Woohoo!

I'm so excited! Every one of my fantabulous student secretaries that I got to work with while I was at BYU-Idaho that last summer now has a blog! That means I can keep in touch with ALL of you! I know this doesn't mean much to most of you, but it means something to me! Cara, Brittany, Becca, Rachel, and Amy are all linked on my blog now! Yay for blogs and our technological world. :)

P.S. Sadly, Amy and Brittany are not in this picture, but it was the only one I had that was remotely close to capturing us. :)

I Got Tagged...

Many times actually, but you have to start somewhere, so we'll start with the one Abby Uno just tagged me with. We'll call it - 6 crazy things about me.

1. I am deathly afraid of moths. Like seriously afraid of them. I cannot explain this unfounded and completely illogical fear. I was driving to dance practice one day in high school (early morning) and a moth flew up in front of my speedometer. I immediately started screaming, pulled my car off to the side of the road and jumped out - still screaming. Keep in mind that it was in the country, in ID, I was alone, and it was about 5:30 or 6:00 in the morning. I guess the positive things was, that since it WAS in the country, I only scared cows. I don't think any humans heard me. Which means it's a good thing it was just a moth.
2. When it starts to snow, I get this overwhelming urge to paint things. Not wall or canvas type painting, but craft painting. I don't paint hardly anything during the rest of the year but as soon as it snows I'm going nuts to be crafty.
3. I was a history major as some of you know. History majors have to write A LOT. Big research papers where you analyze the details of what happened and talk about it. Here's the confession. I loved writing the papers. When I graduated, I was actually sad that I didn't have any papers to write. I love sitting down at the computer surrounded by books with my CMS manual there to guide me in making sure my footnotes are properly created. Ahh, I miss that. Maybe I'll write a paper on something. What should I write it on?
4. This one really won't come as a shock to most of you, but I'm seriously like 5 years old at heart. I love toys and books (I own the coolest little dolls, and lots of toys that Sydney is not nearly old enough to play with, but we have them because I love them and I am determined for her to love them too). I also love cartoons - the classics like Disney, and the unfamiliar (to some) Magic School Bus. I think there is only 1 DVD that I don't own. And I love them.
5. I used to read the encyclopedia - for fun. This resulted in me being such a nerd that I actually corrected my 6th grade teacher on our spelling test. Let's just say I got teased more than a few times for that...
6. My parents had a cassette tape of the Pocahontas soundtrack when we were growing up. When we went on road trips Haylee and I would listen to that tape non-stop pretty much the whole way. We got to the point where we actually could sing all the songs, even the ones not in English. My dad couldn't stand it after about the third time (could you if your kids were listening to weird songs in Indian languages?) and we thought he'd go crazy, but being the patient person he is, he put up with it. I can still remember all the words to the opening song - "In sixteen hundred seven, we sailed the open sea, for Glory God and Gold, and the Virginia Company..." This came in handy when we learned about Jamestown in college. As I remember, we had a quiz or test that asked us to tell what year the Virgina Company left for the New World and 3 reasons they did so. I totally answered based on the song and got the Q right! Good thing Disney did a little research!

I now tag Karen, HAYLEE (this means you have to actually blog), Jane, Cara, Katie, and Kristin.

Answers

I thought I'd answer a few questions I've gotten on here lately.

1. Yes Brooke, I would love it if you added me to your blog list. You don't need an invite or anything, you can go ahead and do it.
2. Yes Abby, Aaron actually does do diaper duty.
3. Rachel - I TOTALLY remember you (how could I not?) and want to read your blog if you have one. Please let me know because it's not showing up on your profile!
4. Thank you to everyone that we have recently been able to reconnect to - it's been so fun to see what all our old friends are up to and get the chance to stay in touch again!
5. Reorganized all the links on the side. I think the list was getting more than a little out of control, but if I have the link on here, I check it regularly, so you all get added, because we love you. ;)

Baby Shower

Ok so on September 29 my wonderful friends Karen and Jordan threw me a baby shower. I'm sorry it's taken so long to get these pics up, but I had to steal them off their blogs since I have none of them myself! They were both so awesome (as was our AMAZING friend Stacy who graciously invited us into her lovely and very clean home - she cleaned her shutters and her fridge for this!). They did a great job and good times were had by all!

The sign on the garage that Stacy made - too cute!

Getting lots of gifts while Jordan was good enough to feed my crying baby. Thanks Jordan and thanks everyone for the gifts. :) You're all so sweet.
The darling food and decorations. First, I love the clothesline idea. Too too fun. Second, do you see the work of art that is that diaper cake? I've made diaper cakes before and this one was a seriously constructed work of perfection. And had the cutest ribbon known to man!

There was a pink and brown theme (hooray!) so all the food and everything was pink or brown. pink marshmallows, pink M&Ms - thank you breast cancer awareness and m& m corp - chocolate fountain, etc. It was awesome and I love you all! Thank you and I'm sorry it took me so long to post this!

The Routine

About a week or so ago, (after we discovered how much she and Similac don't get along) Sydney put herself in a routine. I was totally good with this routine, so I have encouraged it completely! Here's how it goes. She wakes up from her nap (often screaming).

Then she gets to eat a bottle (she's up to 4.5 ounces at each feeding!)

This bottle was courtesy of her grandpa (my dad) when they were here last week.

Then comes some snuggling time - Yes, I actually am asleep, my sister caught this while she was here this weekend. Can we say sleep deprived? ;)

Next comes playtime! That's actually her hand, she just has a sock on because she was cold. Looks funny though! Also, please notice the beautiful quilt she is on, made by my good and talented friend Brittany (check out her blog on the right and see her newfound cake decorating skills!)

After a while, Sydney gets tired of all the stimulation and starts fussing, so we put her on a blanket on the floor and she amuses herself by looking around the room. Good thing her vision is changing so I guess she gets a new view every day! She sits quietly and has her "alone time" until she starts crying, then we swaddle her up and put her in bed. This whole cycle gets repeated about every 4-5 hours (from wake up to wake up, including the sleep). Not too bad for a 5 1/2 week old right?!? I'm hoping she'll start sleeping through the night sometime soon since she slept for about 7 hours the other day (always while I'm awake though). She's a pretty good baby!

Daddy's Girl

So sorry people, things have been a little busy around here! Last weekend my parents came out to see their new granddaughter and this weekend my older sister, Jessica, came out to meet her niece. We had loads of fun with everyone and miss you all, now that you're gone. I'll post more on both of these visits a bit later, but I thought I'd at least explain why I hadn't blogged. :)

Ok, so I'm still trying to work through some back photos I have of Syd, so here goes 1 post. Sydney is such a daddy's girl! I think she came out this way and it's been fun to see them together. There were even a few times when she was younger when she was crying, I was trying to calm her, etc. and Aaron came in and spoke to her and she quieted down! I'm glad they get to have fun together and interact, although I think it makes it harder for him to go to work when he knows that she's at home. ;)

Here are some fun pics of the two of them that I love:

Just hangin' with dad

Snoozin' on the couch. Just like dad does every night. Like right now.

Bring on the Christmas Cheer

When I walked into Borders today I saw a big sign that looked just like this. It didn't say when it was coming out or anything, but I immediately went nutso! I LOVE Josh Groban - as everyone who worked with me at the Soc/SW dept. can attest to, especially Martie ;) - and, like Karen, I LOVE Christmas Music and could listen to it all year round. I may have to go put on my ELF soundtrack here soon. :) So honestly, what could be better than a Josh Groban Christmas CD? Do you know how happy I am? Yay! I must get this. Also, for your information, I went on Josh Groban's website and discovered that the CD came out on Oct. 8. I'm a little behind apparently...

Another Milestone

Sydney hit another milestone recently. Since she lost her umbilical cord stump, she could finally have her first real bath! No more sponge baths for this baby, and hallelujah since she hated them vehemently! Here are some pics of the event:

Is it just me or does her belly look really big right here?

She doesn't look too sure about this whole "in the water" thing, but she wasn't screaming and I think she even liked it!
Just too cute not to post. Showing the bum cheeks.
Very sad to be out in the cold air after all that warm water. Probably something like her birth, warm and cozy to bright and cold. No one would like that - would they?
I know these are short posts and I apologize for anyone coming here for anything but pictures of Sydney. I promise to do a real blog post again soon, I think I'll follow Jordan's lead and do my favorite products, but it's getting late and I really should go to bed. Or read Twilight. Which should I do? Hmmm.

Something's Missing...

On September 27, Sydney's umbilical cord stump fell off! Now she's a big girl with a belly button!

And a full tummy in this picture!

All Dressed Up...

This was on September 23, Syd's first day at church. We just went to the main meeting and then came home, but it was fun to see everyone again. These pictures were taken after church when she was being so good and lying on the floor. Isn't she a cutie!?!

What are you thinking little girl?

Showing off her bracelet that mommy made. A girl needs her accessories right? ;)

No Posts for Awhile...

I really have had good intentions for posting in the last week. Somehow none of it worked. This is about how it all went each time I got on:

11:00 pm or 12:00 am - Get online when Aaron goes to bed. Why did I wait this long? Who knows. (Probably had something to do with us watching season 3 of the Office each night to get caught up. Now we just need to see the first 2 episodes of season 4. Anyone know where I can find that?) Anyway, I got online, checked my email, and went to blog. When I got here though, I started looking at all of your blogs and seeing what you were up to. About halfway through the ever growing list to your right the Internet inevitably crashes and sends me to bed. Lesson learned, quit being so darn interested in your lives and become more self absorbed. I'll work on that. Please accept my apologies. ;)

I'll try to post some new pictures and things in chronological order so you can pretend that I actually posted them when I was planning on it...

Goodbye MDC Holdings...

I'm not going to say that I'm sorry to not be working anymore. I really enjoyed my co-workers and it was great getting a paycheck, but there's no chance on this Earth that I'd miss any part of Sydney's growing up or let someone else raise her for me. That's my job as her mother and one that I've always wanted.
I do have to admit though that I feel a little weird. I've been cleaning off my computer tonight so that Aaron can take it back to the office for me and I feel weird and a little naked. Deleting all these files and knowing that I won't have a computer always at my side is a little weird feeling since I've had it for 2 years. Aaron will bring his home at night so I'll still get to blog and everything, but it's a strange feeling knowing that one of the last pieces of normalcy that I had is leaving in about 6 hours. Also my work cell phone will go away, and my air card that gave me Internet access. I really need a laptop and high speed Internet at home. Also Macromedia Fireworks (software program).
Now you will all know why I won't be on IM or Google chat very much anymore (during the day at least), but I will try to continue blogging at night and keep up with email then. I'm feeling a little strange, like this is real, and not just a game or anything, so here's to growing up, moving on, and turning in my laptop. It's been real, and I couldn't have asked for a better group of people to work with at my last (paid) job before leaving the job market. Thank you to Michael, Michael (yes, I am sleep deprived, but no that's not a typo, there are two), Mary (even though you're gone), Ryan, Bunny, and especially Chris. You guys are all awesome and I wish you the very best (who knows if you will ever read this, but oh well!). Goodbye MDC after 2 years - the longest I've ever worked anywhere other than as a student! Now I really need to go feed my baby. I can't believe she's not screaming bloody murder since it's been nearly 6 hours since she ate. I think it's a record. Bye. :)

My Favorite Funny Video

It's called How to Get a Soccer Partner. :)

What to do on Friday Night...

Apparently the best thing to do on a Friday night is to go toilet paper someone else's house. However, this isn't your average prank pulled by a bunch of teenage boys. Picture this: Young Men's President agrees to take the teenage boys from church to toilet paper another church member's house. What the boys don't know, is that the family being toilet papered is in on it. So are about 10 other men from church, all of whom are waiting at the home to surprise the boys! They're hiding behind trees and they have big flashlights, and even a camcorder! I can't wait to see this. I wish I was the one taping it! I have to get a copy of the movie. I'll let you know how it goes!

A Bloody Murder Day...

I think Sydney discovered on Tuesday that she can scream whether she is hungry or not. This led to her screaming for about an hour on Tuesday and on Wednesday as well. Then on Thursday she didn't sleep from 10 AM to about 8:30 or 9 PM other than 2 naps that were about 30 minutes long. This means she was up for about 10 hours. Guess how happy she was? Not very. She screamed a lot of that time and fussed most of the rest of it. I've decided to call these days "Bloody Murder" days since she screams bloody murder during most of them.

The one thing that has helped today is this very interesting item that our neighbors gave us. It's a recliner/rocker. We don't really use the rocker part yet, but you can use it as a recliner and it vibrates. Hooray for this thing since it is the only place I've been able to put her down that she doesn't scream. You can read about it here - I'd never seen one and was rather intrigued (http://www.fisher-price.com/fp.aspx?st=2002&e=product&pid=31327).

P.S. I am thinking now that Syd may have gas and a hurt tummy since she has screamed for so long. When not screaming she seemed pretty content earlier today, so I thought she was just tired, but I think it's a combination of a lot of things, not the least of which is the fact that she's been awake WAY longer than she's supposed to be. Let's hope a different formula and those gas drops will help.

New Discoveries

Here is a list of things I've recently learned:

1. Having a bottle fed baby is fantastic since Aaron can get up with her at night just like I can. :)
2. Cows have this incredible ability to turn green grass into white milk. In goes green, out comes white. Not sure how that happens. I do know that babies have a similar incredible ability to turn white liquid into green paste. Not sure how that works either, but the doctor seemed just as mystified by it as the rest of us, so I guess it's one of the mysteries of life that we can understand after we die.
3. The magnolia tree in my backyard had 2 blossoms on it before we left. They successfully bloomed, died, and disappeared before we got back. Drat.
4. I have not seen the beastie since we returned, although I have been in the garden. Maybe Syd scared him away. Hooray!
5. Enfamil formula cans explode when you open them in the middle of the night. Crap Crap Crap.
6. When returning formula to the store, to protect babies everywhere, stores cannot put the formula back on the shelves. Nor can they return it to the manufacturer. They must destroy it to keep babies safe.
7. Karen makes incredible Chicken Parmesan. Jordan is the queen of baked potatoes. I love you both.
8. It is a HUGE accomplishment to be showered before noon, particularly when Aaron is not home.
9. Girls have really high pitched voices around babies.
10. Formula poo smells so bad.

I Love the Sneeze!

First Movie

Milestones

Here are some fun milestones of Syd's for you to see. We're having loads of fun with her and she's keeping us busy!

Syd's first doctor appointment. This was in Arizona when she was 2 days old. The receptionist was shocked at how great I looked with a 2 day old baby. ;) Since I knew I'd never see this woman again, I didn't really feel the need to explain my situation to her, so she may still hate me. She had her second visit today (here in Colorado - did I mention I LOVE our pediatrician?) and now weighs 8 lbs 14 ounces! What can we say, she's our little Ziggy Pig!

This was Syd's second bath (the first was WAY too traumatic to take pictures of). Sydney peed on me about 1 minute after this picture was taken (right before we left our hotel room). Great job baby!

Faster Daddy, Faster! Syd's first driving lesson. Don't worry, I'm not a bad mom - the car was sitting in the Subway parking lot turned off, so we weren't being dangerous in any way!

First time sucking her thumb. Too cute, we had to get a picture.

To and From Phoenix

Ok, so we started off our trip in the White Mountains of Arizona, but had to go to the valley (Phoenix) for a business meeting that Aaron had. We loved seeing our friends Kevin & Michelle (from our BYU-Idaho days), hated the Phoeniz weather - who likes 112 degree days and 106 degree evenings? When it's 80 degrees when you get up in the morning, it's officially too warm!), and we Loved the beautiful scenery on the way to and from the valley. Here's a taste of what we got to see.

Beautiful Vistas

Amazing formations

Great company!

Saguaro Cacti! How fun are these? We nicknamed them all Senor Saguaro (if you don't understand, go read Star Girl by Jerry Spinelli.

We had a great time seeing everything, and were so glad when we left behind the triple digit temperatures. What were we thinking 2 years ago when we considered moving to Phoenix? I honestly don't think we could have made it. Plus I like the snow (I know, I'm weird).