), she sings full songs and talks like an adult.

She is extremely active and loves to climb on everything and chase Maggie so she can give her hugs. Ask her to give you a smooch and she will pucker up and give you a slobbery kiss. Seriously I love that kid! She makes us smile every day.

Here are some of her favorite things:

People: Mom, Dad, "Grrrraaampaaa" (said in a low growl)

Place: "Davie's house" and Nursery

TV shows: Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Super Why, Elmo, and Einstein

Food: "Fry Fry" (French fries) and surprisingly vegetables.

Phrase: "Hi Mom" or "Dad" said over and over and over again.

Secret: "I wuv You"

article of clothes: Shoes

accessory: Purse, sunglasses, Mommy's jewelry. She loves them all just like a true Diva.

Room in the house: bathroom specifically under the sink where she likes to hide and the bathtub.

Toy: Baby doll and stuffed dogs

color: Blue

Book: I see Me (Thanks Ginger)

favorite thing to play with outside: Rocks (we get a new pile in the house every day)

Favorite illegal act: driving the truck (for pretenzies)

Songs: child of God, twinkle twinkle, Popcorn popping, and ABC's. We are working on a potty time song.

I don't know what we are going to do with another little girl. How is she going to measure up to Avery's cuteness? Oh, if you didn't already know we are pregnant with our second girl. she is due to greet us October 9th which isn't

very convenient for the hunting season. Speaking of hunting, Chris got an elk tag this year. We are both super excited! Now we just need to figure out how I can go with him after having a baby.

In addition to working and playing with Avery, I keep busy with many projects. I have made a couple journal books, a ruffle bag, apron, hat for Avery, painted Avery's room and am now working on a quilt for Avery. I have a gazillion more projects on my list. As soon as the dang weather warms up and stops raining I can work on them. Here are some of my latest projects:

Avery's Christmas Stocking

Ruffle Bag

Avery's Room

Halloween Festivities

2010-11-01T14:09:00.021-06:00

I just love Halloween maybe because I love eating candy and Fall is my favorite season. I also love getting dressed up, decorating the house and making spooky goodies.

After 8 years of marriage and trying to get Chris more excited about Halloween, I finally figured out that all I needed to do is have a child. Kids make holidays so much more fun and now that Avery is old enough to interact and be cute it will be even more fun.

To start the season off Chris and I took Avery and the neighbor kids to Hee Haw farms. Everyone was so grumpy but we went and had fun.

They had a ton of fun activities on was a huge slide. Avery wasn't so sure about it.

There were animals roaming around that the kids chased and pet.

Nevaeh, Zach, Angie, Avery, Chris

That night we had the annual ward chili cook off. I made pumpkin bites and came in second by two votes for the desert contest. I was so proud of myself for coming so close to beating the famous Heidi Riboldi cinnamon rolls.

We were invited to a Halloween party with some friends in the area. We were sitting in the living room watching T.V. when the doorbell rang and all that was at the door was note with a picture of our friend Cami tied up and gagged. The note said to go to a YouTube site where it showed Cami getting electrocuted and a garbled voice saying "If you ever want to see your friend alive, come to the Wycherly's house at 7". So creative.

we got to the party, Troy (Cami's husband) came in dressed like a crazy police officer to give us instructions to find Cami.

Officer Troy told us to find a pumpkin hidden in the house with our names on it. We had to smash it to find the clue inside telling us what team we were on.

Once the teams were determined we were each given a costume to put on for the scavenger hunt to find Cami. I was cat woman and Chris was Dog the bounty hunter. There were some funny seriously funny costumes.

The scavenger hunt consisted of some creative tasks one of them involved two people paddling across the marina.

Chris chugging root beer. To make the night even better, it was foggy. I'm am certain that they planned it for the party.

We also went to Smith's, a pumpkin patch. At the end Cami came out with her captor and we all ate yummy food. It was so much fun and so creative.

The Burrup's are so good about finding fun things to do for free. We went to the UVU Halloween party for little kids. they had a various stations like donut eating, foods that feel like yucky things, pumpkins and a photo station. They even had a little hallway for trick or treating.

this is a picture of our little Unicarn and Jayce as Bam Bam.

The week of Halloween, I wanted to get a cute picture of Avery in her costume at a pumpkin patch. we drove to Orem to find out that the pumpkin patch was already closed for the season!!! I was shocked and very disappointed. Instead we went to winco and got some gigantic pumpkins for extremely cheap. Not as cute but so much better on the wallet. I finally talked Chris into carving pumpkins with me. Here are the results of our labors.

Thursday before Halloween I was so fortunate to be on call so we went to the "Nightmare Express" which is a haunted train ride for kids. The train goes through a block of 6 different yards that consists of one family. we went through a bunch of spooky tunnels it was so cool and the best part is that it was totally free but they except for donations for various charities. We went during the daylight hours which was less scary for the little kids. I can't believe this family does this every year. They also do a Polar Express and one in the spring which we totally plan on attending.

While we waited to get on the train they played a movie and had cute decorations to entertain us. Here is a pic of the whole group in front of one of the areas.

The conductor

The Carn's

Some of the cool stuff on the train ride.

I thought I would start a new tradition of taking a picture with a witch like you do with Santa. Avery didn't like the idea very much.

Since we live in Utah Halloween was celebrated on Saturday and unfortunate for us it rained all night. I was so bummed out. I was so excited to take Avery out sporting her Unicarn costume and getting me some yummy candy but do to the awful rain we went to only one house the Gushard's where I scored a full size baby Ruth, yummmm my favorite!

We went to the annual neighborhood party for some treats and fun. I was wearing some large wings so it was really difficult to huddle in the garage with everyone.

Avery was a Uni"Carn", I was an Angel"a", and Chris was a boring hunter.

This is a cute little girl who followed me everywhere the entire night. The funny thing is, I have no idea who she is. I'm guessing she liked my costume because it was similar to hers.

After a few minutes we left and went to crash the Burrup's family party.

We came home in time to hand out candy. Chris had put up some black plastic covering our entryway, played spooky music and sounds with a strobe light. He stood in the entryway in his camo scaring the kids when they came up to the door. Avery was so wound up that I eventually sat out there with Chris instead of putting her to bed.

1 year old!!!

2010-08-22T22:16:00.011-06:00

I can't believe how fast 1 year has gone by! Avery seems so old and now I'm ready for another (no announcement yet). We have had so much fun and just love this little girl. She makes us laugh out loud everyday. Don't get me wrong, there have been many frustrating days but for the most part, Avery is the best little girl EVER. Except when she poops all over in the Target bathroom or Kohl's dressing room. If I ever need her to poop all I have to do is go to one of those places. Seriously, it never fails. Good thing Target's bathroom smells like Fruit Loops. Really she has been a great baby and I can't wait to see what she is like as a toddler. If she is anything like me, I am in big trouble. I was a complete spoiled brat and a daddy's girl.

Avery had a great birthday party. With the amount of people who came to her two parties (yes that's right, two) I think she was the most popular girl around. Thanks to everyone who came. Since she is my first child, I really don't know what kind of toys to get her so I really do appreciate the toys she got and loves loves loves to play with. I got her a chair that is just her size. She loves to sit in it with her sippy cup in one hand and her blanket in the other watching Baby Einstein.

Avery decided to walk two days before her birthday and is now walking all over the place. She likes to chase the dog and run away from her giggling like a crazy person.

She talks all the time with her own little clicking Zulu language, it is hilarious. She knows exactly what she is saying and in her mind is having a full on conversation with me. Her Pediatrician says she is an advanced child with the way she talks and interacts and plays. She must take after her daddy for sure. She was in the 50% for height (29.5 in), 75% for weight (22 lb) and 95% head (totally takes after her dad).

She now has 11 teeth and one more molar trying to break through. Most kids are just starting to get teeth at this age. Avery has actually been a very good teether. she hasn't been that fussy except for our vacation to Illinois. And she hasn't drooled like a Hound dog as most kids do. I am so grateful that I haven't had slobber all over my shirt.

Now that she should be down to 1-2 naps a day she if finally starting to sleep. People always told me to sleep or do housework when she sleeps, but she never slept. I'm not exaggerating either. she NEVER took naps, not even as an infant. I have been so jealous of those parents whose newborns slept all day long. Okay little exaggeration, she would sleep but only if I held her which was not convenient at all. She has however been a great night time sleeper. Since she was 4 months old, she would go to bed about 9pm and not wake up until 9 or 10 in the morning. This schedule works great for me since I work nights and like to sleep in. I really should get up early and get a run in or clean the house or work on a project but I really do Cherish my sleep.

We still have to leave her in her crib screaming, which breaks my heart. but once she is down, she sleeps like a champ and is so happy when she gets up.

Avery is so excited for football season and hunting season, she can hardly contain herself. Oh wait, that's Chris. He is like a little boy waiting for Christmas but Avery and I are excited too.

I would like to take Avery hunting but not too hip on camping in a tent in freezing weather and sitting in the cold while Chris gets his Bambi. I grew up hunting and really enjoy going but a small child makes things a little more difficult.

Fall is my favorite season because there are so many sports going on and the weather is cool and smells so good and camping and hunting are so much fun. It is also the beginning of all the great holidays. By the way you retailers out there. Christmas in August is a little ridiculous!!! pretty soon FM 100 will start playing their Christmas music in July.

We are so blessed to have Avery in our lives. I just love being a mom and Chris is the best dad in the world and really does deserve the mug that says "worlds greates dad." I am looking forward to seeing Avery grow and develop. She is amazing and I am so glad we are able to be her parents.

Well that's been quite the mouthful. but now you have been updated on Cranvery's life.

Bi-ped

2010-07-05T02:52:00.002-06:00

My little fledgling is becoming a bi-ped. It has been fascinating to watch the progress of Avery's prowess (i just learned this word, it means superior ability or skill). I have decided that she has her mommy's prowess and her daddy's intellect. Together we make the perfect baby. First, a few months ago Avery pulled herself up to stand; then the cruising began, as she scaled along the side of the sofa to the coffee table to between my legs until she arrived at her destination: upright, but hanging on tight. She just delighted in her ability to find a finger hold on all manner of vertical surfaces. then last week she bravely (or inadvertently) let go of her grip and found herself balancing on her own two feet. Then one day (today) she worked up to here first tentative step; sadly I wasn't there to witness the miraculous event. I work two days a week if that, and I happened to miss the most important milestone in my fledglings life. I am so bummed. However, a few days ago she let go of the coffee table and took two steps or more accurately fell into my arms, so technically I could count that as her first step. Either way we are the proud parents of a toddling toddler. Wow time has gone by so fast. I think I'm ready for another. Ha Ha just kidding. no really I'm serious.

TOU Marathon

2010-06-18T01:40:00.002-06:00

Our neighbor was silly enough to try and talk Chris into running the Top of Utah marathon in Logan. ha ha ha ya right!!! Chris can barely run the bases playing softball (sorry babe but it's true.) I have always wanted to run a marathon so I told him I would run it. I have been running a few miles here and there and started a 16 week program 3 weeks ago. The training program consists of running 3 miles one day then 4 miles then 3 miles and a long run starting at 5 miles and increasing a mile every week. I am now supposed to be at 7 miles. Last week Chris was out of town so I wasn't able to run except two days while pushing Avery in the blistering wind up hills both ways. Come to Saratoga Springs and you will know what I'm talking about, our tree sure does. This week Chris was out of town again and I work so I'm not sure when I am going to do my runs. Chris says to run when I wake up at 2pm. Are you kidding me that is the hottest time of the day! I only work 2 days a week, if that, but it seems like the days I do work get in the way of my ever so eventful life. I started out so excited but am now getting discouraged. I did my 4 mile run yesterday at 9am and it wasn't pretty. I hadn't eaten breakfast, it was hot, I was dehydrated and I ran rolling hills into the wind both ways. I was huffing and puffing and barely made it in! my face was as red as a nice plump cherry. I still have hope that I can pull this off. I just need to figure out a time I can go. Now that Chris isn't galavanting, I mean traveling, I can go in the morning or evening. I'll keep you posted on my progress.

Avery at 9 months

2010-05-18T14:07:00.008-06:00

Holy cow time really goes by so fast, Avery is now almost 10 months old! Her personality is really emarging now. she is all smiles but gets shy, hiding her face when strangers try to talk to her. She jabbers like crazy and has been saying "Mommy" and "Daddy". She definately has a mind of her own and knows what she wants and will let you know when she doesn't get it. For instance, she loves Maggie's leash and will scream bloody murder if I take it away. I finally broke down and just let her play with it. Now that is all she will play with. So much for all the toys we bought her. Who knew that all I needed to do was get her a dog leash. It is hilarious watching her play with that thing.

I cought Avery making faces through the takeout box. I made faces back at her on the other side and she would laugh so hard then make faces back at me. We had such a fun time.

I was so excited for Avery to start crawling and walking but now realize how much easier life was for me before she could move. just today I was trying to change a poopy diaper and she twisted around onto her knees while I still had a hold of her feet holding them in the air trying not to get poop everywhere. I swear she had ADHD in the womb and now as a baby. She is all over the place! She is crawling on her knees with her belly off the floor and stands up holding on to objects and will walk while holding on. I love to stand in front of her while she holds onto my pant leg and walk backward while she walks forward. She really isn't afraid of much and acts more like a boy than a girl when it comes to trying new things.

Here are Avery's 9 month pictures

More Teeth!!!

2010-04-14T21:56:00.008-06:00

I discovered another tooth coming in, Avery now has 7 teeth! She is going to have a full set before long. I read that some babies are born with teeth, how creepy is that! I had a dream the other night that I had a baby that was born with a full set of adult sized teeth. He kept smiling at me with his big horse teeth. It was really weird and the baby was latin... What?!

Here are Avery's 8 month pictures.

I went into get Avery one morning and saw this. She cracks me up sometimes.

Avery at 8 Months

2010-04-07T15:35:00.005-06:00

-Avery is now army crawling around the house and gets on her hands and knees more and more. I'm amazed at how fast she gets around like that. She will stand at the side of the couch holding on for dear life. When I hold her hands she will lift up her legs and walk foreward. I think the Baby Einstein videos are really teaching her something.

-Avery had her first fall today. She was leaning over the edge of the couch and before I could stop her she toppled to the floor with a loud thump. I knew this day would happen eventually but I wasn't prepared for it to be so soon. She was more terrified than hurt, I felt so bad. After we went for a walk today I had her sitting in front of me on the floor. She grabbed my shirt and pulled herself to a standing position all by herself, I was shocked. I tried to get her to do it again but she just got frustrated.

-She now has four teeth that are totally sticking out; Two on the bottom and two on the top left. there are two more coming in on the top right. she will have six teeth by the end of the month for sure!!! I am slowly weaning off breastfeeding and am totally fine with it. My goal was to go 6 months and now that she has so many teeth, I really don't like to be bitten. As you can see from the image she is a monster ready to snap.

-She will drop objects on the floor from her high chair and look down to see where they went. I know it sounds cute and she is learning, but it isn't very fun for me. When she hears Maggie's collar jingle, she will turn to look where she is. Sometimes the jingle will wake her up from a nap. She also will look around when she hears Chris's voice and get so excited when she sees him.

-She like to hold books on her own and will talk as if she is reading. I think she is starting to imitate her mommy. If I take the book away or turn the page she gets so mad.

-Avery is getting a little attitude. She knows what she wants and when she doesn't get it, all heck breaks loose. When she is focused on something we cannot distract her (should I be worried about that?). Her favorite items as of late are bottles including lotion bottles, water bottles, formula bottles.

- She loves her stuffed animals now. When she sees them she will squeal and give them hugs. I love that she plays with her toys and can entertain herself for a little while.

-Maggie is still extremely jealous. When we are on the floor playing with Avery, Maggie runs and gets a toy trying to get us to play with her too. Poor thing is neglected. Avery loves Maggie and will laugh at her, especially when she licks her hand.

-We have discovered many tickle spots including her ribs, stomach and thighs. I've never met a baby that laughs as much as Avery does.

-Avery is still sleeping about 10 hours at night and I am so thankful for that.

I love this age, she has so much personality.

25 things that are great

2010-03-26T17:06:00.002-06:00

25. I have lost all my baby weight and am now to where I was before I was pregnant. My body doesn't look and feel the same though. I only have 5 more pounds to my goal weight.

24. I got pulled over in a construction zone and didn’t get a ticket. I didn't even have to cry.

23. The manager at Great Harvest Bread gave me a free cinnamon roll because I was in a cheery mood. They said everyone that day was in a bad mood so when I came in, I made their day brighter. I guess nice things do happen to nice people.

22. Udot has been making great progress on the road from Saratoga Springs to the freeway and the overpass in AF. They are getting things done so fast and we haven’t noticed much inconvenience from all the construction.

21. I had a coupon for a free bow at Katelyn and Co, a free panty at VS, and a free lotion at Bath and Body, then they gave me a free piece of pie at Deseret Book just because. I love free stuff!

20. Now that Redwood Road has been widened from Bangerter down to Saratoga Springs, my commute to SLC seems like nothing now and the road is so smooth.

19. It was actually sunny and kinda warm last week and the beginning of this week... and now it's snowing (the snowing part's not great but the sunny is.)

18. I have been running every day.

17. I ran 5 miles this Saturday. I’m amazing! I'm trying to work up to a half marathon.

16. I’m already getting booked for weddings this summer.

15. Avery is now giving me loves. That makes my heart just melt.

14. After working a night shift, chris took Avery to the babysitter and he ran some errands so I was able to sleep with no interruption. I felt great when I woke up.

13. Chris

12. I didn’t have to teach Sunday School this week. Thank you stake conference.

11. Visited Grandma Carlla.

10. Besides working last Wednesday, I did whatever I wanted to do (Be with my cute baby all day).

09. Avery is no longer sick.

08. I have the happiest baby in the world who smiles at everything and has the cutest laugh.

07. Avery is talking up a storm. I love her little voice.

06. Chris ironed all my clothes. I really hate ironing.

05. Did I mention it was sunny!?

04. I bought me and Avery some new clothes.

03. I Started reading the Book of Mormon to Avery every night she actually seems interested.

02. Did one full pull up on my pull up bar without cheating.

and the greates thing of all is Avery. I just love her so much and am so happy that I finally get to be a mom to the best baby EVER!

Avery starting to Crawl

2010-03-25T13:31:00.001-06:00

It’s not a full crawl yet but she is making her move.

Oh boy here we go!

2010-03-24T23:25:00.004-06:00

My little baby is getting so big. She got on all fours today and crawled, now the fun begins! I can't just leave her on the floor anymore, I have to watch her like a hawk. I love this age though, she is chatting up a storm. Everything is so interesting and new. She laughs all the time. And she now can entertain herself. I am so excited for summer so I can take her to the pool and play outside.

Who do you think is the ruler of the house?

If you look closely, Maggie is in almost all of Avery's pictures. I try to crop her out but sometimes you can see her feet in the corners.

Sick Day

2010-03-14T22:44:00.010-06:00

I was working Saturday night when Chris called me because Avery was not feeling well and she wouldn't stop crying. Working nights is great when everyone is sleeping but it is extremely difficult when your baby is sick and there is nothing you can do about it. Chris eventually took Avery into the ER at about 4:30 in the morning. The doctor suctioned her nose and determined she has a viral infection. I got home late from work and didn't go to sleep until about 9am and then woke up an hour and a half later to help with Avery. Chris, Avery and I were all very sleep deprived so needless to say it was a very long night and a long day today. I really hope Avery sleeps well tonight because 1.5 hrs of sleep is just not enough, I feel like poo. I was supposed to work tonight but I called in sick. Thank goodness for sick days.

Here are some pictures I got of Avery yesterday before the she started feeling yucky.

Even when she is sick she is the happiest baby on the block

2010-03-12T20:57:00.005-07:00

The nasty cold virus has come to visit again. Avery has been coughing the last few days but yesterday her lungs sounded like junk. I went to work and got a call from Chris saying that he was taking her in to see the doctor because her junky lungs turned into wheezing. The doc said she has a pretty bad cold virus that is causing her bronchioles to constrict. He gave her a respiratory treatment and sent Chris home with a nebulizer to do every 4 hours as needed. Avery slept well through the night (thank goodness since I was at work) but today she has been wheezing and coughing like crazy. We have had to give her treatments about every 4 hours. She hated it until this last time, when I sat her on my lap and made it seem like a game. Once she figured out that the humidified air felt good, she sat back and took it all in.
Despite her not feeling well, she has been all smiles and giggles. She has to be the happiest baby I have ever met. Her little smile melts my heart.

Avery at 7 months

2010-03-07T11:31:00.003-07:00

I got a few new back drops so of course I had to test them out. This is Avery at 7 months old. She is a bundle of joy and is always smiling with the occasionaly yelling spout. Avery is trying to feed herself finger foods, although her coordination isn't quite up to par yet. She is rolling around the floor like crazy and is so close to crawling (Oh boy!). She loves to jump in her little playstation and has very strong legs. Avery has definately found her voice. when she wants something, is hungry or tired she will yell at the top of her lungs. She is loving her stuffed animals and will talk to them and then give them hugs. We named her toys after the people who gave them to her so we like to say she is having a conversation with you. Avery sleeps really well at night and I am happy to report that she is going to bed alot earlier. we put her down at 8:30 the other night. The problem with that is mommy is not a morning person and when Avery goes to bed early she rises early which is not happy time for me. She is so curious about everything especially Maggie.

February 24, 2010

2010-02-24T22:45:00.003-07:00

This is how I found Avery this morning. She was so sound asleep that the flash didn’t even make her flinch. I put her to bed at 10:30pm and she didn’t wake up until almost 10:00 am. Despite all that sleep, she had a tough day today. She wanted to be held or fed pretty much all day. She was so exhausted but wouldn’t sleep unless I was holding her. The minute I put her down she would wake up. When I finally did get her to sleep my work called to see if I wanted to work tonight and you guessed it, she woke up. I was so angry I probaly sounded like a witch but with a B, sorry staffing lady. I don’t know if she is going through a growth spurt or teething or what. Whatever is going on with her, it made for an unpleasant day for mommy. On top of all that, she pooped all the way up her back. I had to throw her clothes away (oxy clean is good but not that good) and I had to give her a bath for the second time today. I accomplished absolutely nothing except run two miles (yeah) and go to staff meeting (boo).

February 23, 2010 Tuesday

2010-02-23T20:06:00.003-07:00

It truely is a sad day because it is now time to retire a few of Avery's items. She is too big for her infant tub. Now that she sitting up, her bouncy chair is too dangerous. She will lean forward and topple out of the chair. I liked to put her in the bouncy chair while I showered. I can no longer leave her alone, which is unfortunate for me. she is getting so big that her swing creeks and she leans forward almost falling out of the swing.

These are a few of my favorite things

2010-02-22T11:53:00.005-07:00

Avery has an abundant amount of toys but her favorites right now are her Maggie Puppy Puppet and the remote to the TV. I think those are Chris' favorites as well. We take "silent" toys to church so they aren't disruptive. Thinking the Maggie puppet was a good choice, we threw it in the bag. During Sunday school we busted out the puppet for Avery to play with and she started yelling at it. Between her yelling and us laughing, we had to step out in the hallway.

Birthday Week

2010-02-20T21:54:00.007-07:00

February 19, 2010 Friday

As part of my birthday, Chris and I went indoor skydiving in Ogden. It was so much fun! There were about 10 people in our group including kids and a woman in her 60’s. The way it works is you enter this 12 foot in diameter tunnel by dropping face forward into the 60mph vertical wind. Once you drop in, you extended your arms and legs to catch the wind and in a sense fly. My second time around I was able to turn around and fly up higher in the tunnel. Once the instructor feels you are stable enough he will fly up with you. He only did that with a few people including me. I rocked at flying! they said that I’m a natural, next is real sky diving. I can’t wait! The suits had handles on the back and sides of the waist for the instructor to be able to grab us so we didn't bump around like crash dummies. They looked hilarious and gave a new meaning to the phrase "love handles". If you look closely you can see the orange handle on my suit. We dropped Avery off at David and Brooke’s house to have a sleep over with her cousins while we went sky diving and spent the night in a hotel in SLC. I was so nervous. I totally trust Brooke but this is the first time leaving Avery with someone over night in a foreign place. But alas everything turned out fine.

February 20, 2010 Saturday

Avery had a great time playing with her cousins until she was just too exhausted. This morning she took her first bath in the bath tub with William and loved it. Dave said they didn’t even know the other person was in the tub until they turned around and saw each other just before they got out of the bath. After seeing the bath tub picture, I realized that Avery resembles my Grandma Offret quite a bit. Now that I look back at all her pictures, I really see my grandma in her, especially her eyes.

Later in the evening we dropped Avery off at a friend’s house so Chris and I could go to the pool and hot tub. Essentially we were part-time parents the last two days but it was a much needed trip to the hot tub. Now we are playing with Avery and realize that she changes every day. We didn’t see her for one night and already she is a different person.

I had a great birthday week. Thanks Babe! You totally made up for being sick and not even getting me a birthday cake on my big 30th birthday.

Project Life

2010-02-18T22:28:00.005-07:00

Since Avery was born I have been writing a journal every day with pictures. You though the 116 pictures on facebook was a lot? you haven't seen a fraction of the million pictures I take.

Now that Avery is 6 months old I thought I would post on the blog daily. So, if you are ever wondering what Chranvery are doing just check out the blog. I may miss a few days here and there especially on days I work. Don't have a hissy fit, I'm sure you wont miss much.

Thursday February 18th:

Chris went to Seattle yesterday for work so it was just me and Avery last night. I put her down about 11:30 and then I tried to take Maggie out but she wouldn't go. I went to bed fully expecting either the dog or Avery would wake me up in a few hours. I woke up at 9am and jumped up in a panic. I slept so soundly I thought that something happened. I'm usually pretty tired after I work a night shift but will wake up to the slightest noise. I couldn't believe it was 9am and Maggie was curled up next to me! I jumped out of bed and went to Avery's room to find her sleeping peacefully. I couldn't believe that I slept so good. Maybe it was the new king sized mattress I slept in all by myself. whatever it was I was feeling rested and energetic.

After a day at the mall Avery and I watched some TV, read a book and had some naked time on the floor. That is when Avery decided to eat her toes. In case you were wondering it was just Avery having naked time, she loves it. I mean who wouldn't?

It is now 9:30 and Avery is asleep in her crib, lets see how long that lasts. Well, it is now 10:30 and she is awake, that didn’t last long at all did it? she is chatting up a storm saying "da da dad". Chris just walked in the door and Avery gave him the biggest smile ever. So cute! I'm glad I work at night when she sleeps and doesn't miss me.

Avery at 6 Months

2010-02-08T21:55:00.012-07:00

Wow! Avery is already halfway through her first year. I can't believe it!
This is Dre, my friend Brooke's baby. He is only a few days younger than Avery but looks older. He is so tall.

At 6 months Avery's life is chock-full of new adventures. She is sitting on her own (for a few seconds anyway) and getting closer to moving around. She isn't crawling yet but she is rolling from side to side and wiggling around on her belly so she is always facing me.

My little bumkin is such a good eater as you can tell from the many pictures I have taken. We started feeding her rice cereal a while ago and just started her on vegetables. I gave her pees the other day and she made the funniest face but kept opening her mouth for more. I better be careful because it looks like I'm raising a little piggy. She just had her six month doctors apointment and weighed 16lbs 11oz and is 26in long. she had her shots again and squaked for about 15 seconds at that was it. She loves going to the doctor so she can play with the paper they put over the tables you sit on.

Little Miss Piggy now has two tiny teeth sticking out. I'm so suprised that she hasn't been fussy or drooling a gallon of spit down her face. In fact she is the happiest baby on the block. I think someone wrote a book about her.

She is chatting up a storm and screaming to get my attention. Chatty Kathy is happily practicing making lots of sounds, imitating what she hears. She says Hi and Da Da but I'm sure they aren't real words even though it sounds like it. I tell Chris that her first word is going to be "Hi" because that is the first thing we say to her when we go in to pick her up in the morning. Today my friend Brooke came over with her 6month old boy and she said hi to her. Then, your not going to believe this, but she said "Hi Dad" 5 or 6 times tonight. I was feeding her cereal and she looked right at her dad raised her hand and waved while saying "Hi Dad". Chris and I looked at each other dumbfounded. I was hoping she would get Chris' brains but I think we have a little genius on our hands.

Our little Einstein enjoys being held in a standing position so she can bounce up and down. She loves her jumper station, ha ha the baby einstein for the baby einstein. She jumps and screams like crazy in that thing. She loves grabbing anything she can get her paws on — and stuffing it directly into her mouth. But her favorite toy of all time, besides my hair, is her Violet doll. Violet will play night time music and puts her to sleep like a charm. Violet is the best car seat baby sitter and we don't have to pay her a dime. Speaking of dimes. Avery has becomes mamma's best shopping gal pal. She loves it. Let me re-phrase that. She loves to make poopies while I'm in the dressing room and run out of wipes or didn't bring an extra pair of clothes so I have to carry her around naked in the mall until I can go buy her a new outfit.

Oh my gosh she is so cute, I love her!

Life is good with our little cupcake. We are so enjoying being parents. Sometimes I wonder if she is my child because she is all Chris and no Angie.

Avery and Angie

2010-01-29T12:45:00.001-07:00

I love this video!!!

Avery making her move

2010-01-29T12:39:00.001-07:00

Still trying to figure out how to link my youtube videos to the blog.

2010-01-10T13:05:00.014-07:00

Avery’s now five months old and making leaps and bounds on her development.

She is sleeping through the night most nights. We put her to bed about 11pm and she doesn’t get up until 9:30 except for the occasional feeding at 6am. That is 10 hours of straight sleeping! I know I am a lucky mama.When she does wake up she is so happy and talkative. She lays there in her crib talking to herself while scratching and looking at the flowers on her bedding. I love going into her room and seeing her give me the biggest smile. I get jealous when Chris gets her up because I miss that morning smile. We both go in her room so we can experience the blissful baby together. Ridiculous I know but we are proud new parents.

She still doesn’t have a consistent nap schedule during the day but is getting better and better. The other day she took two, two hour naps and then slept through the night again. Mama was so proud of her and welcomed the sleep. I’m beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel, so to speak, when it comes to nighttime and naps. However, she wont go to sleep unless she is nursing or has a bottle. We really need to wean her from this habit.

When Avery is awake she is so alert and talkative. I love seeing her personality emerge. We play games now and she is so curious. Her new game is reaching out with her hands so I can pretend to eat them. Today she started sucking on her bottom lip. I think she is trying to imitate me when I put my lips together like forming the M sound and make a popping noise. Or maybe she is trying to say "mama"?She holds her toys and inspects them as well as her hands.

She doesn't really like her binky unless she is sleeping and she quit sucking her thumb. Her new thing is eating the wrong end of her binky. I think she likes the way it feels on her gums. She is grabbing at Maggie and sticks her hands in her face so she will lick her hands. She is not to sure about the face licking yet and neither am I.

Now lets talk about Maggie. She is still extremely jealous. Whenever we are playing with the baby she has to get in between us; it is getting a little annoying. She hasn’t quite figured out that you can’t walk on the babies face either. I found a puppet that looks just like Maggie. Avery LOVES it. I busted out the puppy puppet at church last week and had to take Avery out becasue she was yelling at the dog. I couldn't stop laughing. BTW 1pm church is not very nice to a 5 month old, she really struggles after 2pm.

I'm getting excited for her to crawl or walk but am glad she can't yet because I can leave her someplace and be reasonably sure she’ll still be near there when I get back. Although, she doesn’t like to be alone very often. She does really well in her bumbo chair for few minutes anyway (always under supervision of course). The good and bad thing about the bumbo is that it makes her poop everytime she is in it. If she hasn’t pooped in a few days we put her in the chair to help get things going and it has worked every time so far. She rolls over every once in a while but isn’t real consistent. I think she will start walking before she really crawls. she loves to stand (with my help of course).

Food right now is simple. Breastmilk or formula, maybe some cereal. I'm still breastfeeding, yeah for me! I never thought I would last this long especially after I went back to work. I keep wanting to move on and introduce all the new foods but then realize that these are the days before pickiness, when an infant is happy to belly up to the same meal, day after day. We're taking our time introducing new foods. I know before long she'll be deciding she only wants cheese or chicken nuggets for days on end.

Avery and I have conversations every day, and I think I'm getting pretty good at speaking and translating 5-month-old infant talk. Our conversations are a hilarious! Here's a pretty typical conversation of ours:

Avery: "Gooo, ahhh-ga-ga Ha Ha." (Translation: "Wow, Mama, I slept sooo good last night. I had a dream that all I did was eat milk and play with you and be held all day long. Wow have you seen these cool things at the tips of my hands? They have little projections that let me grab things! And they taste pretty neat, too.")

Mama: "Oh, gaah-gaaah, goo goo. (Translation: "baby girl that wasn't a dream. I have all the milk you need sweet heart and I will hold you until my back hurts, oh wait it already does. I have cool things on my hands too! Those are called fingers! Mama loves those sweet little fingers. I think I'll have to kiss them!")

Avery: [Squeal!] [Giggle Giggle!] Aaaaaahhhh, heeeaahh gooo. (Translation: "Look, Mama, I can pull your hair and squeeze your nose! You're more fun to grab than any of my other toys. Do you play music or light up when I pull on you?").

Then I happily oblige by singing any one of a million silly songs or play my ipod and dance with my little angel. You get the idea. These conversations can go on for quite some time, and as you can see, we discuss some very important stuff.

Avery at 4 months

2009-12-14T14:08:00.005-07:00

It seems like every time I pick up my cute Avery, I just look at her and think about how greatful I am to have her in my life. I am so happy that The Lord trusts Chris and I to raise his precious little angel. She has been a pretty happy baby for the most part and is now all smiles. I feel like a little kid in that I just want to squeeze her because she is so cute. She still doesn't take good naps during the day but will sleep 10 hours through the night. I am still nursing and am so proud of myself; I honestly didn't think I would be able to last this long after going back to work. Nursing is actually getting much easier. As you can see from the pictures, Avery is an extremely good eater. Avery rolled over from her tummy to her back in November but we think it was by complete accident. She rolled over purposely yesterday and has been moving around like crazy. She is such a curious little girl. When I am nursing her and working on my computer she always has to look to see wha I am doing. She started a new game where she will be nursing then will look up at me until I look at her then she will go back to eating again. I tried to ignore her to see if that would stop her but she will continue to look at me until I look down. She is grabbing and reaching for things even Maggie's fur and suprisingly Maggie doesn't mind. We think she just started teething because she is so slobbery, chews on everything and I can feel a little tooth starting. I think it might be a little early for her teeth to come in though.

Here is a picture of her first trip to see Santa and her December monthly pictures

Avery at Three Months

2009-11-12T14:51:00.008-07:00

We had family picuters done the other day. Avery did pretty well but go tired towards the end. I am so greatful for the Bjorklunds for doing this for us.

Things Avery loves at 3 months:

*loves to be held and cuddle

*loves to go for a walk with Maggie in the Bjorn carrier so she can look around

* loves the bath. she stares at herself in the mirror the whole time. (I put the bath tub on the bathroom counter in front of the mirror)

*loves watching TV especially football.

*loves to put her entire fist in her mouth.

*loves to watch the lights and butterflies dance while in her swing.

*loves her play mat and grabs at all the toys and holds them and looks at herself in the little portable mirror

* loves to listen to her mommy and grandma sing to her.

*loves dance time with mommy

*loves to be tickled under her arm pits. she just giggles & wiggles, it is so cute.

*loves belly time for about 2 minutes, then she hates it but getting better.

*loves binky & booby

*loves to talk especially in the morning. she wakes me up talking to here mobile above her bed.

*loves daddy daughter time while I'm at work.

*loves to blow out of her diaper. (thank goodness I discovered oxyclean, thanks Sunny)

* I wish I could say she loves her picture taken but that's not the case.

milestones:

*Avery is getting so big and fat I can't believe it. I went to visit my friend who has a one week old baby and I was a little jealous of his neck. I have to search deep to find Avery's neck. She gets crud in her folds and it gets so red and raw I feel so bad.

She got her first cold two weeks ago, it was so sad listening to her try to breath with a stuffy nose. I hated suctioning the boogies and so did she but we had to do it.

She is doing so much better with tummy time. she was on her tummy for 20 min the other day! and is starting to like it.

She totally recognizes us and gets so excited to see her daddy when he comes home from a trip. Right now she is talking to Chris while he tells her about his trip it is the cutest dang thing. He says that they have little discussiongs when they have daddy daughter time while I'm at work. She is such a little chatter box maybe she will be like her mommy and grandpa and talk your ear off.

I can now set her down and she will entertain herself instead of wanting to be held 24/7 (yeah for me!). She was sleeping through the night for a while but is now waking up at 2am then 6am every night. I have gotten in the habit of feeding her in bed with my boppy pillow and falling asleep. I wake up two hours later and she is still in my arms and I am totally exposed to the world. I will set her back in her bed and she will wake up an hour later to eat again and the cycle continues. I don't think I have had a full 8 hours of straight sleep since she was born. It makes me really tired when I have to work a night shift.

She coos and giggles and smiles all the time and is starting to be ticklish under her arms.

I was holding her today and she was looking at me and then she put her hands all over my face as if she is inspecting me, it is so cute.

Her hair is totally rubbing off in the back making her look like a cancer patient. I sure hope her hair grows in soon, she looks funny. good thing she is a girl and can wear cute bows.

Who Invented the Sizes for Infant Clothing?

2009-11-05T11:37:00.003-07:00

Seriously, who's in charge of sizing infant clothing?Is there some mass conspiracy to make parents feel as though their babies are much bigger than they actually are? I can argue about the same thing with womens clothing, but that is a whole other discussion.

I remember trying to figure out how old Avery will be at Christmas so I could buy infant clothing on sale when I was pregnant. It was only after she was born and nothing fit did I realize that the tags listed weight limits on the sizes. So I quickly learned that a “newborn” size was for under eight pounds, whereas a 0-3 month size was for children eight to fourteen pounds. We left the hospital thinking we had a lot of clothes for her to wear. But because she was so small (in comparison to her cousins), she didn't fit into the 0-3 month clothing that we got a ton of. We had to make a run to wall-mart to get newborn sizes (kind of hard to find sometimes btw).

On the other end of the spectrum, William, Avery's cousin, was born at a whopping 9 lb 9oz. The not-so-little man has never been able to fit newborn-sized clothing. I wanted to buy him cute outfits but couldn't figure out what size to get so I bought him socks that were folded like cupcakes. Scott was bumbed that they weren't real cupcakes, sorry buddy.

The problem with sizing does not just stop with newborn sizes. I don’t understand the sizing behind the 0-3 month infant clothing either. Who are these tiny three month olds? My princess just turned three months old this week, and she has been wearing three-month size clothing for almost a month now. In fact, I bought her a new 3 month size outfit a few weeks ago and it is already too small. She’s just too tall for these. I'm going to buy those extenters so she can wear her clothes longer. Who ever invented the extenders is a genious! I thought my baby was a small child; she measured in the 50th percentile at her two month well-baby checkup. So unless my she shot up to the 75th percentile in the last month or so, it seems that any clothing sized for “average” babies should fit her. They really make it hard for us women trying to buy clothes for ourselves and now our children. The men have it right; their clothes are sized according to their actualy measurements. All of this leads me to wonder, who sets these sizes for infant clothing and what criteria are they using??

Happy Halloween

2009-10-31T19:13:00.009-06:00

Avery's first Halloween she dressed up as a Candy Carn. In fact we were all Candy Carn's. You can't really see Chris' costume but he has candy taped all over him. We were a big hit at the Mardesich neighborhood party. They had all the dads compete eating doughnuts off a string with no hands. Chris didn't do very well but it was fun to watch. Avery had a great time looking around at everyone. I wonder what was going on in her little brain as she saw all the costumes. I am so excited to have a baby during the holidays. It is so much more fun with kids. She doesn't understand yet but we can still have fun.

Dr. Appointment

2009-10-22T20:08:00.015-06:00

Avery had her two month dr. appointment today for her two month check up. She weighed 11 lbs 12 oz. and 22 in long. She was in the 50%. She loved the noise the paper on the doctors bed made and was wriggling like crazy, it was so funny. She only cried for a minute when she got her shots then fell asleep. I took her to the store later today and had to stop in the parking lot of Smiths Market place to change her diaper twice and feed her once. She is making it a habit of getting hungry and making me feed her in parking lots. Her are the pictures of her playing and then daddy consoling her. I think it was harder on us then it was her.

about Avery at 2.5 months: She loves to smile, in fact, all you have to do is look at her. She is talking and is on the verg of laughing, I just love her little baby sounds. She is doing better with her tummy time and loves to look at herself in the mirror and stares at her mobile in her bed as well as the lights. She is holding her head up pretty well and can now sit in her bumbo chair. She loves loves loves to listen to singing. Im not very good at it but she still loves it anyway.

BACK TO WORK

Going back to work is bittersweet. It is so exciting to start a new job, expecially since I have the best job ever. I thought I was just going to work on the cardiac, renal and intermediate ICU but they want me to work the Med/Surg ICU and the Cardiac ICU as well as ER. I am super excited! I am going to get great experience. My job is super flexible and I only work 2 nights a week, which isn't that bad. My first day back was actually easier than I thought it would be. I cried when I got home but have been fine since. I think it was hard because Chris was supplimenting with formula and she SLEPT THROUGH THE ENTIRE NIGHT! How dare she do that when I am not around! I felt so inadequate like I was starving my baby, I missed her and I was also extremely exhausted after working a 12.5 hr night shift. At least she was sleeping because she wont miss me when she is asleep Hee Hee. I am glad she was good for Chris though. It is so hard getting back into the swing of things, I wish I could stay home forever. We do need to figure out the baby sitting thing. Lynne is our baby sitter but she went into the hospital last week so we didn't have anyone to watch her. Chris took time off work so I could get some sleep but I really didn't sleep. Who needs sleep anyway right?

Avery blessing 10-11-09

2009-10-22T19:53:00.004-06:00

Avery's blessing was such a special day! Chris did a great job and Avery was so good. Chris said she fussed a little during the blessing but I didn't hear a peep. I can't believe that we even have this sweet angel. I am so thankful to have her in our lives. Avery had so many people that love her come to see her that Sunday and we are so greatful to everyone who came. Thanks to all those who brought food and thanks Diane for all your help. We are so grateful for everyones love and support. Avery is so blessed to have such great people around her.

The Adventures of Avery Jo

2009-10-01T16:41:00.009-06:00

Since Avery is just a baby, her adventures aren't that interesting, but to her however, they are extremely exciting. For instance she takes a bath on the bathroom counter and stares at herself in the mirror while she enjoys me pooring warm water on her belly like she is at the spa.

We have been to the pool twice so far and there are many days to come. right now she just sits in her car seat. I can't wait to get her in the water and play. Look how cute her little swimsuit is.

08-21-09 This is my friend Kristi's wedding. We didn't have any dresses that fit so we bought one on the way up to the reception in Midway. she totally matches the wedding party. She is secretly Kristi's maide of honor, sorry Sunny and Ang, you've been bumped

08-28-09 My step mom's mother died and we took a baby to the funeral. now I know why people leave their babies at home. Avery pooped all over and there was no place to change her. then shr got hungry right when the funeral started. we tried to give her formula but she spit it all up then cried like crazy until we could thaw the breastmilk. once the funeral was over, she was an angel (figures). After the funeral we stopped to see Brooke and the kids.

Aunt Corrie loving to hold Avery.

9-05-09 I went to swiss days in Midway two days in a row. 1st I went with Sunny and Ty on Friday then on Saturday I took the picture of Avery in the peach orchard with the awesome buggy. After I got completely muddy, we had pictures at Kiddie Kandids and then drove up to Midway with my mom, Corrie, Corrisa and Taz. After that we went to the Outback Steakhouse for dinner. I didn't get home until almost midnight. It was a long tiring day. I think I fed Avery in the truck about 5 times.

Tummy time with Maggie 09-07-09. Avery doesn't like tummy time all that much but when she is on the floor, Maggie likes to lay down with her. notice how they are the same size. Can't wait to see what Maggie does when Avery starts to grab at her.

09-12-09 Wallace Sept birthday party. Grandma Carlla has a way of calmimg Avery. I think Avery looks like her.

9-13-09 Watching the 1st bears game of the season against the Packers with Daddy and Maggie. Chris has his girls well trained.

Hagging out on the boppy with Maggie

1st time boating. We went with Sunny and her Parents and Kristi and her new hubby Justin and of course Avery's boyfriend Ty.

9-23-09 Home with mommy while Chris is in Chicago. THis is my self portrait using the baby Bjorn so I can take Maggie out to pee. The week was horrible, Very cried the whole time. I wish I would have remembered I had the carrier when I went to my sewing class.

9-28-09 Avery's first trip to the canyon. Chris and I drove the Alpine Loop and had a pic nic

9-29-09 Dutch Oven dinner up AF canyon with the Burrup family. Avery loved being out in the fresh air.

Retirement

2009-09-29T13:03:00.010-06:00

It is a sad day! Avery is growing out of her newborn clothes and diapers. I have officially put some of her newborn onsies into retirement. It is fun to dress her up in cute little outfits now instead of onsies all the time. Don't get me wrong, she is still teensy but definately getting bigger.

Ok since I haven't blogged in a while here is an update of Avery and our life together. Chris went out of town a few weeks ago leaving me home with Avery and Maggie. It was quite the treat trying to take Maggie out to go to the bathroom and take care of a screaming baby. For some reason Avery cried at the top of her lungs the entire day. I couldn't figure out what was wrong with her. I finally had to leave her in her swing and go take a shower. Then last Wed, I had a staff meeting to go to and then a sewing class. She did great at my meeting but at the sewing class she cried the entire time. I was so embarrassed. I was so excited to bring my cute little baby and show her off to everyone but instead I was mortified. Chris finally came home and I had to leave him alone with Avery for about 2 hours on Saturday while I took pictures for some highschool kids for their homecoming dance. and you guessed it Avery cried the entire time. We were so puzzled, why was she crying? Is she becomming a Colicky baby? Someone told me that if the baby crunches her tummy she has gas pains and if she arches and kicks she has acid reflux. Avery arches, kicks and then spits up a ton as well as fart so I am thinking she has gas bubbles and has acid reflux. Since our week from you know where, we have made an effort to burp her really well and sit her up after she eats and that has worked wonders.

On to better and brighter things. Avery is now holding up her head and smiling when we play and talk. She loves it when we touch her nose and mouth with her binkie and say "boop". Avery doesn't really like tummy time but we are working on it. If she has acid problems, tummy time might be a little hard. She loves to look at herself in the mirror and is grasping toys when we place it in her hand. She is now sleeping very well in the night. she wakes up about 3 in the morning like clockwork just like I did when I was pregnant. She is also starting to roll over. I'm not sure what age they really do that but she sure is moving around a lot. She had a hard time taking naps during the day previously but has been great this week. Every morning when we get dressed for the day we have dance time. I turn on the radio in her room and we dance. I am actually enjoying it and hope to make that our little thing we do in the morning. Here are some pics of her developments.

I promise to blog more often.

The sling/swing miracle

2009-08-31T23:01:00.004-06:00

I discovered two of the best things in the world; the sling and the swing. I wish I would have thought to use these sooner. As soon as I put Avery in the swing she quieted right down. She sat there for about 2 hours just looking around until she fell asleep. Then I placed the extra tiny person in the sling and she slept and cooed for about another hour. It is harder to get her out of the sling than it was giving birth but at least she likes it.

Avery's Pool Debut

2009-08-31T22:48:00.005-06:00

Avery made her first appearance at the Saratoga Springs Pool today. She just loved it I can tell. Okay so she just sat in her car seat the whole time and didn't even get her pinkie toe in the water. Maybe next time. She did look cute in her newborn swimsuit though.

A Girls Best Friend

2009-08-25T23:12:00.003-06:00

We weren't quite sure how Maggie would react to the baby but it looks like she has made a new friend. When we first brought Avery home Maggie wasn't sure what to do. she followed us everywhere and was very curious especially when Avery cried. Now Maggie has to be where ever the baby is. As you can see from the picture, she is becoming more and more comfortable with the idea of Avery.

Our little Miracle has Finally Arrived

2009-08-25T19:50:00.004-06:00

So here is the story of Avery's entrance to the world. At 12:30 AM August 4th, Chris was just finishing watching a movie. I got up to go to the bathroom and thought that maybe my water broke. I went back to bed and yep, my water definately broke. I got up took a shower got dressed and pretty and we headed to the hospital. I didn't really have contraction pains, it just felt like cramps. At the hospital, everything was so chill. Since I wasn't hurting I asked the nurse at what point do I get an epidural, and she said any time. So, I thought what the heck call the medicine mad. I was so afraid of the epidural. I have seen a few placed and they didn't look very fun. But to my suprise, it was actually a cool feeling and didn't hurt that much at all. I was dilated to 3cm and didn't progress for about three hours so at 4:30 they gave me pitocin. Within 45 minutes I went from 3cm to 10cm. That is when I began to push. I pushed for about 20 minutes then was instructed to stop and relax for a while because the babies heart rate was too low. About an hour later, I pushed again for about 20 more minutes and was again instructed to stop so the nurse could get the doctor. As the nurse turned around, baby Avery decided to come into the world on her own. Chris saw that she was coming out and kept saying "the babies coming out". The nurse getting the baby warmer ready turned around and caught Avery just before she hit the floor. Whew! The doctor came in shortly after and delivered the placenta. He was a little peeved that the nurses didn't get him sooner. Recovery has been great, I really haven't had any pain or other problems. Avery is starting to sleep better at night but that first night home was extreamly difficult. Thanks Grandma diane and Grandpa Ross for all your help.

We are loving being parents and consider ourselves very blessed to have this beautiful healthy baby. Even though it took us about 5 years, I am extrememly greatful! We have had so many prayers answered and everything has worked out so well for us. First me getting into nursing school, getting pregnant and having an easy pregnancy, passing the Nclex, getting the ideal nursing job, having an easy labor and delivery and now recovery. I just hope that we have an easy baby.

I think Avery looks just like Chris but a few people have said she looks like me, but I don't see it. Maggie is very attached to Avery and has to be next to her at all times. The first few nights she was always right there when she was crying. As soon as she calmed down, Maggie would leave the room and do her thing. It looks like Avery already has a best friend.

That was a Close One

2009-06-16T12:52:00.008-06:00

Anyone who reads our blog probably knows that we had a close call last week with the baby.

last Wednesday I was planning on playing my last softball game. I typically play outfield but was getting too out of breath to run that much so I moved to 2nd base. At the beginning of the second inning a grounder was hit to me. I was down and ready to pick it up when it bounced up right into my stomach. It hurt soooo bad but at least I thought quick enough throw the girl out at 1st. I then cluched my stomach and tried hard (with no success) not to cry. I was freaked out! My stomach hurt so bad and I had just seen a pregnant woman in the ICU with a placental hematoma. Luckily Doctor Tom was there and reasured me that it would take a lot more than that to hurt the baby, I would just have a bruise for a while. Below is a picture of my belly about 2 hours after the accident. I should have taken it sooner when it looked worse. You can't really see it but there is a deeper bruise around the red spot.

You know when people poke at a bruise and it hurts, well it hurts worse when someone is poking at it from the inside. I know it's weird.

I called the OB the next day just to see if I should come in and get checked out and I was secretely wishing they would do another ultrasound so I could see my cute little baby one more time and ensure we are in fact having a girl. The doc told me to go to Timp hosp to have a 20 min. non-stress test done. That sounded fine to me, I would go there before my residency class and everything would work out fine. Boy was I wrong! They hooked me up to the monitors and recognized that I was having contractions 1 min. apart! At first I didn't feel it but then they got stronger and stronger; that is when the nurse gave me Tributiline shots to stop the contractions. They think I was dehydrated and the hit got things working. Regardless of the cause I have learned an important lesson: drink more water and don't be dumb. The nursing staff at Timp were great. they fed and watered me and Chris. A cute old volunteer came in the room and said "I heard there was a dad that would love a diet coke". How cute is that!

We are now registered at the hospital, know where to go and what to do. So this was actually a good experience besides missing work and almost bringing home a baby.

Now for updates...I am still having cramps here and there especially when I work on my feet for 12.5 hours. The hospital staff has been very good about absolutely not letting me lift even when I try and I have been able to frequently sit down and rest. Because of the excellent crushed ice at the hospital I am also drinking a lot of water. My manager said that if at any time I start to feel contractions or just don't feel good to just go home.

I am taking my nursing boards next week (wish me luck) and I finish my residency training this week, then I will start training for my real RN job. I will work in the ICU cluster unless by some miracle they will hire me PART-TIME in the ER. My ICU manager says that I can train until I am ready to go on maternity leave then I can come back whenever I am ready and get started working. He is letting me work part-time and I get to choose the days I work. If I need a day off I just tell him, no more trying to get someone to trade shifts and I wont have to work holidays either. Draw back is that I will have to start working nights until one of the three ICU nurses leaves and I can take her spot, which sounds like could be very soon. Nights aren't that bad though because I will just need my dad to baby sit for 4 hours instead of 12.

Thank you everyone for your concerns. Let's hope this kid keeps cookin' in the "black pot" for at least another month. NO MORE JUNE BABIES!!! between the Carn family and my family there are 13 birthdays. I'll post the cute ultra sound at a later time.

UVU Nursing Graduation

2009-05-05T20:06:00.008-06:00

Wahoo I actually did it!!! I am so excited to be finished with school for a while. I still have to take the Nclex and get a job.

A big thanks to the girls for helping me get through school.

I was accepted to the UVU Nursing program via the Heber Cohort. Big thanks to Heber.

It is the year for graduations in my family. My sister Corrie graduated from USU with a Bachelors of Natural Resources. I graduated from UVU with an Associates of Nursing. My Nephew Josh will be graduating from Highschool and my niece Corrisa will be graduating from Junior High.

School is for Fools!

2009-04-28T21:09:00.007-06:00

I survived nursing school!!! Wahoo

The picture below is of my graduating class. I am sooo bugged by this picture, see if you can find me way in the back. We had just come back from a gas station run and found everyone on one side of the classroom. Half the people have no clue what is going on and the other half just don't care. Our instructor was standing on top of a table and couldn't figure out how to use the camera, it was hillarious. If they would have said something about a picture, I would have brought my camera and tripod and taken a picture that would have been 10x better than this one. Well, it is good to have a picture anyway.

These are my two best nursing buds. Love you guys! First semester Sunny had a mental breakdown thanks to pregnancy. Second semester I broke down, and third Kristi had a crisis. I'm so glad we had support from each other.Thanks for helping me get through nursing school!

Now, I'm laying on the couch watching TV and thinking to myself, I have nothing to do tomorrow except go to the gym and play softball. I am not setting my alarm and am going to enjoy the day. I wont be able to rest for long. I still have a lot to do before baby comes. This is my plan for the future. I have an interview for the residency program at the hospital which will consist of 9 weeks of training and classroom education. In the meantime, I will take the Nclex. then it will be about time for me to go on maternity leave. Come November I plan to work in the float pool where I will work wherevere I am needed in the entire hospital at UVRMC and AFH (hopefully only 1 day a week). I would love to work in the emergency department but feel I will get the best experience and knowlede starting in the float pool. That way if Chris and I ever move, I will be able to work anywhere. Even though I will have my RN I am planning on going to BYUI to get my Bachelor's degree online. I love this world we live in where I can sit in my PJ's and get a degree. Hopefully once baby comes things will calm down a bit, Ya right.

Pregnancy update by request

2009-04-16T17:06:00.010-06:00

I have a confession to make. Ever since my belly started to grow I don't EVER want to get dressed up. I am totally content with wearing scrubs or sweats. I told Chris that I wanted to go out tonight but didn't want to get dressed up; partly because I am lazy and partly because my pants don't fit anymore. How pathetic! Chris says I'm the laziest person who works out every day. Notice how I am wearing workout clothes in almost every picture. Suprisingly, I am loving my belly and like to show it off when I do get dressed up.

Now here's an update on the pregnancy:
I haven't been sick at all except for the week in Naperville, Il when I was really sensitive to smells and just felt kind of icky. Honestly, I think I have had an uneventful pregnancy when it comes to symptoms (sorry Brook & Brooke).
I first felt her kick at about 16 weeks and Chris felt her about 19 weeks. Now she kicks me ALL the time so I have already diagnosed her with ADHD. It seems like I am carrying her extremely low (which is probably why I don't like to wear regular pants). I swear I am squishing her little head sometimes. When I am lying in bed she likes to move her way up my belly, last night it was like she was doing summersaults to get there. No rest for the weary.
I love to watch my belly when she kicks, I can't wait to see it when it is more defined. I struggled with the idea of adopting because I wanted to feel movement inside my womb. I am extremely thankful that I get to have these experiences.
We had THE IMPORTANT ultrasound last week, you know the one where they measure everything, determine the sex and look for congenital abnormalities. I am happy to report that everything looks normal and she is actually measuring a little small (which is good because I'm a small person, no Carn head please!) Some of those US pictures are creepy, even creepier than the floating baby on the right. But I think she has my chin and "Jacked up" pinkies. I had a lot of hair when I was born as did Chris so we are prepared for a little monkey child.
Thank you everyone for your support and excitement.

12 weeks

18 weeks

20 weeks (I'm starting to explode)

22 weeks and 2 weeks left of school

My butt's as big as my belly. HaHa

Baby Update

2009-03-23T14:06:00.004-06:00

Angie is so busy this never gets updated. Here are few pictures of our baby GIRL!!! Now we just need some help with names.

25 Things You May not Know about Me

2009-01-24T17:38:00.005-07:00

1. I have a twin brother (no we are not identical. Seriously, I get that question a lot)
2. My pinkies are crooked and my kids will have crooked pinkies or as Chris would say "Jacked up Pinkies".
3. I have been to 25/50 states as well as Spain, England, Scottland, Switzerland, Bahamas.
4. I would really really really love to go to Australia and New Zealand.
5. I met my best friends when I was 4 in a sandbox down the street from my house. We are still friends and they are twins also.
6. There were 6 sets of twins in my ward growing up.
7. I am pregnant with twins.
8. number seven is not true. I just have one baby growing in my belly. Hee Hee Hee got ya didn't I?
9. My very first job was a paper girl.
10. I am a wedding photographer and a damn good one too.
11. The one sport I have always wanted to learn but never did is Soccer.
12. I used to catch snakes and frogs when I was little.
13. I ate a worm because I wanted to know what it tasted like. (not recomended)
14. I ate cow tongue because my mome thought it would be fun and for some reason she thought we would like it. Boy, was she wrong!
15. Even though I have been trying to get pregnant forever, I am scared to death to be a mom.
16. I have not had the flu since I was in grade school. I don't remember the last time I threw up from being sick. Lortab doesn't count.
17. I love to be spontaneous.
18. I like to organize things and like things to be perfectly aligned.
19. Nothing bad ever happens at the hospital when I'm working, but the minute I leave all hell breaks loose.
20. I had my belly button pierced and loved it.
21. I secretly want to be a vampire so I could fly and live forever.
22. I wanted to be an Archeologist when I was little. Good thing I didn't pick that profession, I'm too ADD.
23. My tongue was almost sliced off when I had my tonsils taken out.
24. I am not afraid of anything except ghosts and psychotic people.
25. And last but not least... I have spent some time in jail.

Whats New

2009-01-13T15:27:00.002-07:00

OK...most people know the big news. Does anyone see whats new on our blog?

So long AF med/Surg

2008-12-13T17:25:00.002-07:00

I worked my last day in the med/surg department at American Fork Hospital this past Monday. Starting the first week in January I will be working for Intermountain Staffing Resources. This means that I will work where I'm needed between the three IHC hospitals in Utah County. I am super excited and nervous. I decided to make this change because I will be working in various departments and this will give me a feel for where I want to work as a nurse (I graduate in April). But the main reason for making the change is that I will be able to make my own schedule, which is extremely nice while I'm in school. Since I don't start my new position until January, I have about three weeks of not working. This couldn't have been better timing with the holidays and nursing finals.

On a side note, I got the flu vaccine today and I'm nervous that I will be sick during Christmas vacation in Naperville (again). Thank goodness Chris and I are married now and he can spend the night with me and take care of me instead of his mom waking us up and telling Chris he need to go to his own room.

Wit

2008-11-23T14:55:00.009-07:00

There are two reasons I decided to study nursing: first, I want to be able to help when there is an emergency or a disaster. second, ever since I was a little girl, I aimed to please, or more importantly to inspire and uplift.

This semester in nursing school we were given an opportunity to choose from a list of films to count as service hours. From this list, I looked forward to viewing the movie Wit, starring Emma Thompson.

The main character, a scholarly professor is diagnosed with stage four ovarian cancer. She is given eight sessions of chemotherapy at “full” dose, which eventually does more harm to her than the cancer.

Besides gut renching vomit, pain, hairloss, myelosuppression (suppression of the production of blood cells and platelets causing extremely high risk for infection), and isolation; chemotherapy (not the cancer) destroys epithelial cells in the esopagus causing painful sores. In which point, we become fragile mortals who delight in the simple cold taste of a frozen popsicle and ice chips. All that is left at this stage or all that is required is kindness and compassion by healthcare providers.

A patient with cancer must feel like they are completely isolated at the end stage of their illness. Some health care providers although skilled, fall short in administering kindness and compassion when treating these patients.

I can't tell you how many times I have seen a patient's health improve just because they were shown compassion or because someone took the time to give them "the best bath they have ever had". (Thank you brother Cannon for sharing your experiences). It is the small things that matter in life. It's not necessarily the things you know, but more importantly the things you do. A simple smile or touch can change the world for someone who is ill or simply having a bad day. Next time I arrive to work feeling grumpy because I'm tired and don't want to be there, I will remember that this is my time to "Inspire and uplift."

Recap of this year

2008-11-16T18:02:00.006-07:00

Well, I should be studying for a test but instead I am blogging. Maybe if we had some chitlins I would post more, but we don't so I wont. Since I'm not very good at blogging here are a few pictures that represent our year so far. Here's the yearly update: I'm still in nursing, Maggie is still cute, We made some jam with my dad, had another anniversary, went on a cruise to the Carribean, and fished at Scowfield. Then we had a blast in Lake Powell and Chris shot his first deer. No kids yet but if you see any lying around, send em to our house.

Election Day

2008-11-04T14:38:00.003-07:00

Angie and I voted today. This election really worries me because I don't think most people understand how much of a socialist Barack Hussein Obama is. Last time I read the Constitution health care was not a right, welfare is not a right. Free speech is a right. Go look up the Fairness Doctrine supported by Barack Hussein. Its very interesting. It will close down free speech on talk radio. I do have a right to my Guns. Some of you might think I am a backwoods redneck but I feel very comfortable knowing that I and my law abiding neighbors can protect our families and homes if needed. All gun control will do is take guns out of the hands of law abiding citizens. Don't get me wrong I am not a full John McCain supporter but I look at him as the lesser of two evils. Whatever happens today with the election good luck and God Bless America

Update

2008-11-03T21:19:00.012-07:00

I think our last update was two months ago. Angie is very busy with school and just does not have time to keep this up. She is getting an A in nursing this semester so I guess I cant get to upset that we never see each other. I guess if I (Chris) blog I can pick the pictures I and the subject. In September Angie and I went with the Burrs and the Scows hunting up Ephraim Canyon. It was my second year hunting and Sister Scows first year hunting. We both killed our first deer on the last day of our hunts. Here are a few pictures of the fun.

My Dad is a BAD man!!!

2008-07-29T15:13:00.007-06:00

This is Chris. My dad is in town to help Bradget move back to southern Il to attend dental school. While he was in town we decided to go kill some cans and bottles. It was Angie and I, my Dad, Justin Burrup, and a friend.

Dad is tuff!!!

300 yard targets dead on

Radical Islam beware (Justins Words)

Lake Powell

2008-07-21T23:43:00.009-06:00

Lake Powell was awesome!!!

The day after, not so awesome! We got home about 11:30 last night. The next morning we didn't get up until 10:00am, we must have really needed the sleep. Maggie usually wakes up at 7:30 but not today, she must have had a great time at Bradget's house. I woke up feeling and looking like I had a hang over, Chris had to go to work, and Maggie had an appointment with the pillow. It is so hard to go back to real life after spending 4 days on the paradise house boat in Lake Powell. I'm so glad Tom and Debbie invited us to go, we had a great time and everyone made us feel so welcome.

Going to Lake Powell

2008-07-14T15:17:00.005-06:00

I am SOOOO excited. On Wed we are going to Lake Powell after 7 years of not going. We both love Lake Powell. It is by far the best vacation possible. We are going with my Uncle Tom and his family and will post more pictures when we get back. Here are a few pictures from 7 years ago before we were married.

$1500 Bucks

2008-06-26T10:39:00.004-06:00

Time to vent. What would you do with 1500 bucks. We have been saving for a while to pay off Angie's Car (2007 Mazda 6). I finally got enough money in the savings account and the blower/motor unit in the house furnace died. I guess it did not really die but it started making so much noise I thought it was going to explode in the basement. We have been in our house for just over 3 years. When the tech pulled it out of the furnace it was written on the unit "Bad blower/motor unit do not use". So someone before we moved in basically rigged it to work for a while knowing it was a bad unit. To top it all off Angie had surgery yesterday(Ask Angie but she is going fine). So right now she is asleep on the sofa and it is getting hotter by the minute in our house. They wont have it fixed until later today. So much for paying off the car for a few months!!!

This is the hole I have to drop 1500 into

Maggie goes to the salon

2008-06-11T16:21:00.012-06:00

Maggie got her hair did the other day, here is a before and after. The lady at 1st east grooming does a great job. I wish you could see the bandana she puts on her.

I was really lucky to get these pictures because Maggie HATES the camera. She absolutely refuses to look at it.

Here is a run down of Maggies day after the salon. First she freaks out when she sees me that I swear she would pee her pants if she wore any. Then she sits on my lap the entire drive home and yes I took these while driving, just kidding, I pulled over.

When she comes home she tries to get as dirty as possible and then she is just all tuckerd out and sleeps the rest of the day. what a life!

Wait what am I saying! That sounds just like my life right now!

I frequently agonize over the fact that we have not been able to have children yet, however, I am really enjoying my freedom this summer. For instance, today I was put on call from work at the hospital so I slept in until 8:00. I went to the gym, came home, read my book, did some work around the house, did what ever I wanted (Chris is out of town) and now I'm going to go play a softball game. Tomorrow is just about the same only I am going to hang out with my friend Sunny to play some soccer and possibly go see a movie. I pray every day for a baby but I will certainly be grateful for the blessings I currently enjoy. Thank you to everyone who has kept us in your prayers, especially little Spencer Ross.

Summer???

2008-05-26T21:33:00.014-06:00

You would think that Memorial Day would be a great day to go fishing; boy were we wrong!!! We stood at the shores of Scofield reservoir drenched and freezing. It actually snowed on us!!! If we hadn't caught any fish it would have been miserable but 10 unlucky fish fell for the bate and became our dinner (Thanks Bradget for bringing the deep fryer). I was the winner with the biggest pig, below is proof of my tasty little friend. By the end of the day, everyone was soaking wet, muddy and freezing except for me. I guess my parents' over prepardness rubbed off because I was well prepared with my $1.95 pancho, thermos, boots, gloves and a change of clothes. Oh, and don't forget the camera.

Adam Heiner, Justing & Stacey Burrup

Bradget, Lynn & Laura Scow

If Chris hadn't reacted quickly to help his friend, this fish may have gotten away. Do guys ever grow up?

I wish we were still sailing!!!

2008-05-20T22:37:00.020-06:00

We hear the screaming!!! Here are some more pictures from our cruise. We are going again next year and would love for you to join us.

Me blowing my horn!!

Angie at her best

Our ship the Princess Caribbean

We went swimming with Sting Rays. I have never seen water that color. It was amazing.

We spent a day in the Bahamas doing nothing but swimming and sleeping on the beach.

The boat had an outdoor movie. We spent one night watching the movie Enchanted while sitting under the stars. It was very cool.

This was the view from our balcony on the last night. It was great to sit and watch the sun drop below the horizon.

Cruise to the Bahamas

2008-05-15T17:22:00.008-06:00

We have reluctantly returned from our cruise to the Bahamas and Turks and Caicos. My favorite part of the trip was laying out in the sun and just relaxing. It is so nice to not have to worry about school or work. We want to go on another cruise next year so start saving your money because you are coming with us.

Going on Vacation

2008-04-29T10:23:00.002-06:00

FREEDOM!!!! Next week we are going on our first real vacation in years. On Saturday we leave for a week long cruise to Turks and Caicos and the Bahamas. I cant wait for the sun and fun not to mention the unlimited food!!! We will try and take lots of pictures and make another post when we get back.

Sweet Lou

2008-04-04T11:49:00.001-06:00

Ozzie sings take me out to the ball game

2008-03-29T14:40:00.001-06:00

The boys of summer are back. Baseball opening day is Monday the 31st and it can’t come any sooner for me. I really wanted to find a great clip of Harry Caray singing the 7th inning stretch and came across this gem. I have to ask if they should really let people stoned out of their minds sing one of the best songs every written. Go Cubs this is your year!!! 100 years and counting!!!

A Tribute to Harry Caray

2008-03-29T14:27:00.001-06:00

Bring on Baseball....

Traditions

2008-03-24T22:23:00.004-06:00

One thing Angie realized when she married into the Carn family was we are very strict on our family traditions. At Christmas we do the family line up, eat breakfast before we open gifts, and there is NO opening gifts on Christmas Eve. In football season it is very important that I sit down to watch the Bears game with my Brian Urlacher jersey for regular season games and my Walter Payton Jersey for the playoffs. Last Sunday was Easter so I participated in one of my favorite traditions of all time. The post meal nap!!! We went to Dave and Brookes for dinner and had a great Easter egg hunt with the kids. Brooke as always prepared a fantastic dinner and desert. After a few minutes of polite post dinner chat I found my way into the living room for one of my favorite traditions of all time. Traditions are great!!!

Who needs a Flu vaccine when you're naturally immune?

2008-03-12T18:01:00.006-06:00

Knock on wood!!! Even though I work at the hospital, I decided no to get the flu vaccine. I figured that I haven't had the flu since I was a wee little girl that I was naturally immune. Then I really was convinced of my superior immune system when I kept getting assigned to all the flu patients at work and I didn't get it. Chris has gotten the flu twice so far so maybe I am immune and carrying it home to Chris. The unfortunate thing (next to Chris being sick) is that I had no one to take me to my surgery on Tuesday. I was freaking out... My entire family lives so far away and all my friends had to work and it was such short notice to call someone in the ward. A nurse I work with was willing to take me but I felt uncomfortable putting her out like that. My step mom who lives in Toelle was so kind to leave her house at 4am to pick me up at 5. It was nice to have that bonding moment. I hope I didn't say anything too humiliating when I was under the influence of anesthesia. I love the fact that I can count on my Dad and his new wife if I ever need them. This is a picture of me and Lynn my "New Mom".

Can we really be twins???

2008-03-07T12:54:00.002-07:00

Yes, I have a twin brother and we couldn't be any more different!!! This is a picture of our 30th birthday. I took him to Cafe Rio since he had never been there before, CAN YOU BELIEVE THAT? We actually look like siblings in this picture, usually there is no resemblance what so ever.
Even though we live in different worlds, we still have that "Twin" connection. For the record... I hate the beard; he looks so cute without it.

NURSING SCHOOL

2008-03-05T13:49:00.004-07:00

I finally got into nursing school, Yeah! I am now in my second semeseter at UVSC and it is great so far. When I applied to UVSC I heard about a new nursing program up in Heber City where they were only accepting about 10 students. Of course I said I was willing to drive to Heber if that meant I would be accepted to the program. Driving to Heber didn't seem too bad, the drive is beautiful and the classroom is very quite and small. Little did I realize that I wouldn't have to drive to Heber every day, in fact I don't drive up there at all. All my clinicals are at the Provo hospital and class is once a week in Orem. So I got into nursing school through the back door and I don't even have to drive to Heber, lucky me!

The years have not been good to my hair

2008-03-05T13:42:00.008-07:00

I was just reading on my sister-in-laws blog (http://www.thecarnaroonies.blogspot.com/) about how she found a grey hair. If you look at the posting called "Ready for Boating" you can see my hair now. This is a picture of my hair back in my college days at Ricks. I would say the years have been much better to Brook than they have to me!!! My nick name in college was FRO!!! In the words of Tyler "Mr. Brown Stone" Brown "WHY....WHY....)

READY FOR BOATING

2008-03-05T11:43:00.009-07:00

I have been waiting for Angie to do a better job keeping this up. She is in nursing school so I will give her some credit but come on...I am a guy...this is not my world. Last Saturday around noon it was over 60 degrees and I started to think about getting the boat out soon. Well by 6 pm it was snowing with winds up to 50 mph. By Sunday morning we had 2 new inches of snow on the lawn and my dreams of summer were long gone (I hate you Puxatony Phil and your stupid Shadow). I am soooo ready for summer so I thought I would post a few pictures from the last time I went Wake Boarding.

Temple pictures

2008-01-28T19:27:00.004-07:00

One of my favorite places to shoot is the Salt Lake Temple. My dream is to visit and take pictures of every single temple in the world. Maybe in my next thirty years.

Ice Fishing Jan 08

2008-01-22T16:29:00.001-07:00

My First Post......So Saturday was my birthday and I decided it sounded like fun to go sit on a frozen lake (3 degrees outside) for 6 hours with some friends and not catch fish. Between all of us we fished for 60 hours for a grand total of 3 mid size trout. We did play some good ice football. Tackle on the ice is not something I would recommend.