THE POPE FAMILY

Beautiful Heartbreak

2011-11-13T00:47:00.000-05:00

This is beautiful!

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Merry Christmas from the slacker!

2010-12-20T00:01:00.004-05:00

Hi,
Remember me? Blogging is not the only thing I am slacking in. Christmas cards come to mind? Yep! Consider this yours!

Merry Christmas! Wishing you a wonderful season of love and good-will and most especially a baby. A baby who came to the earth to give His life for you and me.

Silly Girl

2009-10-17T09:31:00.002-04:00

Just have to record something funny Hannah just said. She was drawing and wanted me to trace her hands. Then she put her head down on the paper and said "Draw my face." Pretty funny. I tried to explain that tracing her face might not work out so well. :)

Last Summer Adventures and General Conference

2009-10-04T09:34:00.003-04:00

In the last few days Summer has ended and Fall had arrived. The days have gotten shorter and colder and we've dug out our sweaters. The urge to bake has come upon me like a whirlwind as quickly as the temperatures have dropped. We have been trying to spend a lot of time outside before it becomes too uncomfortable to be out for long periods of time.

We've had a few adventures in the last month or so. The biggest was our short and long trip to Tennessee. (It was only one trip but it was only 3 days and felt like 10!) Damon got a bee in his bonnet to go to Tennessee for some reason so off we went on a long weekend. We spent 2 nights in Nashville and one night in Memphis. We didn't do as much as we would have liked because both kids were being themselves. Damon did get to go to 2 Civil War battle sites; The Carter House or the Battle of Franklin I think it was called, and the Battle of Shiloh. I didn't get to enjoy the tours because of some unnamed individuals who desperately needed naps. We also went to the Grand Ole Opry and walked around. I wish we could have gone to the show that night but with no one to watch our kids it just wasn't an option. The girls loved the cow-girl hats we bought them and their carousel ride in the mall next door. Hannah had to wear her had for the remainder of the trip and still wears it quite frequently. Myah is not much of a hat girl but she'll come out wearing it once in a while. They look so cute wearing them. Over all it was a crazy trip that I'm not ready to repeat any time soon but it was fun to go to some new states and see some more history.

Here are some pictures from the last monthish.

Make a Smilebox slideshow

This weekend is our Semi-Annual General Conference for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. In this conference the leaders of our world wide Church speak to us to offer up encouragement, direction, and love to all the members of the Church. It is one of my favorite times of year. I love hearing from our Modern day Prophet who like prophets of old receives revelation from the Lord for OUR DAY. It is such a blessing to know that the Lord speaks to men today through His prophets as he did in ancient times. I know that our Prophet, President Thomas S. Monson is called of God. I know he is a true prophet and that if we follow his counsel we will be guided, protected, and HAPPY!

Death by Pictures

2009-08-21T16:13:00.002-04:00

As promised here are the bunches of pictures I've taken since May. I think I'll forgo posting Damon's graduation pictures right now and save them for their very own special post. Ok, here for your viewing pleasure, death by pictures...

Make a Smilebox slideshow

You know its been a while...

2009-08-19T20:43:00.002-04:00

You know it has been a while since you updated your blog when you can't even remember what your background looks like! Speaking of backgrounds, maybe its time I changed it. Maybe.

Well for you few faithfuls out there (I have a hard time believing there are any after all of this time!) here is a little update on us.

On May 22nd we moved from Cleveland, OH and made our way to Scott Air Force Base in IL to check out our soon-to-be new home. After spending a few days on base we flew out of the St. Louis airport to Portland, OR to spend almost 2 weeks with Damon's family. After that we headed to Rexburg where the girls and I have been until August 3rd. Damon left to go to his Officer's Training for the Air Force on June 28. He spent the next 5 weeks at Maxwell Air Force Base in Alabama learning how to be an officer. The girls and I flew out of Jackson, WY on Monday, August 3rd and after over 5 weeks go to see Damon again. We were in temporary housing for a about 5 days and then moved into our new house. It is a ranch-style duplex that has just been remodeled. We're the first people to live in it since the remodel so it is basically brand new. It is definitely an upgrade from our home in Cleveland. It is 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms. There is a master bedroom and bathroom that I LOVE! I have a laundry room (with my very own new washer and dryer!) We have our own little fenced back yard (so nice!) and a little playground 50 yards away. Damon's commute is a 2 min. walk to work and we're just really enjoying life so far. There are still boxes all over and we just got the Internet today but we're gradually getting settled into our new life. I promise I'll post pictures and more details about the last few months later. And it won't be 5 months later either! Don't hold your breath but as soon as I find the cable to my camera you'll be sorry! Just you wait!

Long overdue pictures

2009-04-05T10:24:00.001-04:00

So since I didn't blog for 2 months I have some pictures to catch up on. I'll just chose my favorites of the last 2 months. Enjoy!

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Grand Slam Gala

2009-04-05T09:50:00.011-04:00

Last night was the Grand Slam Gala aka the Dental Formal. Some friends in the ward were so nice to babysit for us (Thank you! Thank you! Hawkins!) Since this was our last year I insisted that we go. I'm sure glad we did! We had a great time, so great I almost came close to forgetting that we had kids at home. :)

I had a great time dress shopping with my friends Carissa and Elise and finally came home with a nice (read: too expensive!) dress-but I wasn't too sure about it. It ended up working great and I felt like a princess (well, close anyway).

One really fun thing they had there was a photo booth. It was free so you could go in as many times as you wanted. We had fun trying to come up with some fun poses (but most of the time I forgot where I was supposed to be looking!)

Being there last night, dancing the night away, I looked around me at friends and acquaintances that I knew and realized that this was the end. In less than 2 months we'll be leaving this place and friends and heading off on a new adventure. When we moved here I didn't think dental school would ever end. And now here we are, at the end-which turned out as most endings do-to be a beginning.

I am a slacker

2009-03-31T21:24:00.006-04:00

There! I admitted it. (As if you all hadn't figured it out). But, just to make myself feel better I am going to list a few reasons why I have been a slacker:
1. We've basically been sick for 2 months. We have had little pockets of wellness here and there but it seems the majority of the last 2 months have been filled with colds, flu, and more colds.
2. Since we have been sick there isn't much to blog about.
3. Since we have been sick there haven't been a lot of pictures being taken.
4. Since we have been sick I have been kinda grumpy (you know, not feeling well and not really having anyone to take care of me-me being the mommy and all) and therefore have not found my children as cute and funny as usual.

Do you get the idea?

Let me add #5 now: We've been looking for a new car! Yes, you read that correctly. We have been doing SOMETHING other than being sick.

Speaking of new cars....we finally brought home our new addition tonight! It is a 2008 Mazda CX-9 (a 7 passenger SUV) and so far we love it. Although Hannah told me on the way home from the dealership tonight "I don't like this car!" Too bad for her she'll be spending a lot of time in it this summer. :) Below is one of the dealer's pictures of it. It is much cuter in real life.

We are very excited to have a new car and have a little bit more room. We were trying to explain to Hannah about us having a new car and Damon's brother, Tyler, possibly taking our old car. This is what she thought about that: "Tyler take Hannah's car? That's not very nice!" We had a good laugh about that one.

I'm not really sure I have much else to report right now. I'll be honest, I don't think anybody even reads this (I mean before, when I actually updated it occasionally). My own mother doesn't read it so why would anyone else find my life exciting and worth reading about? I dunno? Maybe some of you love me more than my mother (just kidding mom-if you ever read this) :) I don't care. I've actually enjoyed putting fingers to keyboard and watching the words appear as I think them. I think it has been too long since I have done this. Hopefully it doesn't take me another 2 months to update this again.

Oh, before I go. I have to tell you (whomever you might be) about something funny that I did today. Apparently I was pretty distracted (talking to people, trying to find my cell phone, round up children to head out of the door of one of my visiting teachees [is that a word?] house, etc) and I picked up Hannah, thinking she was Myah, and proceeded to put her in Myah's infant car seat and start buckling her in. The terrible thing is that I didn't even notice I had the wrong kid! Kate finally told me "You're putting the wrong kid in!" while Hannah said (in a whinny voice) "Hey! This is Myah's seat!" I laughed so hard I nearly cried. And that is what being sick for 2 months does to you.

Who do they look like? - 2

2009-01-24T09:17:00.001-05:00

MyHeritage: Look-alike Meter - Family roots - Free genealogy search

Who do they look like?

2009-01-24T09:07:00.001-05:00

MyHeritage: Look-alike Meter - Ancestory - Roots

Things I've done

2009-01-20T19:56:00.004-05:00

I've seen this on a few of my friends' blogs and I thought it might be fun so here goes: (things I've done are in blue)

1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland (when I was like 3....time to go back!)
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sung a solo
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors-the country, not the specific place
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied-I guess, I don't think about it too much. I have everything I need so I guess I am satisfied :)
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
50. Ridden on a Ferris wheel
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class-I took a women's self defense class, does that count?
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London-In Greece, didn't wait around for it in London.
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House-the outside, on the street...okay, this probably doesn't count.
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox-twice
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury-Believe it or not I'd like to!
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee
100. Seen Mount Rushmore in person
101. Learned to play an instrument-not well mind you
102. Been south of the equator
103. Had your car totalled
104. Lived in a basement for more than a year-it was an apartment in a house
105. Had famous neighbors
106. Had stitches --see # 94 :)
107. Flown an airplane
108. Traveled to the Eastern Hemisphere
109. Broken up with someone
110. Been dumped by someone
111. Lived in an unfurnished apartment for more than 3 months
112. Lived in more than 2 regions of the U.S.
113. Rung the Salvation Army bell at Christmas time
114. Been to a local movie premiere!
115. Looked death in the face and survived.
116. Sung at General Conference!
117. Performed somewhere famous or for someone famous. Carissa said that singing in the Kirtland Temple counts so I'm counting it too!
118. Flown alone with a baby
119. Driven across the continental U.S. -Well, most of it (not all at the same time though). I've driven from Idaho to the West Coast, from Utah to Ohio, Ohio to Washington D.C. so I think that totally counts!
120. Been to 30 or more LDS temples.
121. Had your life saved by someone.
122. Been bit by a dog.
123. Held a sleeping child.
124. Been homeless.
125. Slept in a bed infested with bedbugs. --probably, but not definitely
126. Had your dinner interrupted by a live pig running through the room.
127. Used roosters as an alarm clock.
128. Slept under a mosquito net in the mountaintops of a rainforest
I'm adding 2 more because it needs to end on a more even number I think!
129. Had your tonsils removed.
130. Ever been so happy you cried.

So now you know a little more about me. I've love to find out more about you too!

Winter is here

2009-01-17T20:51:00.005-05:00

We got our first good snow-storm recently (and it has snowed pretty much every day since) so Damon took Hannah out to play. I am a boring mom and never take the girls out, although in my defense it is pretty cold to take Myah out, especially since she has been sick. Hannah had a great time and came back in with a read nose and rosy cheeks ready for some hot chocolate.

Headed out to play.

On a side note: The potty training is not going so well. We tried really hard for a week but then Hannah got sick and we just haven't been able to pick it back up. The picture below describes perfectly how the "big girl panties" are being used. Hopefully we will be able to get back on the bandwagon soon.

Better late than never

2009-01-17T20:05:00.008-05:00

I thought I would finally post a few pictures from Christmas. We had a very nice Christmas. We just stayed here and bumbled around. The girls both got colds during the break but seem to be feeling better now. We missed our families very much but enjoyed starting our own traditions with our little family.

Hannah wasn't too sure about Santa Clause coming to our house. She seemed to remember him from last year (see picture below [if I can find it]) and didn't want him to come to our house. When I told her that Santa would be coming on Christmas Eve she said, "No Santa! No House!" When she woke up in the morning and saw the toys that he brought I think she softened to him a little. Now whenever she rides her bike, or plays with her train she is sure to tell me that Santa brought them to her.

Myah playing with her new toys.

Hannah's new shades from Nana and Papa
Myah loves the new bear that Nana made for her

Hannah opening all of her loot.

6 Months Old

2009-01-17T19:39:00.003-05:00

Myah is now 6 months old! The time has flown by and it seems just yesterday that we brought our sweet little(ish) baby home.

Myah is such a happy, sweet, girl who brings so much joy to our home.

Weight: 18 lbs 9 oz
Height: 27 inches

Loves: baths, cuddling, peek-a-boo, nursing, playing with toys, sitting up, and playing with Hannah.
Hates: getting your clothes changed, solid foods, taking medicine

Myah, we love you so much!

WAHOO! DAMON!

2009-01-02T12:14:00.002-05:00

I just wanted to give a quick shout out to my great husband, DAMON! He got his board scores last weekend and he PASSED! (You can't believe how relieved he was, I think he actually thought he was going to fail. I knew he wouldn't. He's such a smarty pants.)

Damon, I love you so much and am so proud of you. You're a great husband and a wonderful daddy and our girls love and adore you almost as much as I do. Congratulations!

We're going for it

2009-01-02T11:57:00.005-05:00

So I've been reading this book, The Power of Positive Parenting, and there is a chapter on potty training. I've been really afraid of potty training for awhile now, not quite sure how to start. Diapers are just so convenient, too convenient. I don't have to know where the nearest bathroom is everywhere I go, I don't have to pack around an extra pair of pants and underwear, I don't have to deal with all of the stress involved with potty training. But, I think it is time I bit the bullet. I don't know if either Hannah and I are completely ready, but I'm at least going to make a go of it. I think here in the next couple of months is the best time for us to do this, before we move and all of the changes that will be taking place.

The book talks about using positive reinforcement to teach your child bladder control. The author made it sound all too easy. I found myself thinking, "Is that it? Is it really that easy? I can do that!" I think it was the lack of sleep. I think I was delusional, I think my brain was malfunctioning. Regardless, I made up my mind to try positive reinforcement potty training. The author (Dr. Glenn I. Latham) said you just check them periodically during the day trying to find times when they are dry and praising them for it with words like: "Oh Hannah! You're doing a great job keeping your diaper dry." Followed up with a reminder of what you expect of them, "When you need to wet, come tell mommy and we'll go to the potty together." I created a little chart for her too. When she sits on the potty she gets to draw a "smiley face" in a box. If she wets on the potty she gets to draw 2. Once the row is filled up (8 smileys at the moment) then she gets a piece of chocolate. So far today:

1 suggested (ok, I put her on there) sit on the potty.
The result: 1 smiley.
Hannah: happy.
Mom: doing ok, not too stressed.

We'll try again after the nap. Wish me luck!

Oh, any and all potty training tips are welcome...I have no idea what I'm doing (I think that's obvious).

Christmas Pictures

2008-12-23T20:16:00.008-05:00

The girls looked so cute in their Christmas dresses on Sunday so I just wanted to post some pictures of them. Unfortunately, Hannah has her eyes closed in every single picture. The only way we can get any pictures of her is to tell her to say "cheese" so she does this big huge cheesey smile and closes her eyes...at least she's facing the camera...I guess. Oh well, here they are (pay no attention to the laundry and toys in the background, we have a typical kid filled house):

Hope you all have a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Nov/Dec Catch-up

2008-12-18T22:03:00.028-05:00

I've been a horrible blogger lately...not that anyone cares much. But, since this is our family journal I guess I'd better update it.

For Thanksgiving we went to Virginia to be with my brother Paul, his wife Kim, and their daughter Rya. We had so much fun and got to see a lot of our Nation's amazing history. Thanks so much for letting us invade you!

Sadly, I was as bad at taking pictures as I am at blogging. No pictures of the girls together, of our amazingly delicious food and pies, of Kim and I at 4:00 AM on Black Friday, or our car on the way home with our Black Friday purchases crammed into the car with all of our kids, luggage, snacks, etc. We did get pictures of the places we visited though. We went to the Civil War battlefield of First and Second Bull Run (or Manassas if you're a rebel), Downtown DC (Including the Thomas Jefferson Memorial, the Washington Monument, the White House, the WWII memorial, and the Lincoln Memorial), Mount Vernon, and Arlington National Cemetery. Although it was a bit chilly we had beautiful sun and were able to walk around without being freezing to death. Here are some of the pictures we did take (along with a few at home before and after): WARNING, PICTURE OVERLOAD!!!!!

This is Hannah playing with the towels. She thinks it is so fun. I put it on her head and told her she looked like Jesus's mother, Mary. So for the next few days she wanted to be Mary.

I started feeding Myah some solids last month. She didn't really enjoy it too much. She still doesn't. I can usually only get about a total of 2 spoonfuls in because she spits it right out. Oh well, it's not like she needs the nutrients. In case you haven't noticed, she's got plenty of food storage on her.

She looks like she's being tortured. I guess I am force-feeding her.

Since it was kinda close quarters in Virginia, Myah hung out with us in the living room until we went to bed (because she was sleeping with us). She often ended up sleeping on the couch. Gorby (my brother's dog) must have thought she was cozy and warm because we often found him cuddled up next to her. It was pretty cute.

Stonewall Jackson at First Bull Run where he got the name Stonewall. General Bee saw Jackson sitting calmly astride his horse and yelled to his men, "Look at Jackson standing there like a stone wall."

The Washington Monument. This is a lot bigger in person than it looks on TV. The whole Mall area is a lot bigger than I expected too. We did a lot of walking because we parked far away. The girls were so good as we dragged them from one thing to the next. We had to really hurry because it was starting to get dark. I wish we had had more time-there is so much that we didn't get to do and see. I guess we'll have to go back...without the kids!

The White House. This is as close as you can get unless you've got an "in."

Damon and Hannah in front of the White House. Poor Hannah and her cold, red little nose.

There was a big pile of leaves and Hannah had such a great time sitting and playing in them. I guess the cold wasn't bothering her too much. I was chilly though!

Myah all bundled up and still smiling after being dragged around for a while. She is such a good baby. As long as she's fed she's pretty happy!

My favorite President, #16 Abraham Lincoln. I really enjoyed going to the Lincoln Monument and wish that I would have had more time. I was surprised at how touched I was visiting these sites that honored our forefathers. The quotes on the wall as well as the beautiful sculptures really made me appreciate what these great men did for our Country. What an inner struggle Mr. Lincoln must have had with the Civil War and Emancipation Proclamation. I have a very deep respect for him.

Beautiful stained glass depicting the boy George Washington who couldn't tell a lie.

George Washington's home, Mount Vernon. Since we were there for the holidays we got to see the rarely open third floor. Pretty cool. I would like to have learned more about the house but they really rush you in and out because there was quite a crowd.

The view from Mt. Vernon. Beautiful! I would love to wake up to that view every morning!

Arlington National Cemetery. Another very touching place. This really makes you appreciate all of the men and women who have given their lives for our freedoms. Freedom isn't free, these people gave their lives for it. Especially touching is the Tomb of the Unknown Soldiers.

The front of the tomb says: Here rests in honored glory an American Soldier known but to God.

The "sentinels" that guard the tomb are pretty impressive. After we got home I had to research more about them because watching the changing of the guard was really fascinating. There is a sentinel on guard 24/7. Click here and here for more info.

Tomb with the Sentinel. These are some very disciplined and dedicated soldiers!

That is all from our trip. Now here are some more recent goings on. On Monday and Tuesday Damon took his National Boards. We are all so happy that they are finished. We'll find out in about a month if he passed. Hopefully we'll be celebrating then...maybe our dinner to Red Lobster last night was a little premature, but I don't think so. I'm positive he passed-he studied hard and is one big smarty pants. On another note, we found out last week that we are going to be stationed at Scott Air Force Base in Illinois (just across the river from St. Louis, Missouri) when Damon graduates next May. He'll be doing an AEGD (Advanced Education in General Dentistry) there and we should only be there a year. We're very excited to be going (and to know where we'll be going) and that our friends the Claytons will be stationed there with us. I'm very happy that we'll know SOMEONE when we move!

Myah has been learning how to sit up on her own. Although she is propped up on Hannah's princess couch (SHHH! Don't tell Hannah!) she can sit up for several minutes on her own. Our little baby is growing up on us. She's 5 months old now and weighs 18 or 19 lbs!!! She is still a very happy baby but unfortunately doesn't like to cuddle as much as she used to. It makes me sad, but at least she still likes me to hold her and play with her.

Our Christmas Tree! It is a pretty Scotch Pine (very prickly, which helps keep Hannah from touching it!) and we love it. This is our first tree since we've lived here because we are usually traveling for the holidays. The only downfall is that there is nothing on the top to attach the star to so it looks like it is going to fall off all of the time. Hannah loved putting it up and kept saying, "So pretty!"

Daddy and Myah after Church. Myah is wearing the Christmas dress that Hannah wore last year! What a big girl!

After church I was making lunch and Damon was getting the girls' clothes changed. I guess Hannah got away from him before he was finished with her and this is how he found her, topless (and bottomless too, she's only wearing tights) in Myah's excersaucer. What a character! This smile is classic Hannah these days. She doesn't really enjoy getting her picture taken and does this very cheesy (and very fast) smile. We're lucky if we catch it, especially if her eyes are open.

Hannah in her pretty Christmas dress. Cheesing it again.

Enjoying a cupcake at the Ward Christmas Party. As soon as Santa walked in the room she wanted to sit on my lap. She wouldn't even go near him, even when she found out he was giving away toys (including SLINKYS!) Luckily, Myah is a nice sister and snagged her one when she sat on Santa's lap.

Myah chillin' with Santa. I think her cheeks are rosier than his! Her belly might be bigger too! :)

We hope that you all have a very Merry Christmas. We miss being with our families but are looking forward to a quiet Christmas at home with our little family. Have a safe and happy New Year (if I don't get around to blogging before then).

Family Pictures

2008-11-20T13:48:00.013-05:00

We got our family pictures taken almost 2 weeks ago. This was the first time we have had formal family pictures taken instead of everyone-jump-on-the-couch-and-we'll-snap-a-picture family pictures. Hannah wasn't cooperating very much and Myah was tired so they didn't turn out awesome (no fault of the photographer, Ashlee, she did an awesome job!!!) but we did get some cute ones. I didn't even think about the background being black when I dressed us all so it is kinda hard to see, oh well. Next time I'll know!

Thanks Ashlee, it was a lot of fun and you did a great job (especially with what you had to work with!)

#4 Picture Tag

2008-11-20T13:45:00.003-05:00

This is the 4th picture from the 4th file:

4 generation picture (how appropriate for this post). My grandpa, me, Hannah, and my dad.

Autumn in Cleveland

2008-11-11T20:09:00.007-05:00

As many of my friends have mentioned, Autumn is a beautiful time of year in Cleveland. It is one of the things that I am really going to miss when we move. Last week we had gorgeous weather with temperatures in the high 60's and low 70's. It was so nice to go outside to play in short sleeves and no coats for probably the last time this year. Oh, I am not ready for winter yet. I tried to get some pictures of Hannah and Myah in the beautiful leaves, but as usual Hannah did not cooperate. These are the best that I got.

Throwing the leaves in the air.

Going down the slide. She has finally gotten to the point where she'll go down without me holding her hand.
Myah's first time in the swing. I'm not sure how much she liked it. She wouldn't smile at me, but she didn't cry either. I think she was tired and just kind of stared off into space.

Doesn't she have the cutest, wildest hair? She's so cute and chubby! On a side note: She went to the Dr. yesterday for her 4 month check up and she weighs 16 1/2 lbs! She's so big!

Hannah loves to swing. I think she's going to have a hard time this winter when she won't be able to swing.

Hannah seems so grown up to us nowadays. She is quite the conversationalist and loves to sing and dance. She makes up her own songs or sings some of her favorite church songs including "Booka amee tories" (Book of Mormon Stories) and Child of God. Every day she surprises us with something that she says. She's been repeating us a lot lately so we have to really watch what we say. This week I've heard her say "Oh man!" when she dropped something as well as "Shoot!" Good thing those are about as bad as they get. She also walked up to Damon yesterday and said, "Fowow me! Come on!"

We love our girls and can't believe how quickly they're growing. We're trying to enjoy them as much as we can while they still like us! :)

October

2008-11-08T19:47:00.025-05:00

Since I have been such a slacker when it comes to the blog I have decided to just do one big blog from my trip to Rexburg for my sister's wedding and other October pictures. This is more for posterity's sake than for entertainment purposes so if you're easily bored just skip this post and maybe I'll do one before another month is gone.

It was so fun to see my family again. Hannah loved having so much attention. She absolutely loves my siblings and brothers and sister-in-law. Here she is with my brother, Greg. He and my sister Lara spent a lot of time helping me out with Hannah and Myah. I couldn't have survived without them. Do yo see why she loves them so much?

Lara hard at work watching Myah. I guess it was pretty tough on both of them.

Hannah turned 2 while we were in Rexburg so my family threw her a party. She loved it. My mom made her a cute elephant cake (featured a little later on), my dad made cotton candy, and we got her some balloons. She loved the balloons and played with them for hours. We also went swimming (she talks about this every day, especially the part about me jumping off the diving board). Unfortunately I didn't take any pictures of that event because she was pretty cute.

Myah was just worn out by the time the party came around.

Grammy with the 2 youngest grandbabies, Myah and Anna.

Myah getting in the party mood!

This is Hannah's "smile." She refuses to look at the camera and smile (most of the time I can't even get her to look) so I tell her to do a silly face and sometimes it comes out like a smile but most of the time it comes out like this. My mom's elephant cake. So cute!

So the reason we went to Idaho was for my sister Rachel's wedding. Again, I forgot to take pictures at the temple but did get a few at the reception. My mom designed everything (She's very talented and could really do this for a living if she wanted to but she says that she does it because she likes it.) These were the table centerpieces. When we were setting up on Friday someone saw them and asked if she could buy one! See, she really could make money doing this kind of stuff.

My mom's brother, Greg, and his wife Kathie. They came all the way from New Mexico for the wedding. I hadn't seen them in over 3 years! It was so fun to see all of the family that came that I haven't seen in so long. I even saw some cousins I haven't seen in about 13 years or so.

The Wedding Cake. So pretty! Oh, in case you couldn't tell, my sister's colors were black and copper and just fall colors. It turned out really pretty.

My little sis, Rachel and her new husband Tony (or Toby if you're Hannah) cutting the cake.

My sister Andrea and her baby Anna. Andrea made the darling little black dress that Anna is wearing. She made one for all 4 of the grandchildren. They turned out so cute. Sadly we didn't get any pictures of the 4 of them in their dresses. I really wish I would think about these things!

Hannah with her rose that fell out of Rachel's bouquet when she threw it. She loved it and carried it around with her the rest of the night and the next day. Hannah really enjoyed herself at the reception and danced and danced. She was the entertainment for the people waiting in line to see the bride and groom. She is such a character and we love her!

A better view of the cute dress.

The 4 grandbabies. Hannah is the oldest and Myah is the youngest. They didn't cooperate very well for the pictures as usual. Oh well, we do what we can. It was fun to have them all together again. The last time was in May when Anna was 2 or 3 weeks old and Myah wasn't born.

Myah and Grandpa. Hannah calls him Papa and it is so cute. He loves his granddaughters!

My dad's parents with Myah. I think they said that Myah is their 14th or 15th great-grandchild.

My grandparents (featured above) let us come to Utah and spend the night with them and took us to the airport the next day. Since they didn't have a pack and play or anything for Hannah we just had her sleep on the daybed's trundle which is just off of the ground. We tried to make it so she wouldn't fall off, but Hannah is such a crazy sleeper she fell right off. I put a pillow next to the bed in case that happened but it looks like she missed it and tried to roll under the bed instead!

We made it home after being away for 2 weeks. Damon was so happy to see us (although his brother did visit for a few days while we were gone). It took us a little while to get back into the swing of things. It was hard to have to take care of both girls by myself again. Hannah really missed being entertained all day long and was sad to be stuck with boring mom again.

It seems like we just got home and it was Halloween. Hannah was a ladybug and loved dressing in her costume (even though she had ghetto wings that I made). She LOVED trick-or-treating and thought it was great that all she had to say was trick-or-treat and people gave her candy. She still says it to me sometimes when she wants some candy.

I didn't have a costume for Myah. For the ward Halloween party I just cut out black dots and tapped them onto a red outfit and she was a ladybug too. The dots didn't stay on very well. I didn't get a picture (I know, I am HORRIBLE!) because the camera's batteries died. I changed them right before we left with what I thought were fresh ones-I guess I should have checked them first. On Halloween day we got a package from Damon's aunt and this jack-o-lantern shirt was in it so that is what Myah was for Halloween.

We had a great Halloween hanging out with our friends. Now it's November and is just turning cold. This week we had some beautiful weather and I took some pictures of the girls. If I am ambitious enough I will post them soon. Sorry for the long post with way too many pictures, I just had to get it done and this is the only way I was going to do it.

Hannah trick-or-treating.

Tagged again

2008-10-28T12:25:00.008-04:00

Well I guess a few of you have noticed that I have been on blogging hiatus and have tagged me in an effort to get me back into the swing of things. So here is tag #1 from Lacy.

1. Okay I just changed my mind. I decided to combine the #2 blog from my sister Andrea with this one because they're kind of similar. Instead of random things, #2 tag is about quirks and so I am going to do 7 random or quirky things (which are also random) about me. So here goes.

The real #1. I think I have a little bit of an OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder) about a few things. One of those things is the way I put in and take out my contacts. I always put in and take out the left one first. If I start to unscrew the right side of my case first I always stop and start with the left one again.

2. When it comes to cooking I don't like to follow directions very well. This being the case, I use recipes as rough drafts or a suggestion. Very rarely do I follow the recipe as it is written. I am constantly substituting ingredients or adding my own or varying the cooking time. So if I ever give you a recipe and when you make it it doesn't turn out quite like mine it is because I gave you the recipe, not all of the changes to the recipe that I made. I'll let you be the judge if my changes made the recipe better or worse.

3. I love summer-time BBQs. They are one of the things I love the most about summer. Not the warmth, or the green, or being able to be outside, it's the BBQs I love. I especially love BBQs here in Cleveland in the Dixon's backyard. They are the best!

4. My sister wrote this as one of hers but it applies to me too. I remember faces very well. I can usually remember the person's name too, but faces are my thing. It can even be someone I have never met. (Like someone I saw in the mall once.) I can usually remember where I saw that face too (but sometimes it takes me a while to remember). I pride myself on remembering people but, as my sister mentioned on her blog, sometimes people don't remember meeting me and therefore I sound like a stalker. Since I don't like sounding like a stalker I don't usually mention to people that I met them once for 2 min. at a party 5 years ago until I have gotten to know them a little better. :)

5. I was a Social Studies Education Composite major in college. Basically that means I can teach history, economics, sociology, and geography. Most of my classes were history classes because that was my original major. I love history but not dates. I used to know all of the dates for my classes but I can't remember hardly any now. So don't ask me when something happened...I don't know! I can usually tell you something about it though. But, sadly, I have no love for the American colony days. I think that is the most boring part of our Nation's history. I am more of what one of my teachers calls a "war hawk." I love war-time eras, especially WWII. This brings me to #6.

6. When I was a little girl I loved to read. This in itself is not unusual, but the books that I read were. While most other kids were reading the latest Goosebumps books I was reading The Diary of Anne Frank, or a biography about Benjamin Franklin. I think I read more non-fiction books in elementary school than most kids do their entire school career. My favorite books to read were often ones about WWII. Maybe that is why I became a history major?

7. When it comes to eating I am a texture person. I'm not too bad any more, but when I was young I hated a lot of foods just because of the texture. It wasn't that I hated the flavor (although that applies to a few, i.e. "spotted dog" [my grandad's cracked wheat breakfast cereal with raisins in it, YUCK!]) but I just couldn't stand the texture.

I'm not going to tag anyone since I combined 2 tags into 1 but if you want to do it by all means consider yourself tagged.

I will try to get some pictures of my trip on here...what little there are. I just like to take my camera on trips with me and never use it.

Make my day!

2008-09-26T22:56:00.002-04:00

I just wanted to post a quick picture of Myah. She smiles all the time now and she just makes my day. She is just so chubby and cute. My perfect one word description of her....Chubalicious! So cute, so chubby, so delicious to kiss and cuddle = Chubalicious!

Indian's Game

2008-09-04T21:09:00.007-04:00

Oh boy was this an adventure!

Uncle Paul's wallet got stolen!

Everyone was very tired!

We tried to look like we were having fun.

But all we really wanted to do was crash!

This was our exciting time at the Indian's game on Saturday. They lost.

For those of you who wanted to know, Paul got his wallet back (minus all of the cash and credit cards. Don't leave your wallet on the train.)

Myah's Blessing

2008-09-04T13:52:00.011-04:00

WARNING: LOTS OF PICTURES!!!

On Sunday Damon blessed Myah in Sacrament Meeting. She was a good girl and slept through the whole thing. My brother Paul, his wife Kim, and their daughter Rya were able to come from D.C. to be with us on this special day. Our good friends Shawn, Bren, Wes, and Adam also stood in the circle. Myah wore the same dress that Hannah was blessed in (although we couldn't get the top button done up-the neck hole on that dress is TINY and Myah is quite a bit bigger than Hannah was!) which is the same dress that I was blessed in. My Grana made the dress for me and my three sisters were also blessed in it. It was a very special day-one that I will always remember.

My brother Paul, his daughter Rya, Me, and Myah (Rya and Myah are rhyming cousins....Hannah has one too, Anna)

Paul with his beautiful wife Kim and sweet little Rya.

Hannah giving Myah kisses....Yikes!

Daddy and Mommy with Myah on her special day.

Myah waving to all of her fans.

I love Myah's face in this one. Aren't those shoes too cute?

This is a rare picture, all of us together and looking at the camera too!

Sweet little Myah. We love you so much!

Feast of the Assumption

2008-08-16T08:53:00.008-04:00

This weekend Little Italy is celebrating the Feast of the Assumption. Yesterday a group of my friends and I gathered at Jessie's house in the heart of Little Italy to watch the procession of Mary (as she ascends into Heaven). I had never been before and was more or less expecting a parade. That was not what I got! I guess because I'm not Catholic I don't understand what this is all about (for more info on what this is click on Feast of the Assumption above). It was interesting to be sure. There was a band and a bunch of kids dressed up like angels and other things I didn't know. Then there were the priests and these guys (again, not being Catholic I don't know who these people are. Heck, maybe even the Catholics don't know who they are!)

But the climax of the whole procession is when Mary makes her way down the road all the while prayers (or something in Latin and Italian, I think) are being played on a loud speaker.

It was definitely not what I was expecting, but it was fun and a great cultural experience.

I think tonight we're going to head down to sample some of the delicious food! One thing about the Italians, they sure know how to cook! So if you see me tomorrow and I look 9 months pregnant again you'll know why! Bon appetit!

What?

2008-08-16T08:48:00.004-04:00

What is wrong with this picture?

Oh! Daddy couldn't find your nightgown so he dressed you in Mommy's shirt. Nice! Whatever works right?

Last week of Freedom!

2008-08-09T22:33:00.002-04:00

This week was Damon's last week before he has to go back to school so we tried to squeeze in a few more fun things. On Monday it was our friend Bren's birthday so we tagged along with him and his family and went to the beach at Lake Erie. I'm not sure we were the best company since Hannah hates the sand and water, we have a 1 month old baby, I'm not allowed to swim yet, and Damon didn't even get in his swim suit. Other than that we had a great time! No, we really did have a good time. Here are a few pictures.

Hannah digging in the sand

Eating a sucker covered in sand. Yummy!

Don't you love the sand all over her face? She was such a mess. I had to wash her hair like 3 times and she still had sand in it. Oh well, she had fun.

Bren was burying all of the kids. Here's Hannah with Brenna in the back ground. They thought it was great fun. Then they buried him...but I didn't get any pictures of it, darn it!

On Friday we went to the Lake Erie Nature & Science Center. It was pretty fun but Hannah was SOOOO TIRED!!! We tried to get her to take a nap before we left but she just wouldn't do it. We decided to brave it and go anyway. We had fun but she wasn't too interested in looking at anything. They had several live animal exhibits inside with different kinds of snakes, fish, turtles, and iguanas. Then outside they had a raccoon, several owls, an eagle, several hawks, some bunnies (Hannah calls them "Hop Hops"), a couple of foxes and a few other things. It was fun to get out and learn more about Lake Erie and the region where we live. The best thing about it was that it was FREE!!!

Inside they had a huge hollowed out log that the kids could climb in. Hannah saw some older kids reading books in there (they had a book vendor there selling books) so she thought she had to climb in too and asked me for a book once she crawled in.

Looking at the "Hop Hops"

Oh, I snapped this picture in the car on the way to the Nature Center. I love it! She's actually smiling! She has become such a stinker lately and HATES to have her picture taken. She refuses to look at the camera and won't smile so this picture is really rare!

Hannah loves to take walks around the block. Last night we were walking and Hannah started to trip (a very common occurrence with her) so she put her hands down to catch herself but her momentum kept her going and she fell on her head. She scraped up her upper lip, nose, and bonked her head pretty hard. Poor thing! Damon has been calling her Rudolph.

Today we went to the Cuyahoga County Fair. It was a lot smaller than we expected but we still had fun walking around seeing all of the booths, yummy food, and all of the weird people. The only thing I hate about places like this is all of the people smoking!!! It makes me so sick. After an hour or two of inhaling second hand smoke I get a major headache.

We enjoyed looking at all of the different animals. Hannah really enjoyed the "hop hops" but was scared of all of the crowing roosters and the huge draft horses. She seemed to like the cows though.

We got some yummy fair food (Good thing these things only happen once a year or we would be so fat!) but after Myah had a huge blowout (on my shorts of course!) we decided to head home.

Doesn't she look like she's enjoying the horse? I don't blame her for being scared, these things are huge and tower over me. I can't imagine how scary it would be for her.

These last two pictures were taken last night. Damon was getting Myah ready for bed and was waiting for me to bring him her pajamas. I just couldn't stop laughing at my cute chubby baby when I saw her sitting there next to him. She looks like a sumo wrestler or something. So cute! She turned one month old yesterday. I can't believe it has already been a month since she joined our family. She's been a great baby and we sure love her!

More pictures please!

2008-07-24T18:40:00.013-04:00

The Grandparents are asking for more pictures. Since I can't get enough of my beautiful girls I am happy to oblige! For those of you who don't really care to see tons of pictures (mostly of Myah) please skip this post and check back next week for something different...like more pictures maybe! Oh, and sorry for the lack of comments on your blogs, I've read them, just haven't had the time to comment on them all.

Cuddling with mom. I hope this baby stays cuddly because Hannah certainly is not a cuddly kid!

Sorry for the blurry picture. This is me with 2 kids! Yikes! Yes, this is why my mom came to stay for a week. Just think what I would have been like without her! Please note that although both girls are screaming I am not crying...I am laughing.

I'm so sad this one is blurry too...I just think Hannah's face is classic!

Myah actually awake and smiling (She usually only smiles in her sleep)

Love this face and the bow. Such a cutie!

We all went to the Zoo on Monday and this is how Myah spent her time...asleep! I think she slept the entire time. Maybe we'll try it again when she can see more than 8 inches of blur away.

Hanging out with Daddy

My mom came for a week to help out, and what a help she was. I don't know if Hannah has had so much attention in her life. Now she's back to being stuck with her boring mom. Myah with Grammy. I don't know how we'll make it without her! We miss you Grammy!

Spending some quality time with Dad.

What could we do?

2008-07-14T15:18:00.010-04:00

Since Myah and I couldn't go to church yesterday and since Myah was awake and alert and happy what else could we do except...

Have a Photo Shoot!

Here are the results:

Myah has been such a sweet little thing so far. Can you tell we love her and think she's beautiful?

Thanks to everyone who have helped out so much since she was born, we couldn't have done it without you!

She's finally here!

2008-07-12T20:03:00.012-04:00

I'm a few days late in posting this, but I have a great excuse!

Baby Myah is here!

Born: July 8, 2008

Weight: 8 lbs 6 oz (2 lbs heavier than Hannah)

Length: 19.5 inches

Hair: Dark black like Daddy's and TONS of it!

Result: Beautiful!

Everything went really well. I tested positive for Group B Strep at my 36 week appointment which basically means that I was supposed to receive an antibiotic 4 hours before Myah was born. I don't know a lot about the Group B Strep except that if it is untreated in the mother before the baby is born there is a very very small possibility of the baby getting it and it causing problems like pneumonia or meningitis. Because my labor progressed so quickly I received the antibiotic only 1 hour before Myah was born. This really isn't enough time for it to start working so the pediatricians were a little worried about her. As a result she had to stay in the hospital for the full 48 hours before being allowed to be released. She also had to have a few blood tests done to screen for any strep. Fortunately she is doing fine and shows no signs of having the strep.

I won't go into the details of labor and delivery for the sake of any readers of the male gender. I will say though that I was able to do a water birth and that it was a good experience.

Myah had a Dr. appointment to make sure everything was still okay with the strep and that she is gaining weight. She is a good eater and is just an ounce shy of her birth weight already!

Hannah seems to be adjusting okay to having a little sister, although I don't think she really knows what is going on. She loves to "hold" Myah and give her lots of loves and kisses. She also really likes to push Myah in her swing...yikes! I've had a lot of help from friends and church members who have watched Hannah for the last few days. I don't know what I would have done without them! I feel really badly about shipping Hannah off to someone else's house all day long but because of a lot of stitches (okay, I had to throw that detail in there, sorry menfolk) I am not able to lift her. I'm so glad that my Mom is coming on Tuesday to help out. Thanks Mom!

Now for the moment you've all been waiting for: THE PICTURES!

Right after she was born. She's still all covered in vernix, but she is still pretty cute. Or maybe it is the face that only a mother could love.

First picture with mom. I love her dark hair and how cuddly she is!

The proud Papa!

Meeting Hannah for the first time. Hannah thought she was neat for about 5 min. and then she wanted to go. She wasn't interested in seeing me at all. I feel so loved.

In her going home outfit. I was really worried she was going to be too big for it since she was so much bigger than Hannah, but as you can see it is still plenty big on her. I'm sure that will change quickly.

I love this face. Her cheeks are so chubby and her hair is so soft. I just can't help but kiss her and cuddle her all the time. What a good baby so far!

Hannah "holding" Myah. Myah didn't seem to enjoy it very much. Poor little thing is going to get mauled. Oh well, I guess she'll survive. All of us with older siblings did somehow.

I love the look on Myah's face, like "You let HER hold me?" I also love the way that Hannah is looking at her. She is going to be such a great little helper!

Well, sorry for the picture overload. I apologize in advance for the next few posts that I'm sure will be all about baby Myah, Hannah, and tons of pictures...but wait, aren't all of my posts about my kid(s)??? I guess that's what happens when you're a mom. This is my life and I love it!

38 Down, 2 to go!

2008-06-28T10:54:00.005-04:00

I went to the midwife yesterday for my weekly appointment (I'm hoping it will be my last!) I am about 38 weeks along now and the baby is considered full term. Not a whole lot going on down there if you know what I mean, but the baby had dropped, her head is engaged, and I am dilated to a 1. The midwife estimated the baby in the 7 lb range - I can do that! She also thinks that I will go quickly...I hope her definition of quickly and mine are the same. I guess we'll find out if baby Myah agrees with that. Damon keeps reminding me that he has 2 competencies (practical tests basically) on Monday and Tuesday and not to have the baby then (Like I have ANY control over it!) Personally, I am shooting for next Thursday-ish. Labor and delivery nurses swear that more babies are born on full moons and Thursday is a full moon so I'm hoping for that. Anyway, that's just a little update on that for those of you who were wondering (don't know who really cares as much as me!)

Here is that latest big belly photo at 38 weeks.

Baby Celebration

2008-06-27T14:22:00.005-04:00

Last Saturday a bunch of my friends and I got together at one of my favorite restaurants, Abuelos, for a little baby celebration. The food was great and the company was better. It was so nice to get out with the girls! I feel so blessed to have such great friends! Besides getting me out of the house these wonderful friends gave me a very generous gift card to Target-one of my favorite stores! I had originally thought about getting a bouncy chair for my little one but because the gift card was so generous (Thanks again everybody!) I'm thinking about getting a pack 'n play of some sort...now I just have to figure out which one. I don't know how many times we've wished that we had one with Hannah. Hopefully this will help solve the crib problem too (Hannah being too little and too crazy a sleeper for a toddler bed yet).

Me and my friends Caprice and Crystal who are due within a month of me. There are a lot of us pregnant around here. For more pics of the pregnant posse check out Crystal's blog.

Thanks again everybody! You are the best!

I want these!

2008-06-17T19:05:00.006-04:00

So I was in Target yesterday and ran into a friend and her baby. Baby Tyler had a pair of socks on that looked similar to these:

Are these not the cutest little socks you've ever seen? I love them! She said she got them at Target but I didn't see any when I was there. So, if you're in Target, see if they have them and let me know because I think they are adorable. I also saw I could buy them online. The ones above are made by a company called Trumpette and they have quite a variety of cute baby/toddler socks and other things. They have boy's socks too.

And these tights are too cute!

Are you sure there's just one in there?

2008-06-09T19:37:00.011-04:00

The question I got at church on Sunday.

Yes, I am officially huge! I am due in 5 weeks and am WAY bigger than I was when I had Hannah. I have also gained more weight so far than I did my whole pregnancy with Hannah (Thanks a lot Krispy Kreme doughnuts). So I went to the midwife today and she is already estimating that the baby is in the lower half of the 6 lb range!!!! Hannah was only 6 lbs 7 oz when she was born and Myah is already about that and I still have 5 weeks to go. I think little (big) Myah is trying to compete with her cousins. Her cousin Rya (yes, I know their names rhyme) was 9 lbs 6 oz and her cousin Anna (again, we know all of their names rhyme) weighed in at 8 lbs 4 oz.

Don't believe me? Here are the pictures to prove it.

These are me pregnant with Hannah at 40 weeks...or on my due date (She was 2 days late).

And this is me today...exactly 5 weeks from my due date on July 14.
I stole the idea of taking a picture of myself in the mirror from Haley. When you're the only one home who can take a picture you do what you can!

Okay, so it is kind of hard to compare the pictures and see which is bigger, but trust me on this one. Hopefully my baby will not be too big as I'd like to have a natural birth again (Hopefully a water birth). And hopefully all this weight I am gaining will be easy to lose...I can dream can't I? In the mean time I am going to try to stay cool (it is currently 89 degrees at 8 pm). Doughnut anyone?

ABC TAG

2008-05-26T21:44:00.002-04:00

While I was catching up on my blogs I noticed that someone tagged me. This is one I haven't done so here it goes:

A-Attached or Single?- Attached, in more ways than one at the moment (baby due in 7 weeks)

B-Best Friend?- Damon

C-Cake or Pie?- probably pie, Apple or Lemon Meringue

D-Day of Choice?- Probably Saturday because that is when Damon is home.

E-Essential Item?- I've gotten pretty used to having the Internet and I don't know if I would do without it any more.

F- Favorite color?- blue

G-Gummy Bears or Worms?- Worms, but I also love cinnamon bears!

H-Hometown?- Rexburg, Idaho

I-Favorite Indulgence?- Ice cream I guess

J-January or July?- Probably July...except in 90 degree weather with 90 % humidity

K-Kids?- Hannah, 19 months, Myah (probably) -7 weeks.

L-Life isn't complete without?- Family

M-Marriage Date?- April 26, 2003

N-Number of brothers and sisters? 2 brothers, 3 sisters

O-Oranges or Apples?- I really like them both

P-Phobia and Fears? It used to be spiders, but I'm trying to be a big girl and outgrow that. I am kind of claustrophobic though.

Q-Quote?- Men take care not to make women weep, for God count's their tears. This is supposed to be attributed to Thomas S. Monson but I don't know if he really said it or not.

R-Reason to smile?- I have a wonderful life! My second baby is due in 7 weeks!

S-Season of choice?- Spring or Fall in Cleveland. They are beautiful here.

T-Tag ten people?- Do ten people read this? Carissa, Elise, Summer A., Misty, Cara, Emily, Jordan, Rachel R., Chelsea, & Kim.

U-Unknown fact about me?- I am really accident prone when it comes to winter sports. I broke my leg while skiing and broke my collar bone (left clavicle for all of you doctors out there) snowboarding.

V-Vegetable?- I like most of them, green beans, corn, salad...etc.

W-Worst habit?- procrastination

Y-Your favorite food?- Mexican food

Z-Zodiac Sign?- Aries

Idaho update

2008-05-26T21:12:00.009-04:00

After a week in Oregon we headed to Idaho for a week. We got to see all of my family except my dad and sister Rachel who were in Europe. It wasn't the greatest timing for my mom since she was leaving for Europe the day we flew home but you do what you can, right? We mostly just hung out and tried to help my mom get things ready to go before her trip.

One of the chores on the to do list was to plant the garden. The weather was beautiful so even Hannah wanted to help. Damon and my 2 brothers got an additional chore and spent 2 days roofing 1/2 of my parent's house...so maybe I should say it was a lot of hanging out for me and a lot of work for Damon. In all fairness to my mom she did not assign this chore. My brother, Paul, volunteered to do it on his day off and Damon and Greg kind of got roped into it as well. To be honest I think Damon was just happy to have something to do. Since my brothers were gone during the day I think he got really tired of hanging out with all of the girls. Unfortunately I didn't take any pictures of the guys working (or the mess they made in the process). They worked really hard in the heat and it turned out really nice. Damon isn't used to manual labor these days so he was pretty sore for about a week. I guess that's what he gets for sitting in a chair all day long with his soft dentist hands. :) I love ya honey!

Hannah helping to plant the corn. Sorry the rows aren't very straight, Dad. Hannah was just too much of a helper I think.

Farmers Damon and Lara.

One of Hannah's favorite things about Grammy and Grandpa's house (besides having a big yard to run around in, the dog, and cat) is the SWING! She loves to swing and would beg anyone who would listen and take pity on her to take her outside and swing. I think she only fell off 3 times. :)

My sister just had a baby on April 19 so we took advantage of having all three grandchildren (all girls) together to take pictures. The photo shoot didn't go very well though. Anna was fussy and started crying which then made Rya cry. Hannah tried to cheer her up but she wasn't the most cheerful thing herself. Oh well, it was funny trying and I'm glad we got the whole thing on video. This is what memories are made of.

Hannah, Rya, and Anna (before all of the tears started...Hannah looks very happy to be doing this doesn't she?)

Hannah trying to cheer Rya up. Hannah loved Rya. Rya is so good natured that she put up with Hannah trying to hold her, pick her up, and give her her pluggy (pacifier). We loved being able to spend time with Paul, Kim and Rya who were also visiting while we were there.

Uncle Greg and Hannah on the lawn mower. Hannah had so many people to play with and entertain her while we were there. She loved all of the attention....so did I!

We had a great time seeing everyone and were sad to leave. We love you all and wish we could see you more often!

We're Back!

2008-05-26T20:38:00.009-04:00

Yes, I know I have been slacking in the blogging world. We went on vacation for 2 weeks and I didn't so much as look at a blog while I was gone. Needless to say I had a lot to catch up on when I got back. We're back now and Damon starts school again tomorrow so it's back to the grind.

We had a great trip visiting both Damon's family in Oregon and my family in Idaho. Hannah was a trooper and did really well considering what we put her through. Our flight to Oregon left at 6:20 am which meant that we had to be at the airport by 5:00 am. Despite this Hannah did pretty well. We traveled for 13 hours including layovers and driving from Portland to Damon's folks. She was pretty tired but still such a good little thing.

She fit so I guess she's a carryon....until October when she turns 2. Then she has to get her own seat.

One of the most fun things about going to Oregon was the fact that NOBODY knew we were coming! We had been thinking about going back West to visit our families but hadn't decided if we were going to or not so we didn't want to say anything to Damon's mom (Lisa) to get her hopes up. We finally decided we were going to go on Tuesday, May 6. Lisa's birthday is on May 3 so we thought it would be really fun to surprise her and just tell her that her birthday present was going to be a little bit late. She had NO idea. We didn't even tell Damon's dad so he couldn't somehow let it slip. We showed up outside Lisa's work on Tuesday. She happened to be outside so we just drove up and rolled down the window and asked for directions to the Costco. It took her a few seconds to register who we were and a few min. more to get over the shock. It was so fun! Then she had to think of something to get Damon's dad (Wade) to come home without spilling the beans. We had a really good visit with Damon's folks and 2 of his brothers. Damon even got to go with his dad and brothers on the annual Father and Son's outing. Lisa and I got to enjoy a nice relaxing evening at home watching chick flicks (a rarity for her in a house full of boys!) It was nice to be able to spend Mother's Day there too. Wade made a delicious prime rib and the boys cleaned up the kitchen. We had a really good time and were so happy we could spend some time with them.

Hannah had so much fun playing with her Uncle Austin.

Hannah with Nana

Grandpa (or Papa, as she calls him) and Hannah getting ready for bed.

Trying to escape from Great Grandma Pope.

Lisa with her boys on Mother's Day...except Anthony. Anthony and Janet we missed you!

Random Hannah Pictures

2008-04-20T19:40:00.014-04:00

I know it seems like all I ever post about is Hannah, but she's my life so this is what you get. Spring has come to Cleveland so we've been able to get out and enjoy the nice weather. Can I just say how much I have missed the sun? The last couple of weeks we have had several days in the high 60's and up to mid 70's! I have been in heaven! Hannah has really enjoyed being able to go outside too. I think I may have created a monster with this because now she expects to go to the park or as she calls it see-see (meaning swing-swing, obviously she loves to swing) every day. We have made it most days and the days we don't go outside for a little while are tough. How did we survive staying home all winter? And what is she going to do when we have our new baby and we don't go out much for a little bit? It is going to be lots of fun! Anyway, here are the pictures:

See-See

Going down the "si"

After we went to the park on Friday it was really hot! The park doesn't have any shade so Hannah and I were roasting. Hannah is a pretty warm kid and I am 7 months pregnant which makes me VERY warm so I thought we'd better invest in some popsicles. I think this may have been Hannah's first popsicle as is obvious by the following picture:

Which end am I supposed to be eating?

Yum!

We have a little babysitting group that we do. We have 4 couples and each take 1 Friday a month to watch the kiddies (3 boys and Hannah, all around the same age) for 2 hours and then we get to go out the other 3 Fridays-It's awesome! So while Hannah was at babysitting group a couple of weeks ago she got....HER FIRST KISS! Apparently Stetson kisses on the second wagon date.

The love birds

Oh, on a side note: My little sister, Andrea, and her husband, Barrett, had their first baby yesterday morning. Anna Kay Gibson was born at 3:30 am and weighed 8 lbs 4 oz (almost 2 lbs heaver than Hannah!) and was 19 1/2 inches long. She has the cutest chubby cheeks! Congratulations you guys! We are so happy for you.

The proud Mama

Look at the chubby cheeks! Don't you just want to kiss them?

Spring Break 2008

2008-04-06T19:58:00.001-04:00

Damon had Spring Break this week and I compiled quite a list for us to accomplish during this week. Unfortunately or fortunately it seems that with a few exceptions only the fun things got accomplished. That's okay. I guess the most important thing was that we got to spend some quality time together as a family. Hannah has sure enjoyed spending time with Damon. She follows him all around the house and asks for him first thing in the morning or waking up from naps. I'm afraid it is going to be a long day for both of us when he goes back to school tomorrow.
Some highlights from this week are going to the Zoo and the Kalahari Indoor Water Park. On Monday's our Zoo has free admission for county residents. It was kind of overcast and the forecast was calling for rain so we weren't sure if we were going to go or not. We decided to go and met some friends there and had a really great time with no rain at all. Hannah is at the age where she really enjoyed seeing the animals, especially the monkeys. She made all of the noises for the animals that she knows and seemed to really enjoy it.

Checking out some of the monkeys.

Eating lunch at the Zoo. It was chilly enough that I had Hannah wear her hood because she's been sick. She didn't seem to mind at all and wore it the whole time. She's such a good little thing

There is a little petting zoo with goats in it and Damon took Hannah in to check them out. I wasn't sure how she was going to react but she loved them! She kept baaa-ing and didn't hesitate petting them at all.

Hannah enjoying her first sucker. Thanks Carissa! She enjoyed it so much she didn't want to even give the stick up!

Our next adventure was the indoor water park. We went with our friends the Lees and had a good time. It is the biggest indoor water park in North America and there was lots to do...if you aren't pregnant! Hannah didn't like the water at first and took over 1/2 hour to warm up to it. I finally convinced her it was like the bathtub and it was fun. She even went down some of the slides and had a good time. She found a little geyser by the wave pool that shot water out of the ground a few feet and had a really good time playing with that. She probably enjoyed that more than the kiddie pool or slides. I didn't get very good pictures of her though because she wouldn't look at me or would turn her back to me just as I was going to take the picture. Another problem we had was that the camera lens kept fogging up so some of the pictures aren't very clear. Oh well, we had 2 fun days of swimming and spending time together as a family and with the Lees - Thanks for inviting us!

We had a really good time and are sad that our week with Daddy is over. Luckily he'll get 3 weeks off in May. We can't wait!

The many hats of Hannah

2008-03-25T18:28:00.011-04:00

Unlike a lot of kids I know, Hannah really likes hats. Even as a baby she kept them on pretty well. I have some fun pictures of her in her different hats that I just wanted to post since nothing else is going on here. I don't have any of the pictures from when she was really little on my computer, but there are plenty of them to fill this post!

Now for the hats of past and present:

July 2007 at the Strawberry Festival in Kirtland, OH.

At our Halloween (2007) play group.

She wore this for over 2 hours at the play group without bothering it once! I used this at church last week and she found it and wanted to wear it around the house all the while roaring like a lion. It is such a cute little roar but not very ferocious I'm afraid.

My little yogurt elf! December 2007

Her winter hat I got at Target with the mittens still attached to the top. She frequently brings me this one and wants to wear it around the house and doesn't usually complain when I make her wear it when we go out.

At my parents' house wearing Grandpa's hat. January 2008

Wearing the St. Patrick's Day hat. She thought it was so funny to walk around the house with the hat like this. She'd get so upset if we took it off. It was pretty entertaining watching her walk into walls, etc. because she couldn't see, but she wanted to wear the hat like this on several occasions.

Gangsta Hannah wearing Dad's Indians hat.

She's pretty funny. We sure love her and she keeps us laughing every day. Sorry I don't have anything more exciting to post about. Damon and I did narrow our names for girl #2 down last night. Feel free to vote for your fav on our poll but please note that despite which name is winning we will ultimately decide which we like best. :) Oh, my food storage is supposed to be arriving on Friday so expect an update on that in the near future. Spring break is next week so hopefully I'll have something more exciting to post about. Until then, TTFN.

Food Storage

2008-03-21T19:43:00.005-04:00

With gas prices going up and the economy going down Damon and I have been a little concerned about our food storage (or lack thereof). We decided that we probably can't live for very long on wheat, rice, and flour. I wasn't so concerned about food storage when it was just Damon and I, but now that we have Hannah it has become something that I worry about and keeps me up at night. It would just break my heart to see Hannah crying because she was so hungry and I had nothing to give her. So today I spent a few hours online (and talking with my mom) checking out 72 hour kits and various food storage items. I found one website that I thought I would pass along. The site is http://store.honeyvillegrain.com/ The prices seemed decent (but I don't know a lot about prices for these types of things) and the best thing is that shipping for your ENTIRE order is only $4.49!!!! Most of the things I was looking at had at least a 3 year shelf life and some of them up to 10 or 15 years! I decided to get 1 can of a few different things to try them out before I make a larger purchase. These are the things I've ordered and I'll let you know how they turn out.

Powdered Dried Whole Eggs (can be used in anything you use eggs in, including scrambled eggs. The shelf life for an OPEN can is 12 months!!! Makes the equivilant of 80-91 large whole eggs.)

Instant Milk substitute (makes 24 quarts or 6 gallons per can)

Chocolate Milk substitute (same as above)

Banana Chips

Freeze Dried Apples

Dehydrated Carrots

Beef flavored TVP (Texturized Vegetable Protein, used in school lunches and also fast food industry quite often. I've had it before, not too bad)

Chicken flavored TVP

Tropical Monsoon Fruit Smoothie (only $3.19 for 15 1oz servings made with real fruit, just add ice and water. Can't wait to try it out!)

All in all it is a good start and I feel a little better about our food storage situation. At least now I'll be able to make some somewhat good and nutritious meals that don't consist of...flour and water cakes? I'll let you know how it all tastes and how easy it is to incorporate it into what I make now (the key to food storage is rotation!). I hope that all of you will take a little time to get started on your food storage, even if it is just buying a few extra cans of beans while you're at the store this week. Our 7 years of famine may be just around the corner and we need to be prepared.

Happy Birthday Damon!

2008-03-17T12:58:00.011-04:00

Today is Damon's 29th birthday! I can't believe it! We met when he was 22, started dating when he was 23, and got married when he was 24. Last night we reminisced for over an hour (does anyone else get chatty at bedtime or is it just me?) about the fun times we've had together. I love doing this. I love hearing what he thought about an experience and it is usually way different than what I thought he was thinking at the time. So this is my honey's last year in the 20's. I guess we'd better make it a good one!

Pictures of my birthday boy!

Eating his green eggs for breakfast (he looks a little sleepy huh?) Being born on St. Patrick's Day with a last name like Pope it seems that he should have been destined to be Catholic.

With Hannah as he's getting ready to go to school this morning

At the Polynesian Cultural Center in Laie, HI last May. He got to be a drummer at the Tongan Village and got that fancy headpiece for his sweet skills.

Getting ready to go down to the Cave of the Winds at Niagara Falls last July.

With Hannah at Niagara Falls, July 2007

Indian's game, August 2007

As the Scarecrow with Dorthy and the (not so cowardly, but grumpy) lion. October 2007

The Student Dr. side of Damon in the Dominican Republic. (For more about his trip see previous posts.)

Damon, I love you so much and am so grateful to be your wife. You are such a great husband and father. Thanks for all that you do for our little family. You've worked so hard to get where you are now and I couldn't be prouder of you. You complete me and I love you with all of my heart. Luv, your girls.

What's in a name?

2008-03-13T21:41:00.003-04:00

I saw this post on a friend's blog and thought it would be comical to do, so here it is:

Damon's answers first, mine second.

1. YOUR ROCK STAR NAME: (first pet, current car)
Cat Mazda / Turtle Mazda

2. YOUR GANGSTA NAME: (favorite ice cream, favorite cookie)
Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Oreo / Mint Chocolate Chip Peanut butter

3. YOUR FLY “GUY/GIRL” NAME: (first initial first name, first 3 letters last name)
D-Pop / M-Pop

4. YOUR DETECTIVE NAME: (favorite color, favorite animal)
Green Cheetah / Blue Dog

5. YOUR SOAP OPERA NAME: (middle name, city where you were born)
Joshua Cottage Grove / Nothing Fresno (I don't have a middle name, but I guess since I got married I took my first initial of my maiden name as my middle name. So I guess the answer could be "A Fresno" but Nothing sounds more dramatic!)

6. YOUR STAR WARS NAME: (first 3 letters last name, first 2 letters first name)
Pop-Da / Pop-Mi

7. SUPERHERO NAME: (2nd favorite color, favorite drink and add "the”)
The Red Fruit Punch / The Purple Water

8. NASCAR NAME:(first names of your grandfathers)
Jack William / Lloyd Merrill

9. AUTHOR NAME: (favorite perfume or cologne, favorite candy)
Swiss Army Twix / Secret Garden Twizlers

10. WITNESS PROTECTION NAME: (mother’s and father’s middle names)
Dale William/ Lyn Dean

That was kinda silly but I'm sure you guys will have some more exciting answers so consider yourself tagged if you want to do this post.

I'm a little snowball...

2008-03-08T14:33:00.005-05:00

Hannah has been going crazy being in the house lately. That is my fault because we just haven't gone anywhere. (I can't wait for some warmer weather!) On Thursday she was just being naughty and I knew it was because she was bored and just going crazy. Well it was a little warmer (40 degrees or so) and the snow was starting to melt so we went outside to play. Hannah doesn't have boots or snow pants so I thought we'd just run around on the covered porch for a little bit. That lasted about 10 min and Hannah wanted to get down and run around. So, I let her. She had a great time walking around in the snow. The snow wasn't very deep because it had been melting all day so she had no trouble walking around. We stayed out for at least 1/2 hour until her nose was red and my ears were cold. When I brought her back in she screamed because she wanted to go back outside (I fixed that with a little hot chocolate!)

Damon loves playing in the snow so when I told him that Hannah and I had been out, he really wanted to take her out and play too. So yesterday after he got home from school Damon bundled Hannah up and took her out. The only problem is that we had gotten quite a bit more snow (it is still snowing by the way. Yuck!) and she had a really hard time walking in it.

This is right after she biffed it. She looks like she's having fun huh?

She looks so cold, but she still screamed when Damon brought her in.

Hannah and her baby

2008-03-08T14:24:00.005-05:00

Hannah has become really attached to her baby that she got from Grammy and Grandpa for Christmas. It is so fun to see her play with her and she takes her with her everywhere. I love seeing her little imagination developing as she realized she can put baby down for night-night and give her her blanket and hat. Poor baby gets dropped, stepped on, and run over a lot.

Hannah and her two favorite things: books and baby!

Should I be worried for Hannah's little sister?!?

Wicked fun

2008-02-28T13:08:00.005-05:00

So the day before Valentine's Day (He was too excited to wait until the actual day, isn't that cute??) Damon surprised me with tickets to Wicked (for last night)! I was SUPER surprised and so excited to get to go. Damon didn't grow up going to concerts, watching musicals, attending plays, etc. so it wasn't until he went to college and took a Humanities class (My dad just happens to be a Humanities teacher at BYU-Idaho but was not Damon's teacher) that he discovered the joys of "The Arts." And since I did grow up doing all of the aforementioned things ever since we started dating I have dragged/coerced/begged him to go to these things with me. To my surprise and delight most of the time he really enjoyed them. Ever since then he's been quite willing to go to a musical (but probably not an opera!). Maybe it is just because he knows I enjoy them. Anyway, living in Cleveland we get the opportunity to have quite a few Broadway musicals come to town. In September we went to Lion King and loved it. When I found out Wicked was coming I really wanted to go, but didn't mention to Damon that I wanted to go. Tickets are not that cheap and I wasn't sure if he would enjoy this one. So, I didn't even hint at it or anything. Imagine my surprise when he got me tickets! I was so excited! I guess Damon had heard at school that it was really good so he decided to surprise me. He didn't know anything about the show or storyline (which probably worked in my favor). When we got there last night he said something like: "I don't even know what this is about!" It turns out the untold story of the Wicked Witch of the West didn't bother him at all. During intermission I asked how he was liking it and he said it was really good! All in all, we had a great time (Thank you, Thank you, Thank you Dixons for letting Hannah have a sleep over at your house for a while!!!) and are so glad we got to go! It makes me even happier that Damon actually enjoys going now and I don't feel guilty dragging him to something he would rather not see. Thank you honey for the great night and the great surprise. I love being married to you and am so thankful for all that you do for me! I love you!

Me at Wicked. Yes, my belly is already huge! I felt like everyone was looking at me last night and I felt like saying, "What haven't you seen a pregnant lady before?" or "What aren't pregnant women allowed in?" I'm not THAT big yet either! Rude! I don't care though, I had a great time! Thanks again, honey!

Modesty is sometimes overrated!

2008-02-23T21:39:00.006-05:00

Well, as many of you know we're expecting a new addition to our little family in mid July (the 14th ish). We had our ultrasound today and everything looks great. It is so fun to see the new little life developing inside of me. We tried to find out what the sex was (I don't know how anybody can stand to wait these days! I am just not patient enough!) but the little bug was not cooperating. I kept thinking to myself "Okay baby, this is not the time to be modest! Show us what you've got!" But alas, despite being inside of me baby does not have the ability to read my mind. I even tried to prep baby a few days before, explaining that we were going to be taking some pictures of him/her and to cooperate so we would know if he/she was a boy or girl. Unfortunately, all of my efforts were in vain and baby remained closed legged with the cord safe in between for good measure. The ultrasound technician (they're absolutely amazing! Sometimes I have no clue what we're looking at but they always seem to know which part of baby's little anatomy they are seeing) saw three "lines." These "lines" she tells us usually mean a GIRL....in fact she gave us an 80% chance of baby being so. I guess we'll take it! I'm happy with the diagnosis...I would have been happy if she said that baby was of the boy variety as well. But, since Hannah and this baby are fairly close together (about 21 months apart) it will be fun for them to be little buddies. I can just see the teenage fights already..... They'll only be 1 year apart in school - since Hannah has an October birthday she'll be old for her grade and this one will be young.

We're really looking forward to having this little girl join our family and are so happy that everything looks great. (I had a dream last night that our baby didn't have arms! Don't worry, I saw them, they're there.) I can't believe that I'm already 1/2 way through my pregnancy and am just excited to have a cute little baby to snuggle again (Hannah is NOT a snuggler). Hannah
has become really interested in her baby doll this week and I am confident she'll be a great big
sister!

Isn't this a cute little profile? What do you think, does she look like me or Damon?

This is the 3D picture. She has her arms up over her head
like a monkey, she definitely takes after Damon already. :)

Damon in the Dominican Republic

2008-02-21T14:01:00.013-05:00

Since Damon was afraid to take our digital camera with him to the Dominican Republic (hereafter known as the DR) for fear it might be stolen (Bad mission memories) he didn't get a single picture of him and the others in the DR. Luckily a lot of other people were brave enough to take their cameras and got some pictures. Okay some is not quite the word. They put them all on a DVD (there were some short film clips as well) and there are close to 1,500 pictures!!! Don't worry, I won't post them all! This might end up being kind of long though because of all of the pictures. If you're not interested you can just skip this post. :)

Maybe I should give a little bit more info on the whole trip before I start throwing the pictures up. Damon went to the DR with a group called the G3 Foundation. I don't know anything about this foundation so you'll have to ask someone else about it. All I know is that there were a few dentists, an oral surgeon, some wannabe dentists from Case (including 2 of Damon's good friends Bren and Wes)and a whole lot of equipment. Basically they went to the DR and did dental work, mostly kids this time, for free. It was a really good experience for Damon since he was able to work on so many different people with lots of different problems. Plus, as many as you know, Damon served his mission for our Church (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) in the Dominican Republic from 1998 to 2000 and hasn't been back since. He was SUPER excited about going and that is actually what kept me going while he was gone...knowing he was having so much fun and doing so much for others that they would never be able to afford. So I think they worked for 3 or 4 days and then they went to a resort for 3 days. All in all they had a blast. He came home a crispy critter and tired, but I'm so glad he got to go! Now for the pictures!

Part of the group at the airport before they left

Waiting outside the Hotel

Nice wiring huh?

The Kuky gift shop below the hotel. This is where Damon got the jewelry he brought home to me, I'm not sure how I should feel about that.

View from a tower at the oldest fort in the Americas

Getting ready to go "work" for the day.

The "Phone Tree" No other explanation needed

Tropical Sunset and (below)

Hanging out at the beach

Wes & Bren getting ready to snorkel
Damon taking a lunch break

Hanging out by the bar in the resort pool-They really worked hard on this trip!

Damon tells me that they worked on this trip but so far most of the pictures I've seen are all about having fun. Oh wait! I did find some of them working after all!

The "Dental Clinic" sign

Kids waiting to get examined...they had no idea what kind of torture awaited them!

Damon actually working

Damon and Wes working

Oh look! Bren was working too!

Damon concentrating really hard. I sure hope he knows what he's doing, this looks serious!

Okay, that's all of the torture I have in store for all of you blog readers today. If you have the burning desire to see more DR pictures (not sure why you would, but hey) let me know and you can see hundreds more just like this. Really though, it was an awesome experience for Damon and he is already excited to go again next year.

Is there a toddler in the house?

2008-02-13T15:00:00.002-05:00

YES! Hannah has become Miss Independent nowadays, especially when it comes to eating. She has become super picky and she will not allow us to feed her any more. If we try she just throws a fit (about that and anthing else she doesn't understand or get her way about) and insists upon feeding herself. Even the messy stuff like yogurt and oatmeal, etc. It has been kind of frustrating because she makes such a MESS. When she doesn't want something she just chucks it and let me tell you, the girl has a good arm! It must be from all of the practice she gets at mealtimes. I'm glad to see her learning more things and becoming independent, but does she have to make such a huge mess while she's at it? Oh well, we love her anyway.

Concentrating really hard on getting the yogurt out of the cup. She usually holds the spoon in one hand while she uses her other hand to dig in and grab some out of the cup. I'm not sure if more yogurt ends up in her mouth or on her hands and face. Oh well, she has fun.

Note to self: Don't buy the blue yogurt!

It seems like Hannah learns so much so quickly. The other day I heard her "singing" the tune to the ABC's song. She even got some of the letters in there occasionally. She also knows all of the actions to Popcorn Popping, Wheels on the Bus, Monkeys on the Bed, Teasing Mr. Aligator and a few other rhymes. We've been working on animal sounds lately too. If you need a good laugh ask Hannah what a kitty, tiger, or duck says. Those are the funniest to hear in her little voice. She really surprises me sometimes with the things that she knows. She gets a lot more than I think she does most of the time. It is hard to believe that she's 16 months old now and that soon she'll be headed off to nursery (Yippee!).

Sorry about the brag fest...I started this blog as a frustration vent over all of the eating issues we are having and look what it turned into!

Happy Valentines day tomorrow everyone. Don't forget to spread the love!

What color?

2008-02-08T09:27:00.001-05:00

What's Your True Color?

My Result: Green

You're green, the color of growth and vigor. Good-hearted and giving, you have a knack for finding and bringing out the best in people. Green is the most down-to-earth color in the spectrum — reliable and trustworthy. People know they can count on you to be around in times of need, since your concern for people is genuine and sincere. You take pride in being a good friend. For you, success is measured in terms of personal achievement and growth, not by status or position. Rare as emeralds, greens are wonderful, natural people. It truly is your color!

What are you?
http://web.tickle.com/rd/50651/color/index.jsp?testname=colorogt&resultid=C

Roseola Day 2

2008-01-29T20:59:00.000-05:00

So this morning Hannah woke up with even MORE spots! Other than that (and the fact that it's 9:00 and she's still screaming in bed) she's been her jabbery little self today. I'm hoping, for my sanity, that these things go away soon! I really need to get out of the house and don't want to deal with all of the looks when I bring my speckled baby with me.

Roseola visits our house

2008-01-28T13:24:00.000-05:00

So this morning Hannah was covered in spots. I called the Dr. and they couldn't get her in until 4:50 so I asked for the Dr. to call me instead. Meanwhile I was going over in my mind what she could have possibly eaten that she was allergic to or if the antibiotic she's been on for 10 days for an ear infection could have suddenly caused her to break out in a rash. I couldn't come up with a single thing that she'd eaten the day before that could have caused her problems as it was all things she eats on a regular basis. So, I decided to check my email. Like many other moms I know, I get emails from babycenter.com about various things relating to my child. There just happened to be one in my inbox and it had a link to the symptom guide (very handy) so I clicked on the one for rash and low and behold there was one that described Hannah's possible condition, Roseola. After talking to the Dr. she agreed that it most likely was roseola and that there wasn't any point in bringing her in unless the rash got worse because it is viral and there is nothing they can do about it.

According to Baby Center: "Roseola is a fairly mild and common viral illness that usually strikes children between 6 months and 3 years of age. It's possible to have the virus without having noticeable symptoms. But roseola usually starts out with a sudden, relatively high fever, often above 103 degrees Fahrenheit.The fever typically lasts three to five days and may end abruptly, followed by the telltale rash. The rash may last for days or only hours.The rash is pink and may have small flat spots or raised bumps. These spots may have a lighter "halo" around them and may turn white if you press on them.The rash isn't itchy or uncomfortable, and contact with the rash itself doesn't spread the illness. It's usually seen on the trunk and neck, but it can extend to the arms, legs, and face.If your toddler has roseola, he may also be irritable and tired and have mild diarrhea, a decreased appetite, and swollen eyelids. The lymph nodes in his neck and at the base of his skull may also be a bit enlarged. In general, children with roseola don't appear especially ill, considering how high their fevers get."

I'm sorry if any of your children come down with this spotty virus...but it could be worse! It could be chicken pox or something. I don't know where Hannah got it and again I'm so sorry if we pass it on to you.

So, I have a spotty baby and we're stuck in the house AGAIN! Someday I might make it to the grocery store like I have been planning since Thursday! But at least Damon got home safely last night and I don't have to deal with Ms. Teething Spotty by myself.

My little Dalmatian!

A fun tag (plus something to blog about)

2008-01-24T21:07:00.000-05:00

HI All! I haven't had anything to blog about since the last post (thanks for all of the good book ideas!) and saw this on a couple of friends' pages so I thought I would do it. If I didn't my blog would be me whining about how lonely it is without Damon and how he's only called me once (that stinker!) since he's been in the D.R. and how I can't wait for him to come home Sunday night. But, since nobody wants to read a blog like that here is something more interesting about us.

How long have you been together? We will have been married for 5 years in April and together 5 1/2 years-ish.
How old is he? 28, 29 in March.
Who eats more? Probably Damon but I have my days.
Who said "I love you" first? I did.
Who is taller? Damon
Who sings better? Me, hands down (no offense Damon!) But, he can carry a pitch just fine-he just doesn't think he can. He's had no training or practice but he could be pretty good with it I think.
Who is smarter? In math and science and visual stuff, Damon. In English and reading and music,me. But I would probably say that he's smarter than I am.
Who does the laundry? I do but sometimes he helps me fold it.
Who does the dishes? Damon usually does because I have eczema on my hands :(
Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? If you are looking from the bottom of the bed, Damon sleep on the right. But this changes from time to time depending on Damon's bad hip.
Who pays the bills? I do.
Who mows the lawn? Our landlord or someone he hires.
Who cooks dinner? I mostly do, but Damon helps sometimes and usually entertains Hannah so I have my hands free.
Who is more stubborn? This is debatable and right now Damon and I are at an impasse in our debate of who is more stubborn.
Who kissed who first? Depends on who you ask. Damon claims I kissed him first....but that is only the case if butterfly kisses count! I don't think so, so he kissed me first.
Who asked who out? Damon asked me out with a little (okay a lot) of help from his roommate, Danny. Danny and I were the same major and had a lot of classes together. The first class of the semester Danny got my phone number and told me Damon would call me that night (that is the short version of the story) and he did. We ended up going out the first weekend of the semester and the rest, as they say, is history!
Who proposed? Damon proposed to me (but I had to remind him to after he had given me the ring).
Who is more sensitive? Definitely me.
Who has more friends? I've never counted-we are both richly blessed.
Who has more siblings? Me. I have 5, Damon 3.
Who wears the pants in the relationship? I am more bossy and outgoing, but we make decisions together.

If you want to do this then you're tagged!

I'm on the lookout

2008-01-17T18:02:00.000-05:00

Hey everyone!
So tomorrow Damon is leaving me for 10 days while he goes to the Dominican Republic to supposedly do some "Dental work" aka have a blast! Since I won't have much to do after Hannah goes to bed and will definitely be needing a break by then I am going to spend my evenings reading and catching up on chick-flicks. So, here is where I need your help! If any of you know of a good book or have seen any good chick-flicks lately send 'em my way! I don't have any books to read and don't have any chick-flicks I've been dying to see (That's probably because I've been to 4 movies in the last 2 1/2 years!). So send all of your good ideas my way. Oh, I've already read all of the Twilight trilogy by Stephenie Meyer so those are out. Does anyone know when the 4th one is supposed to be out this year? Can't wait!

Adventures Continued

2008-01-15T20:35:00.000-05:00

Okay, American Idol just makes me laugh. How can these people think they can sing? Honestly!

Alright, back to Oregon. We finally got the tree home and the next day Damon and his dad put the lights on. They had Christmas music playing as they did it and Hannah was dancing away. It was so funny! I got it on video and it just cracks me up. (I'm working on finding a cable to connect my video camera to my computer so I can upload videos.) She probably danced for over 1/2 straight and laughed the whole time. She has gotten so funny lately and loves to imitate and interact with people. She really keeps us entertained.

Damon and I got to go on a date while we where there (thanks for watching Hannah, Popes!). We drove by Damon's old high school and by chance there was a basketball game going on that night. Some of you might not know this, but Damon was an avid basketball player in high school. He hadn't been back to a game since he graduated so we decided to go. It was actually really fun and Damon got to see some of his old teammates that are now coaches there as well as his old Varsity coach who is now the principle at the school. It was fun to spend some time in Damon's old stomping grounds a bit.

We got to have a little Christmas with Damon's family (minus Anthony and Janet-we missed you!) and that was fun. Damon's Grandma, Uncle Troy, and cousin Trista got to come and spend some time with us as well. We got some nice gifts and luckily fit everything into our suitcase.

4 Generation Picture: Great Grandma Pope, Damon, Hannah & Grandpa

The Pope family (Minus Anthony, Janet, & Miriam)

The next day we all went to Portland where Damon, his Mom, Dad, brother Tyler, and Grandma got to do some temple work and sealings for some of their family names. Damon's Grandma actually got sealed to her parents so it was a really neat experience for them. Hannah, Austin, and I hung out for a few hours until they were finished.

We flew to Boise the next day (Dec. 23) where my parents picked us up and then we drove to Rexburg. Well, that is what was supposed to happen and I guess eventually did happen, eventually being the key word. Our flight was supposed to leave at 4:30 pm. The plane was coming in from Kansas City where they were having really bad weather so....we didn't end up leaving until almost 8 pm. Needless to say the Popes (especially Hannah and I) were not happy campers! We finally made it to Boise where my poor parents had been waiting around for us and drove to Rexburg on the snowy, icy roads. By the time we got home and got into bed it was about 4:30 am...we didn't make it to church by 9 but my poor parents had early morning meetings.

We had a great time hanging out with my family. My brother and his wife, Kim, and their new baby (Born Dec. 12) Rya were there so my whole family was together for Christmas. Rya is beautiful and we are excited that Hannah finally has a cousin!

Hannah liked her new cousin Rya but didn't know why she couldn't touch her. This picture is just after she poked her in the eye. Sorry Rya!

Oh Boy! They let me near the baby!

Me, Hannah, my brother Paul, and baby Rya

Christmas morning was chaos as usual at the Andersen house. My family got a Wii and big TV for Christmas and we all had a good time playing that. My arm was actually sore the next day from playing tennis (I know, I am so pathetic!) Damon and I had opened our presents to each other the day we left Ohio so we wouldn't have to bring them with us. I got a new computer and some slippers. Damon's weren't as exciting. He got a computer game that he's been playing the demo of for about a year, a bocce ball set, and a resturant gift card. His real present is happening this Friday when he gets to go to the Dominican Republic to do dental work. Many of you may not know that Damon served his mission there and hasn't been back since. Of course he is SO excited to go....and I am so NOT excited to be left alone with Hannah for 10 days.

The crazy Andersen girls on Christmas Eve. My family has a tradition where we get new pajamas on Christmas eve and we always have to model them for everyone.

The whole Andersen clan so far. Me, Damon, Hannah, Paul, Kim, Barrett, Andrea, Greg, Dad, Mom, Rya, LaraJane, and Rachel.

Anyway, back to Idaho. We got to see a few friends that we haven't seen in a while like Damon's former roommate, Steve, and my friend Alisa. It always amazes me how much Rexburg has changed since we moved. A huge highlight was going to the Rexburg Temple Open House. What a beautiful temple and what a huge blessing for that area. It is georgeous and boasts the largest sealing room in the church. My parents were chosen to be tour guides during the open house and have really enjoyed it.

Our New Years was pretty uneventful. I was sick so I stayed in bed and read (I read all three Twilight books in 4 days-I totally LOVE THEM!) until about 10 pm or so. My siblings all had plans except for LaraJane (10) so Damon and my parents and Lara just watched a movie and hung out. We were really exciting. My grandparents came the next day and it was good to see them again.

Hannah getting into Grammy's dish towels. What fun!

Hannah with Great Grandpa and Great Grandma Andersen

4 Generation Picture: Great Grandpa Andersen, Me, Hannah, and Grandpa Andersen

I'm sure I am leaving out tons of stuff but this post is already WAY TOO LONG! Over all it was just really relaxing and enjoyable. My siblings, especially LaraJane, entertained Hannah a lot so I had lots of time to rest and really have a vacation! Sorry this was so long. Now you know why I was putting it off for so long. Hope you enjoyed it anyway.

Adventures from the Great Unknown (aka Oregon & Idaho)

2008-01-15T19:34:00.000-05:00

I have been putting off this post for a while now. I haven't wanted to do it because I knew that it would take forever to post all of the details and pictures of our trip. I finally decided to stop being lazy and bite the bullet. Another excuse was that Damon, great husband that he is, bought be a new computer for Christmas (I LOVE IT!) and I have to put all of my pictures on this computer which tends to take a while.

Now, where to begin? I have to make this fairly short and sweet because American Idol is starting tonight and I don't know about you guys, but I am TV deprived since this whole writers strike.

So, on December 15 we headed to Oregon to visit Damon's family for a week. Besides Damon's mom, his family hadn't seen Hannah since last Christmas. Needless to say she'd changed a bit. :) We were supposed to get in at 7:30 or something but didn't end up getting off the plane and all of our luggage and to the car rental place until almost 9 (which was like 12 am our time.) Then we had to drive to his parent's house which is about 2 1/2 to 3 hours away. We were pretty exhausted by the time we finally got there. We had to wake Hannah up to get her out of the car and she was so excited to be able to run around that it took her a while to calm down and go to bed. But, I'll skip the rest of the details about Hannah's sleeping schedule while we were gone (and now that we're home).

The days all seemed to blur together while I was on vacation and I never knew what day of the week it was so I'll just narrate some of the things we did while we were there and in Idaho. We spent a lot of time hanging out with everyone at home which was great...It is always nice to relax and get to know your family again after a long time. Austin (Damon's youngest brother age 9) had a good time playing with Hannah and she had a good time running around in all of the extra space. One of the days we were there we went up into the mountains to cut a Christmas tree. Damon's family had been up to the spot and had chosen a tree a month or so before and knew just where to find it...or so they thought! It had started snowing that morning and there were several inches of snow on the ground (6 at least I think) when we finally made it up there. We didn't all fit in Damon's dad's truck and the other car we were in could only make it so far so we had to stop. The truck continued up for a while before it noticed we weren't following. Once they noticed they turned around and came back down. Hannah, Austin, Tyler (Another brother, 22) and I stayed with the car and "played" in the snow while Damon and his Mom & Dad went to get the tree. Hannah and I weren't really prepared for playing in the snow. Hannah had her coat, hat, mittens, and warm up pants on. Her shoes were for sure not snow appropriate. I had to borrow a hat and mittens and my shoes might have been worse than Hannah's. Still, she had a good time walking in the tire tracks and just jumped back up whenever she fell - which was quite often.

Damon and Hannah getting the tree. Hannah is a little pink marshmallow!

Well, after a little while Hannah and I got cold and went to sit in the car. There was just one problem with that...the keys were in Tyler's shorts, yes shorts, which happened to be in the truck which was getting the tree! So we sat and froze in the car (luckily I had a small blanket for Hannah) and waited for Damon and his parents to come back for us. Well, we waited and waited and it started to get dark. I was really worried because they had been gone for almost 2 hours and it was getting dark really quickly. I was envisioning us as those people you hear about on the news who got lost in the mountains and froze to death. I was just about to send Tyler to go and look for them when they FINALLY drove up. Needless to say I was relieved to see them but a little (Okay maybe a little more than a little) annoyed to see that they didn't have the TREE! They had gotten stuck and it had taken them over an hour to dig themselves out. They had quite the story to tell themselves. But that is for another day. All of us but the truck decided to head back down the mountain and get some food and try and warm up. The truck decided to try again for the tree. I didn't think that was such a great idea....but they found it almost immediately and ended up only being 20 min. behind us. Whew! What an adventure. You never know what is going to happen when you're with the Popes! Gotta love them!

Damon in front of the tree...it turned out to be quite pretty! Pretty good for in the dark.

Okay, I have to take a break for American Idol and my hands are getting tired...okay it wasn't THAT long of a post so far. Maybe it is better for the readers if I break this up anyway. :) I'll be back soon. :)

Not lost....just lazy!

2008-01-07T22:25:00.000-05:00

Hi Everyone!
We're back from our travels. I have been lazy while on vacation and haven't posted a single thing (I'm sure you noticed!). So, tonight I thought I'd change the page a little bit. Boy, did I change it! I changed it so much that I lost all of my links to all of my blogs and I read on a regular basis...I've spent the last 1/2 hour trying to track them down. If you don't see yours on there I'm so sorry. Post a comment with your blog address and I'll get it fixed right away. I had so many I can't remember everyone that I had on there so sorry if I don't have yours. I think I got most of them.

I'm planning on posting about our trip (I was going to do that tonight before I lost everyone!) but it will have to be another night. Hannah hasn't adjusted to Eastern time yet and for the past 2 nights she's woken up at 10:00 and won't go back to sleep until after midnight! Grrr!

On a side note it was like 65 degrees here today! Talk about a heat wave! It was so cold in Rexburg while we were there and now 65!!! Hannah and I even went for a walk around the Shaker Lake it was so warm. She loved getting outside and really enjoyed our walk. After we got home she kept trying to go outside. Oh, Damon also BBQ hamburgers for dinner because it was so warm....too bad it will be cold again at the end of the week. I hate how this Cleveland weather teases me so!

Finally a new post.

2007-12-03T19:47:00.000-05:00

Yes, it has been forever since I have updated our blog. Unfortunately I don't have anything really exciting to report about our time missing in action. I'll just update you on Thanksgiving and the usual goings on in the Pope household.

Thanksgiving was fun this year (isn't it always? What other holiday is about giving thanks, eating, hanging out, eating some more, friends and family, and eating?) This was our 3rd Thanksgiving away from our families and I cooked the turkey this year (my 2nd time ever cooking a whole turkey). It turned out really yummy and moist. In fact I'm sure if I had said how moist the turkey was one more time Damon might have thrown it at me. The secret to a really moist turkey is to stuff it with apples, onions, and celery-Just a hint! I also made the rolls and Lemon Meringue Pie! Lemon meringue pie is my favorite so I make it every year. The problem is that I make them so infrequently that they take me FOREVER to make. Oh well, one yummy bite and all of the hard work is forgotten...well almost.

Damon played a little neighborhood football game in the morning and it was freezing! I was glad I wasn't out there. My friend Crystal braved the cold for a few pictures of the tough football players. (Check out her blog by clicking on her name)

We had dinner at our friend's the Dixons with the Flemings joining us. The kids just ran wild and had a great time. Hannah thinks that she is one of the big kids (Max and Brenna are 2) and tried to get right in the mix.

Thanksgiving at the Dixon's. Don't you love Hannah's hair and smile?

Damon got the whole week of Thanksgiving off and we sure enjoyed having him home. It was nice to be able to take a shower without a little person peeking in at me every few seconds. Hannah enjoyed having Damon home and followed him everywhere. Hannah loves to read books (she could do it ALL day) and Damon was so great to read Princess Bear, Elmo Loves You, Humpty Dumpty, Wheels on the Bus and her other stack of favorites over and over and over. Damon got to go fishing a couple of times with his friend Bren Dixon during their week off and just enjoyed spending time with his family.

Okay, I know this is turning into the longest post you've ever seen, but I had to include some funny pictures of Hannah (it wouldn't be a real post without pictures of Hannah)! We got out the Christmas stuff the day after Thanksgiving and Hannah found this elf hat and thought it was way cool with the bell on it and everything. Here she is modeling it for us.

I also bought her a new hat and mitten set at Target. The mittens are attached to the top of the hat and it kind of made her look like a bunny.

I love the tongue sticking out.

Notice she has a book. That is how she usually looks!

Sorry this was such a long post. I guess that is what I get for not posting more regularly. We'll be heading out of town for Christmas on the 15th so there may not be a post for a while but I'll be sure to update all of my followers (oh wait, do I have any of those?) when I get back. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Last days of Fall

2007-11-17T21:11:00.000-05:00

On Thursday it was 60 something degrees and I knew it would probably be one of the last (if not THE last) warm days of the year so I wanted to let Hannah go out and play in the leaves. I was hoping to get some really cute pictures in the beautiful multi-colored leaves, but as you can see from the pictures she wasn't really cooperating. She had a really hard time walking in the leaves and kept falling. She wouldn't look at me when I got the camera out. All she wanted to do was go walking on the sidewalk (and in the middle of the road.) So, instead of playing in the leaves as I had pictured, we walked on the sidewalk and I chased her down before she ran into the middle of the road. I have so many good memories playing in the leaves when I was a kid (sorry Dad for always jumping into your nicely raked leaf piles!) and I was envisioning my daughter having these same memories. Oh, well. Maybe next year!

Crawling toward the sidewalk (and road).

Trying to catch the leaves the wind was blowing her way.

These leaves are pretty yummy!

You should have fed me something before we came out, Mom.

One of the two pictures I got of her kind of smiling.

Just cute! How did I get such a cute kid? I know I'm a little biased, but she's pretty darn cute!

I'm IT AGAIN!

2007-11-10T21:14:00.001-05:00

Okay so I must have forgotten to say "NO TOUCHBACKS" when I played tag last time because I got tagged again! Here it goes:

The Rules: Each player lists 6 facts/habits about themselves. At the end of the post the player tags six people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment letting them know that they have been tagged and asking them to read your blog. Have fun! (I have also been instructed to do this about my husband.)

Damon:
1. Damon was the soccer team captain and played varsity basketball in high school.
2. Damon was prom king in high school (I'm smiling about that mental picture since I can't get this kid to dance with me!)
3. Damon has wanted to be a dentist since he was a sophomore in high school. What vision!
4. Damon and his flag football team won the BYU-Idaho intramural championship 4 times in a row! Go TEAM HORKLEYS!
5. One of Damon's legs is smaller than the other (his right is smaller) due to a soccer injury as a sophomore in high school.
6. Damon has promised me that sometime (hopefully sooner than later) he will take a Latin dance class with me. I already have the shoes!

Miriam:
1. I love to travel and have been to at least 12 different countries.
2. I lived overseas in Saudi Arabia for 2 years when I was a kid.
3. I'm afraid of large dogs I don't know (and even some small ones) due to scary childhood experiences.
4. I love to dance! I haven't done it in a while, but I love to swing, country dance, ballroom, and Latin dance.
5. I can't make sugar cookies to save my life. I can make other cookies just fine but sugar cookies always kick my trash. Thank goodness for Betty Crocker mixes!
6. I really like soup. I love to make soup and I love to eat soup. The only problem is that I don't know how to make a little bit of soup. Poor Damon ends up eating it for 3 or 4 nights before it's all gone or we're so sick of it we could die!

I tag Kim West, Terrah Harper, Haley Hammons, Jordan Pratt, Amanda Howard, and Carissa Poyfair (you don't have to do it again if you've already done it).

Tag! - I'm IT

2007-11-09T19:16:00.001-05:00

So my friend Carissa tagged me on Monday and I'm just now getting around to posting this on my blog. Sorry everyone! I know you have just been dying to find out the juicy details of my life!

5 Things I was doing 10 years ago:

I was a Sophomore in High School and wishing I was 16 so I could date!
I was working at a sno-shack (one of the yummiest jobs ever!)
I was sharing a car with my older brother (not fun! He never put gas in it I swear!)
I was taking voice lessons.
I was living at home with my parents and 5 siblings.

5 Things on my to-do list today:

Go to the library and return my books.
Go to Target.
Write my talk for the Primary Program on Sunday (yes I am a procrastinator)
Update my blog
Do the dishes.

5 Foods I enjoy:

Mexican food
Mashed Potatoes & Gravy (can't wait for Thanksgiving!)
Italian food
Chinese food
Hamburgers and other BBQ foods like potato salad

5 Bad habits:

I never wash my face before I go to bed.
I am bossy
I like to be right (who honestly likes to be wrong?)
Sometimes I put Hannah to bed before she's really ready because I need a break!
I'm a procrastinator

5 of my favorite toys:

The Internet
The computer
Books
TV/watching DVDs
My husband :)

5 People I tag:

Emily
Katie
Misty
Jordan
Rachel

Good luck tagees! Can't wait to read all about ya!

Is this my personality?

2007-11-06T20:37:00.000-05:00

You Are An INFP

The Idealist
You are creative with a great imagination, living in your own inner world.Open minded and accepting, you strive for harmony in your important relationships.It takes a long time for people to get to know you. You are hesitant to let people get close.But once you care for someone, you do everything you can to help them grow and develop.
In love, you tend to have high (and often unrealistic) standards.You are very sensitive. You tend to have intense feelings.
At work, you need to do something that expresses your personal values.You would make an excellent writer, psychologist, or artist.
How you see yourself: Unselfish, empathetic, and spiritual
When other people don't get you, they see you as: Unrealistic, naive, and weak

What's" Your Personality Type?

I'm not sure if this is really me or not, but this is what the quiz has decided. What do you think?

Daddy's Entertainment

2007-11-04T19:29:00.000-05:00

Last night when I was trying to do the dishes Hannah kept trying to unload the dishwasher while I was loading it. So, I asked Damon to entertain her for a little while so I could get them done. I was scrubbing a pot and I turned around to find this view of Hannah.

Yes, Hannah is wearing the laundry basket on her head. It was really funny. I think Damon and I were the ones being entertained and not Hannah. But, she didn't seem to mind. It was really funny watching her walk around with that on her head. For those of you who think this might cause suffocation or is some type of holding your breath exercise, the bag is made of mesh!

She's such a funny little girl. I don't know what we'd do without her!

Thank goodness for moments of quiet reflection

2007-11-02T22:11:00.000-04:00

Do you ever have those days when you think, "I love my job, but I need a break!"? I had one of those days yesterday. Even though my job is being a mom (a stay at home one at that) and I love it, sometimes you just feel like you need to run away from home. Hannah has had a cold and was whiny all day yesterday. After being cooped up at home (especially one one of the rare sunny days in Cleveland) I had had it. Luckily for me when Damon came home and we had dinner he told me to go out and do something fun. He tried to get me to invite various friends to go to ice cream or something, but I was just in one of those moods where I needed to get away by myself. So, I went to TJ MAXX and looked at sheets and comforters (am I exciting or what?) and then went to Target to check out the clearance Halloween costumes and candy. When I got home Hannah was thankfully in bed and I had 15 minutes to spare before The Office came on. Later after I had gotten over my selfishness I thought about my sweet little daughter. I was sad because I didn't get to kiss her goodnite or say prayers with her before she went to bed. I guess sometimes it takes little moments of reflection like that to make you appreciate the little things in life. I guess what I am trying to say is I love my life. I love being a mom. I love my sweet little daughter, she brings so much happiness to my life. Thank goodness for moments of quite reflection.

My little Hannah when I got home and kissed her goodnite. You can't really tell, but she's got her bottom sticking up in the air. She's the craziest sleeper!

Happy Halloween?

2007-10-31T13:12:00.001-04:00

We went to our Ward Halloween party last night (can you guess who we went as?) and Hannah had already had it before we got there. She wasn't thrilled about me trying to make her keep her lion mane on and as you can see from the picture she wasn't really having a happy Halloween. I was in charge of helping the kids make tootsie-pop ghosts so she hung out with Daddy during the party. I think all she did was walk around and try and beg food off of people. We do feed her, I swear!

Hannah was much happier wearing her costume at our little playgroup on Thursday. All of the kids were being some type of animal for Halloween so we had them all dress up. They were pretty cute but didn't hold very still for pictures (imagine that!)

I am Lion hear me ROAR!!!

I don't think we'll put Hannah through wearing the costume again and just stay home tonight. Maybe we'll skip the trick-or-treaters since we'll run out of candy in about 10 min. anyway.

First Blog Attempt

2007-10-29T13:03:00.000-04:00

After 4 1/2 years of marriage and one child later, we finally have the internet!! This means I have a lot of catching up to do. One of the things that was top on my list was figuring out how to do a blog. All of my friends have them and I want one too! So, without any instructions at all, here is my first attempt at blogging. Those of you who may be more blogging savvy (lets face it probably everyone but my mom is - no offense mom!) may not be too impressed with my first effort, but give me a break. It is bound to improve as I figure things out.

On October 10 Hannah celebrated her first birthday! I can't believe that she's one already! Time goes by too quickly. She's so fun! She talks all day long and we can hardly understand a word, but that doesn't seem to stop her from talking up a storm. We've taken so many pictures of the poor child that whenever we get the camera out she starts smiling. We say "big smile" and she just cheeses it. She sure makes us laugh! This picture is of her on her birthday with her new farm. Note the famous cheeser smile.

These are pictures of Hannah enjoying her birthday ice cream cone cupcake. She pretty much devoured it. It was pretty funny. She couldn't get enough of it.

On Wednesday (October 24th) Hannah just started walking. She's been walking for a few months now, but she'd only take a few steps at a time. On Wednesday night she just took off and Thursday morning she was walking (almost running she's so fast) all over the house. Gone are the days of a clean house and a rested mother (Oh wait! That happened a year ago!) She kind of looked like a monkey at first because she stuck her belly out and waved her arms in the air. She always keeps us laughing!