The Waiting Game comes to the final stretch

So a year and a half ago, Mike applied for a job with PSS which is a medical sales type job. His best friend from high school works there and loves it and is good at it. He thought Mike would as well. These two boys are often the same person in different bodies. We went to the temple soon after he applied and Mike felt very strongly that he would work for them. I however, did not feel the same way. On and off again, there would be a job opening, but it was always filled internally. Along the way, he had a few interviews, but nothing ever came of it. In June, I started looking at teaching jobs. I found a 1/2 day 1st grade at a local elementary school. I decided to give it a shot. We could do 1/2 day with Mike watching kids and it would also give us access to insurance for me. I started the stuff and felt really good about teaching again. I even got really excited. I called my old principal for a letter of recommendation and instead of a letter, I got an "interview." She had 3 openings and wanted me to come back. She complimented me on how good of a teacher I was and it made me feel so appreciated (something not felt often as a stay at home mom). I went to my old school and saw all my old teacher friends and even one of my old kids who is now is a 5th grader! I loved being back. I decided to take a PM kindergarten spot. So excited! Mike only had to do lunch and naps with the kids and I still got my fun mornings with my kids at home. It was going to be perfect.

Well to make a long story short, the week I needed to sign paperwork for my teaching job, Mike got an interview with the Regional Vice President of this company. He was offered the job. I couldn't believe it! It's been a great learning experience. Timing has been everything along this. We still don't know where we're moving to and when, but we are not going to be staying here in the Salt Lake area. It's going to be a hard transition. I love my house, neighbors, and ward. I have some of the most amazing friends that have been so supportive through Clomid, a couple of pregnancies, unemployment, and just plain life. Isabelle has a little crew of her own friends she asks for all the time. Michael was one of about 20 baby boys born in a matter of a few months (no I'm not exaggerating). It's going to be hard.

I grew up away from ALL family. I know how to do it. I know I can do it. You make family out of friends. My best friend growing up I call her parents aunt and uncle and her my cousin but there is no real relation. We have an extra grandma from this same philosophy. HOWEVER, I've experienced living by siblings, grandparents, aunts, uncles, parents, and it is really nice too.

I'm really excited for the adventure ahead of us. At this point there are still A LOT of unknowns. But I do know Mike is back to his old self. The stress is a much different stress and I like this stress better. I know we're going to have fun and meet lots of new people and find some more family where ever we go.

What's the real definition of dental floss?

Dental Floss: a soft, strong waxed or unwaxed thread, usually made of nylon for drawing between the teeth to remove food particles and prevent the buildup of plaque.

Dental Floss: a soft, strong waxed, mint flavored thread found in our bathroom top drawer for toddlers to pull out ridiculous amounts and suck on to be left on the floor wet for mom to step on later.

Yummy!

Michael started solids and of course Isabelle is there for every bite. She loves those dang puffs. I started telling her she could have one for every bite of Michael's food that she would eat. She decided rice cereal with peas wasn't worth a puff. However, she watches me like a hawk when they are out, and I know she's sneaking them.

After he started getting the hang of things, and a million times asking, I finally let her do the job. She's a pro! I forgot how time consuming those first weeks of spoon feeding solids is! Isabelle still shoves the spoon a little too far down his throat sometimes, but soon enough, I can send her to go feed Michael completely independently! She loves to get it all ready for me and lines it up on the counter. It's really cute!

Happy full baby!

He really likes food and he's finally gaining some good weight. He's now eating all veggies, rice, oatmeal, Ritz, Club crackers, pretzels, and bread. He also loved fresh mango. I love it when you can stick them in a high chair, plop some crackers down, and you can finish those last 5-10 minutes of dinner prep hysteria!

Family Fun at Yellowstone

We just had my family reunion. Everyone was able to make it, including both sets of grandparents. This year Danny was in charge and it was AWESOME! We had a great cabin with a big living area for visiting, games, and chocolate consumption. I think I was the only person who lost weight on this trip thanks to my very happy baby boy. (I really miss chocolate!)

My dad's parents turned 90 last year and my mom's parents turned 80. We had a silly little birthday party for them including homemade birthday hats with Styrofoam bowls and pipe cleaner. I am so lucky to still have all 4 of my grandparents. It was a great chance to make some more memories with some of my favorite people! And yes, all 4 of them hiked Yellowstone too.

Isabelle had a blast with cousins. And I also determined, it's not just the age. She really is crazy intense!

We were able to go on a few hikes despite the weather. It was FREEZING!!! We woke up to snow, and then had lots of rain, but still had a blast! We all agreed we were glad we weren't tent camping.

And you thought she went somewhere without her sunglasses! HA! (Today she walked into church with them on. I didn't even notice until she started to get snickers and compliments on them. )

LOTS of game playing. Mike and Sam were in heaven to have someone to play.

Dancing princesses. Isabelle's more of a hip hop kind of girl. It was drastically noticeable next to graceful ballerina Jane.

I got LOTS of help with Michael.

Yellowstone day was the nicest day we had. We actually saw blue sky and some animals!!! Last time we went to Yellowstone we didn't see a single buffalo, just an eagle and 4 deer. This time we saw a ton of buffalo, lots of elk, and even a bear!

Waiting on Old Faithful.

Yellowstone Falls, thanks for the cooperation kids! I was hoping to get a new decent family picture...oh well!

The whole clan, minus my dad's parents. They got really cold at this lookout point waiting for everyone to arrive. We had to make a mad dash back to our car. Isabelle decided to drop her pants to her ankles with 30 people looking on. Apparently she needed to go to the bathroom. What a goof! Such a fun trip! I love getting to spend time with my family.

Wiggle Worm

This little man is the wiggliest kid ever! He cannot sit still for ANYTHING!!! Even when he's "relaxing," he is still always moving his feet. Yesterday at bath time, he made a bigger puddle on the floor than Isabelle did. He doesn't "talk" much, but man this kid likes to move! The difference between a girl and a boy!

On a side note, Isabelle and I were in Provo last week and she wanted to see the temple. So, I drove her all the way around to see. She said, "It's gorgeous!!" When telling Dad about what we did, she said, "We drove by the temple with Macaroni on the top!"

Obsessions

Isabelle gets on kicks, more like obsessions. Sometimes they are short lived, other times, they last TOO long. She's on a few right now. It always seem so random to me what she gets stuck on. She sure has a strong personality and it shows through with everything she does.

Sunglasses: thank you dollar section at Target. These things crack me up. She wears them almost constantly and I can't help but laugh every time I look at her.

Butterflies: also thank you dollar section at Target. Those glasses are the shape of a butterfly complete with antenna. Notice her shirt...one of 3 butterfly shirts she owns. I also have 8 different butterfly books, which we are now VERY familiar with.

Blue: She has a favorite color. The only thing we can pin it back to is the four wheeling. She always wanted to ride the blue one, but that has continued onto her clothes, crayons, underwear, cups, paints, food, hair bows...etc. She prefers the girly blue, but she'll take boy blue above pink now.

The new Ice Age Movie: "I need to watch my dinosaur show, Mom." I hear this phrase a gazillion times a day. Even if I actually give in and let her watch it, she wants to watch it again, and again and again. Move over Mary Poppins and Beethoven, we finally have a new show! Mike and I are quite grateful.

Dollar Store: The dollar store is the best bribe on the planet! She has a sticker chart that she has to fill up and then gets to earn a trip to the dollar store. Her latest pick was a 10 pack of white dice. She is crazy obsessed with them. Now to figure out where to keep them, where they have a home, and where Michael won't try to eat them.

What will it be next? Only time will tell!

Camping and 4-wheeling

We love camping! We had our first trip out this year a few weeks ago. We just went for one night to start the year off. We went with some neighbors, Aaron and Star, and their 5 year old girl and 3 year old boy to a place about an hour south. We had a BLAST!!!! We took our 4-wheeler and they brought 2 adult ones and a little bitty kid one.

The day before we left we had to get Isabelle a sleeping bag and us a new tent. Mike's tent of 19 years died last summer. As he was duct-taping us in, me 5 1/2 months pregnant, he said, "Hope you don't have to go to the bathroom tonight" HA! Anyway, that was the last trip for that tent. When we were getting a new tent, it rang up as only 15 BUCKS!!!! We told the guy that was wrong but he gave it to us for $15 anyway. We really like our new cheap tent!

What's better than hot dogs, cheetos, s'more's and a camp fire? Not much! Isabelle loved every second. Jake did pretty good. We got there just as the sun was going down, so he kept going off to explore and with him being black, we couldn't see him even when he was there. The next day after running after the 4-wheelers he didn't wander once. We learned our lesson: Run him as soon as we get to camp so he's too tired to explore.

By time we got the tent set up and pack and play up, Michael was done. He put himself to sleep by getting a hold of his beanie to suck on, while waiting for me to get the sleeping bags situated.

It was a cold night. Michael ended up sleeping in the sleeping bag with me snuggled purely because I was sure he was cold despite his 3 layers of clothes. At some point early in the am, Isabelle woke up and Mike didn't care why and told her to get in our sleeping bag too. So from about 4 or 5 in the morning, we all snuggled together in the sleeping bag.

The next morning was 4-wheeling time!!! Isabelle got to drive the little one by herself. It kind of scared her, so Mike made sure to get her on to ride it with him. Then she was asking all day for a ride.

Getting ready to go...

Michael hanging out with his toys. Later in the afternoon he was getting fussy. I put him in the snuggli and took him on a ride. He LOVED it! It settled him right down.

Mike teaching her how to drive it

About to go

"Ride with Daddy!" was what we heard from that point on.

The kids playing around. They have a good time playing together.

These sunglasses crack me up! She refused to put them on the way they are supposed to be on. They had to be upside down. She ate like 4 bowls of Cheetos! Her face was perma-orange for the day. We had a fun time and I'm ready to get some more camping in.

My Mighty Man

Michael is now 5 months old! Where has this time gone? A little post about my cute little man. I started calling him mighty man when he was 2 weeks old and rolling over from tummy to back. His physical milestones continue to be TOO early in my book. He's physically very very strong. He loved to stand in my lap at 7 weeks. He started rolling over back to tummy 1 week before he turned 4 months. He's been sitting unassisted since 4 1/2 months, but still a little wobbly. And also during his 4th month started figuring out the army crawl. This kid is on a mission! He's now 5 months and getting into the crawling stance and concentrating on how to go forward. He can't stand to stay put. He has to always have a toy. Sometimes his hands or feet will suffice, but he much prefers a toy or someone interacting with him. He's so happy to play on the floor for quite a while.

We have figured out he is allergic to milk. After my 3 month post where I said he was being happy, I jinxed myself. He still was crying ALOT! He was still spitting up ALOT, and he was still tiny. He had some of the worst eczema I've ever seen and his whole body felt like a lizard. Thanks to Aveeno, we were able to help a little, but he would still just scratch away. When changing his diaper you have to be fast or else he scratches the heck out of his upper thighs. He also can't EVER be naked or he scratches his chest til it's bleeding. He does LOVE the bath tub and is too busy splashing to scratch. Since I have completely cut milk out of my diet (have I mentioned milk is in EVERYTHING that is delicious?) we have seen a huge improvement in his eczema, crying, sleeping, and overall happiness. He also looks like he might be gaining weight. He's starting to grow out of some of his 0-3 month clothes. He's finally becoming a normal baby.

He loves to be put to bed. He always smiles and makes a funny giggle when I snuggle him to rock him or put him in his bed. I lay him on his back and he immediately flips himself to his tummy and he sings to himself for a minute and out he goes.

He's discovering Jake. And Jake has finally decided Michael isn't going anywhere and has quit being naughty. Jake now hovers over Michael very protectively like he used to with Isabelle as a baby.

He likes to suck on anything BUT a paci. He has figured out how to get ahold of his car seat tent when nothing else is around.

His favorite person is Isabelle. She can make him laugh better than anyone else. His face lights up every time he sees her. She's overly loving most of the time, but apparently he likes that. She has even changed his poopy diaper without making a mess (they were both asleep, or so I thought). We're waiting a few more months before she gets full diaper duty. :)

He's gives out his smiles so freely now that he's not in constant pain! We love our little Mighty Man and his cute, determined personality.

We Love Jill and Tommy

My little sister and her husband live about 30 minutes away. It's so fun to have siblings close and we get to see them often. They like to come visit/play. I really think they just want to see my kids, but I'll take them any way I can. Tonight they came over for later afternoon play, dinner, cookies and games. They helped with dinner and a blow-out situation that required a bath, cookies, and putting kids down for bed. I LOVE when they come play as do my kids. Isabelle asks for them often and loves to talk to Jill on the phone. "I NEEEEED to talk to Jill." It's pretty cute. We love Jill and Tommy!!!!



My handsome little mighty man and Jill

3 Months!

I can't believe Michael is already 3 months! He's finally growing and quit crying all the time. The last couple of days have been a great improvement. Two mostly happy days in a row! At his 2 month appointment, he was still only 9 lbs. He was spitting up constantly and was starting to not sleep. We put him on acid reflux medicine and he's gained 2 pounds in 1 month! He finally graduated from newborn clothes to 0-3 month the day before his 3 month birthday. The medicine helped him not cry all the time and quit spitting up everything he ate and he started sleeping again. He still was really fussy 3-4 hours of the day. So, I have gone off of dairy and in the last 2 days he's finally a happy baby!!! I'm drinking lactose free milk which isn't near as nasty as I was expecting but it's really sweet. I haven't cut dairy out 100%, but the dairy I eat is minimal. I don't know why I didn't do this earlier. I got so sick when I ate ice cream when I was pregnant with him. And when we were in Mexico, I didn't have any dairy and he was super happy.

Anway, poor little guy has had a rough start, but he's finally getting the hang of this whole body thing. He loves his little hangy toy thingy. He will play under that forever grabbing the toys and stuffing them in his mouth.



He loves hanging out with sister. He watches her and always gives her smiles even when no one else gets them. She sings to him and it almost always calms him down at least for a few minutes. He also doens't panic when she picks him up and doesn't set him down quite so softly.


He's happy on the floor as long as there are toys.


He loves to sleep on his tummy! Every time I put him down for tummy time he rolls over and rolls over and rolls over, or he falls asleep. Only today did he actually stay on his tummy awake and play with the toys. In the process he scooted completely off the blanket he was on. He's an AWESOME night sleeper!!!! He sleeps from 7:30ish-7:30ish and I feed him around 11 before I go to bed! He then takes a great morning 2 hour nap, but then doesn't really do more than a couple of 20 minute naps until bedtime. He's got the cutest smile and it's so fun to see it all the time. He also started laughing last week. He's really ticklish on his tummy and feet. He has been so much fun the last couple of days!