Wednesday Night

Now that Scott is done with finals Stephen and I have him all to ourselves all day! It is fun because we can stay up late and play if we want and don't have to worry about waking up early or getting homework done. Last night we decided to go to Wal-Mart (we have a brand new one about 3 minutes from our house so we go there often) and get a few groceries and some movies from Red Box. Scott found some fun reindeer antlers to try out...

After we got home we watched "Horton Hears a Who" with Stephen. He LOVES watching movies so on the way home he was planning it out - he said "Mommy sit by Stephen and Daddy sit by Stephen." So we sat on the couch with him between us. He snuggled in and put his cute little arm around my shoulder! It was so sweet! It is definately one of those moments to treasure forever. I love my little Stephen!

Stephen and the Bed

Stephen started sleeping in his "big boy" bed a few weeks ago. He loves it and has been really good about staying in it all night. Naps are the hardest part, although they were in the crib too. He is not always a big fan of going to sleep and this is what I found the other night at 10:30...

The picture doesn't show how blindingly bright that light is showing under the door. Stephen has a floor lamp next to his bed that we turn down low to use as a night light (his old one broke a few weeks ago) and he has learned how to crank it up full blast when he isn't sleepy. So I went in and he was jumping on his bed...and looking a tad bit guilty.Needless to say we have made a trip to Wal-mart to purchase some automatic on/off nightlights and so the party has calmed down a bit. Last night I gave him a book to read because he was having a hard time falling asleep. A while later I checked on him and he had fallen asleep with the book over his cute little face! I would have taken a picture but I didn't want to wake him up.

This and That

I realized that it has been since before Thanksgiving since I posted anything! We have been busy. It would take a million pictures and words to describe it all so I will try and sum it up...

Thanksgiving in Utah - fun fun fun - gooooooood food and I loved spending time with my family.

It took four people to move the turkey to the platter...

My Dad and brother Allen - relaxing after the big meal...like father like son.Talking with my cousin Amanda while trying to keep Stephen from falling down the stairs - you can see my pregnant belly pretty well...
Quist and Smith Family picture - including Aaron, Rebecca, and Anna. This was taken in the BYU Law Library where my brother Allen spends all of his time. Each time the girl snapped a picture for us Stephen would yell "oh that's a good one!" and his little voice broke the absolute silence. It was embarassing and funny all at the same time.

Decorating for Christmas - my favorite thing!!! I only have this one picture for now...the garland has lights in it too..




Birthday parties- Scott's brother Josh turned 26 on the 8th and my sister Celsea turned 16 on the 9th. Happy birthday!

You know you are pregnant when...

You know you're pregant when you jump in the car to leave and realize your cell phone is in the house. Since the car is running and you are a little late already, you honk the horn, hoping that your husband will come to your rescue. (Ok, and I honked the horn because I was feeling lazy). After a few minutes of waiting, you start thinking "it is just on the table in the kitchen what is taking him so long?...oh, wait...." Yes, you then find the cell phone in your pocket and as you drive away you call to tell your husband to stop looking and he just laughs at you.

You know you are pregnant when in the middle of teaching the primary lesson you are suddenly so incredibly hungry that you think you might die before church is over. The only thought in your mind is food and it is so intense you break out in a sweat all over your body ..."who turned on the heater? why did I wear these tall boots- my legs are so hot..." Then, you find yourself devouring all of your two year old's pretzels that are left over from sacrament meeting earlier...yes, during sharing time, in front of all of the primary kids. And wishing there were more pretzels...

You know you LOOK pregant when a four year old girl asks you if you have a baby in your tummy. This four year old then proceeds to ask if it is a boy and when you reply "yes, it is," (how did she know that?) they say, "well, if its a boy you should name him Tony." Tony??? (Upon speaking to her mom later I discovered that Tony is the name of her imaginary boyfriend - apparently, they kiss on the lips).

Only an Arizona November

sunny...mid 70's ... nice breeze ... eat your heart out! :)

The Details

If you didn't catch it in my last post...I am pregnant!

Due date?

April 10th

Weeks along?

19

What we are having?

A Boy - I am glad about this because Stephen will have a playmate and we will save A LOT of money

Names?

We have one but I don't want to post it - so no one can steal it you know!

Have I been sick?

A little at the beginning, but of course feeling great now

Who is expecting the niece or nephew in April?

My sister-in-law, Rebecca and brother Aaron - due the SAME day as me!

Why wait so long to spill the beans?

I was really afraid to announce it because of what happened with my last pregnancy - if you remember, I announced it on my blog at about 15 weeks and literally the next day found out that I had a miscarriage. Also, this pregnancy was not looking so good from the start because they could see some bleeding around the baby in my first ultrasound and told me that I was at risk for another miscarriage.

Needless to say, it has been a rollercoaster of emotions for the last few months and there were many days where I felt so hopeless. I haven't been allowed to pick up Stephen since I was about 8 weeks and that has been such a challange for me and him - it is so sad having my little baby say "mommy I want to hold you!" and not be able to just scoop him up in my arms. Of course, I can sit on the couch and have him climb up on my lap, but it just isn't the same. I have been to the doctor many many times and literally thought I might go insane with worry on a few occasions. (as a side note - nothing strikes more fear in my heart than the part of the appointment when they check the baby's heart beat with the doppler - I feel sick to my stomach just thinking about it!)

I know that the Lord has been watching out for this little baby and I through out the pregnancy so far. It has been a real trial of my faith and I have learned so much about being positive even though I am still get down sometimes. I have learned that when I start to panic I stop and say a prayer and if I am receptive, the spirit comforts me and tells me that the baby is ok. I know absolutely that the Lord answers prayers because I feel that this baby still being alive and well is an absolute miracle! (as another side note, I believe that every baby born is an absolute miracle...)

Of course we are only half way through the pregnancy and I still have many concerns, but it gets a little easier every day to feel excited about this little guy and anticipate his birth. I can feel him moving which is wonderful and it helps to comfort me too.

I also have to say that I seriously have the best husband in the world. He has been such an amazing support to me throughout this experience. He has always been patient with me through all of my rational and irrational fears. He never makes me feel ridiculous for being afraid of silly things but doesn't let me get carried away with fear either. He listens to all of my worries and has been a perfect friend. He is a wonderful father to Stephen and has done all of the lifting in and out of car seats, carries Steve around when needed, even when his arm is about to break off. He has given a million baths, changed a million diapers and delt with 3 million tantrums. I don't know what I would do without him!

Now, if you have read all of this you are a very kind friend! Just consider it a hundred missed posts from the last few months.

The Big 8 Tag

8 Favorite TV shows (in no particular order - and I just realized that I do not like most sit-coms or dramas...not sure why)

1. What Not to Wear

2. Design on a Dime

3. Life

4. House Hunters

5. John and Kate Plus Eight

6. Baby Story

7. America's Funniest Home Videos

8. Dirty Jobs




8 Things I did yesterday

1. slept in until 9:00

2. cleaned Stephen's booster seat (eewwww)

3. swept and mopped the floor and washed dishes

4. cleaned bathrooms

5. took a nap

6. played outside in sandbox with Stephen

7. went to Savers looking for picture frames to paint black (FYI - it is NOT a bargin to buy frames there...I thought they were super over priced for being used - they were charging $7 for a 5x7 ugly thing with no glass!)

8. Stayed up reading "Anne of Greene Gables" until 12:00



8 Things to look forward to

1. Family reunion in Thatcher

2. Going to Utah for Thanksgiving

3. December!

4. Scott having a break from classes

5. Sister and brother comming home for Christmas from BYU

6. New niece or nephew being born in April

7. Sister and brother-in-law coming to visit

8. My baby being born in April


8 Favorite Restaurants

1. Texas Road House

2. Olive Garden

3. Gecko Grill

4. Matta's (oh how I miss thee)

5. Red Robin

6. Mi Amigos

7. Ned's Krazy Subs

8. In-N-Out Burger





8 Things on my Wish List

1. new jeans

2. a permanantly clean house

3. good makeup

4. stronger nails (weird I know)

5. Stephen: potty trained

6. black picture frames to hang our family pics

7. a computer that we can trust

8. storage shelf with bins for all of Stephen's toys


8 People I tag (don't feel obligated - just if you feel like it!)
1. Kesseli
2. Amber
3. Lisa
4. Ashley
5. Stacie
6. Tiffany
7. Anna
8. Jenna

The Three Little Piggies

The other night I started thinking a lot about brownies...opened the cupboard and found a box of "turtle brownie" mix. Perfect! So, to justify making brownies on a random weeknight, I pre-measured the oil, water and broke the eggs into a little bowl so that Stephen could help me make them. He had a fabulous time dumping and stirring! Obviously, the best part was licking the spoon...

Now for the bad part: the three of us (ok, mostly the two oldest people in the house) managed to eat the ENTIRE (9x13) pan in only two days!! And, we are sad they are gone and still go to the spot they "lived" at on the kitchen counter just out of habit, wishing for another bite!

They were very good brownies.

"Our Airport"

The Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport held an open house today. If you grew up in AZ you know it as Williams Air Force Base. Since this is "our airport" (we live about 3 minutes away) we decided that was should go and see the sights. The weather was too hot to stay for very long but we managed to see a lot of cool helicopters and airplanes up close. Stephen got to climb into one of the Helicopters and into some fire trucks that were also on display. Not bad for a free Saturday adventure!

Scott and Stephen looking at a military helicopter.

Stephen wanted to touch it...
Then he got to sit in it!

This helicpoter is an air-evac that "lives" on top of the hospital right by our house. We see it up there on the building and flying around all of the time so it was cool to get to see it up close (without having a need to take a ride!)

Dash

For Halloween I made Stephen a costume so that he could be Dash from "The Incredibles." This is one of his favorite movies and he loves to run "so fast" like Dash. Personally, I think he looks adorable in this costume! He got to wear it four times in the last week and so I am a little worried that he will think that dressing like Dash and getting candy is the norm! He wore it for a neighborhood Halloween party last Saturday, Grandma and Grandpa Quist's ward trunk-or-treat on Tuesday, preschool on Thursday, and of course for trick-or-treating on Friday! We spent Halloween evening with the Quists handing out candy, and a little later with the Smiths for trick-or-treating. Stephen had a lot of fun knocking on the doors and saying "trick-or-treat!" with his cousins, Talan and Atley. Steve had a hard time understanding that he shouldn't go into the house when the door was opened and just walked right into two houses...he eventually figured it all out though!

Putting the costume on- he LOVES to wear it so it is easy to put on him.

I think he is trying to look tough in this picture. He takes it very seriously when he dresses like Dash...Striking his "Dash pose." Yes, those are red tights and black underwear!

A Smokin' Deal

We bought Stephen a new "big boy" bed last week. He doesn't sleep in it yet but I found it for a really awesome deal on Craigslist and couldn't let it slip by. We got the bed, mattress, box springs, and a dresser for $200 and they are all in excellent condition! In fact, we liked the dresser so much that Scott and I decided to put it in our bedroom (too nice for a little kid...) Please don't judge me by this picture with Stephen but we sure had fun taking it!

One of those things you DO need to share...

Another conversation with Stephen in the car... After singing his favorite song, "Jesus Wants Me For a Sunbeam" a few times (he can sing it by himself and it is so sweet - my favorite part: "at home at skoo at play!") Stephen said "Jesus loves me, Jesus loves Stephen," then "Jesus loves children," and finally, "He loves mommy, give a hug." It was so precious to hear his sweet little testimony! I love this little guy!

One of those things you don't need to share...

Stephen often says some very surprising and funny things. This happens especially often when riding in the car - I think because he has a captive audience. Well, tonight he suddenly said "I got it!!!" in a very excited voice. I asked him "what did you get?" Then in his sweet little innocent voice, "a booger!" Yes we have been working with him on NOT picking his nose - he only does it when we aren't looking (in the car) - but still...no one wants their kid to be the nose picker! One thing is for sure - our little Stephen keeps us laughing!

Canyon Lake

Last week was a lot of fun! Aaron, Rebecca, and Anna (my brother, sister-in-law, and niece) came to Arizona for a week long visit. They stayed with my parents and so we spent a good deal of our free time over there eating, watching movies, and talking. We love having them come visit (they lived here for the past 2 years and only recently moved to California). It is so fun because Stephen loves to play with his cousin Anna and they are so cute running around the house together.

On Wednesday we made a short day trip to Canyon Lake, which is about an hour east of Mesa/Gilbert, to ride the Dolly Steam Boat. This is one of several lakes formed by dams along the Salt River. While I have been there several times to ski, wakeboard, and ride inner tubes for mutual activities and hanging out with friends, I had never gone on the steam boat. It was a relaxing and beautiful experience. This lake has spectacular scenery (they don't call it Canyon Lake for nothing).

I am a horrible photographer so my pictures don't do the scenery justice, but you can enjoy the pictures of us hanging out with my family. I forgot to get a picture of the boat - duh! It was a two story boat and we rode on the top. The paddle wheel was just for show - I am pretty sure the boat had a gasoline engine! The scenery is beautiful. The entire lake is surrounded by cliffs and rocky hill sides.

Stephen was grouchy the whole time. We couldn't get him to smile for any pictures. He wasn't feeling very well (just a cold), and I think he was disappointed that the boat didn't go any faster! The whole way there he kept saying "ride boat in water - go so fast!" Also, the life jacket that he was required to wear didn't look very comfortable. Anna didn't really like hers either.

PS. The scantily clad girl in between my parents is not part of my family...

Random post about me!

This tag caught my attention on a friend's blog - I enjoyed reading hers so I thought I would do it too!

10 yrs ago: Ahh, the year was 1998. I was a junior at Gilbert High School. This was a pretty fun year for me - I had some really cool friends and spent A LOT of time dancing (ballet). This particular time of year was full of drama because I was hoping to be asked to Homecoming but found out that I had a dance performance the same night as the dance. I came home from ballet one night and someone had asked me to the dance. Come to find out it was this guy in our circle of friends who had already been turned down by 5 other girls. Sadly, I had to turn him down too and he didn't really believe my story about the dance performance being the same night. Poor guy!

5 yrs ago: My senior year at BYU. I had started dating Scott over the summer in Arizona and then we maintained a long distance relationship while I was in Utah. He was better at this than me (sorry sweetie) because I continued to date other guys when I was in Provo. I realized that wasn't very nice of me and I finally committed to having a real boyfriend. We spent MANY hours and thousands of cell phone minutes talking on the phone. It was around this time that we started talking marriage. I don't really remember much about school during this time!

5 things on today’s “to do” list:
1. return library books (3 days late!)
2. Costco
3. write events on calendar for this month
4. make burp cloths (for a friend's baby shower)
5. make visiting teaching appointments

5 snacks I enjoy: (I am not going to pretend to be healthy here, but I do occasionaly eat healthy snacks too)
1. all crackers
2. popcorn (especially caramel)
3. chips and salsa
4. cheese stick with stick pretzels (not seperately, they must be eaten together!)
5. cookies or anything with gooey chocolate or caramel

5 things I would do if I were a millionaire: (Scott and I have daydreamed about this one a hundred times!)
1. get out of debt
2. buy a house
3. pay for school
4. buy cool stuff for all of our family
5. save and invest the rest!

5 places I have lived:
1. Gilbert, AZ (w/ family)
2. Provo, UT
3. Queen Creek, AZ
4. Higley/Gilbert, AZ (our own house)
5. Mesa, AZ

5 Jobs I have had:
1. Library Page - SE Regional Library (the poor soul that shelves the books)
2. Receptionist and "floater" at my dad's work (I have had about 50 different jobs there...)
3. Grill worker at the Creamery on 9th at BYU - yes, I made french fries and hamburgers
4. Computer lab attendant - HLRC at BYU (the sweetest job I have ever had!)
5. First grade teacher (I am not sure why but I almost forgot to include this one, maybe I am trying to forget...)

The 5 People I tag - Eh, I am not into tagging but if you want to do it you can!

Stephen's Birthday!

Saturday was Stephen's 2nd birthday. We celebrated with a family party at my mom's house (she has more room and makes yummy pizza). Stephen loves Finding Nemo and the beach so we tried to have a Nemo/beach theme. It turned out really well and the pizza was delicious (thanks mom!) We missed Grandma and Grandpa Smith - they were at a funeral in Oklahoma that weekend. Stephen had a lot of fun and didn't have any tantrums until the end of the party (it was his nap time). His favorite part of the party was singing Happy Birthday and blowing out the candles. (The first thing he said when he woke up that morning was "cake, blow out candles!") After the guests left we blew out the candles a few more times just for fun! The first few pictures are of my mom and I putting together the pizzas. Then, you see Stephen opening his gifts. He received some really fun things but I think he has used that step stool the most! He likes to be "so tall" and he carries it around the house and stands on it to get into things...its real purpose is for potty training! Oh, that group of people who look very bored are our guests! Then you see the cake and Stephen blowing out the candles. Finally, there is a picture of the kids eating cake at the little table. Ha ha - I just realized that Stephen is the only one who has cake in that picture!! Stephen's friend, Anden, looks like he is a little jealous. Yes, we did give all of the kids cake. The other two cuties are Stephen's cousins, Talan and Atley. Thanks for coming guys! Happy birthday to my sweet little boy!

Health Update

Yea!! We are all alive and well again! Everyone in the family has made a full recovery from all ailments. Stephen is going to have tubes put in his ears tomorrow...I am a little nervous about that one...but I've heard it is not really a big deal. It is so much better when everyone in the family is well! Hopefully we can all manage to not get sick again for at least a few weeks!

More Drugs Please

It turns out that Stephen is allergic to the antibiotics that we have been giving him for the last few days. He didn't seem to be getting any better and was soooooooooo irritable beyond anything I have ever seen. Also, he wouldn't eat. We finally figured out what was wrong on Saturday (we started the antibiotics on Tuesday) when he broke out in hives. After a call to the doctor we were told that we should stop giving him the antibiotics and start giving him Benadryl. Uhhhhhhh but he still has a double ear infection, remember? We are supposed to call on Monday and get a new prescription to start. I am sick of administering the medicine - luckily he likes taking it but unfortunately it gives him a terrible diaper rash. He seems to be doing much better over all - the hives are gone and he is eating now. He is still pretty grouchy but we keep him on Tylenol and Benadryl so he is sedated... that isn't necessarily on purpose but he fell asleep in church for the first time since he was a tiny baby! Hopefully we can get him all better before his birthday on Saturday!

Sick, Sick, and Sicker

It all started with Scott... He picked up some nasty cold bug at school and has been hacking up a lung and in misery for over a week now, poor guy. He can't sleep at night and, don't think I am cruel, I am kind of tired of listening to him cough.

Then, Stephen started to get a runny nose...didn't we just go through this two weeks ago? Yes, yes we did. So after a day or two of green nose snot and a morning of eyes glued shut by eye snot (sorry to be graphic but that is seriously what it looks like) I took Steve to the doctor again and guess what?? He has a double ear infection AGAIN! We literally just stopped with the atibiotics two weeks ago and here we are again! This time we got a referral for an ear nose and throat specialist along with the antibiotics prescription because Steve has had so many ear infections. (I don't think he ever got over the last one and it just came back worse than before).

Back to Scott - so last night he tells me that he feels the cough "settling in his lungs" and he feels like a weight is pushing on his chest. So I made him a doctor appointment too (I don't remember having two children....just one...) and he ended up with two prescriptions - one antibiotic and one extra powerful cough syrup that he is not supposed to take if he is planning to drive. (It's the good stuff!) When we went to pick up his prescription they told him that his insurance card was no good!?!!!! This is insanity since he has been using it for months now without any problem. So, we ended up paying $50 for the drugs with a hope that we can get the insurance issue straightened out and eventually get a reimbursement.

This has been a long week with my two sickies at home - they are so grouchy... which makes me a little irritable myself. Oh, and did I mention that my throat is sore?

It's not number 1 or number 2 ... it's number 8!

Stephen had a dirty diaper that was stinking up Grandma Smith's living room so I plopped him on the couch to change him. Well, imagine my surprise when I opened his diaper to find this!

It is a foam number 8 which is part of a set of letters and numbers Stephen was playing with at Grandma Quist's house an hour or so earlier. The number was exactly in the position you see in the picture when I opened his diaper and we have no idea how it got there! If you look closely, you will notice that Stephen is wearing a "onesie" and up until shortly before this incident he was wearing long pants with a button and zipper! We can only guess that he shoved the number down the neck of his shirt and it worked its way into his diaper somehow... Luckily, there was no poopy on it but we still sanitized it. Everyone in the room was laughing and crying hysterically, including Stephen!

A Good Way to Remember

I was reading a friend's blog and she had posted this article about 9/11. I am not sure where it is from but it really touched me when I read it.


How many of us have heard the question "Where was your God when the World Trade Center and the Pentagon were attacked?" Well I know where my God was the morning of September 11, 2001, and He was very busy.He was trying to discourage anyone from taking those flights. Those four planes together held over 1000 passengers and there were only 266 aboard. He was on 4 commercial flights giving terrified passengers the ability to stay calm. Not one of the family members who were called by a loved one on one of the hijacked planes said that passengers were screaming in the background. On one of the flights He was giving strength to passengers as they overtook the hijackers.

He was busy trying to create obstacles for employees at the World Trade Center. After all, only around 20,000 were at the towers when the first jet hit. Since the buildings held over 50,000 workers, this was a miracle in itself. How many of the people who were employed at the World Trade Center told the media that they were late for work or had traffic delays? He was holding up two 110-story buildings so that 2/3 of the workers could get out. Wasn't it amazing that the towers didn't topple when the jets impacted? And when they did fall, they fell inward. God didn't allow them to topple over, as many more lives would have been lost. And when the buildings went down, my God picked up almost 6,000 of his children and carried them home with Him. Reassuring his frightened children that the worst was over and the best was yet to come.

He sat down and cried that 19 of his misguided children could have so much hate in their hearts. That they didn't choose Him, but another god that didn't exist, and now they are lost. He sent His children who were best trained for this disaster and had them save the few that were still alive, but unable to help themselves. And then sent many others to help in anyway they were needed.

He still wasn't finished, though. He held in His arms the ones that were left behind. He comforts them daily. And I believe He will continue to help us in what is to come. He will give the people who lead this great nation the strength and the wisdom to do the right thing. He will never leave us in our time of need.

Last Call!

This is the last call for sending me your email address! Tomorrow I am taking this blog private so if you want to be able to access it still, send me a comment with your email! I already have most people that look at it I think...

Yucky Pizza

Tonight we had some Red Barron frozen pizza for dinner. Stephen loves pizza so I thought this would be a piece of cake dinner without any battles. Well, apparently my little son has a very discerning palette and does not care for this brand of pizza. (Okay, when you compare it to my mom's homemade pizza it doesn't come close). He picked at it, eating some of the cheese off of the top and taking bites, chewing them for a moment and then spitting them out in disgust. Well, being the responsible mom that I am, I decided that he needed to eat at least "two bites of pizza" before he could get down. It was a mistake. He was absolutely determined not to eat it and because I couldn't blame him I didn't have the heart to enforce my demand. He kept saying things like "no, yucky!" and "crap" and "it's gross." (The use of the word crap is an entirely different story.) I watched Stephen throw his slice of pizza on the floor for Kloie the dog to eat. He kept saying "good girl Kloie!" over and over as she ate it. It was all I could do not to laugh because I just couldn't blame him. Luckily, Scott is much more firm than me even though he also thought it was pretty funny. He patiently talked and reasoned with Stephen and eventually triumphed. Next time I insist on Stephen eating something, I am going to make sure it is worth the effort (green beans, corn...healthy stuff)!

"So cool, mommy!"

This little story actually happened a few weeks ago but I have to share. I took Stephen shopping and we met up with my mom and sister Chery (before she went to BYU obviously). We wandered around Tilley's for a while - this is apparently Stephen's favorite store now - he loved it for some reason. Then, we wandered over to a shoe store next door. After watching us ladies try on a few pairs of shoes, Stephen became facinated with those little nylon socks that the store provides for trying on shoes. He asked Aunt Chery to put some on him, which she did, over his flip flops! You can see how that turned out. It was hillarious because he looked so goofy and kept prancing around saying "so coo mommy!" We laughed and laughed because he was so cute! Obviously all of that prancing wore him out too. This little guy always keeps me laughing!

Stephen's Toe (and Ear)

I realized that I never mentioned how Stephen's doctor appointment turned out. Apparently, there is nothing that could be done for his toe . . . anymore. If I had brought him in sooner they would have been able to drain some of the blood but I waited too long and it was clotted and would just take a long time to go away. Well, that night Scott and Steve were wrestling and Steve's toe got a little roughed up and started bleeding a little. I put a band-aid on it and sent him to bed. The next day his toe looked as good as new! You would never even know that anything traumatic had happened to it! I was a little irritated because I realized that the doctor (actually it was a CPN) was wrong and could have drained it after all. I wish that I had a picture of what his toe looked like before... no one would ever believe how nasty and purple and swollen it was. Sorry to ramble on about Stephen's toe but we live for those little dramatic moments in life! Fortunately, the doctor appointment wasn't a total waste of time. In a moment of mother's inspiration I had the CPN check his ears and she found an infection in one of them. No wonder he wasn't sleeping well!

Going Private II

Ok, I think I might have been a little confusing on this whole "update blog" thing. Really, all you have to do to is send me your email address and I will invite you. The other stuff I wrote about is totally optional and I did it only to make viewing my blog more convienient, So, don't worry about figuring it out if it doesn't make a lot of sense (the important part is your email)!

Going Private

I have decided to take my blog private! I will "privatize" it on Friday, September 12th - that's in two weeks. I am still a little suprised about this myself, and I wouldn't do it, except that I have a friend who showed me a really cool way to make it easier on those who still want to view my blog. Here are the steps to take if you want to keep reading my blog:

• Leave a comment with your email address so I can invite you! (I won't publish these comments so your info won't be out there for the world to see.)
• If you use Google Reader change my blog address to http://smithupdater.blogspot.com/
• If you have my listed under your "friends and family" list to change the address to http://smithupdater.blogspot.com/

From now on, each post I do on this "real blog" will be announced on the http://smithupdater.blogspot.com/ blog. I will put a link on the "updater blog" that will take you directly to my "real blog." This works out really well because you are always notified of new posts and don't have to take special "trips" to view my blog only to find that there are no new posts.

Obviously if you don't use Reader you don't need to worry about the second step, but I would appreciate you changing the address on your friends and family list so that if anyone is trying to find me they can comment on that blog and I can invite them to view the "real one!"

Hopefully this works out well for everyone and if you are confused, please let me know so I can clarify! Thanks. :)

Busy Busy Busy

This week has been so crazy and busy that I feel like it should be over but it is only Wednesday!! Scott started school this week so we haven't seen much of him the last few days. He also (nicely) offered to work for two extra days in order to train the person they hired to replace him so we had to squeeze that in too. This makes my life more challenging in many ways but mostly because I get to deal with Stephen all by myself for 95% of the day which is so exhausting! I really miss Scott being home!

In addition, we have been staying at my parents house with my youngest sister, Celsea, while my parents take my other sister, Chery, to BYU. Celsea and I have both been so sad and really miss her already. The nicest part about staying here is that my wonderful mom prepared several meals and froze them so I don't really have to worry about cooking or groccery shopping for the week!

Stephen has not been sleeping well here and has become EXTREMELY accident prone - I can't take my eyes off of him for a second because he will more than likely hurt himself. For example, the first night we were here he tipped over a stool and it landed on his toes, crushing one of his little toenails pretty badly. It looks so gross because it has turned all black. I think I will take him to the doctor tomorrow because it looks pretty swollen and weird. Then, (I hate to admit this one) he got his hands on Scott's razor and cut both of his thumbs! They are minor cuts but he was bleeding for a while. I do have to say that we never leave razors within reach at home but when one is staying somewhere else it is easy to forget! Stephen has also become a mountain climber since comming here and I have caught him "about to fall" more times than I can count! Hopefully we survive!

(Sorry! No pictures because I didn't bring my camera!)

Grandma's 80th Birthday

Last weekend we went to Thatcher, Arizona to celebrate Scott's grandma's 80th birthday. This was also another day trip - the drive is about 3 hours each way and we had Scott's brother Josh and sister-in-law, Shay ride in our car with us. We had a lot of fun and Steve was even really good because Aunt Shay and Uncle Josh brought their portable DVD player and the movie "Cars" - a big hit! The whole trip all I think I heard out of him was "vrrrroooom!"

The "kids" (Scott's mom and aunts and uncles) threw a big lunch party for Grandma at the church. There were a lot of grandkids and great grand kids there as well. It was fun to see the cousins and have our little ones play together. The "cool place" for the kids to hang out was on the stage so I spent most of my time watching Stephen to keep him from falling. We tried to get all the little kids together on this set of stairs for a picture - it was a battle as each kid would sit for only a second and then run off. Miraculously, Stephen stayed put the whole time and was grinning for every picture. You will notice that he especially likes the one where he is the only boy with all the girls! Grandma looks very good for being 80 - I hope I still look that young when am 80!