The Miles'

Happy Birthday to Tyler

2011-02-28T11:32:00.001-08:00

2 Years Old and Other Updates

2011-02-25T08:09:00.001-08:00

Ok so it's been exactly 6 months since I've blogged (and 6 months since I got a Facebook account...coincidence, I think not....).

Tyler turned 2 on February 13, 2011. I can't believe how fast he's grown. He is such a joy and so wonderful. It's been a lot of fun to be his mom so far. He can already count to 10 with no help (and can count to 5 in Spanish), he's learning his colors, letters, and even sang Twinkle Twinkle Little Star to Erik and me last night before bed. We are so blessed to have such a cute, happy, smart boy.

This week has been SO crazy! Monday was a holiday so we all stayed home. We were dog-sitting this week for a friend and got to play with little Noodles all day long. We laid low and didn't get much done, it was a perfect end to the 3 day weekend.

Tuesday and Wednesday went by with a blur. Lots of work, lots of play, and even fit in time to visit with friends. Wednesday night Erik was told to expect an official job offer from Microsoft in the next week or so as Senior Project Manager in the Global Pricing Division. We are so excited and again feel so blessed to have the opportunity to move on to a new chapter in our lives. (Big understatement).

Thursday of course was day of crazy snow and freezing cold weather. We stopped by Julie's house to have a little playdate with Evan, Daniel, Emma, Caleb and Parker which Tyler LOVED. Then we had sushi lunch with Mandy and Cameron (yum). I of course was working intermittently all day from home which is never easy (good thing I have awesome Jaime to cover for me at the office).

Grandpa (Erik's dad) stopped in to visit while passing through on his long-haul truck driving route. We were going to have a relaxing evening at home until I noticed Tyler's eye was starting to look a little red. I had thought he'd been pulling at one of his ears a couple days before so I immediately called and made a doctor appointment. I made it for Friday morning, but called right back and changed it to Thursday night (Mom guilt, couldn't make him wait). One double ear infection and eye infection later, we stopped by three pharmacies before finding the medication we needed. Have you ever heard of pharmacies being out of antibiotics?!?!? Poor Grandpa got dragged through all this with us when he probably just wanted to hang out on our couch. :( He was a good sport.

Erik got home from work, started working on replacing our electric stove with a gas range (including drilling holes in the floor to install a gas line) and I overcooked dinner. So I started over (first time using a pressure cooker to make pork tenderloin. Not so tender at first attempt).

It all came together and things worked out.

This morning, Tyler's eye is so swollen that we had to cancel everything and stay home so he can get better. We are going to Great Wolf Lodge (an indoor water park and hotel) on Monday so we really need to get well for that!

Hopefully the snow melts soon and the weather warms up so we're not stuck inside for too much longer!

18 Months Old!

2010-09-10T21:39:00.000-07:00

Every time Tyler wears his sunglasses and Daddy's hat he says, "Cool!"

Tyler came home from daycare with his first "tattoo" yesterday.

His favorite activity with Mommy.

Under construction

First time in a booster seat--no more high chair!

First time on a merry-go-round--he wasn't sure he liked it.

Never too cool for green star sunglasses!

Reading the Bible with Daddy

Yes I made the mistake of putting the high chair right in front of my white curtains. Never again. :)

Little Reminders

2010-08-24T22:13:00.000-07:00

Every day when I look at Tyler I see parts of Sarah. You can't sit there and tell me these pictures of Sarah don't remind you of certain faces Tyler makes! I hope he always reminds me of her.

Summer Peaches and Tomatoes

2010-08-23T11:13:00.000-07:00

We love summer because we get to can fresh peaches and tomatoes! We canned 50 lbs. of fruit when we got back from Utah.

Also, Erik is working on putting in new floors in our kitchen and dining room. As soon as that's done we can finally have our carpet installed! I will post before, during and after pictures later this week!

On a sad note, we were very sorry to have lost Grandpa this past week but we know he is with Heavenly Father and that knowledge brings relief to our sadness. We love Grandpa very much and we miss him already.

Obituary

2010-08-17T08:31:00.000-07:00

Grandpa's Obituary

Just a few pictures

2010-08-15T16:22:00.000-07:00

I wanted to post some recent pictures of Tyler because I haven't posted in awhile. Maybe this will get me back into the routine!!

His favorite thing to do is go upside down. If he could, he would stay that way!

We tried drinking from a cup with no lid. As you can see he had more fun tossing the water up in the air than he did drinking it.

This is his new favorite toy. It was $1 at Target. Gotta love it the Japanese ambulance!

Tyler recently started knocking on every door he sees, even the sliding glass door.

We're learning our ABC's!

Half Marathon - May 2010

2010-08-09T22:55:00.000-07:00

I guess I never posted that I ran an entire half marathon without stopping. My posterity will want to know that.

Ok let's remember I had just run 13.2 miles--cuteness was out the window.

Musical Baby

2010-08-09T22:38:00.000-07:00

Tyler

2010-07-06T21:05:00.000-07:00

We had to sneak in to take this during nap time last week.

Any resemblance?

He loves to sit in his "big boy" chair.

Fourth of July BBQ (on the 3rd of July) in 60 degree windy weather (which is why he has a sweatshirt on).

Hiking

2010-06-26T18:41:00.000-07:00

See it before it's even published!

2010-06-19T21:57:00.000-07:00

Besides teaching junior primary sharing time and senior primary sharing time tomorrow I'm also giving a talk in Sacrament. I've pretty much lost my voice from being so sick we'll have to pray that I can actually speak tomorrow.

Here it is, hot off the presses, my Fathers Day talk BEFORE it is available to the public!

Click here to view my talk

Car trouble

2010-06-18T10:20:00.001-07:00

My jeep broke down yesterday while I was alone driving to Renton to close a sale. We aren't sure what's wrong with it but we're just grateful it was a fairly uneventful problem. It was a blessing that I was able to steer it out of the way of traffic by myself and that Erik was able to leave work and come help me try to start it. We ended up having to get a tow truck but it was free because our insurance covered it.

Hopefully Erik can fix it and it won't cost too much to do.

The good news is, I hopped in Erik's Jeep when he got there and closed the sale (Pizza Time in Renton, my third Pizza time this week!). So things are looking up at least!

Before, during and after of the living room and entry way

2010-06-10T09:04:00.000-07:00

Ok I am finally ready to put the first round of before and after pictures of the inside of our house. There are many more to come as we have been very busy doing remodeling and paiting and decorating but at least now I can put SOMETHING up.

The picture (above) is what the family room looked like when we bought the house. Peach paint, orange bricks and wood paneling behind the TV.

This is the same place with a fresh coat of paint on the wall. I ended up changing my mind though so don't get too attached to that color.

Here is a picture of the family room and dining room the day we moved in.

Here is the entry way which was colorless and the door had a flimsy border and needed to be painted.

The picture (above) is Erik ripping out the same orange bricks that were on the fireplace from the entry way floor. You can see that I had painted the entry way as well.

Here is the finished entry way. We put new baseboards, new floor, new paint and new trim around the door. You may also notice a mysterious hole in the wall where the door-handle hit. We have no idea how that happened but of course it was the same day we finally got the entry way done.

Here (above) is the fireplace after the bricks and wood paneling was taken off. I ended up changing the red color you see here to the color you see below. I also changed the brown to a softer color.

Here is the finished product of the living room/fireplace. I will update this later with the dining room as well. I also have to show you what we did in the basement and some other parts of the house. I will try to get on that soon.

Here's a shout-out to my awesome husband who worked super hard night and day to get everything done. We still have a long way to go but it's starting to feel like home, thanks to Erik's masterful skills and dedication.

Change

2010-06-01T13:04:00.000-07:00

I decided to only let my friends and family read my blog. I'm sick of getting random Chinese characters as comments. So that's why you got an invitation to read my blog, because you are my friend or my family. :)

PS If I forgot anyone let me know, I'm sure I did.

Blessings

2010-05-26T14:21:00.000-07:00

It's beautiful to see Heavenly Father's hand in my life. He blesses me when I need it most and it humbles me to know He cares enough about me to help me with my petty little life when there are so many other important things He could be doing.

Case and point:

I've been having a rough day today. Found out some bad news today--nothing too serious, but enough to ruin my day and make me worry a little bit about the certainty of the future. Just when I was wallowing in my despair and worrying, He sent me a couple little blessings that made today brighter and helped me see the future can be good regardless of the bad things that might come up in life here and there. I think He's trying to show me the Eternal Perspective.

I have been really worried lately with concerns about what I should do in certain areas in my life and when I took my concerns to God in prayer I got the distinct feeling that everything will be okay if we just pay our tithing and choose the right. It was easy that day to smile and say "Oh, everything will be fine," but now that I'm in the thick of it, it's a little harder to be as upbeat.

I just have to remember that faith precedes the miracle and know that if Heavenly Father said we'd be fine, then we will be fine. Even if we have to eat beans and rice for a couple months then we will be fine. We are doing what He told us to do and we're following the prophet and keeping the commandments. So even though I can't see it now, in a year or ten years or twenty years I know I will look back on this blip on the radar and smile about how worried I was before everything worked out.

In fact, when I look back five years I remember how worried I was then that things wouldn't work out, and even though it was hard, they worked out. I just have to remember that when the anxiety comes and the money dries up. ;) I know a lot of people have been through this, and I've seen a lot of my friends stay strong through similar trials and that gives me strength and hope too. I know we'll be fine. Better than fine, we're going to be great. It may be a hard ride but we'll get there.

ugh

2010-05-25T18:48:00.001-07:00

selling insurance ain't easy.

I'm not dead

2010-05-19T14:08:00.001-07:00

I haven't had a lot of time to blog or sociailize lately (who knew owning your own business could take up so much TIME!?!?!) but I am still around!

Some updates so you can keep in the loop on the Miles fam:

Erik rototilled our garden yesterday (he also rototilled our Comcast cable:)
Acupuncture doesn't seem to be working on my migraines
I'm going out to meet with Papa Murphy's owners tomorrow for commercial insurance (wish me luck)
I got my hair highlighted by Heidi Dueck and it looks super cute
We're heading to Utah Fri - Mon to visit Grandpa who is still in the hospital but hopefully getting out soon

Coupons!

2010-05-05T08:28:00.000-07:00

Weren't those Winco coupons awesome? I saved $22 at Winco yesterday on stuff I buy every week and it got me in a good couponing mood so I went to Albertsons and saved $19! Then I sent Erik to Walmart to save $15!!!

Couponing is fun. I feel like a superhero when I get home and see how much I got for how little.

We have a toddler!

2010-04-30T16:46:00.000-07:00

Phone number change

2010-04-29T09:30:00.001-07:00

Hey everyone-- just wanted to let you know we finally disconnected our home phone so the (253) 210-4592 number isn't good anymore. Just call our cellphones instead.

Secrets, secrets

2010-04-27T11:26:00.000-07:00

Well the cat is finally out of the bag. I have put in my two weeks' notice at Alta Trust Company and can finally announce my previously secret status as a Farmers Insurance Agent.

I passed all my insurance exams, I have two investment exams coming up but I am officially able now to sell insurance for Farmers (have been for a week). I'm so excited because I'll be my own boss and I'll be able to spend more time with Tyler and help people all at the same time, which I love to do.

My office is in Federal Way on 336th, its just a mile from our new house. Yay!

Take Your Pick

2010-04-20T21:56:00.000-07:00

I'm getting business cards with a headshot on them... which one do you like better for a professional business card?

PS

2010-04-17T13:23:00.001-07:00

Passed both my exams yesterday.

Symphonic Band

2010-04-14T20:03:00.001-07:00

Valerie Wells asked me to substitute for her at Tacoma Symphonic Band practice tonight. It was lots of fun and super challenging but it felt great! I felt like I was back in my element again for the first time in years! AND... The conductor asked me to join the band!

So, my first concert is May 27th at 7:30pm at Tacoma Community College in Building 3 off of South 12th street. I would love your support if you can attend!!!

New Calling

2010-04-11T20:44:00.000-07:00

I was called today to be a counselor in the Primary presidency in our new ward. I was surprised because the Bishop and the Primary president hadn't even met me yet--Scary!

So today was my first day in Primary. At first I thought it was going to be super easy-- just sing some songs and play with little kids. But after chasing a 4-year-old around the room in my high heels and then chasing her down the hall and trying to coax her out of a locked bathroom stall, begging a bunch of 5-year-olds to put their shoes on and making really complicated finger puppets of Joseph Smith without any instructions I realized it's going to be no vacation!

Don't get me wrong, I am excited. Little kids are so much fun and the Primary in my ward has the cutest little kids! I just feel totally like I have no idea what I'm doing. And apparently we have meetings once a week on top of all the activities to plan and execute. I am looking forward to this calling but part of me feels totally overwhelmed! I'm sure it's the same for anyone when they have any new calling. At least I'll get to be with Tyler when he starts nursery (which is part of primary) in 4 months! That's a huge blessing.

Also, I was invited to Girl's Night last night in my new ward. We have such cool ladies! We had a pajama party and it was actually really fun. It made me miss everyone from NE Tacoma but it was super fun. We played a couple games and acted like teenagers--some of them even stayed until 3:30am! (I went home at midnight). I loved getting to know everyone and it turns out our ward has really great girls around my age, there were like 15 of them. I'm even going jogging with Christina three days a week at 6am starting tomorrow and Liz is going to run 10 miles with me on Saturday. Yay! (By the way I ran 8 miles yesterday all by myself and I actually enjoyed it. It was really hard but I'm not even sore today!)

So there's your update!

Easter Weekend

2010-04-07T19:22:00.000-07:00

It's so weird now that we've moved-- I feel totally disconnected from everyone even though I'm like ten minutes away! I still need to put before and after pictures but we aren't quite done with the after yet-- we're doing some remodeling already (we haven't even unpacked everything yet) so I don't want to do after pictures or have a house warming party until we are at least done with phase one of the remodel.

So, Easter was lots of fun. My mom came and had a great time with us. She bought Tyler a moterized car (yes, he is one year old and no he doesn't need it but Grandma is a spoiler). He actually loves whizzing around in it. He's pretty good at steering it too.

My mom brought many other gifts and had a great time showering them on Tyler.

I have been doing nothing but painting (every wall in in every room). The other night Erik was taking Tyler in for a bath and he says to me, "How good is your sense of humor right now?" Whenever he asks that I'm always very cautious. He took naked Tyler and pressed his little behind and feet onto the wet paint on the wall and then pressed him on the white wall I hadn't painted yet. Here is the result:

We always tie-dye our Easter eggs every year. They seem to come out pretty cool so I thought I'd share some pics from the dying session:

We had lots of fun! Ok I have to get back to painting now! New flooring is going in soon and I have to get the painting done before the floors can be re-done!

Merker-Matic

2010-03-31T08:18:00.000-07:00

I know I need to post pictures of my new house (we've been busy painting and decorating, and picking out new carpet) but I just want to say that I bought myself a Holton H276 Merker Matic today and I am very excited.

I sold my Holton French Horn a couple years ago and a part of my soul died when I did (I had to pay the bills). But I have recommitted and am so excited and I hope to be back up to my peak performance within a year with lots of practice--maybe in a symphony again within a year or two. Yay!

St. Patrick's Day Pictures

2010-03-22T09:53:00.000-07:00

Tyler has really been loving daycare. He does miss Auntie Jaime, I gotta say. He still looks for her when we pull up to Lil Rascal's Daycare but he loves his new friends and has a great time. Miss Cathy sent me these pictures from St. Patrick's day:

Two in one day

2010-03-17T10:09:00.000-07:00

I know I already posted earlier today but what the heck.

Don't you hate how you're always good at stuff you hate? For instance:

Turns out I'm great at cold-calling. Hate it. But I make appointments with everyone I talk to.

When I was a kid, I was great at being goalie in soccer. Hated it. Never missed a goal.

I'm great at folding those ridiculous fitted sheets. Can't stand it.

St. Patrick

2010-03-17T09:29:00.001-07:00

I do not wear green on St. Patrick's Day for I am Italian, not Irish.

My son is part Irish. He wore green today.

Hah

2010-03-16T10:06:00.000-07:00

I'm obviously delirious from working too much. But I think what I just said to a co-worker was funny enough to put on the blog:

Co-Worker: What college did you go to?
Me: I went to the school of hard knocks. I got a full ride scholarship.

Lil Rascals Daycare

2010-03-15T12:35:00.000-07:00

Tyler started going to Lil Rascals Daycare today--Cathy Dueck's house (in the Federal Way ward, our new ward). Ashley told me how great Cathy is..she is so sweet! They've had a waiting list for a long time but we got in and Tyler loves it!

I was worried this morning (and for the last two weeks) since Tyler is so used to going to Jaime's (or as he calls her Auntie Jaime) house so I thought this morning could be awful. When I walked in, Cathy took him and he hugged her tight and put his head on her shoulder--it was so cute! I was glad he loves her so much, even though he doesn't even know her! He's never like that when he first meets people!

Cathy emailed me to tell me Tyler is happy and having a great time--she even sent me this picture of him so I had proof that he's happy!!!

I'm so blessed to have such a perfect little boy and access to such a wonderful LDS community where we can have him in a daycare we love and trust!

Stuff

2010-03-10T10:17:00.000-08:00

If you could have an endless supply of any food, what would you get?
Sushi. I could totally live on that stuff.
If you were an animal, what would you be and why?
Humans are animals.
What is one goal you’d like to accomplish during your lifetime?
I'd like to be the only person who takes care of my child(ren) during the day instead of paying someone else to do it.
When you were little, who was your favorite super hero and why?
Batman because he has a cool car.
Who is your hero?
Any good LDS wife and mother (so all my friends are my heroes for sure)
What’s your favorite thing to do in the summer?
Vacation in a sunny place like San Diego and swim
If they made a movie of your life, what would it be about and which actor would you want to play you?
It would be awesome. And edge-of-your-seat-action-packed. They'd probably want Rachel Bilson from The OC.
If you were an ice cream flavor, which one would you be and why?
Mint Chocolate Chip. Cool with a surprise.
What’s your favorite cartoon character, and why?
I like Speedy Gonzales. He's not afraid of political incorrectness.
If you could visit any place in the world, where would you choose to go and why?
The Bahamas. Perfect beaches.
What’s the ideal dream job for you?
Being a mom.
Are you a morning or night person?
Neither. I like to sleep in and I like to go to bed early.
What are your favorite hobbies?
Reading, playing video games, working out, cooking, cleaning, gardening, decorating.
What are your pet peeves or interesting things about you that you dislike?
I don't like dogs dressed as humans. Or movies about dogs that talk. Also people who leave their Christmas lights up past January, not to mention those who turn them on every night in March!
What’s the weirdest thing you’ve ever eaten?
Octopus, escargo, eel. All good.
Name one of your favorite things about someone in your family.
I love how happy my sister was.
Tell us about a unique or quirky habit of yours.
"I love you" has to be the last thing I say to Erik or hear him say to me before I fall asleep.
If you had to describe yourself using three words, it would be…
Complicated. Passionate. Responsible. Weird, that spells CPR.
If I could be anybody besides myself, I would be…
Rachel Bilson from The OC.
If you were a comic strip character, who would you be and why?
Garfield because I love lasagna and naps.
What thought or message would you want to put in a fortune cookie?
"Do you really believe what happens in your life comes down to a computer generated message in a tasteless cookie?"
If you had to give up a favorite food, which would be the most difficult to give up?
Sushi.
What is one food you’d never want to taste again?
Broccoli.
If you won the lottery what would you do with the money?
Invest it and live on the interest.
You’ve been given access to a time machine. Where and when would you travel to?
The second coming.
If you could be any superhero and have super powers, which one would you like to have and why?
Invisible woman. She can spy on anyone.
Mount Rushmore honors four U.S. presidents: Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln, and Roosevelt. If you could add any person to Mount Rushmore, who would you add and why?
Alex Trebek. That guy knows everything.
What award would you love to win and for what achievement?
The Harper Avery award from Grey's Anatomy for being an awesome surgeon.
If you could transport yourself anywhere instantly, where would you go and why?
California to see my mom.
In your opinion, which animal is the best (or most beautiful) and why?
Manatees are awesome. They are super cute.
What is one item that you really should throw away, but probably never will?
Size 2 jeans.
Growing up, what were your favorite toys to play with as a child?
Not barbies. That's for sure.

I'm so old

2010-03-06T00:17:00.001-08:00

I am so old. There are teenagers having a very loud party (and drinking and smoking) across the street from my house (can't wait until I move) and it is midnight and I am pacing and "passionately discussing" with my husband how irresponsible and rude these kids are as if they care that I have to get up in 4 hours. I am so old.

Half Marathon

2010-03-05T09:24:00.000-08:00

Ok so I am not a runner. Anyone who knows me knows that I have said many times, "I do not run, I hate running and I will never run."

But all of a sudden I find myself running all the time, enjoying the effects of it (even if I don't necessarily enjoy it while doing it every time) and looking forward to the next time I will run.

So a year ago I could barely even walk the 3 mile BPA trail (granted, I weighed 70lbs more than I do now). Last night I ran just about 5 miles...I had never run more than 3 miles before last night. And today I signed up for a half marathon on May 1st. I'm glad I have Ashley and Suzanne to run with--they are such great motivation and inspiration for me. I gotta say, I'm kinda looking forward to the half marathon even though I'm scared of it at the same time.

For the next 8 weeks I'll be training for it by running 16 - 25 miles per week. I better lose some weight after all this!!!! :)

This was in the news today

2010-03-02T15:21:00.001-08:00

The Olympic-logo faceoff dot nearest his clinching shot had been melted out of the ice and given to a Royal Canadian Mounted Police officer in exchange for his hat, which the Zamboni driver wore while grinding away the rest of the ice.

Happy 1st Birthday Tyler

2010-02-13T14:15:00.000-08:00

I can't believe it's been a year already! My beautiful, amazing, smart, funny, perfect little boy turned one year old today!

We celebrated our heads off today! Erik made a red velvet cake from scratch with homemade butter cream frosting and cupcakes for our guests.

We had a party with Blake, Adam, Lexi, Addy, and Izzy. Tyler got spoiled with lots of great presents from all his friends. We had a great time!

Tyler loved eating his very own cake! He actually didn't get as messy as I'd expected but he sure enjoyed it.

After Tyler's party, we gave him a bath and went to get portraits taken at Sears. They actually didn't turn out as well as I'd hoped but they were ok and we purchased quite a few of them. Here are some of the poses we got:

First Haircut - Ever!

2010-02-12T11:31:00.001-08:00

Hi everone! Here is a picture of me before my very first haircut yesterday in honor of my first birthday which is tomorrow!

Mommy told the lady to just use scissors and trim it up a bit, but before we knew it, the clippers were already a-buzzin' on my head. I didn't mind though. I think a fade is a cool look.

I was pretty happy with the whole process, as long as I had a cracker in my mouth.

Maybe the haircut lady wants a bite?

Before:

After: (Drumroll, please...)

Mommy got to save my very beautiful hair in a little baggy with a certificate that says I got my first haircut. This is all very important for scrapbooking. See you soon--I'll be the one in the little man outfit with the little man haircut and one candle on my birthday cake!

Escrow

2010-02-06T18:16:00.000-08:00

Well we found the perfect house for us on Thursday! We put the offer on today and they accepted! We expect to close the third week of March!

I knew it was the right one as soon as I walked in the door. The picture below shows half the house, you can't see the whole thing on Google Earth because of the trees. It's been updated really well, but it has a few things we can still do to get more value out of it when we sell it in a few years. It's totally cute on the inside, just under 2000 square feet and has a great yard and deck. It came with some nice perks too, so we're really excited.

I'll have a nice big housewarming party so you can all see it in April once we're settled in!

Yay!

Ok so the sad part is, we won't be in the Dash Point Ward anymore. :( We'll be in the Federal Way ward so we're still in the stake at least. It's really sad because I totally love our ward, it's awesome and I love my calling with the Young Women but at least I will still get to hang out with all my friends without missing a beat since we will live in Federal Way. (We were looking in Black Diamond so consider yourselves lucky!! J/K)

Anyway we're so excited for our first house and I'm even more glad that I can still do the BPA trail with you girls during the summer and go to bookclub and yoga and fondue since I'm still close. So don't forget me even though I'm out of the ward!

$8000 Tax Credit

2010-01-29T16:43:00.000-08:00

So Erik and I were doing our taxes last night and low and behold we owe a ton even though we already paid a ton.

So the thought came up that if we owned a house we would be in a better position tax-wise. We've put off buying a house because the market has dropped and we figured we'd be moving to another state soon. But then last night we thought, why not buy something cheap and have it as an investment when we do decide to move in a year or two. Plus if we purchase it by April 30, 2010 we get an $8000 tax credit. So now we're in a big hurry.

So, I spent all night last night and all day today looking at houses online and we're going to meet with a Realtor tomorrow to see a few houses. Most of them are in Browns Point but a few are in Federal Way and Auburn.

Here's one of them:

Bye Bye Bottles

2010-01-23T16:52:00.000-08:00

It looks like we have successfully switched from bottles to sippy cups!

First time drinking by himself with a cup

Clapping afterwards

Let's Review

2010-01-13T12:31:00.000-08:00

I'm 23 today. Let's review what I've learned so far:

You cannot wear your blue-tooth in the shower.
You cannot will away cellulite.
Television used to be black and white--the world has always been in color.
You cannot burn 75,000 calories in one day.
Just because something is low fat doesn't mean you should eat twice as much of it.
People are not always (or usually) what they seem like on the outside.
Sushi is awesomely good.
Sushi is not healthy (not the kind I eat).
(Can you tell I'm hungry while I'm writing this?)
Television does not count as a hobby.
The Vietnamese ladies at the nail salon are probably talking about you while they do your nails.
Permanent marker is not permanent. Luckily.
Procrastination only makes things worse.
When you have kids you have to sweep the floor ten times a day.
Eight hours of sleep a night is not enough. Neither is four.
Belly button piercings may be cool but the scar is not cool.
There are only 24 hours in a day. Unfortunately you cannot change that.
You can't pray that your baby will go back to sleep every morning when he wakes up. Well you can but it won't work. At least not every day. :)
Guys don't multitask and you can't expect them to.
A smile goes a long way.
Negativity doesn't get anything done.
When you reach your goal you are not allowed to still be upset with yourself. You made it and you should be happy with yourself. You can improve more, that's fine but then when you meet that next goal, be happy and enjoy it.
Life goes by faster and faster as you get older. When people say time flies they are not kidding. One of these days we will blink and we'll be 72 years old.

I'm not ignoring you

2010-01-12T12:48:00.000-08:00

I'm not ignoring my friends. I'm just working every waking moment of the day.

I have no idea which way is up.

How do you keep a clean house, magnify your church calling, exercise daily, raise a child and work 30 - 40 hours per week?

Woo Hoo

2010-01-11T07:46:00.003-08:00

I lost 6 lbs this week. Like what!

(Just 21 more to go before I'm happy and 26 more to go before I'm really happy and 28 more to go before I'm extremely happy).

Congrats

2010-01-05T12:18:00.001-08:00

Congratulations to my hard-working husband Erik on his promotion to Manager of Operations for Alta Trust Company!

White Christmas in Utah

2009-12-29T08:51:00.000-08:00

Well Tyler had his first Christmas. Things are kind of strange around here because Grandpa is missing from his usual spot at the head of the table. He is back in the ICU (has been for a week or two) and we've been visiting him twice a day. We got spoiled by all three grandmas (that includes one great-grandma), and we've had a great time playing with our cousins Neal and Jeffrey. Grandpa has been improving but so far is still in the ICU. It's been a little over a month now.

He did get a Priesthood blessing telling him he would rise up and walk out of the hospital. So we certainly have faith in that.

Here are some cute pictures from our Christmas:

This one is for you, Jaime: Tyler is not afraid of white cats. Here he is sitting on Grandma Miles' lap with Kitty Boy in Idaho.

Here is Tyler still in Idaho eating his first bite of chocolate. Chocolate flavoring anyway. I don't think they put real chocolate in boxed pudding.

Here we are opening presents at Aunt Denise's house in Boise, Idaho. Tyler was more interested in eating the presents than in opening them.

Here we are in Utah at Grandma/Great-Grandma's house. Grandma makes turkey for Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years. Here is turkey number two.

Rather than spend a bunch of money on new stuff, I wrapped up a few of Tyler's existing toys and gave them to him again for Christmas. He seems happy to have his toy piano back.

My mom went literally NUTS and spent a ton of money on designer apparel for Tyler. Here is pair one of three pairs of Kenneth Cole dress shoes in size 3.5 for babies.

Erik and I got a Wii for Grandma for Christmas. She was pretty excited.

Here is the destruction after we opened our presents. What you see here is JUST gifts for Tyler.

Tyler loves his gifts and loves playing with his cousins Neal and Jeffrey. Here are Tyler and Neal playing with Tyler's new blocks.

Tyler, Neal and Jeffrey watching Ice Age. I should note here that Tyler has advanced ten fold since we've been in Utah. Since spending time with all his cousins he has learned how to crawl lightening fast, he's gotten two new teeth bringing his total to 6, he's starting talking in baby sentences which is way cute, he has been starting to walk, he learned to wave bye-bye and has been trying to climb the furniture. He is 100% off his pacifier now and sleeps with a comforter blanket over him in his crib. All of this is new as of this week.

Mini Santa

Tyler still loves to eat of course. Here is a cute picture of him feeding himself. We miss you all! We'll be home on the second or third of January!

Tyler is Crawling and Grandpa is out of the ICU

2009-12-18T13:00:00.000-08:00

Tyler finally crawls! Ten months old and the kid finally figured out that rolling is NOT where it's at!

And grandpa is out of the ICU--they said he'd never make it, and today they transported him to a residential rehab facility to get stronger before they send him home!! We are going to visit him next week and I am so excited!

Thank you all for your prayers.

Also, you should know I totally prayed that Tyler would crawl and then HE DID! That, my friends is a miracle.

I am trying to post a video but it won't load. So use your imagination.

Grandpa Update

2009-12-16T12:30:00.000-08:00

I know a lot of you have been following the story of my grandpa and his miraculous struggle to fight one million ailments at once out of nowhere.

Well, Grandpa is doing a lot better. He is still in the ICU but is no longer in critical condition. He is using the bathroom on his own, standing up with help and talking a little bit. He is still on a feeding tube and oxygen but is getting stronger every day.

His pnumonia is gone, his ulcers are healed and his heart is beating well and normally.

I can't wait to go see him next week! I will have pictures!!!!! Yay!

Miss Me?

2009-12-13T16:22:00.000-08:00

You may have noticed that I was not at church this week. I have had this awesome rash on my face for 5 days now. My whole face is swollen, at least one of my eyes has been swollen shut each day throughout the week and my cheeks are bright red and scaly. I look like an oversized lizard on crack.

I went and got blood tests on Friday because this is the fifth time I've had this in a year (though this is the worst it's ever been). I should know on Tuesday or Wednesday if I have anything serious. Most likely it's just some dumb thing meant to keep me from ever leaving my house again with no title, no treatment and no reason behind it. Yay.

Anyway it has made me really grateful for the things I have and for my health and my family. I know a lot of people have real health problems that keep them home and make them suffer and I am very grateful that so far I have not been one of them. This has also made me think there are some things I need to improve on (really? you're not perfect???? no) like treating people better, working harder, being nicer, being more positive and working more at spreading the Gospel. Anyway I will be fine but I wanted to at least let you all know why I've been missing. :)

Whining

2009-12-07T10:33:00.000-08:00

I love being a mom, it is so much fun. But it sure is hard work! Tyler has decided in the past month or so that he would like to whine his head off for no apparent reason, almost 24/7. All those of you who know Tyler know that he is a very happy child and is always smiling. I get comments from people every day at the store or wherever I go that he is so happy! But at home, he is a different animal! He whines allllll day long. I try to ignore it so he knows it doesn't get him what he wants but then I think maybe he wants something so after a while I try to give him things he may be whining for. I just can't figure it out. So much for consistency in parenting!

Is this just a phase? Do all 9 slash 10 month olds whine like this? What am I doing wrong??? What can I do? Please help!!

Sincerely,

Frustrated
Tacoma, WA

More Info

2009-12-04T11:19:00.000-08:00

Grandpa is doing a lot better. They are probably going to take him off the ventilator today so he can breathe on his own. Turns out his pnumonia was due to a fungal infection in his lungs so they are treating that now with anti fungal meds. Once that is gone (which it will be soon) he will be good as new!

At the temple last night I was praying for Grandpa and I was overcome with gratitude for the blessing he is in our lives and for the opportunity we'll have to go see him again in a few weeks. The Lord is so good to our family and we are very grateful for His blessings.

Keep Prayin'

2009-11-30T13:51:00.000-08:00

Grandpa said today (or rather wrote on a piece of paper) that he feels better than ever. That's hard to imagine since he is on a ventilator and a feeding tube, but he was holding Grandma's hand this morning and conveyed to her that they will have many more happy years together on this earth.

I am so thankful for the blessings of prayer and fasting and for the knowledge that Grandpa will be ok. Heavenly Father is so good to us. Grandpa still has plenty of work to do on this earth and is not ready to leave just yet. I can't wait to go see him for Christmas!

Miracles Can Happen

2009-11-29T06:49:00.000-08:00

I listened to the nurses reminding my grandpa to breathe and yelling his name and saying "Stay with us!" all night last night and now he has made it through the night and it looks like the internal bleeding has stopped--for now. There are 20 ulcers to worry about and they can't be operated on because he is too weak to handle surgery.

Thanks for your prayers, keep them up, they are working.

We were going to go to Utah this morning but since Grandpa is still conscious and the bleeding has stopped we are hopeful that he will recover and we can see him for Christmas instead of in the ICU.

More Prayers Please

2009-11-28T16:35:00.000-08:00

I've been sitting here listening through the phone to the nurses trying to revive my grandpa. His oxygen is as low as it can be, so is his blood pressure. It sounds like he may not make it through the night. He is bleeding internally and is currently having a blood transfusion. He also has pneumonia.

It is really hard for me to listen to the sounds of them reviving my grandpa and I feel awful knowing what he has to go through. I love him more than words can say, and dare I say no one has ever been as close to their grandpa as I am with mine.

Charitable Cause

2009-11-23T11:28:00.001-08:00

My friend and co-worker Gloria's husband is serving in the Army in Iraq. She sent me this email today. If you can help, please give me dollar store items or a couple bucks to purchase dollar store items by Nov 30.

Thanks.

Hello all,

A few of you have expressed interest in this so I wanted to extend the invitation to all of you. The children in Iraq are not nearly as fortunate as we are. A friend of mine said he gave out a handful of pencils and kids went crazy over them! Nathan said if we were to send items such as coloring books, crayons, school supplies, markers (apparently they really like things that make color!)…it would be very appreciated.

Don’t feel obligated to contribute, I know the world has lots of opportunities for doing good, this is just an option for you. If you’d like to help out, I’ll take anything you are happy to give; maybe your kids have old toys you can’t use for anything else, you can buy coloring books for $1 (they don’t need to be fancy), or just give me cash so I can do the shopping (only for the Iraqi children of course!). If you do bring in gifts, please remember not to bring anything religious. They will not allow Christian material to be distributed to the masses. As unfortunate as that is, we can still show our Christian love through our actions and the timing of this present.

I’d like to send the package by December 1st in order to be there before Christmas. Let me know if you have any questions!

Thank you,

Gloria Navarro

Tony Horton's Funniest Lines from P90X

2009-11-18T20:59:00.000-08:00

"I'm a pterodactyl comin' in for a landing! Caw Caw!"

"You should see me play hoops after doing a few months of Plyo -- it's UNBELIEVABLE!"

"Let me show you perfection. Not THIS (gesturing towards his own face) -- THIS (gesturing towards his shoulders)."

"She has the skin of a FIVE YEAR OLD -- SO LUCKY!"

"Tip of the day: DON'T SMASH YOUR FACE!"

"If you don't have a stool, grab your dog, cat, brother, sister, uncle... that's a short uncle!"

"Pam's an undercover agent being chased by some guys with a hand gun."

I think I have too much time on my hands, or I do too much P90X.

You Have To Be Freakin' Kidding Me

2009-11-18T10:44:00.001-08:00

Click Here to See Something So Stupid

I think it is so racist for Career Builder to make a job site just for black people. How about instead of segregating us more and defining ethnic jobs, why don't we do the opposite and embrace difference and continue to provide a normal Career Builder job site for EVERYONE? This worsens racism in every way. Not to mention if there was a white people job site the proprietors would be locked up-- as well they should! This is not right. Not right at all.

The point of this site is clearly to help employers meet Affirmative Action requirements. Affirmative Action is racist and it also prolongs racism and segregation. Through Affirmative Action, minorities are given a subliminal message of inferiority.

Employers should not be forced to hire people of any specific skin color. They should hire based on SKILL. Some employers don't of course, and that is on them. But don't make it worse by forcing non-racist employers to hire people just based on their skin. If I was black I wouldn't want a job just because I'm black any more than I now want a job any more because I'm white. This site and affirmative action are racist against blacks and whites alike.

Finally

2009-11-17T10:58:00.000-08:00

I lost a pound. Yay.

Stuck

2009-11-13T09:27:00.001-08:00

So as many of you have heard me complain, I have been stuck at 148 for 7 weeks now. It's ridiculous. I work out all the time, I work out hard, and I eat right. I've tried eating more, eating less, working out more, working out less, changing my workouts entirely. (Though Suzanne has a point, I just changed my workout last week, I need to give it more time).

Anyway I decided last night that I will let NOTHING get in my way. I am going to be at least in the 130's by the end of the year. So starting today this is my new diet (though I may have to swap out breakfast a few days a week for Fiber one cereal because I don't want to eat too many eggs):

Breakfast - 2 eggs, 1 piece of low cal toast, 1 glass of skim milk - 275 cals
Snack - 1 apple - 50 cals
Lunch - 3 homemade low cal low fat egg rolls - 250 cals
Snack - Veggies and fat free ranch dip - 150 cals
Dinner - Low fat with vegetables will vary - 600 - 700 cals
Workout - Burn 400 cals
Snack - Glass of skim milk - 90 cals
Optional - Fruit - 50 cals
Total - 1400 - 1550 cals for the day
I know I know some of you think that's not enough. But I've done everywhere from 1200 - 1900 per day with no results but there was a time when I did 1400 and things worked pretty well. So I'm going to try this for a week and see what happens.

If anyone has advice or ideas on what I should eat please don't hesitate to share!

Thanks. And PS I have the skinniest friends ever-- I just want to join you all!

Update

2009-11-11T15:29:00.000-08:00

Grandpa is doing very well after having 5 bypasses this morning. He was supposed to have 6 and ended up only needing 5. He is still in the hospital but doing very well. Thank you to all of your prayers and thank you very much also to those of you who fasted with our family!

Please Pray for Grandpa

2009-11-09T14:59:00.001-08:00

My Grandpa is the most incredible man I have ever known. He is steadfast in his faith, always serving the Lord. He holds two leadership callings in the church simultaneously and spends almost all his time serving in the church. He eats fruit salad every day for lunch and has for 30 years. He runs 2 miles every morning except on Sundays, even in the snow. He can bench press more than I can. He has always been a father to me--the only father I ever knew until I got married and inherited a father-in-law. He and my grandma raised me in their home when no one else could or would and has given up much for me and because of me. Always sacrificing and never asking for anything in return. He is honest, hard-working, intelligent and brave. I look up to him and pray each day that my son will grow up to be just like him.

Three days ago my grandpa was in perfect health. We just found out his heart isn't in good shape. On Wednesday he is having open-heart surgery. He's having six bypasses done on his heart. He is 80 years old so I'm a tiny bit worried. Of course, he is the healthiest person on earth having never so much as taken medication until this heart issue popped up last week. Six arteries blocked and still running 2 miles a day, never tiring. He is truly a testament to the Word of Wisdom.

I have fear of course as anyone would and so I ask that you all take a moment to say a prayer for my grandpa, Raymond Smalley. He has prayed for many of you though you may not know it--his prayers always ask the Lord to bless our family and friends and keep them and their families safe and strong in the gospel.

Your prayers would be really helpful. Thanks.

8 1/2 months old!

2009-10-30T20:23:00.000-07:00

I haven't put a lot of updates on here lately but I have taken quite a few pictures.

First time in the big boy bath

Feeding crackers to himself

I turn my back for one second and he scoots and rolls across the house!

First time crawling!

YAWN! Crawling is tiring!

Friends

2009-10-25T10:05:00.000-07:00

I have such great friends. Each of them is awesome and I value their friendship very much. Not to mention they are all quite beautiful. Who has ever seen so many beautiful women in one place?

I look up to all of you-- you are all such great moms, you always seem to have it all together, you all work so hard and are so sweet and kind. Your honesty, your talents and your charity amaze me every day. Thanks for always being such an inspiration in ways you don't even know.

First Family Photo

2009-10-22T12:18:00.000-07:00

This is our very first family photo. Isn't that sad??!? We have never handed anyone a camera and said, "Hey take a picture of us!"

So, we were at Snoqualmie a few weeks ago with the Holman's and Suzanne took this cute picture of our little family!

1:41am

2009-10-20T01:41:00.000-07:00

It's too bad there isn't a 24 hour fitness around here I can go to. I've been laying in bed completely awake all night. I read 100 pages in my book at midnight and that didn't even make me tired. I'm drinking warm milk, I took a sleeping pill, nothing.

Isn't it the worst feeling ever when you know you are tired but you can't sleep? My brain is going a mile a minute on dumb stuff I don't care about and I am dreading Tyler's inevitable 6:00am wake up call because I just know by then I'll be exhausted and dragging--though you wouldn't know it with the energy I have now.

I bet you one million dollars I could get Suzanne to run 5 miles with me right now. Don't worry Suzanne--I won't be calling you. :)

But seriously, I want to sleep!!! ARGH!!!!!!! Tomorrow will not be fun.

New Camera

2009-10-17T19:05:00.000-07:00

We went to Best Buy today and got a Canon Powershot. It's awesome. We had a lot of fun breaking it in.

The Many Faces of Me

2009-10-15T18:53:00.001-07:00

I ran 3 miles tonight (thanks Ash and Suz!) without walking and I was thinking about how much I've changed--both for better and worse in the last 3 years. I've gone from 118lbs to 209lbs and then back down to 148lbs and counting.

So I wanted to show you some pix of me both when I was super hot and not so hot. It's motivating for me and it's nice to show off how skinny I used to be. Maybe someday I'll get back there.....I hope this doesn't seem full of myself. I just wanted to show some before and afters. Even though I'm not after yet.

Last week

2 months after Tyler was born

June 2007

April 2008 (yes, those are size 2 jeans)

February 2007 at work

June 2008, the day I got sealed in the temple (and pregnant)

October 2008 (5 months pregnant)

The day after Tyler was born--still had hypertension apparently--DON'T JUDGE! I GAINED 20 LBS OF WATER WEIGHT IN 3 DAYS AND HAD TO BE EMERGENCY INDUCED!

August 2008 - 2 months pregnant

Two Tiny Teeth

2009-10-13T14:17:00.000-07:00

Tyler finally got 2 of his teeth to pop through this week! The first one on Saturday and the second one this morning (Tuesday)! What a big week!

He turned 8 months old today. I can't believe how fast he's growing. He still doesn't crawl and I can't say I'm too disappointed...at least I don't have to chase him all over the house yet. He says Mama and Dada and Baba and Hi and he's working on Bye bye and Binky. He feeds himself crackers and fruit and practices with a spoon. We've been having a lot of fun.

I know I hadn't posted in a while so I wanted to put something on here. I will also add that I have been stepping up my working out to two or three times per day and making them more vigorous. I haven't seen a ton of results yet but I'm sure they will happen. I was thinking yesterday, I'm finally going to get my body back just in time to mess it up again with another baby! ARGH! I don't know how some of you do it!!!! Have a great week!

PS

2009-10-06T15:59:00.000-07:00

I forgot to tell you I passed my test with 98% across the board last week. Got my insurance license yesterday. :)

The Case Moves Forward

2009-10-06T09:01:00.000-07:00

Kyle Adams was officially charged for killing my sister. The press has been all over me the last few days, and its nice to set the record straight that Sarah was an innocent victim and NOT a street racer. Here is one of the articles from the San Francisco Chronicle that I'm quoted in. Though they got my age wrong, I am not 21. I'm 22!!!! Much older.

Click Here To Read The Article

Netflix Streams Porn With Their Disney Movies

2009-10-03T08:02:00.000-07:00

If you have a Netflix account streaming through your xbox 360 and scroll to new releases, hardcore porn will pop up. That is totally unexceptable. Porn should have its own "adult" category at the very least and possibly be blocked so children using the xbox360 cannot view it next to their Disney movies in the new release category.

Imagine how surprised I was when I turned on my xbox 360 Netflix streaming application this morning and scrolled to the "New Arrivals: Movies" section and viewed the first three titles with the images from the DVD covers - 1. Disney's Bedtime Stories 2. Bare Behind Bars X Rated 3. The 18 Year Old Virgin, Barely Legal Unrated

I called Netflix and spoke to Joe, a customer service rep who apologized but said that since the pornography was a new release, it shows up under new releases. I reminded Joe that I have parental controls set to block Rated R movies on my xbox (not on my netflix, I didn't know that was available) but that my xbox blocked all netflix rated R movies on its own. He said yes my xbox can block rated R movies but these movies were unrated and therefore weren't blocked. As a "courtesy" Joe was nice enough to change my netflix user settings to disallow porn so now my children won't see it pop up next to Disney's bedtime stories.

I called every news channel on earth this morning. We'll see what happens.

Study til you drop

2009-09-30T20:15:00.000-07:00

Here is one of 24 pages of the outline for the test I'm taking tomorrow. Yikes.

Wish me luck...

Rain rain go away

2009-09-29T13:51:00.001-07:00

You know in about 4 months we are going to forget what the sun even looks like.

update

2009-09-21T11:58:00.000-07:00

Had my little surgery this morning. It was outpatient, didn't take long. Lots of pain, lots of blood. Fun fun. Thanks to all of you for reaching out to help me with Tyler, food, blessings, etc. I appreciate having such great friends.

On Thursday I'll know if they have to do a more extensive surgery on it or not because the surgeon said she didn't think she got it all from the outpatient surgery. Percocet is fun at least.

Cystopia

2009-09-21T07:29:00.000-07:00

So about a month ago I had a weird twinge of pain on my lower back/tailbone area when I was in the shower. Twice before I've had to get cysts removed from there and let me tell you, I'd rather give birth. So I got all freaked out but then I forgot about it for awhile because it only hurt that one moment.

Well last week, the pain started constantly and now I have a big cyst on my lower back. Good times. So I have to have it surgically removed--and still, I'd rather give birth. Seriously.

I'm waiting for a call back to hear when I'm going in. Afterward, it takes like 2 weeks to heal and it's not a fun healing process. Especially with a baby and an insurance test to study for. Good times.

My sister's case goes to the next level

2009-09-16T13:28:00.000-07:00

Castro Valley Forum Front Page News This Morning

Reporting Live From Tacoma, Wa

2009-09-15T14:09:00.000-07:00

Since CNN, ABC, NBC and CBS refuse to report on this news story, I am going to. You can watch FOX news to get the full story or go to www.BigGovernment.com

Acorn is a corrupt organization with ties to our government. They've received millions of tax payer dollars and have been investigated for voter registration fraud among other things. Watch the video if you haven't already seen it. Then ask yourself why no one is reporting this except for Fox news.

www.BigGovernment.com

I een a mall pider pin ilk in the now

2009-09-14T07:38:00.000-07:00

(I've seen a small spider spin silk in the snow)

You remember the band Presidents of the United States of America? Well their lead singer made a cool CD call Caspar Babypants that my sister-in-law Kim sent over last weekend. Like Kim, I don't usually enjoy the baby CD's so much, especially after hearing them time and time again. Most of them are a little too sing-songy and the subject matter is usually pretty lame. But alas, Casper Babypants is a CD for all to enjoy. It is the most innovative, creative, unique and fun CD I have ever heard. It's even quite enjoyable musically--he's great on guitar.

Anyway, Caspar Babypants as he calls himself (the lead singer of The Presidents) is giving free--yes free--concerts for kids and their parents at our local King County library! Tyler and I are very excited. We would love if anyone wants to come with us. The link for more info is here. We are planning on going to the Federal Way 320th library on Friday, October 9th at 11:00am. I urge anyone with kids under the age of 5 to go with me. It will be really fun.

One of his songs is called I've Seen a Small Spider Spin Silk in the Snow. You'll notice the title of this blog is that song without the S's. The song is really fun and hard to sing when you drop the S and add new letters in. You'll find yourself singing it in the shower believe you me.

Ok so enough about that. Tyler is now officially weened from nursing, part of me is quite sad, though I had no choice in the matter, it was a medical decision on my part. I have bad migraines quite often and have been unable to treat them until now since the medication is bad for babies. Erik and I decided it was time to take care of me for a change and Tyler loves formula, has no problem with it whatsoever, and I feel very blessed by that. So of course the last few days I've been going around in a sports bra and immense pain, but we've all been there so that's nothing new.

Here are some pix of Tyler feeding himself and just being generally his cute self. He's 7 months old already, can you believe it?

P90X

2009-08-31T14:57:00.000-07:00

Ok so we just started the P90X last week, and every single muscle in my body aches like there's no tomorrow. But I can feel myself getting stronger, and I love a good challenge which this certainly is.

If you are looking for a tough workout "guaranteed to make you ripped in 90 days" you should try the P90X. Also if you want to feel way out of shape and weak, this workout is for you. :)

Canning and a Growing Baby

2009-08-27T21:00:00.000-07:00

So I know I haven't posted in a long time. Things have been really busy with work, my calling, working out (yes, I've been running 4 - 5 nights per week), and keeping up with Tyler. So I have quite a backup of Tyler pictures.

I also recently purchased a pressure canner/pressure cooker. The thing is so big (27 quarts) it barely fits on our stove under our microwave! This week Erik pressure cooked the best chili colorado on earth and we canned the leftovers. Then Amy Felt dropped off some great pears and I canned those all by myself! Then since I was in the food storage mood, I made a ton of wheat bread to freeze (though so far I've done a good job thawing it out and eating it).

Our basement is getting way organized with pasta, beans, flour, rice, soup mixes and now jars of various canned items. I'm excited that were are doing what the prophet asks and preparing ourselves. I even purchased a 55 gallon drum for water storage! Good times.

Feeding Frenzy

2009-08-17T11:37:00.001-07:00

Tyler really loves peas, squash, and carrots. The other day he decided to grab the spoon out of my hand. The results were messy, but quite cute.

August 12

2009-08-11T20:44:00.001-07:00

One year ago right now, Sarah was getting off work and heading out with her friends. She had no idea it would be for the last time. They went to IHOP and took silly pictures making fun of her top lip (she thought she had no top lip).

She laughed so hard she cried, tears even fell onto her jeans.

She had just dyed her hair black, she had it curly that night. She was wearing one of her favorite shirts and her favorite diamond earrings our mom got her.

Clark and Kyle thought it would be a good idea to race each other and since my sister didn't bring her car that night (it was parked at Starbucks to save on gas) she waited patiently in Geoffrey's truck while Kyle and Clark raced. Kyle in his mommy's BMW and Clark in his daddy's Corvette. Dumb boys with their parents' cars--way too much horsepower for children to handle. Obviously.

Kyle won the race and my sister declared she would get to ride back to Starbucks with the winner now that the races were over. But then she remembered Kelly had a crush on Kyle and so she quickly gave up her seat in the winning car to let Kelly and Kyle have some "alone time". She left her purse in Geoffrey's truck and took her seat in the Corvette with Clark.

While they were driving along, Clark got the idea that he'd try to pass Kyle on a two lane windy 35 mph country road-- a dark, curvy street with no lights, no side rails, and not much visibility. I'm sure my sister was begging him to slow down before he ever reached 140 miles per hour. The witnesses say they saw a large flash and then heard screeching as they saw the car go way too fast around a sharp turn and drive up the cyclone fence which stood between the road and the parallel freeway. The car flipped over and slid on the convertible roof for hundreds of feet before coming to a stop. Some of the tires were found rolling half a mile down the road. The car was in pieces, it was unrecognizable. Geoffrey drove to catch up and then ran over to what was left of the car and said he heard nothing from inside. He called 911. They took a while to respond.

The crash was around 1:00am August 12, 2008. My phone rang around 4:00am, and I missed it. I couldn't figure out why my phone was ringing in the middle of the night. When I saw it had been my mom I remembered how the night before I told Erik that my worst fear in the world would be losing Sarah.

I called my mom back immediately. She was crying and I asked her what was wrong. She wailed "Sarah died." Through her hysterics I could barely make out the words. I asked her to repeat herself. I remember telling her, "You're lying! You're lying!" I didn't believe a word she was telling me. Then I just started screaming. She told me the police were there and they had Sarah's belongings when I insisted it must be some mistake. Erik got up and came to see what was wrong, thinking something must have been wrong with the baby. He calmed me down and I immediately called Jaime who came over and sat with me while I made my airline reservations.

The next few days were a blur. I was pregnant, exhausted and numb to the world. I had to fly to California alone--Erik couldn't get off work for a few days. I walked through the airport with big dark glasses on, just daring anyone to mess with me. I was crying silently, willing this whole mess to be just some bad nightmare. Picturing the accident and trying to tear myself away from the news which showed horrific pictures and terrible details. Not to mention quite a few people actually thought it was wise to email me the news story and photos of the wreckage.

I somehow planned the funeral, the burial, the viewing, and organized family and friends' visits and meals. The Relief Society was a big help, I can never repay them for their service. The funeral director called and told me I had to come down to see her because he didn't think a viewing was appropriate. Instead of take his word for it, my mom wanted confirmation, so apparently I was the one for the job.

Erik showed up and went with me to see her. It wasn't her, that's all I can say. I had them close the coffin and I watched my mom break down even more when I got home and told her the news.

We buried Sarah a few days later and reality finally started to set in.

Living without Sarah is like nothing I'd ever imagined. It's so different than losing a grandparent or even a parent (I've been through both of those). Time may heal but so far the wound is fresh. The biggest disappointment is knowing she had so many dreams and aspirations and her life was cut short by carelessness and cowardice, neither of which were through faults of her own.

Sarah was the most beautiful, intelligent, happy, helpful, smart, hard working, cheerful, funny, athletic, coolest person I've ever known. I know at least 1,500 people who agree with me. They say it was the biggest funeral the church had seen in 15 years.

I don't write this to get sympathy. Only to get it out and to warn whoever might be reading this to listen to the Spirit and stay away from dangerous situations. Also make sure your loved ones know you love them and never do anything you don't want to do. Speak up for yourself, be assertive and be home by midnight.

Jeep Trip

2009-08-01T21:18:00.000-07:00

For the first time in over a year, we set off at 5:30 this morning for a really fun Jeep trip with Ashley and Scott. We went to Elbe Hills, a trail we had never run before. Erik spent the last week lifting our jeep and putting new off-road tires on and so we were pretty excited to try it out.

We met up with Russ, a backwoods dude with a very interesting take on beavers. Don't ask. From the backseat I got a few good pictures of Russ' Jeep.

Things started out pretty normal, rock here, tree trunk there. Nothing to write home about.

We didn't expect to see mud out there since it's been so hot lately. You can't tell from the picture but Ashley and I ended up getting completely covered head to toe in stinky mud. It was pretty fun. Then we got stuck and couldn't get out. So we had Russ tow us out. After several attempts which included Erik taking off his shoes and socks and getting the mud, we got out of the mud pit.

Triple Threat: The Cookie Cake Pie

2009-07-31T16:41:00.001-07:00

Here is a blog post I stumbled across today after trying to figure out a way to incorporate yellow cake into a pie for Erik's birthday treat. I made it with some modifications of course, and it turned out great!

Triple Threat: The Cookie Cake Pie

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First time sitting up

2009-07-26T20:59:00.001-07:00

I know I just posted 5 minutes ago, but a lot happened this weekend. So scroll down for the other post from today too.

So as you know it was hotter than hot yesterday (Saturday). It was actually cooler in the shade outside than it was in our house (except in our air-conditioned bedroom, but who wants to sit in the bedroom all day?) So Erik was going to trim the hedges and Tyler and I believe it or not had never had a "picnic" outside before. So we grabbed the big quilt Dane's mom (Dane was Sarah's boyfriend) made for us and headed out front.

We had so much fun! Tyler loved watching Daddy do the yard work and watching the clouds go by in the sky. Then we decided to practice sitting up and what do you know but he sat up all by himself for the first time! My little superstar!!!

I was totally surprised...I had no idea he could do it!

I think he was a little surprised too.

Then, he got a little tired of sitting up...

And I'm really not sure what this face was about...but it was certainly adorable enough for the blog.

First Real Food

2009-07-26T20:50:00.000-07:00

I had decided after doing rice cereal for a month that I wanted to try "real food" pretty soon. After talking to Valerie Vanderhoeven and Amy Felt when they came visiting teaching on Friday and hearing their stories I was excited to start right away. Especially since Tyler has shown so much interest in what we eat for dinner and the rice cereal went over so well.

So we started peas on Friday! He absolutely loved them! He didn't spit them out or anything. I realized though that I need a new camera because this really doesn't capture just how cute the peas were smeared all over his face!

Yum-O

2009-07-23T16:32:00.000-07:00

I just made the BEST dinner. I took a Rachael Ray recipe and cut out a lot of the fat but kept the flavor. It ended up being 11 - 13 points per serving depending on if you eat the bacon or not. It is SOOOOOOOO tasty. Oh my gosh. I love it love it love it.

Creamy Spaghetti with Beans and Bacon

* 4 cups chicken stock
* 1 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
* 1 tablespoons butter
* 3 slices bacon (I used maple flavored)
* 4 cloves garlic, chopped
* 1/2 pound spaghetti
* 1 medium white onion, chopped (don't use yellow or red)
* 1 red bell pepper
* 1 fresh bay leaf
* 5 to 6 sprigs fresh thyme
* 1/2 can Cannelini or white kidney beans
* Salt and freshly ground black pepper
* 1/2 cup white grape juice (this is a white wine substitute)
* 6 oz grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
* A generous handful flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped

Place the stock in a sauce pot and warm it over medium heat then reduce to simmer.

Heat the extra-virgin olive oil and the butter in a large, deep skillet over medium to medium-high heat. Add the bacon to brown slightly and add flavor to pot. Remove bacon. Next add the garlic and spaghetti and toast the noodles lightly, 3 to 4 minutes. Careful not to let the garlic burn. Add onions and bell pepper, bay and thyme and season with salt and pepper. Soften veggies a bit, 5 minutes. Add grape juice and allow it to be completely absorbed. Add beans then add a few ladles of stock and stir the pasta. Keep adding stock a few ladles at a time allowing liquids to be mostly absorbed before adding more, as if you were preparing a risotto. When liquids are absorbed and spaghetti is cooked to al dente, 12-15 minutes, stir in cheese. Adjust salt and pepper. Turn off heat and stir another minute. Crisp bacon under a broiler to crumble on top of pasta. Remove the bay and thyme stems. Serve in shallow bowls and garnish with lots of parsley.

YUM-O!

Ella and Olivia Visit Baby Tyler

2009-07-20T20:58:00.000-07:00

We had the pleasure of spending a couple hours with Ella and Olivia on Friday night--two of the most beautiful and fun little girls in the world! We had SO much fun. They are so sweet, smart and adorable.

Dinner time was very entertaining. Erik did "magic tricks" where he "pulled a crayon out of his ear" and Olivia immediately said, "Whoa, there is a LOT of magic in this house!"

Then Ella wanted to try and we had to let her know that Erik didn't really have a crayon in his ear--Ella, don't try this at home!!

Then we went outside to play tag, soccer, bubbles and chalk. Olivia played peek-a-boo with Tyler and Ella chased the bubbles around the yard. We had a blast. Tyler loves Ella and Olivia. We just aren't sure which one he will marry!!! They are both so cute!!

Back to Sleep?

2009-07-08T11:58:00.000-07:00

Well, we all know that saying "back to sleep, tummy to play". I have always followed our doctor's advice and that of the numerous baby books I have. But most of you also know that since Tyler started teething he will not nap, no matter what I try. Believe me, I've tried it all. Letting him cry, putting him down after he falls asleep, putting him in there 30 minutes before naptime when he's drowsy, putting him down after giving him tylenol, letting him try to nap in his swing, all while trying to keep some semblance of consistency so he doesn't lose his mind...I've done it all.

Yesterday my Grandma said to me, "You know, we always put our kids to sleep on their tummies and they sure slept well." I have told her before that I wasn't willing to try that because of the supposed SIDS risk. But yesterday I was willing to try anything after struggling for a total of 3 hours. So I decided to give it a shot just for naptime. And I promised myself that I would watch him like a hawk and keep the monitor turned up to hear his breathing.

Well wouldn't you know it, he fell asleep almost instantly yesterday on his tummy. And today instead of struggling through several nap attempts over the course of three hours, I just put him on his tummy first and he fell right to sleep. Not to mention, yesterday he took a two hour nap instead of the normal one hour nap on his back. I guess I figure if Heavenly Father is going to take him from SIDS or any other way, it will happen no matter which way Tyler sleeps. He's in his crib with no blankets, no toys, no pacifier and there's nothing to hurt him in there. And since my mom put me to bed on my stomach and so did generations before her, I can't really see why it is so terrible to do it myself.

Tyler doesn't have any problems going to sleep at night, so I am still putting him to sleep on his back at night. He sleeps through the night that way, so at least for the 8 - 10 hour stretch I am "following the rules". But for my sanity I just have to put him on his tummy for naptime. And look, isn't he so cute?

Trip to Idaho

2009-07-06T14:07:00.000-07:00

As most of you know, we planned three trips to Idaho in the last 6 weeks, and we finally got home from the third and final trip this summer yesterday. We had a lot of fun and got to spend time with our family, who we love very much.

Tyler was really good in the car and on the plane (we flew one time and drove two times). He is still teething really bad but he tried to be cheerful despite his pain.

Here are some pictures of our trip during 4th of July.

This is one Erik took when I was not there... of course its cute but I wouldn't approve of this dangerous pose!

This is Tyler with his beautiful Aunt Amber. Isn't she gorgeous? Tyler is in love!
This is Tyler with his little cousin Garren. Garren is 6 1/2 months old and is very fun to play with!
He is a little explorer...I think he wants to explore Tyler's ear in this picture.
This is Tyler on the way home from Idaho in the car. Aunt Kimberly gave him a very adorable little Turtle that makes fun noises and Tyler hasn't put it down since!

Scrapbooking

2009-06-30T14:40:00.000-07:00

Anyone who really knows me knows that I don't have a creative/artsy bone in my body. Sure I can do the occasional musical number, but that's as far as the right side of my brain can go.

So recently I've been saying that I want to scrapbook (Jaime has like 25 scrapbooks she's done over the years and they are such an inspiration) and now I am really going to start.

I found this cool website, ScrapBuck where everything is like $1 and it's all pretty cool stuff. So I am going to buy an album, some paper, stickers and whatever else I need to get started. I have no idea where to go from there but I have about 500 pictures of Tyler that I'd love to get into an album. I'm thinking of doing a section for each month he's been alive until he's older then I can do a section for each year.

I inherited some cool scrapbooking stamps and ribbons and stuff from my sister so I have the basics, now I just need some direction. If anyone is really serious about starting scrapbooking, let me know and you can come over and we can do it together.

Teething

2009-06-24T10:34:00.000-07:00

Tyler is biting everything in sight. He is drooling all over the place. He is fussy, his nose is stuffy and running and he's not taking naps. He's only 4 months old!! Gimme a break!!!

I can only hope his teeth break through soon (though I've heard it can be a long time) so that we can go back to having some peace around here!

So excited, just can't hide it

2009-06-16T09:51:00.000-07:00

I still have a very long way to go to get back into my skinny jeans, but I am so excited I wanted to share with you all:

I lost 2.4 more lbs this week which means I've now lost 10% of my weight. I have 44 more lbs to go! I should be right on time with my October 31st goal of being 125!

Yay! Thank you all so much for motivating me and making me jog up the hills when I want to lie down. I have the best friends ever.

Happy 18th Birthday

2009-06-13T22:20:00.001-07:00

Today is Sarah's 18th birthday, or it would be if she were here. This is actually the last photo ever taken of her, one hour before the accident. I've spent a lot of time stifling my feelings--I just don't have time to get emotional. But I can't help missing her every day and thinking about her whenever no one is around and I'm left with just the silence.

I still try to call her almost every day. I long so much to hear her voice and see her smile. She really had the most beautiful smile anyone has ever seen.

If she were here today she would have had a huge party at the beach, grass skirt and all. She would have had a huge crowd there and everyone would have gotten her a cool present--people loved to give her things because she made them so happy.

I would have gotten her a Kathy Van Zeeland purse from QVC. Probably a purple one.

I can't describe the pain of being without her. But I can describe the happiness in knowing we will be together forever someday. I know she is with Heavenly Father and that her cares are minimal, that she is not in pain and that she is free from the sorrows of the world. I dream about her almost every night, and I always try to stay asleep so I won't wake from the dream of hugging her or talking with her.

Sarah, I love you. Happy birthday. You affect me every single day. As I promised you almost a year ago on that fateful morning, I will continue to live my life as a tribute to your memory. You are my angel.

First Trip to the Zoo

2009-06-10T10:52:00.000-07:00

Tyler took his first trip to the zoo yesterday with Jaime and Deon and their kids. We had so much fun! Here are two pictures of Tyler while he was enjoying his favorite exhibit, the walruses. He was absolutely mesmerized by them. The one he loved the most is named E.T. which is what we call Erik, so it makes sense that Tyler would love E.T.

Learning New Tricks

2009-06-06T20:37:00.000-07:00

So we've learned some new tricks this week.

1. Sticking out our tongues:

2. Eating rice cereal with milk (video, press play):

I think these speak for themselves. PS: We are just trying things out with rice cereal now that he's 4 months because he's been very interested in real food and the doc said it was ok. But he's still happily nursing night and day :)

Finally Pics with Mommy

2009-06-01T13:20:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Ashley, Heather, Suzanne, Karen and Stephanie I've started getting into shape again (I have a long way to go)! But I am confident enough now to release these pics to the public! :)

We went walking/jogging this morning on the BPA trail. It was really hard for me but I know if I keep doing it I will eventually be able to do more. Thank you girls for motivating me!!! I can't wait to see myself in a month after doing this every day!

Idaho / Recipe of the Week

2009-05-28T14:12:00.000-07:00

Well we did it! 9 hours in the car each way to and from Boise, Idaho. With the dog and the baby. We actually left the dog in Idaho--she wanted a vacation on the farm. We miss her already but it's nice to have bark-free naptime.

Here are some pictures of Tyler and his adorable cousin Garrin. They had so much fun. They laughed at each other and watched each other and just loved sharing Grandma's lap. We love Garrin and we had so much fun with our Idaho family!!!

I also wanted to start sharing some of my recipes...I have a knack for finding delicious but pretty easy recipes and everyone is always asking me to share. So last night I made a really yummy version of the Chinese classic Sweet and Sour Chicken. I took out the fattening deep fry batter and sauteed the chicken instead. The result was about 75% less fat and 100% of the taste! I have doctored the recipe from it's original and played with the ingredients to make it even better. Enjoy!

Serves 4 - 6
Sweet and Sour Chicken

Sauce
1 orange
1 lime
1 lemon
2 T fresh minced ginger (from a jar is fine)
1 C Sugar
3 T ketchup
1/2 t salt
1/2 t red food coloring (optional but better looking)

1 bell pepper (color of your choice)
1 large onion (I prefer white, but yellow works too)
1 can chunked pineapple, juice reserved (don't dump that juice out!)
5 T cornstarch mixed with 1/2 C cold water

Saute as much chicken as you'd like. Cut it into small bite-sized pieces and let cool.

Bring 2 cups of water to boil in wok or saucepan. Squeeze the citrus fruits into the water and then drop the peels in the water too, rind and all! Add ginger, sugar, ketchup, salt and food coloring. Bring to boil stirring constantly until sugar is dissolved. Once sugar dissolves, you can just stir occasionally and boil for another 20 - 25 minutes until sauce has reduced by almost half.

Pour sauce into a bowl. In the same wok or saucepan, saute onion, bell pepper, and pineapple (keeping that juice out for later). Add chicken and toss 3 times.

Add sauce to veggie/chicken dish and add that pineapple juice! Once things start bubbling, add the water and cornstarch mixture. Bring back to a quick boil (should take about 1 minute) and then toss twice and serve over rice or on its own! Without rice, the dish is about 9 Weight Watchers points per 1/4 of the food.

The whole thing takes about 30 minutes if you don't have a screaming baby in your arms. The taste is healthy and wonderful! Cheaper than the restaurant and literally 50 grams of fat less!!! I checked!

The Long Road

2009-05-12T08:43:00.001-07:00

So as we all know, I gained about 1,000,000lbs during my pregnancy. Let's face it, food is good and I had been dieting for way too long. :) Going forward I have a goal of doing much better when I'm pregnant so I don't have this problem again. But in the mean time I have about 50 more pounds to lose and I want to make it public so I'll actually do it.

So, I started Weight Watchers about 6 weeks ago and so far I've lost 12.2 lbs just on Weight Watchers. I lost weight before that but it was mostly baby and water weight--about 18 lbs. So yesterday Erik brought home one of those digital body fat scales that also tracks your water weight and total body weight. I have to say I'm pretty pumped. I'm more motivated now because I have a real scale that actually works (our old one was 10 lbs off) and now that I know Weight Watchers is really working I'm excited to keep going. I can see my goal in the distance. By October I should be as thin as I was when Erik and I got married. Woo hoo. I have a closet full of clothes I can't wait to wear.

Erik is doing it too. We've both vowed to lose 50lbs by October 31st and when we do, we are each going to get $500 to spend on whatever we want. It's motivation on top of motivation.

Anyway my only reservation is that nursing Tyler makes losing weight take longer because I have to eat 10 Weight Watchers points more than I would if I wasn't nursing. But I believe it's worth it and I'm not going to quit nursing for selfish reasons.

I've also been watching this cable channel called Fit TV. Every day they have different high cardio workouts so I've been DVR'ing them and doing them as much as possible. I've also got my stability ball out and my freeweights for ab workouts. And if the weather ever turns back to good, I'll be out on the BPA trail everyday like I was last week.

So here's what I should look like again in October. PS this is a pre-garment picture.

Let me know if you want to hit the trail with me sometime. I could use the company.