Tuesday, September 30

Before and After

This is the before. My hair is kind of scraggly because I didn't wash it before I went. They wash it for you anyway. So that's why it looks a little out of control.















And here's the after:



















Crazy, huh?















And the curly version:

In the Closet

I like to let Amy play in our closet while I get dressed or try to get something done. She enjoys it too. Recently she was playing in there, and I looked away for a little while. When I looked back, she had climbed on this suitcase all by herself. She is getting way better at climbing. It's a little scary. I thought she was cute though, and she sure was proud of herself.



Monday, September 29

Walking, Puking, Progression

Amy took her first couple of steps today!!! We are so pleased. My friend, Emily, is actually the only one who saw the first step. She was walking from the wall by the fridge to my leg. I was standing at the sink washing a dish with my back to her. She took one step and made it to my leg. (That's how small our kitchen is.) She's taken three more steps since then, but I still only saw one of them. I am going to suggest to Matt that we practice walking for our Family Home Evening activity tonight.

She also threw up for the first time this morning. It was quite unexpected. She threw up twice shortly after her first nursing and then again a little later. She was a little surprised each time, but afterwards was ready to play. Our little girl is developing so much - learning to puke and walk all in the same day!

Update: Amy really got walking good. Matt came home late from work tonight, but she was still up and she put on a show for him taking about 5 little steps or so. We were both really excited to watch her together and she knew it! Hopefully tomorrow will bring much more walking fun!

Friday, September 26

Our Little Helper

I thought it was odd that I heard the dishwasher running this morning. I hadn't done any dishes, and I hadn't seen Matt doing any. There are dishes in the dishwasher right now, but they are clean.

Matt was thinking the same kind of thing about how odd it was that I ran the dishwasher without rinsing and loading any dishes.

Then I figured it out. Amy started the dishwasher.

Tuesday, September 23

My Swimming Suit

Almost every time I wear my swimming suit somewhere around people I know, everyone asks me where I got it. That's because my swimming suit is the COOLEST swimming suit that ever was. No offense to anyone who likes their own suit. It's ultra modest; I never have to wear a shirt or shorts over it to feel comfortable. I am wearing it in a video in this post if you want to see it. Features- cap sleeves, shorts and skirt all in one piece. I love it!

So I never know what to tell people when they ask me where I got it. It was a random out of the way bookstore in Spanish Fork. One of my mom's friends told her about it, and she told me. That's all I could remember. So today I did some research and found the store:

Confetti Antiques & Books
273 North Main St.
Spanish Fork, UT 84660
801-798-0137

I called, and the suits are out of season and won't be back in season until February, but the man said that they could order them now if requested.

The website for the store is:
http://www.confettibooks.com/

But I can't find anything on their website about the swimming suits. I think it's not the actual store but someone who uses their store just to sell them. Did that make sense? Hope this helps.

And I forgot to ask how much they were; I don't remember when I got mine. Matt thought it was a lot, but I think that was because he didn't realize that women's swimming suits are totally expensive. I don't think it was that bad for women's swimming suits.

The other thing I want to know about it but didn't ask was whether or not they have maternity swimming suits. (I hope to be pregnant again someday; that wasn't an announcement.) I just got a normal swimming suit that would regularly be too big for me for last summer. And it was really uncomfortable when I was really big. But I think swimming while pregnant (especially in the summer time) is an ABSOLUTE MUST! It felt so good. Sorry for the extra ramblings.

Monday, September 22

Talent Show

Saturday night our ward had a talent show. Matt and I performed a rap of Jonah and the whale that my mom wrote. The rap is awesome. Our performance was alright. We messed up quite a bit and forgot lines, but we still had fun.

Here we are:





This is our friend, Roz doing a dance at the talent show:

Another Birthday Party for Amy

I know. We've had a lot of birthday parties for Amy, but nothing has been too extravagant. This party was with my side of the family. We started out getting together on Friday night for dinner at our house and then a George Winston concert. It was amazing!

Here's Finn eating dinner:















Then everyone spent the night at our house. I know; we have a tiny house to fit so many - there were 7 adults and 3 kids. But we managed and had lots of fun. After the concert we had shakes and game playing. My mom was too tired to play so she got mad at us for bringing out the games. She can't resist joining when the games come out. So of course she played. She's so funny.

Saturday morning when we woke up we had breakfast and a birthday party for Amy. Amy wasn't feeling the best. She was a little fevery and lathargic. She just watched the dancing and ended up taking a big nap. She fell asleep nursing after her nap and stayed asleep for quite a while on the couch:















Here is some video footage of the dancing - what's a family party without some fun dancing?









And finally, here's Amy eating her free from Albertson's one-year-old cake. (Not that the cake is one year old, just that the cakes from Albertson's are free for one-year-olds.) I forgot to take a picture of the cake beforehand which is sad because it was really cute. But here's Amy:



Snakes, Fish, and Climbing

Here is a pretty decent shot of Amy doing her snake trick. She really does this often, but I have had a hard time getting it on camera.



And another cute thing Amy can do with her mouth:



And here is Amy in her cupboard and climbing into the fridge:



Quirks 2

I guess it wouldn't be fair if Bonnie answered this and I didn't. I think I can say with confidence that I only have one quirk - that being my life in its entirety - and so it is hard for me to narrow things down. Perhaps my quirks are the times when I resemble normality. Anyway, here follows a shamefully deficient list:

First: I love to mix my cereals. Captain Crunch, cheerios, and raisin bran all in the same bowl? Sounds great! I do have limits... probably. I'm sure there is some combination of cereals that I really wouldn't like, but generally, I like to mix and match whatever we have. And I DON'T like to drink the milk at the end of my bowl (and that has nothing to do with mixing cereals). It's just... gross! I think it's gross when others do it too, so when I see Bonnie finishing off her cereal milk, I just have to avert my mind onto other things.

Number two: I have no stomach for injury/surgery talk. The only time I had to leave prenatal classes, and the only time I had to leave my wife's bedside during labor, was when we talked about/Bonnie received her epidural. Giving birth, all that stuff - no problem. And it's not the needle - I can give blood no problem. It's the location of the needle. Another example is eye surgery. Even while writing this I have to force my mind to not think about it. Lasik is fine - I had lasik - no problem. It's that other stuff where they poke your eye and such.... eeijfhewhafio! (That was me wigging out because I thought about it too long - sooooo... done with that topic).

Third: I either am ignorant of or refuse to accept awkward-ness. I'm tempted to let Bonnie explain this as my ignorance of it makes it difficult for me to do so.

This is Bont. I don't know exactly what to say except that I do sometimes find Matt awkward in his ignorance or his attempts to make things unawkward. Occasionally I tell him what something he said or did looked like from the outside. Just trying to help. But I must say, from the stories I have heard about his childhood, Matt has come a long way in his social skills. I think he's really fun to be around, and I know a lot of people who agree with me!

I will mention however that there are times when I do recognize that things could be very awkward, and so I confront it. I will generally say something along the lines of "without being awkward about it..." or "it's fine! there's no reason to feel awkward about it. So it is!" or something like that. I've found that by calling out awkward moments and negating them causes them to go away. My hunch at this moment now, is that people think that my doing so is awkward and that they wouldn't like it if I did that in a situation with them, but upon doing so, it really does make everyone feel more settled. Or maybe that's me being ignorant again...

Fourth: I know no stranger. If I overhear someone(s) talking about something that interests me (e.g. Ben & Jerry's, wondering where something is that I know, how to figure something out that I might be able to help with, etc.) I will normally jump in. I can hardly help myself. I usually don't try to butt in and chat for a long time, though I can't tell you how many people I met in the Math Lab that way. I wouldn't be surprised if I knew a large majority of the math and math-ed majors while doing my time at BYU.... well, at least the female ones. Perhaps this is a good example of one of those awkward things I'm ignorant of.

Fifth: I hate jeans. In the words of that lady in Singing in the Rain - the one that had the really annoying voice - "I can't stand-em!" Jeans are SO uncomph to me. I have a (yes, only one) pair of jean shorts, and they're all right, but that's as far as I go. I think they look bad (fine on others, but not on me) and they just can't beat khakis. Oh - and I dislike Corduroys too - Bonnie got me a pair. I tried them for a little while, but just never liked them. I wear them when I have no other pants available, and even then I'll go back through the dirty clothes some times just to be sure it's my only option. Stick with khakis and dress pants and I'm fine.

The finale: If I could pick any superpower, it would be the ability to never need sleep. Flying is cool, so is super-strength, but imagine how much more time I could have if I just didn't have to sleep! Yes, pausing time would be cool too... but then time would never pass and we would probably still be in 1982 or something (I was born in '81). I could get so much done while the rest of the world sleeps their time away! It would be wonderful! I'd never be tired (as in sleepy). I could even take on the Energizer Bunny!

Anyway, there's a random and once again, very deficient list of my quirks. Feel free to add comments of others of my quirks - in fact, it would probably be pretty funny if you did!

Blogging Record

Due to the large number of blog posts I have done this month, Matt has been teasing me about beating our record number of blogs posts in one month. And I believe this post breaks the record. I made it! And I am not done yet. We had a crazy weekend, and I have more to say about that.

Quirk Tag

Quirks:

stepping over cracks
fear of heights
hula war
wasting food
having books everywhere

My friend BriAnne tagged me with this quirk tag. So here are 6 quirks about me (with input from Matt.)

Quirk #1: Matt. He told me to count him as a quirk. I am thrilled to be married to this very goofy quirky guy. He's so much fun! Along those lines, Matt and I have a quirk in common. We're are math nerds. I'd even go so far as to use Nancy's word and say we are math nerdy-nerds. We sometimes talk in math language to explain unmathrelated things. I love arithmetic. When I was a kid, I used to finish my homework and then make up more math problems to do. I love logic and math puzzles and games that involve numbers. And I LOVE keeping score in games.

Quirk #2: Whenever I almost trip on something, I lick my front top right tooth to make sure it is still there. I have broken that tooth 5 times and am subconsciously paranoid that I will break it again. But it's not just when I fall or bump the tooth - I lick it when I almost fall.

Quirk #3: When I was a kid, I was really brave and adventurous. Now I'm a woos. (Matt used the word weanie today, but I don't want to go that far in describing myself.) When we went to Lagoon this summer I had a great time going on Wicked (you go upside down and practically freefall and go really high, etc.) But I would not go on the ferris wheel, and I was terrified to ride the sky coaster - ski lift thing that takes you across the park. I'm never going on that again. I'm afraid of heights when I am going slow enough to think about how high I am. And when I don't feel very secure. I like being belted in securely. I know. Wierd.

Quirk #4: I have to bring a book EVERYWHERE I go. I got this from my mom, and my oldest sister has the same quirk. You never know when you are going to have a minute where you will want a book. The relatively few times I have been somewhere without a book and wanted it I've been miserable about having forgotten. I even worry about Matt getting bored and frequently ask him if I should pack him a book. I even brought the Ensign to church yesterday just in case I was stuck in the Mother's Lounge by myself (plus Amy) without any meeting to listen to. I also read during random other activities. Like folding laundry - sometimes. I used to fold napkins at the bed and breakfast I worked in and read books at the same time. I almost always have a book on CD to listen to in the car as well.

Quirk #5: I'm quite good at hula hooping/ hula warring. We do it fairly often in our family. We use to have hula wars every Friday in our elementary school. I wasn't one of the good ones there, but I found that there isn't so much tough competition in hula hooping among adults. So I can hold my own.

Quirk #6: I hate wasting food. I suppose I am not overly quirky about it, but it does bother me. As I am typing this I see Matt's cereal bowl with some soggy cereal and milk still in it, and I think it's gross.

I tag:
Heather Mason
Tamsin
Catherine Rowley
Launi
Emily Roundy
Stacy

because I think they will say funny things.

Thursday, September 11

Tongues and Other Tricks

It's not just her own tongue that Amy likes.



Showers and Dryers

After coming home from running and then play group it was time to take a shower. While Amy was playing in her room by herself, I snuck into the bathroom to see if I could shower without her realizing. No luck. I left the door open so we could hear each other just in case. I hadn't been in very long when I heard her coming. She tried for a little while to move the shower curtain out of her way so she could see me. Of course, she was successful. She was quite wet when I turned the water off, put on my towel, and picked her up. And she looked so proud of herself as she smiled up at me that I just had to laugh.

A little bit later, Amy got away from me. When I found her, she was trying to climb into the dryer which I had left open because I just pulled some clothes out. Again, she looked so proud of herself. So we played in the dryer for a little while.





For the Grandparents

For those of you who don't get excited about seeing SO many pictures of Amy, please continue to bear with me as I post tons of pictures. Besides being a first-time parent who can't stop taking pictures of her kid and who thinks they all look adorable, Amy has 2 sets of grandparents who don't get to see her that much except on the blog. And I know they like seeing her. So this post is dedicated to Amy's grandmas and grandpas.















Wednesday, September 10

Thursday, September 4

The ABCs of our California Vacation

We went to California for a week, and so I have TONS to blog about. Rather than give you all a boring monologue, I decided to tell you all about it using the alphabet. So please excuse the HUGE number of posts I am putting up. Just read what you want, look at some pictures, watch a few videos. Whatever. Enjoy.

A is for Angels

Matt’s dad, Lyle, is a devoted Angels fan. He’s had season tickets to their games for ages. I’ve now gone to a few games with him, and I love it! We went Monday night and Thursday night. (Thursday’s game was intense and awesome.) Amy had a great time at the games too, eating, playing, staying up way too late, and making friends with all the people anywhere near her.















Open pocket, insert foot.















When Carol took us shopping on Wednesday we bought Amy some Angels attire to wear to the game. Here she is showing off her hat (and making a funny face.)
















Angels Stadium

B is for Boat; C is for Church Swim Party.

B is for boat.

Lyle and Carol’s back yard is water. It’s beautiful. They have a little boat tied to their dock. On Tuesday we were playing outside and decided to check out the boat.







C is for Church Swim Party.

Not the most creative letter choice, but we wanted to mention that on Saturday we went to a swimming party with Lance’s family. (Lance is Matt’s brother.) It wasn’t really a church activity, just a party thrown by a ward member. It was very fun to play in the water some more. When Matt and I were ready to leave, I talked to Lance for a minute who was still in the pool. Amy decided she wanted to get down, and climbed back in the pool. So Lance and I played with her some more with me just sitting on the edge with my feet in. Silly Amy.

D is for dock.

This is on the dock behind Lyle and Carol’s house right after playing in the boat. Amy was fearless and wanted to go swimming.





E is for Exercise; F is for Funny Faces

E is for Exercise.

Lyle and Carol live on an island in Newport Beach. A couple of mornings, we went running around the island for exercise. It was beautiful weather, cool and only a little humid, and all the people we passed were very friendly. It was a fun place to run. Also on the island is a playground right by the water. Matt used to play there when he was a boy so he was very excited to take Amy there.















F is for funny faces.

No further explanation needed.





G is for Gifts

Amy’s birthday was Sunday so we made the most of it by having two birthday parties – one Wednesday night with Lyle and Carol and one Sunday night with Lance’s family. Carol bought Amy some new clothes, and we got her some new toys. Here she is enjoying her loot:
















Opening Presents:



Amy's new blocks...or are they Daddy's toys?



I love how she is playing with most of her new toys that we got her at the same time - blocks, stacking cups, and a new book.

H is for Hair; I is for Ice Cream

H is for Hair.

This is after she finished eating her cake – we gave her a bath right there in the sink. We love crazy hair pictures.






























I is for Ice Cream.

Of course it is. This is Matt’s family we are talking about. For months, Matt has been telling people that they were not allowed to give Amy ice cream because he gets to be the first one to give it to her, and it has to be Ben & Jerry’s, and she gets it on her birthday. So finally the time came. And Amy loved it! Matt bought 8 pints, one for each of us and gave Amy a bite of everyone’s before they got to have any.



J is for Just Married; K is for Kalamazoo; L is for LPJ; M is for Mountain of Sand

J is for Just Married.

Saturday we went to the LA temple while Amy played with her cousins. The sad part about it was that the temple was closed. We decided to at least walk around and take pictures and enjoy the temple grounds for a little while. Matt showed me the spot where couples come out after they get sealed. We decided to take a picture there like we just got married.
















K is for Kalamazoo.

This one is a stretch. While we were eating at Ruby's Diner with Lyle and Carol, the song that says, "I got a gal in Kalamazoo" came on. While we were staying with them, we went out to eat a lot. It was really fun and kind of them. At this place called Woody's Diner the waiter was proud of himself for figuring out a way to manage Matt's custom order. That is something to be proud of. Another funny out-to-eat thing was when we went to California Pizza Kitchen. We sat at a table where Matt's direct line of sight was at a booth with two people who appeared to be on a date. Amy was too short to hide behind, and he felt awkward gawking at them. I thought it was funny.


L is for LPJ.

That would be for Lyle Parks Jr and his company, Lyle Parks Jr. Inc. Tuesday morning we visited Lyle at work. Matt worked there a few summers so he recognized some of the people there. The main reason for our visit was to show off Amy. Lyle carried her around telling everyone about his granddaughter - that she prefers men and that her birthday was Sunday. I loved seeing Amy with her grandpa and seeing how much he adores her.


M is for Mountain of Sand.

Amy loved playing in the sand at the beach on Friday. She crawled all over the place in wet sand or dry. She helped herself to people's toys and crawled right up to this nice family to climb their chairs. So I ended up talking to them for quite a while. It was very fun.

N is for Napoleon Dynamite; O is for One

N is for Napoleon Dynamite.

This picture has nothing to do with anything. I just thought it was funny to have a little Napoleon. Gosh!















O is for One.

Here's Amy's birthday cake. We forgot to get a candle so Carol creatively made do with a match.

P is for Pop Jet

On Thursday we went to eat at a mall that had some fun things for kids. So we played for a while.

Here she is on the carousel. My question for you is, who looks more excited, Amy or her parents?





























They had a decorative fountain that we decided would be fun to play on for a minute and then moved to the really fun fountain. It shot water up. Amy loved it; she and Matt got pretty wet. There was a cute boy named Logan that was so interested in Amy.





Q is for Queen of Eating

Amy ate SO much while we were in California. I think every time we went to eat anywhere she was the last one to finish. Lyle and Carol think we starve her. We were just as amazed by her appetite. And despite what this post looks like, we didn't JUST give Amy treats. It was her birthday after all.

This is Amy's first time eating pudding:



Amy didn't like frosting on her hands as we see here:



But she did like the chocolate cake:

R is for Rally Monkey; S is for Seaweed

R is for Rally Monkey.

The Angels have a funny monkey called the rally monkey that they put on the screen to get the crowd rallied up. They sell stuffed monkeys to swing around in the air when the rally monkey is jumping on the screen. Amy liked holding/ wearing the rally monkey. In these pictures she is showing all her Angels garb that she got for her birthday and borrowing the rally monkey.





























S is for Seaweed.

We really didn't have any experiences with seaweed except that Matt got some on him in this video. I think his face at the end of the video is hilarious.

T is for tongue; U is for Upholstered; V is for Vacuum

T is for Tongue.

We never get sick of seeing what funny things Amy can do with her tongue:





























U is for Upholstered.

On the way home we stopped for a break in St. George to visit my friend, Tawny. We had a great time visiting and watching Amy play with Tawny's son, Cooper. I know it is a stretch, but the U is for upholstered because I took these pictures on Tawny's swing that she recently reupholstered.





























V is for vacuum.
Saturday morning we went with Lance's family to clean up their church building with them. We were enticed by free donuts.