Do I still have a blog???

Yes, I am still here and am so far behind on this blog.  See I have two kiddos now who demand nearly constant attention, and I'm getting ready to move, and there was a major holiday for which I attempted to make several projects for both home and gifts, so I have been B-U-S-Y!  I'm only here now because baby girl is being little miss insomniac and I'm waiting for her to get good and asleep before I turn in myself.

Christmas was good, we were here at home just us.  We went to Mass on Christmas Eve and both kids were extremely well behaved which was such a gift in and of itself.  We came home and let Austin open one gift which I think will be our tradition from now on, that we will each get new pajamas that are to be opened on Christmas Eve to be worn for the night. Austin had a blast this year and it was really fun to watch him enjoy the whole process.  We tried to feed Katy cereal for the first time, but she wasn't too impressed.

We went sledding the Sunday before Christmas and had a blast.  We went to the Coral Pink Sand Dunes because they make fabulously smooth sledding runs.  We went for a while with just our family, then we met up with a group of friends.  They had a camp fire which was so nice to warm up by.  Great times were had by all!

We are heading back to Wyoming next week for our house hunting trip.  I am SO EXCITED to be there! It's going to be so hard to come back here for two more weeks after that.  I hope that we find an acceptable place, the market is tight there.  I have been looking into restaurants, the rec center, and other stuff to see while we are there and it is going to be a fun trip.  I am also trying to figure out how to select a Pediatrician too as both kids will be do for well child checks right after we move.  Here it was never an issue as we just went with who was available, but there are a lot to chose from there.  Hopefully the weather holds our for our drive.

We have started plans for Austin's fourth birthday bash.  We are doing it 10 days early this year since we are moving the week of his birthday.  We still don't know the exact date that the moving company is coming, but we are anticipating being here and that his last day at the Learning Center will be his actual birthday, so he can take cupcakes as birthday/going away.  We are hosting the party here at our house and going with a Mickey Mouse Clubhouse theme.  It will be fun to have all his buddies together one last time and give him a good send off.  I'm also hoping to pick up some of the supplies for the party next week while I am in Wyoming.

Well I think Miss Katy is good and out now, so I'm going to head to bed.  If I don't blog again before the new year I hope you have a fabulous day and a prosperous 2013!

Oh my this girl!

We took the kids to see Santa at the local grocery store this morning.  They have Santa for the kids to visit for free and you can take your own photos.  I have to say that it went exceptionally well this year.  Austin was great, he just went straight for Santa, got on his lap and had a nice little conversation with him.  Katy sat on his lap for photos and didn't cry a bit.  I got home and downloaded the photos and picked out the best one of Austin and Santa, Katy and Santa and then both kids with Santa.  I posted them to Facebook and a few people liked them.  Then my oldest brother caught me online tonight and said they thought Katy wasn't too impressed, and I said I thought she did ok since she didn't cry.  He was like, maybe I shouldn't point this out, but did you happen to look at her hand.

Yep, that's my girl flipping off the camera at the ripe old age of 4.5 months old!

Wise beyond his years

Yesterday I was in Katy's room changing her diaper and Austin came in the room.  He said the letters on her wall "K-A-T-Y, that spells Katy!"  and I said "yes, good job buddy."  Then he asked "what does that spell" and pointed to a banner that I saved from my baby shower and hung under her name.  I said the first word is "B-A-B-Y and that spells baby, and G-I-R-L that spells girl."  He looks at me and says "I like girls... they're a little tricky"  I about fell over laughing, who knew at 3 that he would have such an understanding already!

The ship finally came in

We have big and exciting news at our house, Dustin was offered and accepted a position with the Bureau of Land Management in central Wyoming, so we will be moving in January.  I will live just under 4 hours from my Mom, just over 3 hours from my sister, 2 hours from my friend Brandi (her blog is Life of a New Mommy of Two), and about 4.5 hours from my youngest brother.  Unfortunately we will live further from my older brother, but there is an airport near where we will live, so we can fly to Phoenix to see him.  We drove there while we were back in Colorado for Thanksgiving and we love it.  We were unable to find a rental for now, but the realty companies all said there would be several more before January. We will probably take another trip there in a few weeks to secure a rental.

Dustin's start date is January 28.  I am excited about that as Austin's birthday is the 22nd, so we will have a big birthday/going away bash for him with all his friends before we leave.  It still is hard to wrap my mind around the fact that we are moving after living here over 8 years.  I guess it will settle in when the moving truck comes and takes our stuff away.

Please keep your fingers crossed for us that we are able to sell our house here.  We lowered the asking price significantly as we decided it's better to take a loss and move it rather than hold out and have to pay our mortgage payment and rent.

Warms my heart

Tonight I was sitting in the bathroom while Austin was taking his bath and I was holding Katy.  I would hold her up to my face and tell her "I'm going to eat your belly!" and then kiss her belly and make little growling sounds.  She would giggle and smile at me and was totally loving it.  Austin got a concerned look on his face and in a serious tone says "don't eat her belly Mom, she is special!" I love that kid!

Halloween

I know it’s way late, but here are some photos from our Halloween.

Freedom!

I just got back from casting my votes today and thought I would share some election day thoughts.  I was surprised to see this morning that none of the blogs that I follow had done a post about voting yet.  Don't worry, I'm not going to tell you who I voted for or try to twist your arm to support any particular candidate.  I personally wish more people would keep their political views between them and the ballot booth.

My first memory having to do with election day was when I was a pretty young child, although I don't know exactly how old I was then.  My Mom took me with her to the voting precinct which was at the old Chevy dealership in our small town, the building is now a Mexican restaurant.  I got out of our old blue station wagon and when I went to shut the door I put my other hand on the side of the car for leverage and slammed the door shut.  Unfortunately the tips of my fingers were in the way and I smashed them in the door.  After crying profusely for some time my Mom was able to take her tear stained girl in to cast her votes.  The election official lady felt bad for me and she gave me a ballot and said I could take it home and fill it out and my Mom could bring it back in for me.  I took it home and colored in some of the ovals with my crayons and gave it to my Mom.  You can imaging my disappointment when my Mom refused to humor me and said that I was too young to vote and the lady was just trying to be nice.

I have been proudly voting in every election since I turned 18.  I know a lot of people were opting for early balloting this year, but there is just something too nostalgic about going in on election day.  Today it is a beautiful blue sky mid 70's day so I pushed Katy in the stroller to the firehouse to vote.  When I walked up there was a sign marking off the 75 ft buffer zone for demonstrators, but there were no demonstrators in sight.  I went in and was the only voter at the time, just 8 election officials sitting around waiting to help me.  Pretty uneventful.  Way different experience from when I lived in Fort Collins, Colorado and stood in line for over an hour to vote in the Bush/Kerry election 8 years ago.

I know some people feel that their one little vote is insignificant in the sea of millions, but I take a great deal of pride in voting.  I am so grateful that I was born in this country and think even all the nasty political mudslinging is a wonderful sign of our freedom.  I hope that my fellow American blog friends have cast their votes, or will do so before the polls close today.

5QF

1. What terrifies you the most?

Definitely something bad happening to my kids, it's a rough and cruel world out there and it's scary to think of them getting sick, or falling into the hands of some evil person.  

2. Favorite fall/winter drink? 

Either eggnog or my mother-in-laws apple cider:

6 cups of apple cider
3 cups cranberry juice
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
6 cinnamon sticks
1 TBSP whole cloves

Add the ingredients in a pan and warm them up.  If you are having a party you can put it into a crock pot and simmer.  Remove the spices before serving.

3. Do you and your spouse have the same political views?

I don't really talk politics publicly, but I would just say we agree on some things, and disagree on others.  We probably agree more than we disagree.

4. What was the last book you read? Was it any good?

The last book I read in it's entirety was A Prayer for Owen Meany for my book club.  I started reading The Night Circus, but that was our book club book that was when Katy was born and I never finished it.  I am currently reading Mama Day and am about half way through it.

5. Do you look forward to the snow each winter? Why or why not?

I can't really say that I look forward to it, but I don't mind it any more.  I grew up in Colorado and came to dislike it when I had to drive in it, more so because of other idiot drivers.  Since I moved to Arizona we only get a handful of snows each winter and it melts within a day or two, so I hardly ever have to deal with it.  

Christmas List 2013

Yes you read that right, 2013.  At least I am hopeful that Austin will be singing "All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth" next year and not this year.  Last week a dental hygienist visited his preschool to check the kids' teeth and do fluoride treatments.  She noted that Austin's two front top teeth were loose and said they should not be at his age yet.  She recommended that I take him to the dentist and have them checked, so I called and got him in on an emergency appointment this morning.

They took an x-ray and Dr. Tyler came in and explained what was going on without even looking at Austin's teeth.  He asked if Austin was a rough and tumble boy and I said oh yes, he definitely is.  He explained that Austin has bumped his teeth several times and over time it has caused the roots of his teeth to die and start reabsorbing, so basically those two teeth are dead now.  He said if a kid gets one major blow to the mouth it can cause an abscess which discolors the teeth, but since Austin's were small hits it was gradual and that is why his teeth are still normal color.  He reassured me that one of his sons had the exact same thing happen, and he usually has 20 or so patients a year that lose their teeth prematurely.

He then examined Austin's teeth to give them a test wiggle and said that if Austin continues to wiggle them he may have them only a couple more months, but best case scenario they will fall out within a year.  He probably still won't get his permanent teeth until age 5 or 6 so he will be toothless for a while.

Yo Ho Ho

Today was the Halloween party at Austin's school.  This year Austin decided what/who he wanted to be and he picked Jake of Jake and the Neverland Pirates:

It's a cartoon on the Disney Jr. channel that is a spin off of Peter Pan.  Peter Pan is an occasional guest, but Captain Hook and Mr. Smee are both regulars as they are after the Neverland Pirates Jake, Izzy, Cubby and Skully.

I put together all of Austin's costume and all I bought was his sword that was $3.

5QF

Wow what a crazy week, I can't believe it's already Friday morning.  Dustin lead a pack trip into a wilderness area Monday-Wednesday this week which left me alone with both kids for the first time.  The days were ok because Austin went to school, but Katy still has a fussy/cry period in the evenings so it was hard to try and comfort her and still give Austin attention.  I was one exhausted Mommy by the time Daddy got home!  1. Where do you hide junk when people come over?

I used to put it on our desk in our office, but that is now Austin's room and we condensed down to one small desk in our guest room.  If it's just a little mail I stick it in there, otherwise now it goes on or behind the chair in our bedroom until I can get to it and find somewhere for it.

2. Do political ads help you decide who you are going to vote for?

NO, I hate political adds!  I don't think you can really count on them for being accurate, especially the PAC ads.  We have been getting bombarded by them in Arizona, and they are ugly.  Some of them seem so stretched that you have to wonder about how they are manipulating things to try and portray people dishonestly.

There is one particular add here that bothers me for a women running for the House and it says she said stay at home moms leach off their husbands.  Then the next add says the same quote only that she said work at home women do.  So it's like they contradicted themselves and it seems suspicious that a politician would say something like that anyway.

3. What's your favorite holiday party to host?

The only holiday party I have ever hosted is my Christmas cookie baking party.  I guess sometimes for St. Patrick's Day I have had a corned beef dinner for my family, but I wouldn't really consider it a full on party.  

4. You go to an island with your husband and can only take one personal item. What is it?

Toothbrush, if I'm getting quality time with my husband I want fresh breath!

5. If you found out your spouse was a Dexter style serial killer (only kills people to save others) would you rat?

I guess if I knew more about this Dexter thing I might have a better answer.  My husband would never murder anyone, so it's hard to even imagine, but since I believe that "though shall not kill" I would do the right thing.

Austin's artwork

The Learning Center where Austin goes to school had an open house last weekend and they had the kids make art on canvas that they displayed and then sold the artwork to raise funds for the center.  I of course couldn't resist Austin's art.

5QF

1. Did you have any homecoming traditions?

In high school I would always go to the game and the dance.  Since I was a football manager/trainer I would be in the parade with the team.  

In college my sorority always did a float in the parade.

2. Do you ask your spouse before spending money?

If it's a big purchase I would, like over $100.  Unless of course I'm buying a gift for him. 

3. If you could be famous for something what would it be?

I'm not sure if this is something that I currently am able to do, or if I could have a talent I currently lack.  It it's something I'm currently good at I suppose it would be my cooking.  If I could obtain a new talent I think it would be fun to play a base guitar in a rock band.
4. Have you ever seriously thought you were going crazy?

Definitely in college I was overwhelmed and felt like I couldn't do it.  I tried taking caffeine pills once and they totally wigged me out.

5. How do you eat your steak? Burger? (as in, well done, medium, still moo-ing...)

Steak- Medium Rare
Burger-done: not black, but not pink at all

34

Today is my 34th birthday.  My 34th year was a good one and I feel so blessed.  I got to spend my day with three of my most favorite people hiking at a beautiful location.  We went to the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument and hiked the Willis Creek Slot Canyon.  You follow the creek and cross it several times along the trail. Austin absolutely loved it and indulged in hiking in the water as much as possible. 

We met an older gentleman from Ohio along the trail and he asked how old Katy was and said she was by and far the youngest hiker he had ever seen.  He was surprised when I said it wasn't even her first hike.

My boys <3

On our way home we stopped and had a late lunch/early dinner at Ruby's Inn which is near Bryce Canyon National Park.

Here are some highlights from my 34th year:

• I delivered my beautiful little girl Katy in July.  She is growing like crazy and she amazes me everyday. She has a strong will and a lot of strength to start out so tiny and endure so many issues at first to be caught up with her growth and so healthy today.  
• I resigned from my position with the Kaibab Paiute Tribe which I have had for 7.5 years so that I can be a stay at home mom.
• We got to travel and see our families.  We went to Iowa for Thanksgiving and stopped in Colorado along the way.  We went back to Colorado when my nephew wrestled in the state tournament.  Last week we went to the western slope of Colorado for a visit.
• We celebrated Austin's third birthday and I have enjoyed watching my little boy grow and learn.  I have especially enjoyed watching him become a big brother and am elated by how much he loves his sister and looks out for her. 
• We celebrated our seventh year of marriage to my best friend who is the best dad and husband ever.

I look forward to my 35th year and know that God has wonderful things planned for our family this year.

5QF

I'm back!  I haven't done a 5QF since I had Katy, but I am finally back in the groove and ready to participate in my fav meme.  Head on over to Mama M's and join in the fun:

1. What album/cd/download are you embarrassed to admit you have?

I still have all the New Kids on the Block albums and VHS tapes of their videos.  In another way to look at it I have the Nine Inch Nails CD that has Closer on it, I love the way the song sounds, but not the words themselves.

2. What's the one thing your spouse does better than you?

There are a lot of things, but I am going with installing things around the house.  I have tried, but he gets out his stud finder and leveler and makes sure everything is perfectly placed.  

3. When do you start buying Halloween Candy?

Mine is already in the pantry for this year.  I live 80 miles away from a major city, about 60 miles from a Walmart, so I always try to stock up on everything and plan ahead when I go for a shopping trip.  When I was in the big city for Katy's 2 month appointment last week I went to Costco and bought a huge bag of candy bars.

4. Family closets - Yay or nay?

Nay, my husband and I share a closet, but our stuff is completely separate.  Our kids have their own closets in their rooms.

5. Which home/cleaning chore do you hate the most? Why?

I'm not big on cleaning anything, but I really hate cleaning the toilets.  Totally because of the germiness.

Anniversary Trip

We took a little trip to celebrate our 7th wedding anniversary this weekend.  We have taken a trip every year so far and didn’t want to miss even though Katy is so young.  It was exhausting, but also a lot of fun. 
Our plans changed three times.  First we just planned the trip to go to Dinosaur National Monument, then to check out a town in Colorado where Dustin applied for a job, and finally stop and see my brother and his family.  Then the people offering the job called and scheduled an interview which Dustin offered to give in person.  Originally it was going to be on Wednesday, then they called and said they couldn’t do it then so they moved it to Monday.
We left on Saturday and drove all day and got to my brother’s house that evening.  Katy traveled well and slept most of the time.  We stayed through until Monday morning.  We got to take advantage of the indoor pool where they live and also got to watch the Bronco game.  Austin loved playing around their ranchette.

The boys watching Phineas and Ferb. 

Austin loved their cats and was pretty rough with them, but they were sweet and let him give them all the attention he wanted.

Checking out the flume behind their house.

Aunt Krissy and Katy sporting their Bronco wear.

Monday we drove to the town where Dustin had his interview.  Austin, Katy and I went to the park to play during that time.  We attempted to go out for a nice lunch afterwards at an Italian restaurant since it was our anniversary.  It was really good food, but Katy cried the whole time so it was a total indigestion kind of lunch.  We drove around the town checking it out and even drove by some properties that were for sale. 
That evening we got a special treat because my nephew’s school scheduled an impromptu junior varsity football game against the town where we were so we got to go and watch them play.  We had dinner at our hotel with Aunt Krissy and the boys before they headed home. 

Tuesday we headed home and stopped at Dinosaur National Monument on the way.  Dustin worked there the first summer after he graduated from college in a seasonal job and he loved the area and was excited to show it to Austin.  We were not able to go out and see all the things we wanted to see, but still had a great time.  It brought back a lot of memories from that summer in 2004.

Wordless Wednesday

Getting there

Miss Katy is growing and finally catching up for her early birth.  I took her to the Pediatrician yesterday for her two month checkup and she was 10lb 11oz which puts her in the 44th percentile, up from the 6th percentile at the last appointment.  For height she made a big jump and was 23.23" which puts her in the 80th percentile, up from 35th at her last appointment.

She of course did not enjoy the shots, but took them pretty well and stopped crying before we left the office.  She slept most of the rest of the afternoon so I was able to run a couple of errands while I was over there.  

Seeing double

Austin is on the left when he was almost a month and a half old, Katy on the right at almost two months old.

Rambling a lot

• Life has been crazy busy keeping up with the 3 year old and the almost 2 month old. 
• Katy slept for 5 straight hours last night, it was great except when I woke up just before 3am and realized she hadn't waken at midnight like she usually does.  We just started medicine for thrush and I freaked out thinking she had a reaction or spit it up and choked on it.  She was sleeping just fine in her crib.
• This thrush thing is crazy, I think we may have been suffering from it since she was born, but I didn't know about it.  I thought I hurt myself with my pump so I disregarded my pain during nursing.  Finally I had enough and looked it up and found out that it could be the thrush.  Katy has been fussy and gassy for a while now so I'm thinking that is the cause and hoping the thrush treatment will make her happier and help her sleep better.
• We have a busy week ahead.  We are going to a 1 year old birthday party on Tuesday evening, Katy has her 2 month checkup on Wednesday which requires a trip to the big city which is 75 miles away, and Thursday we are heading out for a mini trip to celebrate our 7th wedding anniversary.  We are going to Utah/Colorado to go to Dinosaur National Monument, then to a town in Colorado that Dustin just applied for a job at so we can check it out since it wasn't on our most desirable list.  We are going to stop off at my brother's house on the way home, so I'm looking forward to the family time too.
• In addition to the Colorado job Dustin applied for another one in Wyoming.  They are both with the BLM.  Neither place was on our original most desirable location list, but we can make it work if he gets one of them.  
• Katy is smiling a lot more now, it's not just random any more.  

• Austin has been really acting out a lot lately.  I have been getting more thorough with my disciplining.  It's frustrating, but I know it's his age and missing all the attention from when he was an only child.  Some days are definitely better than others too.  He still melts my heart all the time too.

Among other things

I have been super busy with the kids lately, but I did manage to find some time for some canning.  I got a case of peaches from Bountiful Baskets produce coop and made peach jam, peach butter, and dried peach roll ups.  I wanted to order some strawberries this week, but they ran out before I got my order placed.  Hopefully I will be able to get another fruit soon and make some more jams to last through the winter.

Beautiful Lengths

I finally got tired of my long hair and had it cut last week.

This morning I sent it off to Beautiful Lengths.  Here is a little about Beautiful Lengths:

Beautiful Lengths is a partnership between Pantene and the American Cancer Society, the largest non-profit health organization committed to saving lives from every cancer and improving the quality of life for people facing the disease. The role of Pantene is to help women grow long, strong,* beautiful hair and provide the funds to turn this hair into free, real-hair wigs for women with cancer. So far, Pantene has donated 24,000 free real-hair wigs to the American Cancer Society’s wig banks, which distribute wigs to cancer patients across the country.

This is the fourth time I have donated my hair.  Twice I sent it to Locks of Love and this is my second donation to Beautiful Lengths.  

Her First National Park

We took a little family outing on Sunday and went to Zion National Park.  It was also the first park we took Austin to, although it was a much different experience since he was born in January and we went there in February.  It was pretty hot, but we had a great time.