Asleep

Favorite Picture Friday

Happy Thanksgiving!

We had a really great Thanksgiving today. Dutch was happy and laughing almost the whole day. My mom made a great feast and even Bo got to have turkey, potatoes, and stuffing! We all went around saying what we were thankful for and we were all most thankful for our families. I'm lucky to have a beautiful healthy little boy and a wonderful husband. Not to mention my in-laws, mom and dad, sisters, nieces, nephews, dogs, etc. There's nothing else in the world that I need! Pictures of Dutch's Thanksgiving coming soon!

Pics

A List for Tuesday

Five More Things I'm Thankful For

1. Ibuprofen
2. Sweaters
3. Windshield wipers (or wish-woppers)
4. Washer and dryer
5. My laptop

Poor Baby

Dutchie has not been feeling well for a few days. On Friday he was running a small fever so I called the pediatrician and he suggested he might be teething. He's been warm and flushed off and on for the past few days and a little more fussy than he normally is. I've been giving him some Tylenol when it gets really bad, but today I'm going to go find the teething tablets that two of my sisters suggested.

Dutch's Ga-Ga and PopPop are visiting right now. He loves them both very much and laughs and laughs and laughs. You can tell he's not feeling very well though because sometimes his laugh will become a whimper. I'll post some pictures from their visit and from Dutch's first Thanksgiving soon!

Favorite Picture Friday

The screensaver on our computer just shows a constant slideshow of all our pictures. This one came up and I thought it was such a beautiful picture. It's my brother-in-law Brandon and my niece Evie on the day of her blessing.

About My Husband

What is your husband's name? Chris
How long have you been married? 5 years
How long did you date? We were married 9 months to the day after our first date.
How old is he? 27
Who eats more sweets? Him. I have to hide Oreos to get any! Except when he's watching what he eats, then me.
Who said "I love you first"? Me.
Who is taller? Chris, unless I wear a certain pair of heels, then me, barely.
Who is smarter? We are equal smart which is why we get along so well. We both have dumb moments though.
Who can sing the best? Me, but only because Chris doesn't try.
Who does the laundry? We learned early on that we both had to do our own laundry.
Who pays the bills? Him. I tried to do it early in the marriage, but he took over out of need to control something (he's never been able to control me).
Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? Chris
Who mows the lawn? Chris
Who cooks dinner? Sort of me. But Chris can cook a pizza like nobody's business!
Who drives? Mostly Chris.
Who kissed who first? We kissed each other.
Who's the first to admit they are wrong? This is a long complicated process that usually requires me to use my mad debate skills.
Who asked who out first? Chris.
Who wears the pants? Me, but I let Chris borrow them every once in a while. Just kidding, we are in an equal partnership.

A Year Ago Today

It was exactly one year ago today that I learned that my belly had become the Dutch oven. Of course at the time I thought it was Ivy Mae incubating in there, but I'm sure she'll come along soon enough. I read an old journal entry I wrote about it and I was so excited and enthusiastic. Nothing had happened yet to make me feel bad at all. I hadn't had any morning sickness yet. I hadn't yet gone to the doctor who asked me if I had gotten pregnant "on purpose" because I was "only" 24. That day was very near perfect.

Today was very near perfect too. Dutch was a happy guy the whole day long and fell right to sleep when we put him in his crib. There was no crying or fussiness, he just smiled and laughed and fell asleep. I'm such a lucky mama.

A List for Tuesday

Five More Things I'm Thankful For

1. Heaters
2. Hot chocolate (Dunkin Donuts hot chocolate is the best, but I also like homemade by my Mama)
3. Pens, but not just any pens, my favorite type of pen. This is a very specific pen. The Pilot Precise Grip in blue ink with an extra fine point. This pen comes in a 3-pack and is getting harder and harder to find. I love this pen.
4. Books
5. The internet, my laptop, and Microsoft Word

Walking in a Winter Wonderland (Dangit!)

I don't know how many of you know this about me, but I hate snow. It all goes back to a time when Hayden and I were on our way to school and my car hit a patch of ice and spun around, scaring both of us to death, but leaving us unharmed. Since then snow and I have had a very bad relationship. Anyway, it's snowing today. This is both good and bad. Good because it waited until November to come and bad because, well, it's snowing!

When I went out to run errands today Dutchie got to wear his snowsuit for the first time. At first I freaked out when I put it on him because I thought he had outgrown it before he even got to wear it! Turns out the little stinker had moved his feet so he was pushing on the knees making it seem shorter than it was. He looks so cute and as soon as he wakes up from his nap I'll take some pictures of him wearing it.

In other news, Dutch is going to get spoiled spoiled spoiled this Christmas. And I'm not talking about Chris and me. He is already receiving presents from his surrogate aunts and uncles. The funniest being from his Auntie Shelley who sent him a HUGE box from Barnes & Noble filled with five wrapped packages. I guess that's what happens when you're the first non-nephew, everyone spoils you.

Yes Sir, That's My Baby

A couple of pictures of Dutch in his "Grandpa Greg Bouncy Chair." Called such because it was paid for by a gift card from Grandpa Greg.

Lion Love

I got a couple of pictures of Dutch loving on the lion that Auntie Clarissa gave him. The mane makes crunchy noises and he likes it.

Favorite Picture Friday

This is Carianne with Anneke on her lap. I love the way Nikki Sue is playing with Carianne's hair. It makes me laugh.

Tagged by Nan

My sister Carianne "tagged" me, so I thought I would do it.

1 minute ago I was sneaking out of the bedroom so Dutch would stay asleep.

1 day ago I was debating whether to start dinner or wait until Chris got home.

1 week ago I was probably driving the car somewhere (I only have a car every other week, so I make the most of it when I have it)

1 month ago I was working to finish my last submission for the semester and had a terrible terrible cold.

1 year ago I had just found out I was pregnant and was packing to move to PA!

3 years ago I was working at the University of Utah's Independent Study office (the best job ever!) and finishing my Bachelor's.

5 years ago Chris and I had been married about a month and a half and I was working at Shred-Pro (the worst job ever that I swear took years off of my life) trying to figure out if I wanted to go back to school or not.

7 years ago I was in my first semester at Snow College and had just been in my first theatre production there.

10 years ago I was a sophomore in high school. I was a homely little thing and in a couple of months would turn 16. I was also in love with my best friend who would wait until I was dating someone else to tell me that he had a crush on me. Boys.

My Own Little Groucho

Dutch has incredibly expressive eyebrows. Strange, but true. He gives so much expression through just a raising or lowering of his little eyebrows. It's so funny and I wish I could get some video of it, but alas, he's self-conscious in front of the camera. So unlike his mother.

A List for Tuesday

Five More Things I'm Thankful For

1. Petfinder.com; it's a website that list local shelter animals in your area. It's how we found Bo and I love to go on and look to see if our next dog is available yet. So far s/he isn't.
2. The news; I like to watch the news to learn more about Pittsburgh and Pennsylvania. I think Dutchie likes it for the vibrant colors.
3. Scissors; how many of you think about how convenient these are?
4. Dreams; I've been having a lot lately and I like to think about them after I break up (not to mention some story ideas have come through dreams).
5. Omi; my great-grandmother passed away 14 years ago on Friday and I still miss her. I'm starting to write a book about her life in hopes of honoring her.

A Momentous Occasion

I was going through Dutch's clothes and putting away all of the ones that are too small. He has officially grown out of all of his Newborn-sized pants! Because he has no butt at all he's been able to wear his pants for a lot longer. Yesterday I put the last pair of NB pants away and now he's in 0-3 month pants. That was the exciting news for yesterday.

In other news, Dutch is drooling buckets lately and I'm beginning to think he might be teething. He loves to gnaw on anything near his mouth, mostly his hands. He hasn't been angry or irritable at all, so maybe he's not teething. It's hard to tell when you have such a happy kid!

Dutch Laughing

Because we couldn't get the video of Dutch laughing to load on this blog I put it on Youtube. Here is the link. Enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zuiWxn2sqdQ

Tagged By Anna

Here is the 6th picture in my 6th folder. It's of me with my great-grandmother Omi. She was my best friend while she was alive and is now (I'm pretty sure) my guardian angel. She is hands down the most amazing woman I've ever known.

Seeing Red

I am 99% sure that Dutch is going to take after his Daddy, Grandma Kellie and Great-Grandpa Morgan by being a red-head. His hair is growing in again and in the sunlight it's golden-red. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it will continue to grow in red.

Today Dutch blew his first raspberry! He's been trying for the last few days to do it, which was hilarious. His little tongue sticking out and the concentration on his face. But today he did it! He seemed pleasantly surprised by it and hurried to do it again.

Such a cutie.

I'm Sorry, What Did You Say?

The last time I checked I was allowed to vote for whomever I felt was the best candidate. Just because I didn't use the same criteria as you does not mean that my vote is wrong or that I am somehow an inferior person.

I have been a Democrat since my sophomore year of high school. I chose Barack Obama as my candidate the very first time I heard him speak. I think that he is going to do more for this country than a President has in a long time. He will have to reverse all of George Bush's marvelous work, of course, but I think he's up for it. He is an amazing man with an amazing mind.

If you don't like that, I'm sorry for you.

I Voted For Barack Obama

...and I'm glad that he won.

A List for Tuesday

Because this is November I decided that every Tuesday List will be 5 Things That I'm Thankful For:

1. The right to vote and all the women who fought so I could have it.
2. Baby aspirin so that Dutchie doesn't hurt so much after his vaccines.
3. Libraries, so I can read books that would be too expensive to buy or are out of print.
4. Vinegar, because it's supposed to eliminate stink smells in baby clothes (we'll see).
5. A video camera that can capture all of the fun moments with my baby (now if only stupid Blogger would work so I can upload them).


Bonus List: 5 Things That We Learned At Dutch's 4-Month Appointment

1. Dutch weighs 15 lbs 7 oz, is 25 1/2 inches long, and has a head circumference of 41.5 cm.
2. He eats more than most babies his age by about 12 ounces a day.
3. If we want to start feeding him cereal in the near future we can (but he's not ready yet because his tongue thrust is still really strong).
4. We need to buy a humidifier (especially when we go visit Grandma and Grandpa in Utah).
5. He makes the saddest face in the whole world when he has to get shots.

Frustrated

I've been trying for the last couple of days to post an adorable video of Dutch talking and laughing. For some stupid reason it won't post. I'll keep trying though.

Today Dutch and I went with some other moms and their kids to the zoo. We heard the lion roar--TWICE. Once on the way in and once on the way out. It was so cool! The second time he was just yawning and it was still so loud. I wonder what it would be like to have a voice that carried like that.

In a few hours Dutch will have his 4-month check-up. I am sad that he might have to get shots again, but excited to see how much he weighs now. I'll post his new stats tomorrow on his 4-month birthday. Can you believe that it's already been 4 months? But then again, can you believe it's only been 4 months?

Happy Birthday Cat!

Today is my friend Catherine's birthday. Cat and I met on Halloween in our American Sign Language class. She was dressed as Mary Poppins (the white dress with the red sash that she wears when they jump into the chalk drawing) and I knew that she was my kind of girl. Julie, Cat, and I have all been really good friends ever since then and I miss our monthly Girl Lunches. Cat is so amazing, she ties my Aunt Marianne for best seamstress in the world, she's going to be a fabulous nurse, and she really helped me through it when Coco died. I love you so much Cat and wish I could take you to Su Casa today. Happy birthday!