Pregnant Beauty August 3, 2009
Posted by Emily in : Friends, Photography, Pregnancy , 3commentsThis is my friend Mandy.
She’s beautiful.
And she’s pregnant.
This is baby number four.
It’s a boy.
Actually, this will be her fourth boy.
She makes pregnancy look glamorous.
I had a great time photographing her.
Turns out, we both like to talk.
A lot. 
Daddy’s Little Assistant October 13, 2008
Posted by Emily in : Daily Life, Family, Friends, My Handsome Husband, Pregnancy, Princess Hannah, Projects, Saba, Thoughts , 4commentsTwice a month, Lowe’s has a workshop for kids where they can make a toy for FREE. We checked it out on Saturday, and of course, Hannah loved it. She and David (mostly David actually) made a glow in the dark skeleton out of wood.
Hannah took her job (of looking cute and trying to help) very, very seriously. I mean, good assistants wear safety goggles, right?
Hannah loves her new toy, apron, and goggles she got for free. The next time you’re itching for something to do with your kids on a Saturday morning, check out this workshop!
Hannah LOVED her goggles so much (she referred to them as her glasses) she refused to take them off. So here she is walking around the store, in full gear. If she was a little taller, people would probably ask her for help.
Thanks for the recommendation Meghan!
Emotionally Taxed August 26, 2008
Posted by Emily in : Daily Life, Family, Little Man Dallin, Pregnancy, Saba , 1 comment so farWe are spent. David and I are both physically and emotionally taxed at the moment. We appreciate the concern several of you have sent our way regarding Dallin. We think we may have found a solution . . . we’ll see how the next few days go. We’ll keep you posted.
I’m tired. I could REALLY use some sleep.
Pray for a peaceful night.
You Know You’re Desperate When . . . August 19, 2008
Posted by Emily in : Daily Life, Family, Friends, Little Man Dallin, My Former Dog Children, Pregnancy, Princess Hannah, Saba, Thoughts, Utah , 4commentsYou know you’re desperate when you pack a toiletry bag, and load up your two kids and drive a half hour to your parents house, JUST TO TAKE A SHOWER.
This is my life. I am desperate. Desperate to keep on top of my personal hygiene and my sanity. As I walked into the door of my parents’ house, my mom said, “Oh! I’m so glad to see you! I’m so glad you brought your babies! I have missed them!”
Yeah, okay. You can have them for the next hour while I find some mental clarity in the shower. Please, remember that Hannah is around. She is so easy, taking care of her is like watching grass grow. Dallin is what we call “high maintenance” so if he screams a lot, or the whole time, just know it’s something he does. He likes to be heard. You know, HE DOESN’T WANT YOU TO FORGET ABOUT HIM.
Mmmm . . . It’s always nice to know your kids are in good hands. It kind of makes you want to take your time while getting ready . . .
Okay, back to reality. I had a girls night out with some of my best friends from high school. A couple of the girls I hadn’t seen in almost 10 years. We all think we look the same (although we ALL know we were skinnier and younger looking 10 years ago) and picked right up where we left off all those years ago.
Anne Wilson Copeland (who now lives in Texas) Katie Trent Renslow (who lives in Colorado) Me (who lives like a gypsy with no place to call home) Katie Corrigan Broadbent (who lives in Utah) and Ashley Huish Tobler (who just moved back to Utah after living in Nevada) I would also like to point out that Ashley’s baby is four days younger than Dallin. (And no, Dallin was not invited on my mommy night out.)
We had such a fantastic time. I haven’t laughed that hard in a long time. It was so fun to see my friends after so many years. We ended up talking entirely too long and could have gone on all night if we didn’t have little people to get home to.
Thanks for the great night out. It was the shot in the arm I desperatly needed.
Dallin Newsletter #1 August 8, 2008
Posted by Emily in : Daily Life, Family, Little Man Dallin, My Handsome Husband, Pregnancy, Princess Hannah , 6commentsDear Dallin,
You are now one month old. I have enjoyed your company so much more outside of my belly than inside. You are a BIG BOY, and that reason alone is probably the primary factor why I enjoy your company so much now. You came out a whopping 9 pounds 12 ounces at 38 weeks. I can only imagine how big you would have been (and how uncomfortable and miserable I would have been) if we allowed you to bake an additional two weeks. At your two week check-up you grew two inches (so you were 22 inches long) and were back to your birth weight. You are an excellent nurser, and I am happy to report that I have had no problems nursing you. Thank goodness for that.
We don’t know much about your personality yet, but we do know that you like to eat, sleep, poop, and cry. You are quite the pooping machine, and your first night in the hospital you pooped 11 times. Yes, count that again, 11 times. Your dad was 100% on poop duty (since I had my abdomen sliced open to get you out, I wasn’t really in any position to help you since I couldn’t even help myself) and boy did you let him know what to expect for the next few weeks! The good news is that all of your piping works properly. It works VERY WELL.
You do enjoy sleeping anywhere, anytime.
Dallin and mommy sleeping . . .
Dallin and Grandpa Dennis sleeping . . .
Dallin and Grandma Gloria
Dallin and Daddy
Dallin and Grandpa P
You have a talent at blowing bubbles when you sleep. We think it’s darling, and we just know you have some hidden talents up your sleeve.
Your big sister Hannah LOVES you to pieces. She ALWAYS wants to hold you, kiss you, or play with you. She is so good to you. She is still working on being gentle with you, but you couldn’t ask for a better older sister. She is thrilled to have a baby brother. We are equally excited that she accepts you and hasn’t asked us to return you to the hospital.
We can’t wait to see what you discover and learn and who you become in the next few months.
We love you so much. We’re so glad you finally made your debut!
Love,
Mommy
No Buyer’s Satisfaction July 17, 2008
Posted by Emily in : Family, Little Man Dallin, My Handsome Husband, Pregnancy, Princess Hannah, Thoughts, Utah , 3commentsIt’s a good thing we don’t have jobs because we wouldn’t be able to work and fit in all these doctor appointments! Almost every day for the past two weeks, one of us has had a doctor or dentist appointment. Today, Dallin went to the doc, I went to the OB for my post c-section check-up, and David had to go to the dentist. David and I both need some dental work done (living in the Caribbean for 2 1/2 years without dental care can certainly ring up a big bill for you) and honestly, all I want to say to the dentist and endodontist is: GET IN LINE. Everyone wants a piece of us (or more accurately, OUR CASH).
Did I mention I had a root canal done last week? Yes, LAST WEEK. The very week I had major surgery. FIVE DAYS AFTER BIRTHING A BABY. I absolutely had no choice, (other than cutting off my head, but then I couldn’t kiss my darling babies, or see them for that matter) and I HAD TO GET THE TOOTH TAKEN CARE OF. The endodontist was so nice, he gave up part of his Saturday morning to drill a hole in my tooth. I was SO HAPPY to be out of the mind numbing pain, I almost felt good about paying him $900 for ONE hour of his time.
But, secretly, I am kind of bummed that I had to spend $900 on a tooth. FOR MAINTENANCE. Honestly, I don’t have a problem spending that much money on any given Saturday, but it is sort of depressing to spend it on something you have to have done. You know, SO YOU DON’T DIE OF PAIN.
There are so many other things I would have liked to spend that money on, like a new SLR Camera, (Yes, we are still obsessed with Nikon cameras) a new post pregnancy wardrobe, a plane ticket to Hawaii, or a new piece of jewelry (hey, it is our 11th anniversary today). Hey, I wouldn’t even mind spending that money at the dentist for teeth whitening, or Invisalign. But for a root canal? There is no buyer satisfaction in that. In fact, I may even have buyer’s remorse.
Moving on . . . I went to the OB today for my post c-section check-up. The nurse was a little surprised to see David and me there. ALONE. WITH NO CHILDREN. I guess that probably did look weird. But Hannah was sleeping (not that we would have taken her anyway. How BORING for a toddler) and Dallin was sleeping and I didn’t want to expose him to nasty doctor’s office germs because I am a teeny, tiny, bit of a CLEAN FREAK at times. Please, don’t tell anyone. I checked out okay, and they nurse noticed I was in REGULAR jeans and she said, “Reguar Jeans? WOW! 10 days after major surgery? That is great!” And you know what? THAT IS EXACTLY WHAT I WAS THINKING AS I HEAVED MY FAVORITE JEANS ON OVER MY OVERWORKED POST PREGNANCY BELLY THIS MORNING. It’s nice when others notice. I have five pounds to loose to be at pre-pregnancy weight. This weight should not be confused with pre-Hannah weight. I have certainly have my work cut out for me in six weeks when I can start vigorous workouts again.
No Longer Pregnant! July 14, 2008
Posted by Emily in : Daily Life, Family, Friends, Little Man Dallin, My Handsome Husband, Pregnancy, Princess Hannah, Utah , 5commentsI would like to point out the obvious right now. I AM NO LONGER PREGNANT. This fact alone has increased the quality of my life by at least 100%. I now have a beautiful baby boy named Dallin, and this fact has increased the quality of my life by at least a million percent. He is a doll. I am so in love with him. This is crazy, (and trust me, I know this next statement is crazy) but right after I have a baby, I want another one. Insane? Yes. So even though I HATE pregnancy (many of you have read about my pregnancy complaints so you know I TRULY DO NOT LOVE being pregnant) the final product is SO WORTH IT. In fact, I think I have forgotten all about my pregnancy ailments.
This delivery was pretty uneventful (especially compared to Hannah’s birth). I experienced no labor, (I highly recommend this) and I arrived at the hospital last Monday morning at 38 weeks pregnant for my scheduled c-section. At 8:36 am, I delivered Dallin who weighed in at 9 pounds 12 ounces. He was a tank, and I can only imagine how big he would have been if we waited two more weeks to deliver him on his due date!
When the doctor pulled Dallin out, I literally yelled, “Oh my gosh! I’m no longer pregnant!” Yes, I was THAT HAPPY ABOUT IT.
This is my beautiful son just moments out of my belly.
My recovery from this birth has been smooth. It has been SO MUCH EASIER to recover from this delivery than Hannah’s. It is amazing how much easier it is for your body to recover from major surgery when you haven’t gone through labor first. The hospital staff was wonderful, and having a baby in the USA was much more posh than my experience of giving birth to Hannah in the Caribbean.
I have had a very laid back week of recovering, and enjoying the company of friends and family who have come by to see our new addition. Hannah is absolutely in love with Dallin (much to our relief) and she always asks to kiss and hold him.
Here are some pictures from the week:
I am so glad to be home. I am up and around, and sometimes I actually get out of the house and take my kids on a walk. We love this little guy and Hannah so much. It’s hard to remember back to when David and I didn’t have them in our lives.
Way Funner With a Kid July 6, 2008
Posted by Emily in : Family, Holidays, My Former Dog Children, Photography, Pregnancy, Princess Hannah, Saba, Thoughts, Utah , 1 comment so farThe last time David and I went to a parade we took our dogs. We didn’t realize that dogs don’t really like parades until after it started. For some reason, the firing guns, loud cars and motorcycles, and all the people that come out in droves to see the parade, scared the crap out of them. We should have seen it coming, and left our dogs at home. But, before we had Hannah, our dogs were our kids, and they had no choice but to go to fun family activities with us. Because it was their job as our dog children.
Having a real-human-child-that-belonged-to-us was a TRILLION TIMES funner to have at the parade than our dogs. I now understand why parents camp out the night before the parade to secure great seats. NOT THAT I WOULD EVER DO THAT . . . but I get it now.
Parades are everything Hannah loves: airplanes overhead, candy, kids, horses, people singing, people dancing, cars, motorcycles . . . she absolutely enjoyed the parade. And get this, she talked her grandma and grandpa into attending the event, EVEN THOUGH IT WAS PRACTICALLY THE LAST THING ON THE PLANET THEY WANTED TO DO THAT DAY. Way to go Hannah!
This was Hannah’s face for over two hours . . . she also danced her little heart away when bands came by.
We all had a great time . . . even I did with my huge belly which you can’t see in the empty chair. (Well, someone has to take photos!)
It was one hot day, and I wished we were on the other side of the street where there was more shade, but we were lucky enough to get such good seats.
We have just finished our marathon week of fun activities, (the zoo, water park, hot air balloon race, grandpa P’s birthday party, the parade, visiting family and friends . . . phew!) and in 24 hours, our new baby will have joined our family. We are all excited for the arrival of this little baby. Tonight is the last night of quiet, peaceful, sleep!
Stats and pictures will be posted as soon as we can get them up tomorrow. Check back to see our new little guy, (and what we named him)!
A Kid at Heart July 5, 2008
Posted by Emily in : Family, Pregnancy, Princess Hannah, Utah , add a commentAs I was going through some pictures from this week, I came across these photos from the zoo. These are some photos of Dennis accompanying Hannah on her favorite attraction, the carousel. The look on Dennis’ face is what stood out to me in all these photos.
I’m not sure what Hannah is thinking, but I’m pretty sure Dennis thinks this ride is the “bomb.”
Hannah seems to be having a little more fun . . .
Hannah was very good to wave at us, even if it was only a little wave . . .
Check out the smile on Dennis’ face . . . I’m not sure who is having more fun . . .
Looks like you can never be too old or too young to enjoy a good carousel ride. Thanks Dennis for taking Hannah. Riding around and around in circles is not exactly my idea of fun, especially when I’m pregnant. Thanks for sparing me from chugging up my innards.
Worth Waking Up For July 4, 2008
Posted by Emily in : Family, Pregnancy, Princess Hannah, Utah , 1 comment so farOh how I have missed celebrating our nations birth in Utah. For seven LONG YEARS now, David and I have not been in Utah to celebrate this event. Our absence (you know, our experience celebrating this event in other states and of course out of the country) has only made us realize how AWESOME the events and festivities leading up to and including the 4th of July are in Utah. There are so many family friendly activities to do.
One of my favorite events is the hot air balloon race. The race starts early, (around 6:30 am) but it is TOTALLY worth getting up for it. I had to remind David of that fact when he really wanted to sleep in when the alarm sounded (at 5:00 am). And get this . . . WE, THE SLEEP/NAP NAZI’S, EVEN WOKE UP HANNAH EARLY TO GO TO THIS. Yeah, it was that important.
In case you were wondering, this is what the inside of a hot air balloon looks like when it is being blown up.
Trust me, it looks a lot bigger in person . . .
The field was overtaken with onlookers and big balloons. Everywhere.
This is Hannah’s signature look when she is experiencing something for the first time. Even though it looks like she is bored out of her brains, she is actually having a great time. She kept calling them “A BANOONS!” and would point to the launched ones and say, “COME BACK! SIT DOWN!” Hannah has been fascinated with “banoons” since we arrived in the states almost two months ago. Considering the first time she saw a helium balloon was a few weeks ago, I’d say she’s on the fast track to “balloon knowledge” now that she has seen hot air balloons.
Hannah especially liked the pig and the strawberry designs . . .
This is one big pig . . .
I just love to see the balloons rise so quickly. They are so beautiful against the sunrise and the mountains.
If you find yourself in Utah for the 4th of July, please mark this event on your calendar. It is TOTALLY worth it. EVEN IF YOU DO HAVE TO WAKE UP EARLY.
