It's a ....

GIRL!!!!!

So it took a little bit to get over the initial shock, but we're happy to have a little girl. During the whole ultrasound, I thought I was really smart - and could see the "family jewels." I guess what I was seeing wasn't that, so I was in shock when she said it was a girl. The baby is healthy and growing at a very normal pace. She was playing with her umbilical cord during the ultrasound. We got a couple 3D pictures... she's a cutie! I guess it's time to think of girls names.

Parenting through sorrow

So, if you live near me, or have spoken to me on the phone recently...you know I am a wreck. Parenthood is so hard. I wonder if you are ever suppose to feel like you are doing it right. I know that there are many dark forces out there (can you tell I watch too much Star Wars?) that do not want me to feel successful as a mother. Sadly enough, they won last week. This week will be better, it has to be! I am working on my complaining...that may take some time. Our Bishop talked last week about "parenting through sorrow." Though I was out in the hallway with my fussy baby for 80% of his talk, I felt the spirit of what he was saying when I did get a chance to listen. Parenting sucks a lot of the time. It is a 24-7 job. No weekends off, no holidays, no lunch breaks...nothing. When they are asleep and I am catching up on my DVR (kudos to whoever invented that), I still don't get a break. That is when I really worry...is someone going to take the kids while I sleep, is Carsen going to be mean to Ky on the bus again, how am I going to pay for those books from the book fair that Ky wants? See, it never stops... That is when I wipe my tears, and remember the advice from all the great mothers I have in my life...you will get through it...you are stronger than you know. So, this week I am going to try (really hard) to not complain. I will use good old fashion smile therapy (thank you Ally McBeal). I will remember the good times, and know that they ALWAYS outweigh the bad ones. I will think of how sweet it is to hear Ky say I am the best mom he ever had. I will smile when I see Marley kicking her feet happily as I walk into the room. I will remember that it is my job to keep them happy and safe...and that is just what they are.

So here are some happy times to look at :)

Ky with his pants on backwards...still not sure how that got past me!


Ky's homework, a collage...he cut the pics out & taped them all himself!


Marley with a full belly

Birthday Party

Here is the big 2 year old! She had a blast at Chuck E Cheese.  Wish you all could have been there!!  Thanks for all the fun presents.  Love you all

You are my Sunshine!

Man, these kids bring me sunshine on gloomy days. This whole house buying and selling stuff is so flippin' stressful! Can't WAIT till it's over. Jarom and I just look at the kids, and it puts everything back into perspective. Hopefully the next time I post, I'll have some great news to share - that someone's buying our condo!!!!

Up North

Here are just a couple pictures from our trip to Northern Michigan. It was rainy over the weekend, but we finally saw sun the last day of our vacation






















Here's a quick video of our time on Sleeping Bear Dunes. We didn't make it all the way over the dunes to Lake Michigan, but we made a pretty good effort for a 1 1/2 year old, a pregnant lady, and a man with a plate in his leg. Mikey ended up walking 1/2 way up by himself!

Disney, part two

Sorry, here are some more pics from our adventure:


Here we all are at Epcot. This park was much more chill, and had a ton of interesting things to do!


This was after lunch at the Magic Kingdom. That was quite a day! The park was crazy. Ky is big enough to ride all the fun stuff, so we took him on the race cars, Thunder Mountain, Space Mountain, Star Tours, and Splash Mountain. Splash Mountain would have been cool if it didn't break down while we were on it...in the rain. It was a horrible experience.

Here is Ky with Cinderella

Woody, Bullseye, and Anikin Skywalker(Ky)

It really was a magical place!

Team Disney, 2008

So, we are back from our adventure in Disney World! What a trip! Matt & I keep joking that we need a vacation from our vacation. It was wild. We really did have a good time, even if we missed Marley like crazy. Disney is overwhelming, but so much fun. Ky had the time of his life. We decided to take it slow with him, and not set a schedule. So we slept in, played in the hotel room or at the pool, and then took off to the parks after lunch. It was freakin' hot there, the humidity is was joke! We had a lot of melt downs from Ky, it reminded me of the Bernstein Bears book: "Too Much Vacation." We kept telling him he had nothing to cry about, he was in Disney for crying out loud! But he is only 4, so we had to be understanding and work on our patience! Here are some pics from our family vacation (Thanks LuLu & PaPa)!


This is Ky on the bus on the way to Disney...can you see the magic in his eyes?


Here is skanky Minnie Mouse with Ky and Nora


Ky trained as a Jedi Knight while at Hollywood Studios (our fav park)...


Ky with Captain Jack Sparrow