Take up the challenge!

Alright I am going to admit it.....the gym is now a luxury I don't have much time for anymore since Vaughn has changed his naptimes to later in the afternoon.  I was getting frustrated not being able to go to Piyo or just do a good cardio workout while Vaughn was in the childcare for an hour.

With that said I decided to humble myself and started doing this 90 challenge that my visit teaching companion has been doing. What is so fantastic is that this is being done with a real life woman who has babies of her own and isn't a twig sporting a sixpack that makes you feel like a whale. Yes ladies, she is a woman with curves. Shocking I know.  She is also struggling to shed those unwanted pounds and get a more flattering figure back. There is struggling, there is sweat, and by golly there is empowerment!

I am putting this out there because these exercises can be done while the babies are taking a nap or after they have gone down for the night. They generally only take about 20 minutes to complete with an additional 5 for warm up and cool down. SO that is a total of 30 minutes! Dinner takes more time to make than doing these.

Even though I am doing these I am going to continue to go to the gym when I can to get my alone time, and once it truly warms up I'll take Vaughn out for a walk as well to help encourage those excess jiggles to disappear. 

Here is the first of the videos. While I wont be wearing an actual bikini (I'll scare people with my tiger stripes) It will be nice to slim down again.

Bullying

Bullying.

This is a serious problem. Now I am not just jumping on the bandwagon because it is there. I have seen it first hand. Working in a school I see it everyday in varying degrees and manifestations. You have your stereotypical "Mean Girls", those girls that are constantly in a cat-fight, name calling, and gossiping with each other behind the others backs the eternal "Frienemies". Then there are the "Mean Boys". I don't' know the official name for this group. These are the boys that think it is funny to "tease" other students beyond the social friendly norm. What I mean is taking things and hiding them from others, making rude comments right in their face, and physical harassment (beyond the playful wrestling/jostling that is attributed with boys). The third kind of bullying is the manipulative and psychological kind. This tends to be more subtle and often times harder to track and pin on someone. This is the ruthless accusing of stealing, telling lies, continual one upping, and other mental punishments. I find this one to be more detrimental, especially when it involves persons who are not fully capable of filtering and assessing what is right and wrong, true and false, and standing up to it.

Now you might be thinking, you are there, you need to stop it. Unfortunately, my authority is limited. Now this isn't to say I am powerless. I do make sure to stop it when I do see it and report it to those above me in the chain of command. Yet, this seems to be where there is a breakdown. There have been times where there is clear documentation of repeated offenses. Has there been increasing intensity of consequences, sadly no. For a school that has a Zero Tolerance for bullying I am seeing a zero tolerance for discipline for a growing problem. It is time for things to change. We as the adults need to set that tone and let the kids know in no uncertain terms this type of behavior will not be tolerated in the slightest. Isn't that what Zero Tolerance means? In order for this younger generation to become functioning adults and stopping this vicious cycle we need to be the ones to break it. We need to be the ones that shows them what respect really means and not just the shallower version of indifference towards others that has become part of school life.

Give me a 5, 6, 7, 8

Alright it has been awhile and I have a few pictures to add to the interwebs. The reason for this post is to announce that Vaughn is a boy of increasing talents. In the same month he has started to wave and sprouted 4 new teeth. One of those teeth came all by its lonesome, while the other three came at the same time a couple weeks later!! Yeah that was a fun time. Did I mention he was also sick and generally unhappy. Fun times. Though it is super cute to see his buck teeth when he smiles.

Now for something completely different......




We went to the zoo over President's Day weekend. Vaughn couldn't not have cared less. He was more interested in playing with the glass of the cages than anything else. Funny story to go with that. We were in the Rainforest area and he was playing with the glass when one of the small cats came pacing by. He flipped out. The look of pure surprise was hilarious. I am just sad I missed getting a shot of it. All in all it was a fun day with family and friends we haven't seen for a long time.

This is the cat that scared Vaughn. I feel like he is saying, "Are you accusing me of scaring him?! How dare you. I am too adorable for that."

Jake was so excited to see the otters. Vaughn liked to watch them too, but the glass was still more interesting

Cruising the Kitchen

Jake had the idea over the weekend to go and get Vaughn a walker since he LOVES to walk around while we hold him up. I was a little skeptical, I was sure he would get how to "walk" in it. Boy was I wrong. We went to the store and put him in one to see how he would react to it. It took a minute of pushing him until he realized he could move himself. The rest is more or less history. Vaughn was in hog heaven cruising up and down the aisle. Jake and I love it because he can trek across the kitchen while we do other things, like making dinner. While we love it ,Molly, our landlords dog is staying with us for the week, isn't loving it. Vaughn is now mobile and can go after her.

Sadly blogger wont let me upload the video :(

It's all fun and games

Alright. It has been a few weeks and I have some cute things to post from my dear baby boy. He is so camera shy so when I do get him to smile or hold a cute pose for long enough I have to post it.

So, the other day I was making the bed and had him with me playing. Being the stud that he is he fell over. Instead of crying he reached over he head and grabbed the blankets and started to pull them over his head. At first I thought he was just being silly, but after a moment I realized he was trying to get me to play "Peek-a-boo". He would pull them over his head then fling them back up while wiggling with a smile on his face. Once I figured out what he was doing I started to play. This got him really going. I was able to quickly run and grab my phone to get video. I only wish the video wasn't so dark. Oh well.

How cute is that?! We have played before, but it was always me or Jake who would start the game and it wouldn't last very long. this lasted for few minutes. I don't even care that the bed didn't get made because I got to play with Vaughn.


These are just a couple of pictures that we took and I thought they were cute.

All bundled up for a walk outside

 Boxcar Baby. He came in 1st...naturally (Video to come)

Executive Baby

Merry 6 Months!!

Vaughn is getting to be such a big boy. While I know all kids go through the same milestone and stages, I am still amazed at how awesome he is. I mean come on, he can (almost) sit up by himself, successfully throw things on the floor and have me lean him over to pick them up (rinse and repeat), his first tooth has come through, eating real food when it strikes his fancy, being able to manipulate himself in the jumper to turn and jump, and being in general the best and happiest  kid I could have ever asked for.

Vaughn went into his 6 month check up and he was such a trooper. As is common he got his measurements and the dreaded shots done.

Height 28"-96%tile

Weight 15lbs-11%tile

Head17"-79%tile

 Based on the numbers he is turning into to a regular string bean, or as the doctor said a lollipop since his head is so big.

 Jake was able to come with us since he had the day off. It was fun to have him there, since he hasn't had that opportunity. He had all kinds of questions about what they were doing and why. I love his curiosity, I hope Vaughn has that same desire to learn and find new things to explore. I forget that sometime since my days are often very rote.

 Anyway....

As is his MO the shots came and he screamed, but only long enough for me to put his pants back on and give him a quick cuddle. After that, he was fine for the duration of the afternoon, not putting up a fuss when we went to the mall to do a bit of last minute shopping.

This was also his first opportunity to meet Santa. Yes, at 6 months he has already sat on the Jolly Old Elf's lap. What was more amazing is that he didn't cry. We found this interesting since he cries when Grandpa Nichols is around. Due to his general awesomeness, we were able to get this cute photo.

 

 Jake and I are marveling at the fact that this time last year I had heard Vaughn's heartbeat for the first time and we were telling our parents that we were pregnant as our gift to them. Now we have a 6 month old boy that we get to love and adore.

Not much more I could say other than...

Life is grand.

Pictures!

Here are some recent pictures that we took and I've been too lazy to post sooner

 Oh the wonderful ball!

 King of the spit bubbles

These are from our trip to Zions

 "Help" he says, "They've trapped me in this contraption and I can't get out"

 The entrance to The Narrows

 Beanie buddies

He loves his bathtime

Trying to decide if he was liking the carrots

Egads!

Holy Geez!!

 My little man is 4 months old. Where did all that time go? Yes, I know I am going to be saying this from now until the day I die, but seriously! Jake and I were talking about it and we were trying to figure out how 4 months could have gone by and we didn't even notice it. I was looking at pictures of when he was as new as he could possibly be and ones I just taken and I was amazed at how much he has changed. Vaughn is the biggest little guy that I could possibly love. My gentle giant.

Jake and I are constantly blow away that we were blessed with such an even tempered baby. We have friends that have and are going through the same stages and their experiences are so different. People are shocked to hear that Vaughn has been sleeping (mostly) through the night from almost the beginning. He only wakes up to be fed and goes right back to sleep. I can visualize some of your eyes bugging out and not believing what I am says, but it is true.  Granted he doesn't always take the best naps, but I'm okay with that since he sleeps so well at night and putting him to bed isn't difficult.

I am also amazed at how adaptive my little man is. I am able to give to just about anyone and he is okay with it. When I first went back to work I was worried that he wouldn't respond to the babysitter very well. Wrong! He doesn't seem to mind her at all. I am hoping that this ability to handle me leaving for stretches of time will carry into his later years. Yeah, I know it might be a little early to say such things, but I can be hopeful. He also is willing to go to either Jake or I there isn't too much of a preference. It is such a relief to know that when I leave him with Jake I don't have to worry about him freaking out till I get there. Yes, there are times when I am the one who he wants and calms down once I have him, but it also goes the other way.

Vaughn is also a fantastic eater! I mean my goodness this kid can pack it away. It is great to see that all those calories that he is taking in are being put to good use by growing as big has he is.

So here are his current stats

Height: 26.5 inches-- 96%tile

Weight: 13.84lb--19%tile

Head: 16.8 inches-- 82.9%tile

 I love watching him grow and change into the person that he will be. I am proud to be his mom.

 Sporting the burp rag

 Vaughn I am. Crazy Daddy is

Here is an update on our lives thus far. It has been 10 weeks since my little man was born. I love just sitting and watching him. Jake and I find it hilarious how we get so excited over the smallest things. For example I am sitting there on the couch watching him wiggle and all the sudden he will make a new sound. He keeps wiggling as if nothing happened and I am the one that gets all excited and mimics the noise back. Vaughn will just look at like I'm nuts. Or I get excited if he passes a good amount of gas. Really? Who gets excited about a few escaping gas bubbles or a poopy diaper? This Mom does.

So we were at church last week and Vaughn was being fussy at the end of 3rd block (not surprising we start at 2 and he slept through his 3 o'clock feeding) and I was roaming the halls when I was stopped by the librarian by her look of utter surprise. She was flabbergasted that I had a baby. I was taken aback as well. How could she not know? I was a blimp and not that hard to miss. I am thinking that the bishopric didn't announce it over the pulpit like they usually do. I'll let that slide since they had only be called the week prior to Vaughn's birth. Oh wells. : P

My Awesome Offspring

I know almost every parent says this but I truly do have the best baby. Over this last weekend Jake and I helped Joel with the LoToJa. This is our third year doing and it is always a blast. When of the differences about this is that we have Vaughn now. Now, I am going to be honest and say that I was a little nervous going on a 12 hour drive with a 2 1/2 month old. This wouldn't have been to distressing by itself, but both Vaughn and I had been battling colds. I was exhausted from being sick and getting up more often because he was waking up at night and not sleeping well.

But you know what!?
Vaughn was the poster child for AWESOME!

While we were getting the last minute info about our trip we learned that they had changed the number of stops we make as a Support Crew. So instead of stopping in every 2 hours or so we were to do the 1st feed zone in Preston, the 4th feed zone in Afton, and then the 5th feed zone in Alpine. There was a roundabout route that we had to take and we were afraid it would take forever to get from Preston, ID to Afton, WY and it would cause major disruptions in Vaughn's schedule. Nope. It worked out beautifully. It took us the right amount of time to get from Preston to Afton. As we pulled in our dear son was waking up from his daily morning nap and was hungry, right on schedule. He was such a happy baby. I was able to sit in the back and keep him entertained and happy the entire time. This also was a repeat of the drive home. He only go fussy because we got stuck in a bajillion mile construction zone with nothing happening so it took longer than an I had planned to get to Brigham City. We had to stop in Tremonton to feed him and ourselves. This took longer than  we had planned because he was so upset. Thankfully he did eat and I was able to persuade him to fall asleep even though it was an hour before his regular bedtime. I am so glad he was able to go back to sleep after getting him ready for bed and sleep the rest of the night.

Vaughn is such a good and easy going personality. Jake and I are so grateful that we have been blessed with such a peaceful soul.

Happy 5th Anniversary!

So this is being made a day late, but that is okay.

Jake and I celebrated our 5th Anniversary yesterday! It is crazy to think that five years has passed since we said our "I Do's". Even though so much time has gone by it seems like the blink of an eye all at the same time. It is crazy to think back on all of the things that we've experienced together.

I've been thinking of all the things that we have done or had done to us and here are some memories that I've come up with. This list encompasses the good, the bad, and the ugly.
These are in no particular order

1. We've had only 2 real "fights", but thankfully we came to an understanding before too long and have learned how we work as a couple and individuals when it comes to disagreements and are willing to make concession and find the middle ground on matters.
2. Had both of our cars be incapacitated within a week of each other. Mine totaled in an accident and his having the fan belt basically rip the entire engine to pieces.
3. Dealing with a personal tragedy on top of ruined cars. September of 2011 was the darkest time of our marriage in terms of trials of faith, patience, emotional and physical endurance, and testing what we are truly made of as a couple. I am grateful we were able to weather that storm and grow closer together instead of apart.
4. Jake graduates April 2012!!
5. Jake gets his job at Zions Bank a week before graduating
6. We get kicked out of our dungeon apartment, but are able to move right into our current basement apartment.
7.  Waking up in the middle of  a February night to our bedroom under 4-6 inches of water and the rest of the apartment with 1-2 inches, causing us to have to take refuge at his parents for a couple of weeks while the basement is repaired
8. Jake sacrificing almost every weekend to work for four years so we can survive financially
9. Halloween 2012 finding out I'm pregnant!
10. June 25th 2013 the birth of our wonderful son Vaughn Kay Nichols!!! and adjusting to having such a fabulous miracle in our lives
11. Sleeping with otter pops to keep us cool our first summer married
12. Sleeping with all the blankets on the bed for 2 summers in the dungeon because it is so cold 
13. Having the A/C and fan blasting on me while Jake is huddled in all the blankets because I am pregnant and dieing of heat
14. Laughing so hard it puts me into labor
15. Being able to see our baby on the ultrasound for the first time and then telling family we are expecting
16. Going to St. George for a long weekend where we explored Zions, Snow Canyon and being rained out of Tuachan. It was still worth it!
17. Being with my best friend everyday and share all the laughter, tears, frustrations, joys, sadness, and adventures together.

I have enjoyed the ride so far and I look forward to what the future has in store for us. There is no fear for me because I know that we have to ability and capacity to handle it. I anticipate frustration as we work together to raise our son and future children and all the challenges that come with it.

What a blessing it is to know that I have chosen a man that I can trust with my deepest worries and dreams. A man who I can laugh with and who will hold and cry with me during the more challenging times. I truly am blessed to have Jake as my husband that loves me for me and doesn't ask me to do the impossible of changing my core self. He loves me for me and I love him flaws and all. We make a great match. I am grateful everyday I was able to meet him on a houseboat on Lake Powell all those years ago and we could endure the 4 years it took for him to take me to the alter. He is an stellar husband and an excellent father.

The Son Cometh

Alright, it has been almost 3 weeks since Baby Boy Nichols was born. I think it is time to write about the whole experience thus far.

SO!

The whole adventure started out on a typical Monday night. Jake and I were all ready for bed, the lights were out, prayer was said, and I was positioning and then repositioning on my Pillow Fort. Jake was exiled to the other side of the bed bundling up in his mountain of blankets trying to stay warm in the igloo that I created with our A/C and fan on full blast. As I was squirming to make myself comfortable we were just talking when there was an unexpected silence from the other side of the bed. Concerned that something was wrong I asked Jake what was going on he responded..."I don't want to tell you.. You'll only laugh at me". This of course made me even more curious as to what had happened. So..I pestered him till he told me....he had tried to pull up a blanket farther up to cover his head against the frigidness of the A/C and fan. Sadly for him the blanket as caught on his feet and when he pulled his hand slipped and subsequently punched himself in the face.

True to Jake's words I found this to be uproariously hilarious. I am not joking when I say that I laughed for 20 minutes straight. Tears where running down my face as I gasped for air. Even though the laughing was causing my overly large belly to hurt I couldn't stop myself. Personally I'm going to blame being very fatigued from the heat and my day to it being so funny. (yet I still find it hilarious for some reason)

Anyway....

I calmed down and Jake gathered up his hurt pride and we went to sleep at this point it is about 10pm.

 Jump to 1:15am.

Waking up in the middle of the night by this point in the pregnancy is just "Old Hat" and I just figure it is time for the first of many nightly pee breaks. I turtle myself out of bed and waddle to the bathroom. As I step into the bathroom I suddenly feel a gush of fluid travel down my leg and pool on the linoleum. My half awake brain flicks on into hyper-alert mode. Did just wet myself or did my water just break? These are just one of many things that start to race through my mind. It took another moment of internal examination to determine that I still had to pee. So I did. Rid of the need to pee another small gush of water comes. This time thankfully it is in the toilet and not on the floor.

It takes me about 45 minutes to get my brain and thoughts in order. I wake Jake up and we proceed to go to the hospital. You know like you do. As we are driving my contractions are a little worse than normal but not unbearable or too frequent. I might have had like 2 in the 15-20 minute drive to the hospital, but my water keeps coming out. 3 times to be exact. The seat is soaked!!

By this point it is about 2-2:30am once we get to the hospital. Jake drops me off at the entrance as he parks the car. Remember I can still walk without a problem. As I walk into the lobby the security guard takes one look at me and her eyes pop out a little as she takes in my soaked bottom half. I can't help but say "I think my water broke" with a big grin and a chuckle. However, that little snicker causes another flood to happen and I am leaving puddles on the tile floor as I walk up to the elevators. A wheelchair is procured from me and Jake wheels me up.

Thankfully I had to foresight the week before to Pre-register so it was a breeze get admitted into Labor and Delivery.  I proceeded to create another puddle as I was changing into my hospital gown. Yeah I am just that talented. (If you are keeping track we are up to 5 water breakages in about an hour and half and not just trickles)

So they hook me up to the machines and I can now see my contractions and the baby's heart rate. It is amazing that technology is advanced so we can see those things. I loved watching the heart rate, knowing that my little boy was really there and getting ready to come out.

My contractions gradually got stronger (Holy Shiznits!). Poor Jake was exhausted and tried to sleep on the futon, but would jump up whenever I would start to breath heavy, shift, and groan in pain.
When they came to check how far I was dilated for the first time I have to say it is one of the worst positions and very painful to be in while in labor.

Seriously! make me be flat on my back, lift my hips? And you are going to shove your fingers HOW far? I respectfully decline your request.

You would think they would devise a way that would NOT add to a woman's discomfort. I was at 4 cm by this point. Sweet, right? Not. I was able to watch the sun rise over the mountains as my discomfort increased. I made it to about 6am before I gave in and got an epidural.

Here is another instance when you would think they would make the process less painful. I had to wait as the anesthesiologist was doing another lady, so they gave me a shot of something that was supposed to take the "edge" off. Ummmm...no. It didn't start to take affect until the monstrous epidural was started. I've decided that contractions endured by pitocin (my contractions decided to take a lengthy break sometime before and the baby was not responding well to that) + needles in the back x having to curl into a little ball at the same time = agony and torture. To say the least by the time the whole procedure was done I was very loopy. I had two pain management drugs in my body and I couldn't focus straight. It made the nurses a little concerned till they realized why I couldn't track or focus. This caused them to chuckled as I looked at them like a drunkard. Thankfully it didn't last long and I was blissfully numb. I took the advice that I was given and took as many dozing naps as I could. They were conveniently timed with the wearing off of the medication.

I give major props to women who are able to do childbirth the natural way, but my goodness it is painful.

Many hours later and several dilation checks later (which I couldn't feel!!! : D) it is about time to push. The doctor came and checked me and said I had about an hour before I was completely dilated and effaced. It was at this point that the baby decided to be a punk and be face up instead of down. This meant I had to be flipped and flopped to get him into the correct position for delivery, this took between an hour to 1 hour 1/2 . He made it about half way before I had to start pushing. The doctor was back at the office and we started to push (it is about 1:30pm).

After an hour of pretty continuous pushing there he was crowning and no doctor to be found. I had to lay there (with my epideral almost gone). It took the doctor about 10 minutes to get back to the hospital.

This is one of the longest 10 minutes of my life. My body is wanting to push so badly, but the nurses are telling me to not to. I seriously consider ignoring them and doing it anyway, since this is what my body is wanting to do. Once the doctor is there it seems like an eternity until the doctor is ready to "catch" the baby. In the end it is a good thing that I didn't push like I wanted to because the baby wasn't fully rotated, he was facing the left and he had to be turned more manually. A couple hard pushes later my darling baby enters the world and I was able to feel it all and I wouldn't trade that for anything. While I couldn't deal with the contractions the actual pushing wasn't all that bad.

 I would do it all the same again. I loved being able to feel him those last 30 minutes move down the canal and eventually enter the world. I could do without the pain of the stitching, but that is of such minor consequence it is almost not worth mentioning as I watched Jake beam with that look of sheer joy and hearing my baby boy cry as they worked on him.

It took them a bit of time to finally get him to me. They were making sure he was okay since I had spiked a very mild fever just before he was born. But! Once they put him on my chest I was filled with such a feeling of joy that I forgot (just like people said I would) all of the pain and discomfort it took to get him here. While it is still in my memory it has been all dulled as I held him for the first time. 

I am still amazed at the amount of instant love that I am capable of. It is astounding that it is possible to love so unconditionally. Before Vaughn was born I would just smile and nod when other mothers would describe that feeling, I had no idea what they meant. Now I do and can't deny it.

 Vaughn Kay Nichols  

June 25, 2013

7lb 4oz and 20 inches long

 

Baby Boy Nichols

Seriously Delayed post...Sorry

It is official! Baby Nichols

16 weeks (above) 21 weeks (below)

is a Baby Boy Nichols!

Life has been fabulous since we found out we are having a boy. Granted it would also be fabulous if we were having a girl. It truly wouldn't matter since both would be a wonderful and welcome addition to our family. Since the news was announced my boy has been a real gymnast. I just love feeling him squirm, bounce, roll, and yes, even kick and punch. It is such a comfort to feel him move. I panic a little when he is too calm for too long. However, I do think that this boy will have calm disposition, hopefully he takes after his dad and will remain that way....

Crash course on 2012

 So it has been almost a year since I last posted...anything. It has been an eventful year.

1) Jake completed his last semester of college and was able to graduate with not one but TWO degrees, one in finance and one in accounting.

2) Through some help from Joel, Jake was able to land a fantastic job up at Zion's HQ in Salt Lake a week before he graduated. It was a HUGE blessing to be able to jump from one career into another in a seamless motion. I am so glad that we have family who is willing to use their connections to help another.

3) We also moved....again. It was a bitter sweet deal. Being told you had to be out in a month, against our will, was to say the least stressful. BUT we have wonderful people who love us and wanted to keep us so we moved two blocks into another basement. How wonderful it is to be in a great apartment that doesn't smell and the general feeling and looks have improved as well. We get to have a dog without all of the work. This is because the dog is our landlords.

4) The Summer Olympics happened and we were able to watch and enjoy women's gymnastics and the swimming competitions.

5) I taught summer school for the first time at Reagan. It was a welcome break from the solitary confinement that is summer break. It was also fun to jump start some young minds.

6) My student entered 5th Grade and after a worrisome first week got into the groove and things have been great. He is maturing and becoming more independent (which is our ultimate goal!). I am amazed at the growth that he has had in the 2 1/5 years I've been with him.While sad I look forward to a time he doesn't need me anymore. That means I have done my job correctly.

                                                                                                                                           Jake laying down with Molly after a rousing game of fetch

7) Jake continues to be a wiz kid at work and is trying to work his way up the ranks and find ways to improve himself.

8) For the second time we were Joel's support crew for the LOTOJA in September. Not only that we had to wonderful opportunity to take one of his dad's puppies with us to Jackson. Since we knew what to expect we were more relaxed and really enjoyed it. The puppy wasn't too terrible. Mostly she slept at my feet and stole all of the air conditioning (since I put in on the floor setting since she was really hot curled around my feet all day). Joel did amazing! It is always great to share in something like that. We hope to help again in the years to come.

 

This is "Freckles" trying in vane to get away from the hot sun on our way to Jackson. Soon after this she crawled through the opening between the passenger and drivers side and curled under the gas and brake peddle. We had to coast to a stop for fear of crushing her head!

 9) For the first time since our honeymoon we were able to take a real vacation that didn't involve any family obligations. We went down to St. George in October during my Fall Break and enjoyed a few days at my uncle's home there. There were many hikes. Our journeys took us to Snow Canyon, Zions National Park, Tuachan, and Las Vegas.
 While we had tickets to Aladdin we were unfortunately rained out.  On the bright side we got a rain-check for next year plus two sets of tickets for other shows that have gone to good use. We were also able to go to Las Vegas and visit with Joel, Brooke, and the kids. It was fantastic to be able to see them one on one. We could get to know them in a different way then we have been able to in the past.

This deer literally walked right in front of us as we were on our way up to Emerald Pools in Zions. She just stood there for a few moments as if saying "Well? Aren't you going to take my picture?" Then slowly meandered away once we took a few pictures.

 This is a "Prehistoric Trilobite" we found in a pond in Snow Canyon. We only found it because Jake decided to throw a rock in and a bunch of these little guys swam to the surface


10) Christmas was a fantastic time for us. My parents were able to come to Utah and my whole family was together for the holiday season. Also due to Jake's new job and his grandparent's generosity we were able to have a very posh Christmas. Normally we are very frugal and have a budget for gifts and such not. Not this year. We went a little crazy. This year we felt very blessed to be able to indulge in the more commercial aspect of Christmas. Don't take this as bragging, we are just grateful we were able to do this for ourselves. 

11) Not only were we able to be blessed with a little extra $$ we were also able to confirm that I was pregnant! On the December 21, 2012 I was able to go to the doctor and he confirmed that I was going to be having a baby in July. Being able to hear my baby's heartbeat for the first time was the best gift anyone could have ever given me. Both Jake and I cried when I told him when he got home that day. It was such a precious moment that I am going to cherish for
 all time.

                      Wow-zaa! That's a lot of presents

 This is a poem that Jake found. I thought it appropriate what with the coming Valentine's Day.


Why I Love You
Udiah                                          
   
You give to me hope
And help me to cope
When life pulls me down
You bring me around

You teach me to care
And help me to share
You make me honest
With kindness the best

From you I learned love
With grace from above
It's for you I live
And I want to give

You are the reason
That fills each season
When I hear love I think of you
You are my world and best friend too

I love you because you are so kind, thoughtful and caring
I love you because you are so pleasant, lovely and sharing

You made me the man I am
Thank you

It has been a little over two weeks, almost three, since school started. I am happy to report that my student and I, for the most part, don't want to tear at each others throats.
However, this is not what I want to talk about, though it is amazing news! His teacher is a new teacher. I don't mean just new to the school, but freshly graduated, as wet and green as you can get. This is not intended to be a mean, but more my observations and frustrations. I don't want to get up on a soapbox and preach that I always know better or more than she does. What I want to do is more vent. Ms. X as I will call her to protect her identity, is generally a great teacher. She keeps command of the class for the most part, they are a bunch of 4th graders (enough said), and has a okay grasp on the curriculum and what is expected of her.
For those who know me know that I don't like to be idle for too long I start to go crazy. When I am at work and my student is doing well I would like something else to do. I have made it clear to Ms. X that I am willing to correct, record scores, and do any other odd job that need to be done. I am also more than willing to read to the class after lunch recess to give her time to do her things and relax for a few more minutes. I am a little befuddled as to why she wouldn't take advantage of that the other, more seasoned, teachers leapt at the chance to catch up on things. Ms. X does not only further leading to her own tardiness in grading and so forth. This goes especially for teacher reading after lunch. I don't mean to toot my own horn and say I am the best, but she does not read aloud very well. I find, and I think the kids agree, it can be fairly flat and lifeless. This leads the kids to fiddling and whispering. However, in the past when I have read they tend to be a bit quieter and more attentive to the story. At the moment it isn't the most engaging story for the boys. I also try make sure that I am saying the correct words and bring them to life. I'm sorry but ogre (ˈō-gər) is NOT said orge (or-g). Orge is a river in France not a scary mythical creature to be feared by all who meet it.
Being the type of person I am I love to learn new information. They are learning about the earth in history class. Now, I understand that words will just fall out of your brain at times and you can't remember them for the life of ya. It  happens to everyone, even me. Believe it or not! Now if that word is supplied you wouldn't take offense. Ms. X has. I am instructed not to correct her on pronunciation or  information.  This is to be done after the class is gone. Wha..?! If wrong information or words are being taught is it not the responsibility of those listening (and know the proper info) to fix it at the time of instruction so the wrong can be righted and said incorrect info is not ingrained. It is always harder to correct something if it is left to sit and take root. I don't want to imply that I think she isn't a smart individual, but why hamper freely given or accessed knowledge? The other teachers I have worked with always welcomed my two cents as it were. They would even ask for it during lectures. It is not as though I am talking down to her or being rude about it, only piping up when needed.
Then again those other teachers were much more experienced and confident in themselves. In so being,  were comfortable to be told when they were doing something not quite right and correct it then. I guess the moral of this story is, keep my mouth shut and nose in a book to keep said mouth shut. Ms. X will need to learn for herself since she doesn't want to hear it from me.
I guess I need to get off my soapbox even if I didn't intend to jump on it in the first place.

Back to School

Like all good things they must eventually come to an end. Yes Moms and Dads it is back to school time. For some it is a time of celebration, the kids will be out of the house for most of the day and you don't have to hear the dreaded words, "I'm bored", or "(S)He's touching me!", or just screaming in general. However there is always a twinge of remorse (or so I have heard from some parents) that they can't just be with their kids and go out on adventures or play at the park all day.
I for one am happy that another summer is ending! It means I get to go back to work at a school where your darling little dears get to harass me all day. Sarcasm aside, I do love my job. Just like kids I need the mental stimulation that comes with book-learning or teaching as the case maybe. While I don't enjoy the paper grading, indoor recesses, smelly/sweaty kids, and clamor that is lunch, I do enjoy watching their little minds grow, make connections, and listen/watch them interact and have to remember I was once like that.
With this new school year it will be one of change. My student (now in 4th grade) will be moving half way through the school year to a new country(!). I am not excited about the potential anxieties and emotional turmoil that will come as it gets closer. It did not go well when he first found out.
It will have its challenges since the class as a whole will be starting into the mutant stages of being a preteen. They will be treated more like adults and not little kids. This will mean more personal responsibility for work and the condition it is turned in as, having to deal (more) with their own problems and finding an acceptable solution to them. Oh growing pains. So glad that I have gotten passed -most- of them.

On to completely different though slightly connected tangent! With the start of this new school year it also marks the beginning of the end for my dear sweetheart and his school career. Jake will only have two semesters left and then he graduates with a double bachelors in Accounting and Finance! I am so excited to see he walk this spring. It will be nice not to have to buy books or pay for tuition for awhile, at least until he decides he wants to get a Masters. By then hopefully he will have started a "real" job and the company can help foot the bill. We only need to get through the next nine months. I am hoping we will have more wonderful news to spread as the months pass.

"I'm old enough to know what I like!"

First and for most I am going to state that I'm really not that old. With that said I feel like an old lady. The reason behind this statement is that I am turning into one of those people that is slowly hardening my resolve to like the current trends, mostly in music. When I am in the car or listening to Pandora I find myself shuffling through my stations until I find a song that doesn't sound like...well noise. I can't tell you how often I have been listening and all the sudden I don't hear music anymore, but noise and it makes my teeth go on edge.

I was talking to Jake about this and he just laughed, agreed and then said "'I'm old enough to know what I like.'" 

This came from one of the best shows I've come across in awhile Modern Family. To give some context to this quote I'll briefly (or try to) the episode or segment(s) that this comes from.

Gloria is trying to get Manny to eat scrabbled eggs. Manny is saying he doesn't like it. Jay walks in and tells him to try it. Manny says he doesn't like it. Jay asks if he has tried it before. Manny hangs his had and says that he hasn't and concedes to try them. Fast Forward. Jay, Gloria, and Manny are going to a concert. Jay sees that it is for a classical concert and not a rock band. He stops and says he wont go in. Manny asks if he has ever tried it. Jay promptly says no. Manny then pulls the same tactic of trying new things. Jay simply and firmly says, "I'm old enough to know what I like!" This is when Jay storms off.

I am by no means trying to say that I am completely set in my ways, just in certain things (like my music). I just watch those who are older (grandparents, parents, aunt, uncles..etc) than me and find it funny how set in there way they are. This doesn't mean that it is a bad thing, just interesting how they perceive the ever changing world around them. I know that I'll be (am) set into certain patterns of thought and actions eventually. I am just a little taken aback that it has happened so early. Oh well. 

I guess what it all comes down to is comfort in familiarity.