Lots of Love

The girls sure love their brother! He's got 4 mothers...he better brace himself!

Perfect from head to toe...

Our little boy is here! He was born on July 20. Two weeks and two days early--on purpose of course! On Tuesday the 18th, we went to the hospital for another ultrasound and an amniosentisis (depending on what the ultrasound said). He still measured big, and after a visit with my doctor, we decided to induce labor--this baby wasn't going to get any smaller! We went in on Thursday morning at 9:00 and by 10:00 they started me on the pitocin. During the day I made small steps and by 5:00, I was only dialated to 5 cm. UGH!!! Abby and Emma came in two hours and so it seemed like a long time. Luckily, I had a roomful of people! My mom, grandma, sister (Annie) and her fiance, and my two friends, Jamie and Missy. We had a fun day. I layed in the hospital bed and we just sat and talked and laughed. I did have an epidural at 11:30, so I was comfortable. At 5:30 they turned off the pitocin and let it clear out of my system and then they came in and turned it back on full force and then it was all downhill from there. My contractions started coming fast and strong --for a while they really hurt! The anethesiologist had to come and give me more drugs and I'm so glad! After that it didn't take long at all. My friend Missy massaged my head and played with my hair and it really helped a lot. She was a great coach. So, he really came fast once he decided to come! He weighed 8 lbs. 12 oz. and was 20 inches long--pretty good size for being early! He is absolutely perfect from head-to-toe. He is so good so far too. His sisters just love him. They are really good at holding him and making sure his head doesn't flop all over. He's sleeping great! He's only been waking up at 3:00 a.m. and 7:00 a.m. hopefully that will continue. I got to go and stay with my mom from Saturday after I got out of the hospital until Wednesday and she took great care of me. I had lots of good breakfasts and lots of sleep-- and usually I don't get either. It was hard to leave and come back to reality, but I guess it has to be done sometime. I am so happy he is here! Our family is complete.

Where to buy a husband?

The other night I had put all the kids to bed and was laying by Emma in my bed. Raymond came to me and told me that his new asst. manager had locked her keys and the store keys in the office. ( I guess they were on the same key chain.) It was 11:00 at night and Ray is the only one who has keys to the office other than Debbie (the asst.) and Tracy (who couldn't leave because her husband was gone somewhere with the car.) So, we pulled all the kids out of bed and took the 25 mile drive to his work. While we were getting ready to go, I had asked Ray why Debbie's husband couldn't come and pick her up. He told me that she was a single mom, so that answered that question. When we got Emma buckled up she said to me, "Mom, why can't her husband come and get her?" I explained that she didn't have one and she said, "Well, maybe she needs to go and buy one." LOL. I couldn't stop laughing. Wouldn't it be interesting to get into the mind of a four year old???

It might be fun as a job...

This last weekend my little sister and her fiance came and I was able to take their engagement pictures. It really makes me want a nicer camera! I would love to do this and make some money. We had a lot of fun. She is very photogenic. He has a harder time, but he did a great job! They turned out really cute. I am so excited for them and for our family. He is going to be a great addition. The wedding date is August 11. I am going this weekend to do bridal pictures for her. Stay tuned to see what they look like!

Closer Every Day

Today was my 34 1/2 week appt. Not too much longer. I only have 3 weeks from today and I get another ultrasound that will determine if they start me early. It would be lovely if it all worked out that way. It is so hot, and I am uncomfortable and grouchy. I keep telling Ray and the kids that I will be a better mom and wife when the baby is here. This picture was taken about a month ago and I am much bigger now. Don't have a recent picture though, so this one will have to do.

Dance, dance, dance

Today was our schools annual dance festival. It's always so fun to watch the kids dance. I had two kids this year. Whitney danced to "move it" from Madagascar. Abby danced to an old song, I don't know the name of it, but it sure was cute and they did such a great job. I took pictures, but I still don't have the program installed. It makes me giggle how much concentration that those kids put into what they are doing. You can just see their little mouths counting beats, or saying what move comes next. They were so excited for me to see what they had learned and they've been practicing for weeks--at home and at school. Today was one of those '"final" days. It really is summer. I really will have a 1st grader and a 3rd grader. My babies are growing up. I am so proud of them. They have done so well this year!

30 weeks and counting...DOWN!!!

Saturday was my 30 week mark. I am so excited to get this little boy here! I can't wait to see what he looks like, to hold his tiny hands, and kiss his cheeks. What a long experience this has been. The cool thing is I actually only have 9 weeks left instead of 10 because my doctor is starting me a week early, since my last baby was a week early and weighed 9 lbs. 2 oz. I've had two ultrasounds so far, and he measured big on both of them. His head measures especially big, so I have a third ultrasound today with a perinatal something-or-other. I have to go to a different office to do it. I'm pretty sure they aren't worried about anything being wrong, just taking some extra measures to make sure. Emma had a big head. She was just a big baby--but, oh so cute and chubby. I think it's just in his genes. His dad's family has some big people, and his dad is big.

This is the girls last week of school. HOORAY!!! It will be nice to be able to take my mornings slow and not have hair and bus rides to worry about. It will be especially nice to have some extra help around the house. This little mommy is getting BIG! We just got our computer fixed and the program to upload pictures isn't installed yet...Hopefully soon and then I will post a picture of this big, but cute, belly!

Peanuts and Chinas

Yesterday was my ultrasound! We got up and started getting ready at about 8:00. The ultrasound was scheluled for 11:00. I was so excited! I woke up at 7:15 because I couldn't sleep. At 9:30 my mom and grandma got to my house. I had invited them because I wasn't sure if Ray could come--which thankfully, wasn't the case. While the girls were eating their breakfast, they were talking about if it was a girl or a boy. Abby, my middle child, commented that if it was a girl it would be boring because we already have enough girls. I sat down with them and explained what would be happening at the office. I told them the Dr. Would be checking the baby's heart, brain, lungs, stomach, etc.. and after all that he would see if he could tell us if we were having a brother or a sister. I then asked my youngest what the baby would have if it was a boy. "Peanuts!" she said, and then went on to tell me that her and her sisters had a china. I've always tried to teach them the correct terms, but they don't always hear them the right way. LOL. When we arrived, we got right in. No waiting is good when you have 3 excited children with you. The radiologist showed us it's head first. We got a really good profile picture. We saw the front of it's face and the kids were so excited to see that there really was a baby in there. It's heartbeat was 156 beats per minute. It measured a little big, which made the due date July 28 instead of August 5. Everything looked great. We finally got to that moment and I instantly knew what it was, because I had never seen one of these before. It's a BOY! It took the rest of them to see, but the doctor pointed it out and I just started crying. "Emma, it has peanuts!" I said. The girls all squealed and said "We're having a brother!" My mom was crying and Ray just stared at the screen for a minute. He asked the radiologist twice if he was sure. It was such an exciting experience. We are all so excited to have a little boy in our house. Now the biggest trick is being patient for him to get here.

Hormones, butterflies, and anticipation

Again, it's been forever. Only because I still don't feel that great all the time and sitting at the computer is just hard for me. I have tons of pictures that I want to post, but I need my husband to fix the connection for me. When it gets done, I will post a picture of this belly that is growing. I will be 17 weeks tomorrow. (Saturday) Almost half-way! I can't believe it. It feels like it's been forever. My hormones are out of control. I am so irritable. I have no patience with my kids at all, ever. I feel bad because this isn't their fault, but they get a lot of the repercussions. It will be nice to feel normal again someday. Hugs and kisses are in short supply with me lately and hopefully will be re-stocked soon!

On the brighter side--I felt the baby move last Saturday. That is always such a blessed time. It always makes me want to shout, "There really is something in there!" I have felt it several times since then. The kids are anxious to be able to feel it. I'm sure it will be at least another month, but they will love it. I told them that right now it feels like I have little butterflies in my tummy. The ultrasound is scheduled for March 14. I am so excited to see what this little stranger is. All the girls want a brother and of course, so does daddy. I ,on the other hand,really don't care. A boy would definitely even out some of the estrogen floating around this place. Daddy could use a fishing pal and I think it would be a lot of fun to see how different a boy would be. If it's a girl, I already have all the stuff and I totally know how to do girls. Four weddings... We need to start saving now!

Going on a field trip

I'm feeling quite a bit better. Good thing, because I was about ready to lock myself in a padded room. I haven't thrown up for a week and two days. My kids thought I was dying! Emma was shocked when I walked downstairs the other day. She said "Abby--mom totally walked down the stairs". Pretty funny.

Today we are going to Brigham to celebrate my dad's 50th birthday. It will be my first time out since I've felt well. I am so excited. It is going to be hilarious. Tomorrow my little sister, Nicki, is having a baby shower. I don't know if I can handle all this excitement! I am definitely ready to have some fun. I'll take pics and post them soon!

Sick, bored, and ready to move on

Wow! It's been a month and it seems like a year! I found out two days after Thanksgiving that we are expecting our fourth baby. Am I excited? YES! But, oh, so sick. During the past month I've lost about 12 lbs. and thrown up more times that I'd like to count. All I've done is lay on the couch and lay on the bed. My house is honestly just disgusting. Days feel like weeks, and I get so bored just laying there, but there's not much else to do. I did, however, get a new medicine called Zofran. It is extrememly expensive, luckily insurance covers most of it. It has helped a lot. I haven't lost my cookies now for about 3 days. It's a start. Tomorrow marks my 10th week, so I'm 1/4 of the way there. Cross your fingers that the next 3/4 will be better!

I'm still alive!

Hello blog world! I'm sure it seems like I've fallen off the face of the earth. Luckily, I haven't and it's just a case of craziness. I love the holidays. It's so fun to have so many fun things to do. I spent Thanksgiving in Brigham City with my family. Five days, in fact. The girls and I stayed at Grandma Greats house. It was such a nice break from life. We just played and had a good time. My friend Julie and I went shopping the morning after Thanksgiving. Yep, bright and early--4:00 a.m. to be exact. I got what I wanted though. Cabbage Patch dolls were on sale at Wal-Mart for $10, and after getting kicked in the ear and fighting the mob of women, I got not only one, but six. Julie ended up with six too. We took our time deciding which ones we wanted and gave the rest to a few very grateful women. Lucky for them, they didn't have to put their lives in danger. We had a great time. Julie took me out to breakfast (thanks again!) and she bought me a cute vest for my birthday. One night we got all bundled up and went to see a little Christmas village. Santa was there and everything. The kids got to sit on his lap and tell them what they wanted.

The next few weeks are busy too. I'm all done with Christmas for my family, I've just got to do my friends and a few brother-in-laws and we'll be set. This coming weekend we are meeting my family in Salt Lake to go to Temple square and have dinner. The next weekend I'm going to stay at my moms and finish some projects for gifts. We are spending this Christmas Eve with my family and then later on Christmas Day we will go to the in-laws. I'm really excited! Sadly, I'm sure my blogs will suffer. Hopefully, there will be lots of fun pics to post and fun stories to tell! Happy Holidays!

Week at a glance

My week has been so hectic. The kids have all been sick, including the ones I babysit. Last Sunday was my birthday and it sucked, for the most part. I just felt bad all day. Thirty was definitely not a fun one. At least it's over and I can move on. My two friends, Jamie and Missy, gave me a little birthday party. Cake and homemade icecream...MMMM. My friend Angel, crocheted me a scarf, and I love it. On Wednesday my little brother came home from his mission. We all got to go to the airport and pick him up. It was so good to see him. Two years is a long time. All the kids were great though. None of them were shy at all, which was suprising being that they were all so little when he left. Ray and I got to go on a date last night to a seminar about relationships and marriage. It was so good and I've used a few techniques on my kids today and it's worked! Maybe if I keep practicing, life will be easier around my house. Tomorrow is Ray's birthday and we are going to a friends house for dinner. I think we are going out again tonight also. I'm sure things aren't going to calm down anytime soon either. Thanksgiving, Christmas parties, School activities, and Christmas is right around the corner. Does life ever slow down?

Reggie the Rat

Two years ago I needed a bribe to make my girls stay in their own beds. I had a friend that told me rats were good pets. At first, I had this mental picture of the kind of rats you see in the movies. Big, ugly, smelly sewer rats. When we picked two out at the pet store, however, I changed my mind. We brought them home and named them Reggie and Peanut. They have been the best little pets. Emma carries them all over, pulls their tails, and makes them hang from her shirt. Neither one of them have ever bitten anybody. Ray and I get them out and hold them while we watch T.V.

Today, Reggie died. I am so sad. The kids are so sad. We all just cried and cried. We buried him in a little spot underneath our back porch stairs. Emma cried when I covered him because he couldn't see and he was all alone. We said a little prayer. None of the rest of the day has felt normal--just sad. Pets become such a part of your family. We are gonna miss him so much.

Drunk, or something like it

Whitney had a dentist appointment yesterday. She had a few cavities that needed to be fixed and her top front tooth had gotten chipped and needed to be repaired. She was given a dose of some sort of medicine that made her so LOOPY! Dr. Pearson carried her out to the van for me and she hugged him. That just isn't like her. At home, I laid her on the couch and put a blanket over her. A few minutes later I heard something. I went to see what is was and sure enough, it was Whit trying to walk. She looked like someone who had just walked out of a bar and didn't know which way was up or down. She was running into walls, falling down on her knees and crawling, and just laughing about the whole thing. I got out the camcorder and tried to catch some of it on video, but I was afraid she was going to fall and need a trip to the emergency room! It made for a very eventful day. Her sisters got a kick out of it. I wonder if they sell that stuff--There are definitely days that I could use it!

Novemer 8th

Don't you hate it when you have an hour and a half longer to sleep, but your brain turns on and won't stop? This was the case for me this morning. I need to go buy milk. Whitney has a dentist appointment in the morning. I forgot to pay car insurance and oh, crap, is there enough money in the account to cover it??? Dad is getting his surgery soon. I've been so worried about that, but honestly, do I have to worry at 6:00 in the morning? My 30th birthday is in 5 days. That sucks. I can't believe I'm not in my 20's anymore. Where did all that time go? It's just crazy to me the things that go through your mind when there aren't any distractions. I'm usually running through my day like a chicken with my head cut off, and there isn't any time to really "think". Maybe if I got up a little earlier in the morning I could meditate and my day would make more sense. I could stop and think about the things that are important. Busy-ness just gets in the way. As much as I like my sleep, I am glad to have those moments of alone time when I can gather myself and my thoughts and just be "me" for a few minutes.

Bunch of Blondes

These are my sisters. This last weekend we all got together to have a girl's night out, so to speak. It lasted 2 1/2 days though. We met Friday night at the Crystal Inn. As soon as everyone got there, we hopped in Becky's Tahoe and went to find a place to eat. We ended up at Sizzler and had a yummy steak dinner. When we got back to the hotel, we all put our swimming suits on and went to sit in the hot tub. It was so refreshing to just sit, giggle, and not have to worry about anything. We all have so much fun together. Saturday we began our shopping spree. Our first stop was to Gateway. It makes me feel like I'm in California at an outdoor mall, only you walk swiftly to the next store, because you're freezing! We spent a few hours there. I mostly looked because of the lack of money. Jamie and Michelle, the two youngest, scored big at the Wet Seal. My favorite stop was at the Rocky Mountain Chocolate factory. I got a caramel, white chocolate, oreo covered apple. Good thing I don't go there every day. Gardners Village was next on our adventure. It's this place with all of these cute little pioneer looking houses with shops in them. You just go house to house, like you would at a home show, only you can buy stuff. Tai Pan was the last spot and it's a wholesale store of sorts. There was so much to look at, it gave me a headache. All of my married sisters have a knack for decorating, so we spent a long time there. We were going to go and eat at PF Changs,(my favorite chinese restraunt) but the wait was an hour long and a day of intense shopping like that makes you hungry. Waiting wasn't an option. We settled on Chuck-a-rama. That's where we are in the picture. After dinner, we went and sat in the hot tub again. Both nights we stayed up way past bedtime. It was at least 1:00, before we could stop giggling and go to sleep. Sunday we went to Park City to shop the outlet mall. That's where I scored. We went into Aeropastle and straight to the clearance rack. I got three shirts for $7.41. Who says you have to be rich? My stepmom, Lisa, got all of her Christmas shopping done for the whole family, even the grandkids. It was so fun. At the end of the trip, we hugged and said our good-byes. We decided that this was going to be a new tradition for us. Seven women shopping for two days. That is dangerous. I was pretty spoiled this last week. So much to do, so much fun. It's going to be hard to top.



Back: Mom (Lisa) and Becky
Middle: Holly and Michelle
Front: Nicki and Jamie

Best I could do...

Since I didn't get to take pictures, I bought a magazine. I needed at least one pic. of him! It really was a bummer, but Misti is right, I have the mental pictures forever! Isn't he sexy???

The Continuation of my Perfect Night

I didn't get any pictures at the concert. I was so mad because they wouldn't let me take in my camera. Only cell phone cameras and disposables were allowed. What a bummer! I could've taken some AWESOME pictures. Then I would've been like a teenager and pasted them all over my walls.

The name of the opening band was Antigone Rising. I've only heard one of their songs on the radio, and they were fun, but I was too busy paying attention to Rob while they were singing. A few ladies that were sitting behind me had come down and sat about six seats to my right. I had no idea what they were doing, because it was on the side of the stage where all of the control panels were. I looked down at them and they motioned for me to come sit by them. To our suprise, there was Rob, standing by the controls with a beanie on. Maybe so he wouldn't be recognized, but obviously that didn't work. I could've jumped right over the wall and touched him--He was that close! Of course, I'm too shy to do anything, so the ladies (who were drunk, might I add) were saying his name. I think for a while he was ignoring them, and I was embarrassed by them so I went back to my seat. BIG MISTAKE! As soon as I sat down, Rob turned to them, smiled and waved. MELT MY HEART! At least I was still close enought to see, but dang it! A minute later, he pulled out a cigarette, lit up, and stood there and smoked while he watched his opening act. I felt like a school girl with a crush. I was all giddy with butterflies and all. It isn't every day you are 10 feet away from your favorite singer!

The best part of all this is that my cute husband sat there and laughed and let me have my little crush. He didn't understand all these women with this crazy obession with one man. He thinks it's so funny that everyone goes crazy, just because the man sings good. ( I think he looks good too, but I guess Ray doesn't see that).

After the concert, we cranked my Rob Thomas cd. We drove around till we found a Denny's and shared a piece of carrot cake. On a scale of 1-10, I'd have to rate this date an 11. It's taken me two days to come off of my cloud. I hope it's not TOO long before I get to climb back on again.

I'M IN LOVE!!!

Tonight was the best birthday present! Rob Thomas Rocks! I had such a good time and my throat hurts! I screamed so loud and danced my little heart out. I love that man. Did I forget to mention that I had front row on the lower bowl? So, that means I was right by the stage and could see every expression, every drop of sweat, and every adorable look. It was awesome. I made a friend named Janna, who danced and screamed with me. Our husbands weren't really into it that much. At one point she said to me, "On the count of three, lets scream 'we love you Rob', and we did and it made him smile. At least that's what we'd like to think. The rest of this blog is more for my benefit than anyone else's, so read on if you'd like, but I have to remember the details.

The opening song was "Something to be". He had the panels with graphics going while he was singing with all sorts of crazy things. His opening band was a girl band, but I can't remember their name--Anti something rising. They were pretty good. He sang almost every song on his new album and some old songs from his matchbox twenty days including PUSH, and one other one I can't remember, but will jot in down when I remember. He sang two new songs from his new album called "Something More" which I am going to ask Santa for. He said a couple cute things. He said that he talked to a good friend of his that gave him permission to sing "Smooth", I am assuming it was Santana, and he said that he had permission to F*** it up any way he wanted. Someone yelled that they loved him and he said "I love you too" with this cutest little giggle. His last song was "Illusion" , at least until we screamed long and stomped hard enough to bring him out again. They came out and sang 4 or 5 more songs and ended with "This is how a heart breaks".

I am so exhausted and I'll probably write more, just so I don't forget. I got a key chain (since I collect them) and paid $10. Holy Cow. It was worth it though. I'll post a pic of it, just in case anyone is interested.

To be continued....