Jon, Carrie and Shayla

Catching My Breath

2012-01-08T22:53:00.000-08:00

Wow. That is all I have to say about my life for the last 5 crazy months. Wow.

I guess the biggest news that everyone is going to be the most interested and curious about is that Dallin moved back to Utah this weekend. It was very sudden. Almost as sudden as his coming here. I will try to answer everyone's questions here the best I can.

It has been the hardest 5 months of my life. I honestly don't believe that is an understatement. I was thrown into this crazy world of school, scouts, homework, soccer, primary, boys, etc, etc, etc. The learning curve was steep and there are things we did that we are really proud of, but also a lot of areas where Jon and I recognize we have a lot of growth.

I don't regret having Dallin join our family for the time that he was here. I can't regret trying. But it wasn't right. Jon and I kept a stiff upper lip for a long time, but the sequence of events went something like this.

Dallin was very excited and accepting of a Dad in his life. He had never had a Dad and it was a novel and wonderful thing for him to have one. Jon was wonderful with him. Jon is a wonderful tenderhearted man, and if nothing else this experience reaffirmed to me the reasons I chose to be in love with him. (I hate the term "fell in love", as if I didn't have a choice and it all just happened for no apparent reason) But Dallin already had a Mom and was very clear that he didn't need another one. I'm pretty sure he wasn't aware of the walls he was building up between him and I, but they were very real. As Christmas break wore on, Jon andI realized I was at a very low point emotionally and psychologically. It lead us to really start to ponder about what needed to be done. Neither one of us was willing to give up, but something had to give. Let me explain here that I don't blame Dallin for the way he was feeling. Logically I completely understood all of his emotions, but emotionally for me it was beginning to be too much.

We spent last Sunday in Prayer and Fasting and were both separately left with the impression that we weren't the permanent solution. That this wasn't the permanent plan for our family by our Father in Heaven, and that we had done what we needed to do in this situation. I guess it took me reaching a low for us to be willing to reevaluate the situation and really pray about what to do. We had prayed for patience and strength and a million other things, but never to know what to do.

I called my Mom on Monday and let her know what we felt, letting her know that he could stay with us longer until a suitable solution was reached but that we weren't able to do this forever. She felt peace about this and decided to have him come back to live at their house.

Dallin was so excited he could barely contain himself. He's missed my family tremendously. I think it was becoming too much for him emotionally as well. This experience gave him the opportunity to have a clean slate somewhere and correct certain things, and now he gets to have the emotional support he needs.

His one concern was that since he was going to go live with Grandma and Grandpa that he would no longer be able to get baptized this Saturday. We were able to still put on his baptism for him. It was a healing and beautiful experience for all of us.

I've been asked how I feel by a lot of people. I feel relief, happiness, sadness, regret and a million other things, but mainly I feel peace knowing this is the right decision for our family.

A Love Story: Apple Juice and The Computer

2011-11-29T12:02:00.000-08:00

Sorry for the long break. But I have been without a computer for the last two weeks or so. Shayla decided to bring over a glass of apple juice while she was watching Peppa Pig on the computer and promptly knocked it all over the keyboard. This wouldn't have been a problem if it hadn't been a laptop... Poor girl felt so bad. She still insists the computer can be fixed. We took advantage of black friday and stood in line at Wal-mart, the big and spacious building, for a desktop computer. Luckily we were in a short line. I guess desktops aren't a hot item.

Either way I am connected to the world again. Jon gave me a touchpad for my birthday so I was able to look up email and do small things but you couldn't have paid me to blog on that thing. 5 hours later I would be done with one post. Love playing on it, but not particularly practical for bigger things.

Well we are good. We survived Thanksgiving in Utah and Dallin seeing his Mom, Amy. Very few things happened of note. The time he spent with his Mom was really good and went well. He loved seeing her and she was able to be what he needed her to be in the setting we gave them to be together. We were afraid we would have to load him into the car kicking and screaming, but no such thing happened.

Shayla did wake up asking to go back to Grandma and Grandpa's house. But I think it feels great to be home! I have so much to catch up on! It amazes me how much has piled up while we've been gone. Plus I need to decorate for Christmas.

More updates to come, now that I have a real keyboard to use. Oh the simple joys of life!

The Bee Incident

2011-11-01T21:51:00.000-07:00

A lot has happened in the last month or so since I last posted. So I have a lot to catch up on. So much was going on in fact that I tend to collapse at the end of the day and feel too lazy to even blog.

But I thought I would start by sharing the bee incident. Some friends and I decided to walk the kids to a little farm here in California called deer hollow. It's about a mile and a half walk and has always been a big success. In fact we were going with a friend who was 9 months pregnant and hoping it would put her in labor. Well we were maybe half way there when Jamie and I (The pregnant friend) started getting attacked by bees. They didn't bother Lenessa who had her 6 week old baby in a stroller thank goodness. But they stung Jamie and kept chilling in my hair. And continued to follow us down the path. I thought there was nothing so creepy as having a bee in your hair that wouldn't leave. I think it may have tried to sting me but my hair is so darn thick I don't think the stinger could get through.

Then... I felt sweat dripping down my chest. I was about to wipe it when I got a prompting to look first before wiping. Oh yes, the bee was down my shirt. I started freaking out, to put it mildly. I was trying to figure out how to get my jacket, shirt, garments and bra off without getting stung in the process. Luckily it flew away as I was screaming and shaking my shirt. Needless to say we decided to turn around. None of the kids got stung and somehow I walked away without a sting. I still stand by the thick hair theory though. My hair will bend a bobbypin faster than you can blink. Take that bees!

The rest of the day I felt like I still had bees all over me. I'm a little skittish when it comes to bees too. Poor Jamie, it didn't put her into labor and she was stung twice. What a big Mom FAIL!

It's official!

2011-09-15T20:50:00.000-07:00

We've officially entered the world of Disney movies. Shayla has decided they are WAY cooler than cartoons. She asked me to put on a movie the other day, and I not thinking it would last very long obliged her. An hour and a half later 101 Dalmations was over and she promptly asked for the "woofs" again. We tend to watch one movie throughout the day and she is as happy as a clam.

Tomorrow she asked for the "meows". (Aristocats) It's the simple things in life sometimes that bring you joy. I'm glad my daughter is starting to enjoy some of the classic shows I loved as a little girl. Hopefully she starts liking the princess movies and then we can have tea parties and dress up days.

Having a little girl is such a blast! I love that she is as girlie as I was at her age and that she is so much fun.

On the Dallin front: He is adjusting pretty well. Tonight he prayed for our family prayer and thanked Heavenly Father for "all the nice people he could trust". So sweet and so tender. Jon and I have had to grow a slightly thick skin with him so that it doesn't hurt our feelings when he tells us he would like to live with anyone but us. I guess he talks really appreciatively and complimentary about us to everyone else, which is good to hear. Tonight he let his wall come down a little bit to me when I told him that he, Jon and I were going to go to a family counselor, so that Jon and I could be better parents for him. He looked at me so innocently and said, "You're already the best parents I've ever had." It melted my heart a lot.

The first time I ever knew I wanted to raise him he was 10 months old. My family and I had gone on a trip that his mother didn't attend, so I was put in charge of him. I woke up with him in the middle of the night, fed him bottles, made sure he was clean and well fed and felt loved. When I had to return him to his Mom I sobbed. So did he. She had to take him from my arms because I didn't have the will power to give him to her. He clung to me and continued to reach out to me as my Mom and I drove away. I cried myself to sleep that night. Worried sick about him. My Mom remembers that vividly as well, because I told her that, "He was going to be mine." I knew even then that one day I would be raising him. If only I could have saved him some of the heartache he has gone through the last 8 years since that happened. At least I have him now.

Even if I am mean and make him fall asleep all by himself. One day I won't feel like the mean Mom. Maybe it really just means that I am doing my job.

A Day in The Life...

2011-09-11T22:14:00.000-07:00

I wasn't really sure what to call this post, but I think I better update everyone. We've been doing well. Things are getting easier. Shayla LOVES her new brother and has become a more confident, self sufficient little girl since he arrived. I commonly hear her tell me, "Self". Meaning let me do this myself Mom. Some things break my heart. Like tonight when he wanted to know why his Mom has been ignoring his phone calls for the last week. What do you say? I don't understand it either. There are a lot of things my sister does that I don't understand. Jon and I tried valiantly to come up with a logical reason that could save his fragile little feelings... We finally resorted to distraction. Talking about some fun stuff we wanted to do with him this week. I can only imagine the hurt he is feeling

He looks forward to family home evening. This week I told him he could be in charge of the lesson and we could play a game. He loved it. Last week Shay, Jon and I were leaving for Michigan on a trip that had been planned long before we knew Dallin would be joining our family. We were going to be gone over the Sunday so he made sure we were going to have fhe before we left. We held a special one on Friday evening for him.

Sometimes I see the progress we are making with him. He is doing so well with all the rules and restrictions we are throwing at him. I keep telling him it's because we love him so much. I don't know if he believes us. What eight year old would?

It's been interesting seeing the dynamics of our family change. I've slowly realized it isn't bad, just different.

I feel like I should be writing some poignant memories and thoughts on September 11th, I cried when I saw a special on kids who lost their Dad's in the towers and had never met them.

Things are looking up for our family. We're settling into a routine and just doing our best every day. Isn't that what we all do though?

Do You Know How It Feels To Be Truly Exhausted... I Do.

2011-08-29T20:59:00.000-07:00

The last week has been filled with a lot of ups and downs, highs and lows. It seemed like my entire life was thrown into upheaval. I couldn't even begin to keep up on all the housework. My bathrooms hadn't been cleaned in two weeks. (Don't worry that's been remedied) My child who usually sleeps like a champ was giving me the worst time when it came to bedtime and sleeping. I was exhausted, worn out and stressed to say the least. The low point of my week was when Shayla decided that sleep was optional between the hours of 1 am and 5 am. I am not a nice Mommy when she thinks the middle of the night is play time.

I felt selfish. Wanting to quit already. Thinking to myself if all this strain and stress was really worth it? Was I doing more harm to this boy than I could do good? I was constantly on the brink of tears. Stressed beyond belief. (The nice thing is that I lose my appetite when I'm stressed and therefore lost 5 lbs last week.) I joked around with countless people that this is the way to do childbirth. Instead of gaining 25 lbs (in my case 50) in pregnancy you LOSE weight. And it's still considered healthy. All joking aside, I was done.

Thankfully we have Sundays. So many people put their arms around me at church and just told me it would be alright. I was given a blessing by Jon and some of our priesthood leaders. During it I was wishing that Heavenly Father would tell me it was ok to quit. He didn't. What a rough transition this has been. But I keep clinging to the hope that we will make a real difference in Dallin's life. That he will feel loved and be able to be his true potential because he came to live in our home.

It's a good thing I'm writing this tonight instead of last week. It's been hard. I would be lying if I told everyone anything different. This is one of the hardest things I have done in my life. It's also one of the most important. I was reminded again this evening why I'm doing this when he snuck downstairs to give me one last hug and tell me he loves me. I need to cling to these great, tender moments and hope they can get me through all the hard ones.

First Day of School

2011-08-24T20:27:00.000-07:00

If you had asked me two weeks ago what I would be doing this fall the last thing I would have said was taking a child to school! Besides the fact that our school district is wretched to deal with, Dallin's teacher seems very nice and I'm so happy that he is in such a tenderhearted woman's class.

Here is my proud little second grader!

Shayla was so excited about all of the festivities that she insisted on getting her picture taken as well.

And also wanted a picture of the two of them together. She is so excited about this new brother!

She was so sad when we dropped him off at his classroom that she pulled my hand and cried trying to get me to go back and get him. Poor girl. Didn't want to lose the brother she just barely got. Or maybe she just didn't want to have to spend the time alone with stinky old Mom. And I was worried that she would feel cheated by not having as much Mommy time. Silly me.

Surprises

2011-08-19T23:04:00.000-07:00

A lot has happened in our life the last week. We've decided to add another child to our family... but not the usual way. My oldest sister suffers from Bi-polar and a few other mental illnesses. She has a son, Dallin, who is 8 and has been living with her. On Saturday she realized that she couldn't care for him anymore and asked Jon and I to adopt him. We, of course, agreed and have been in a whirlwind of preparations since. (As I type this Jon is putting together a dresser for him.)

So we are about to become the parents of a talented, sweet, smart little boy. I have had a mixture of feelings as we have been going through this. Relief that he will be somewhere safe, overwhelmed, mainly overwhelmed, upset, stressed, torn, selfish, excitement. I've asked myself a lot of questions. How will I be a cubscout mom? Can I really be the mother of an 8 year old? How do I best teach him the gospel? How can I make this transition as smooth as possible, both for him and the rest of us?

Many of these questions I don't have an answer to. All I know is that there is a little boy who needs love and guidance. We're excited for this new adventure. He leaves with my Dad tomorrow and will be arriving on Sunday afternoon.

It amazes me how fast life can change, and how little you know about what Heavenly Father has in store for you. I'm scared and excited. It's almost like we went from finding out we were pregnant to giving birth to an eight year old in the space of a week. We never know what is in store for us and it can change faster than a blink of an eye.

Double House

2011-08-09T21:14:00.000-07:00

This conversation actually took place a few weeks ago but I had to document it because it was hilarious.

It took place between me and this little girl. The one with the iron, Kate.

I had taken Shayla inside during her party to change her out of her swimsuit. Kate decided she must come with us and what with my being such a big push over I picked her up in my other arm and brought her with me. I was changing Shay when Kate looked at me very solemnly and said, "Kate's Double house"

I was unbelievably confused. Did she just say double? Does she even know what double means? So I asked the only logical question. "What??"

K: Kate's double house
Me: Kate's double house? (still not convinced I understood what she was saying)
Kate nodding ever so seriously and me still as confused as ever.
At that point she looked at me and explained: "Kate's house too"

Oh yes little Kate, you know you are always welcome here. It can be your double house.

I related this story to her Mom when we got back to the party, much to both of our amusement. Kids say the darnedest things...

Movies!!!

2011-08-09T20:51:00.000-07:00

Today I took Shay to the movie theater for the first time ever. My friend Lenessa emailed a bunch of us to see if we wanted to go to the cheap theaters here. It was $2 Tuesday, I figured for $2 if it was a total disaster it wouldn't really matter all that much. Good thing she LOVED it!!!

I don't know how much the people around us loved hearing her belly laugh every time a penguin ran into a wall (We saw "Mr. Poppers Penguins") or came on screen, or slid on their belly. Or when she would narrate what was going on....

This Mommy loved it though! Can you believe this picture was taken after the movie??? I wanted to document this trip and thought there was no way I would get any pictures because I forgot to take any before the movie.

Little Genny found a "penguin nest" and was so excited! How adorable is that??

Maisie was quite happy to finish off her popcorn while the other two ran around and the Moms chatted after the flick.

All together! Can you believe they all cooperated while taking a picture? I think it may have been a minor miracle.

Bottom line I think this needs to be a more regular activity. (Particularly when it's only $2) I guess this is what I do on days that we actually make it out of our pajamas. ;)

Someone turned 2...

2011-08-09T20:39:00.000-07:00

So it may have happened 2 weeks ago but here are some highlights from her friend party...

This picture was actually taken after all the fun... Pretty adorable if you ask me.
We had some friends over for a little swim party for Shay. It was a little cooler than I had anticipated so we brought out all of the fun toys she scored for her birthday and everyone ate to their hearts content while the kids ran around in the back pool area.

We had a lot of fun. These three little cuties decided to pick some flowers. One of Shay's favorite past times, much to the chagrin of our gardener.

One of the favorite toys, and most coveted by all the kids was the iron and ironing board that Shay got from one of her BFF's, Kate. Sara is actually doing some toddler conflict resolution. It seems to be a common theme when you have this many little ones together.

Shayla ate two cupcakes. Just look at that face, how could you doubt that she thoroughly enjoyed it. In fact I think she may have been asking for more. I also think that cupcakes may have been her dinner that night. You didn't hear it from me though...

It was so fun celebrating her birthday this year. She really GOT what was going on and thoroughly enjoyed the whole being spoiled process. I realized that I won't be able to go Christmas shopping with her this year though. Which may be tricky since it's the "busy" season of Jon's work. (I just want to know when his busy season will end. Why yes I am writing this on a day when I'm not expecting him to come home. Why do you ask?)

Pajama Day!!

2011-08-08T19:26:00.000-07:00

I declared today Pajama day in the Laudie home and neither Shay nor I got out of our pajamas. In fact after her bath tonight she just changed from one pajama to another.

I woke up this morning really tired with a little bit of a sore throat. We spent the morning cuddling and watching cartoons while mommy napped and tried to catch up on the sleep I didn't get last night. Don't you hate it when you have a sore throat but you can't decide if your just thirsty or if it's actually sore and it keeps you up at night because you never get around to doing anything about it? Well at 7am a few ibuprofens later I was feeling ready to sleep for a few hours. The only problem was my 2 year old who needed attention.

After cat napping for a few hours I was feeling great. But decided it's nice to have a pajama day every once in awhile and not go anywhere. It also made me realize I'm a much better Mom when I'm sick.

Let me explain: When I'm feeling well we spend our days going to the park, swimming, having play dates, going to Happy Hollow and running errands. When I am home I clean.

So today we read books. We colored. We did puzzles together. We played games that Shayla made up. We laughed and giggled together. She told me stories about what was happening in the books we were reading, especially if there was a "yum-yum" in it. (Any food) She then would pretend to eat the yum-yums. We sang songs. We danced. And she had my undivided attention.

Maybe I should declare pajama days more often...

A Few Favorites

2011-07-31T20:25:00.000-07:00

Here are a few favorite pictures of the last few months...

SQUEEZE!! As these two girls yell out each time they hug each other. BTW Kate's face is priceless in this one.

MMMM... Watermelon. She insisted on watching a cartoon while eating this delicious treat. So I rigged up the towel underneath to catch all the watermelon juice. What can I say, I'm a pushover.

First Popsicle of the season. This is how we beat the heat in California.

How precious is this? The last week Lola was here she kept saying, "Hug Shay, Kiss Shay, Hold Shay's hand. OK"

Trying to prove that I'm as fun as all her friends the 10 days that it was just me and Shay. We had a good time but she was really excited to see them when they started getting home from their vacations.

Coming soon, Shayla's friend birthday party...

Do As I'm Doing, Follow Follow Me

2011-07-27T18:59:00.000-07:00

Sometimes it takes me back a little to realize exactly how much Shayla watches everything we do and mimics it. The other day I walked downstairs and found her doing this....

In case you are wondering this is exactly how we cuddle her every morning and after her nap while we watch "Shayla Shows". Just put one of us in Shayla's spot and Shayla in her babies spot. Precious much? I think so.

Happy Birthday Little Bug!

2011-07-26T22:35:00.000-07:00

Shayla turned 2 today! I can't believe how time has flown by. We celebrated in Utah last week and did a little family party here today. This picture was actually taken yesterday but I think it will do.

We surprised Shayla with a castle slide on the back porch and a little picnic table. (thank you craigslist!) When they were discovered there were lots of "WOW"'s and Yays! Her little friend Kate was here when it was discovered and they were both very excited for the new toys. Unfortunately they were discovered before they were supposed to be... Jon missed out on the initial reaction. He got to see the ensuing fun that they brought though! Shayla even insisted on eating dinner on her new picnic table.

We even had a few presents for her to unwrap. I love that she could be swallowed up by this bag!
We spent the day focusing on a fun day for little S and I completely neglected all of my house cleaning duties. We played at the park with some of her besties and went swimming. Then ate her favorite food for dinner and blew out candles. She was so proud when she was able to blow them out all by herself! She is getting so big!

I love this girl!!

To Be Two Again

2011-07-14T22:05:00.000-07:00

My favorite melt down of the day was when Jon and I told Shayla she could not eat ravioli for breakfast.

Just more proof that my daughter will eat anything at any time of day.

A Week Of Service

2011-07-13T21:39:00.000-07:00

Just thinking about this last week makes me a little tired.

I realized we hadn't posted in awhile so I thought I would give a rundown on what has been keeping us so busy!

Sunday July 3rd- Jon and I taught the Valiant 8 class in our ward for a Sister who was going to be out of town.
Monday July 4th- Day of Freedom. Quite literally in just about every sense of the word. We were able to spend the day together and didn't have anything that took us away from each other.
Tuesday July 5th- Picked up friend from the airport
Wednesday July 6th- Babysat for some friends while they went out to dinner with some of the husbands coworkers
Thursday July 7th-Started watching a little boy for some people in our ward who were going to Chicago for a job interview. They were coming back on Sunday.
Friday July 8th- Visiting teaching and still taking care of Jackson
Saturday July 9th- Still watching Jackson. Drove the Fosters to the airport and fed the missionaries dinner.
Sunday July 10th- Jackson's parents came home that afternoon and I collapsed from exhaustion.

Quite literally I collapsed after how busy my week was. Stress headaches and all the stops. My house was also starting to show the effects of my being exhausted and I finally reclaimed the downstairs today. Now I just need to reclaim the upstairs (Not as big of a feat) and I will be totally recovered! Now I just need to plan our trip for Utah on Saturday... Oh dear. Here we go again.

In Happier News

2011-06-27T18:22:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we asked Shayla if she wanted to go to nursery after sacrament meeting. She grabbed my hand, yelled "YAY!!!" at the top of her lungs and ran full force to her nursery room.

Then she gave us a kiss when we left. This child turned from being the most difficult child in her nursery class to the easiest. What a relief!

It's Ok, I Don't Have To.

2011-06-26T22:02:00.000-07:00

That is what Lola said to me tonight when I said that she was leaving us. "It's ok, I don't have to."

That was also the point where her Mom and I lost it. I hope that none of my other friends get offended but tonight I am feeling sad. The first friend I met here is moving to Michigan. It hasn't helped that Shayla has woken up asking for "Wowa" the last few days. It may have something to do with the fact that we spent every waking moment with them the last week. Yes that's even more than usual. How do you explain to a 2 year old that one of her best friends and her second Mom are gone.(Shay calls her Mom-mom) They no longer live 2 doors down. If you go and knock someone else will open the door.

Carrie is the reason I didn't jump on a plane back to Utah the first day I arrived in California. We've laughed since that day about how she chased me down in the parking lot and "made" me be her friend. What a blessing it has been for both of us. You can even read that story here. Carrie is the reason Shayla still has a front tooth. She has been my pediatrician on call for the last year. She and I have been each others listening ears and been able to give each other advice and sympathy. We've walked to the park with each other multiple times a week for the last year. We've made countless memories and the loss of their presence will definitely be felt for a long time.

I think the saddest part of their leaving for me is that they aren't family. We have no reason to go to Michigan and they have no reason to come here. There isn't the expectation that we will see each other on a regular basis. No family reunions, Christmas or Thanksgiving where we will meet up. We have plans to go and see them, and they've talked about coming back out here. But there are no guarantees.

So tonight I'm crying as I say goodbye to them. If only they "didn't have to".

This Is How We Do It

2011-06-21T11:37:00.000-07:00

It's been so hot here lately that sometime I will strip down Shayla to her diaper and let her run around the house like this. On Fathers Day this is what Daddy daughter time looks like...

They are sharing jelly beans. Best. Activity. Ever.

This little girl loves her Daddy and she loves sharing his treats with him. Jon does such a great job loving us. Happy Fathers Day to him! (I may or may not have forgotten it was Fathers Day until we got to church... oops!)

Camping

2011-06-20T18:54:00.000-07:00

We were quite daring this weekend and took Shay on her first camping trip. She was a doll the whole time, and a real trooper. She loved sleeping outside in a tent and even cried when we took it down the next day. I think if she were to have her way we would always just camp.

She was really good and didn't wander off or get into anything she shouldn't have. She loved watching the fire at night and I knew it was time for her to go to bed when I asked her if it was time for ni-night, and she said "Yeah". This was at 10:30 mind you!

Although she did try to convince me that she needed to sleep in a sleeping bag instead of her portacrib... That didn't go over very well and into the portacrib she went!

Shayla played with Grant (I'm pretty sure their getting married in 20 years!) and would ask for "More" Grant. He also would ask for "Shaysha" They found that it was a lot of fun to ride logs like horses and Grant would tromp through the fields with Shayla tagging along behind him. Mimicking how he walked and what he did. The sad part of our story is that the couple who planned this trip for us, Jamie and Brandon, weren't able to stay and enjoy it. Jamie and I were super cool and set up the tents before any of the men made it to camp. But what we didn't notice was that there were leaves of three all over our camp. (What appeared to be poison oak) So they left late that night to try and avoid any side effects from that and we stayed with the Fosters. The Smiths were even nice enough to leave all their food for us to enjoy!

It wasn't until later that night that we were finally able to locate a ranger who let us know that those plants were actually California Blackberry Bushes. Too late for the Smiths to enjoy their camping trip though. So here's a little rhyme for all of you out there when you go camping.

Leaves of three let them be, But if it's hairy it's just a berry.

Hairy can also mean thorns.

The next day we went Berry picking! Isn't that a great hat! Thanks to Kate for letting me borrow it!

We picked ollallieberrys and boysenberries. The Best part was that you could eat berries as you picked. It was delicious and so fun! We picked enough to enjoy on our trip back. Shayla loved looking for the berries and even ventured to try a few. She and Grant would squeal each time they saw each other, through a fence or otherwise. We had such a blast I can't even tell you.

We live in such a beautiful area with so many fun things to do. I was a little worried about Shay around the berries because there were thorns on the bushes, but she was very careful and we left without any casualties!

This is what a little girl who has had too much fun looks like when driving home.
I think we will make this a more regular occurrence. I'm so glad she loved Camping!!

100!

2011-06-12T23:15:00.000-07:00

This is my 100th post!! Wow. It only took 2 1/2 years...

That isn't really what this post is about. My post is about this girl...

Sorry the picture is so small. It was taken on a phone. I feel like every time I turn around she grows up a little bit more. Each day she communicates a little bit better. It's no longer just grunts and shrieks used to let me know what she wants.

Her very favorite thing to do is pick flowers. She regularly picks flowers at our apartment complex and goes to give them to people. We had a BBQ last weekend with some friends and she probably brought about 20 flowers to baby Genevieve, who was just 2 days old!

She LOVES babies! Real ones or fake ones. This little girl is going to be a really great big sister. (Not an announcement) She is really gentle with little babies and when I hold one she always comes up and enthusiastically yells "Hi!!" While waving in their face. She spent a little bit of time over at Jason and Carries house this last week and would make sure to go and push Genevieve's swing whenever it stopped. She is such a caring little girl.

She is always coming up with new games. and new ways to play. One of her favorite things to do is put her stuffed animals and babies to bed. She'll have me lift both of them into bed and then will give them a binkie and cover them with a blanket. This is always followed by a "SHHH!" with her little finger to her mouth. Letting me know that they are asleep and I need to be quiet.

Her favorite time of day is bath time! She loves to splash and play with all of her toys. But her most favorite thing to do is try and sneak downstairs naked when Mom turns her back for a second before she is put in the tub. She giggles and laughs uncontrollably as I scramble to get that naked baby back in the bathroom.

Her tooth didn't turn gray!! Not only did it reattach but you would have no idea it had been traumatized at all. Everything I've read from unreliable internet sources says that if it doesn't turn gray in a month than you are in the clear. It was a month this last Friday! It's crazy to me that happened a month ago.

She loves to dance. Sometimes in circles and sometimes with Mom and sometimes she does a little special dance where she moves her head back and forth to the Caillou theme song. I almost want to turn Caillou on sometimes because it makes me smile to watch her.

Last but not least here is a picture of her and Kate. These two girls are cooky together. Whether they are throwing all of Shayla's stuffed animals down the stairs, or like in this picture Kate might be trying to ride Shay like a horse. Either way I definitely laugh whenever they are together. I think they will be partners in crime while we both live here. They speak very little but somehow they are able to egg each other on and cause trouble!

My favorite part of this stage is that not a day goes by that Shayla does something that makes me laugh and smile and love this little girl a lot more! Like today she randomly ran up to me and kissed me on the knee. Just another time when she let me know how much she loved me.

If You're Happy and You Know It

2011-06-08T22:25:00.000-07:00

If Shayla had a favorite song it would have to be, "If you're happy and you know it". In fact she requests to sing it multiple times a day. The way she does this is by coming up to me and clapping her hands.

Tonight she was having a hard time falling asleep. She seems to be coming down with something. No matter what I did it didn't seem to make her comfortable. Finally her moans and groans broke my heart and I tried to rock her to sleep.

We had been upstairs for about a half hour rocking and she would pop her little head up every few minutes and look at me and try to get more comfortable. I would ask if she wanted to go to Shayla's bed and she would tell me "No" and we would continue to rock.

Finally I tried to comfort her by singing, "I am a child of God", She popped up immediately and our conversation went something like this.

Shay: "No"
Me: You don't want me to sing I am a child of God
Shay: No
Me:Do you want me to sing another song?
Shay: Uh-uh
-then a few seconds passed as she thought and she clapped her little hands
Me: No Shay we aren't going to sing "If you're happy and you know it" at bedtime.

It took all my self control to not laugh at that little cooky girl. She took it well though and we cuddled for a bit longer before she went back in her bed and FINALLY fell asleep. It only took 3 hours....

A Very Merry Birthday Post

2011-06-07T15:07:00.000-07:00

We've had a lot going on...

Jon's brothers are staying with us.

We went to Utah for a week

My neighbor had her baby

Lots of site seeing

But most important it's Jon's BIRTHDAY! He's 26 today! I went to work with cupcakes so that everyone would know it was his birthday and hopefully he wouldn't have to work as hard today.

The best part of today though was when Shayla woke up this morning. We brought her into our room and she was cuddling with Jon. Suddenly she sat up, shoved her binkie in his mouth, handed him Mono (Her purple monkey she sleeps with), her sippie cup (Another thing she insists on sleeping with. Then looked at me and said "shhh". I guess Daddy still needed some sleep.

Not a day goes by that my little mini doesn't make me laugh and smile. I love seeing how she thinks.

Sorry for the lack of pictures. My camera died and I haven't bothered recharging the batteries.

Famous Last Words

2011-05-20T20:36:00.000-07:00

Recently I have become really interested in the show "Criminal Minds". I've always been a sucker for a good crime drama, but have never liked watching any blood and gore. I usually get up and do something during that part and then come back for all of the psychological stuff I find so interesting. The nice thing about Criminal Minds is that you don't actually see the blood and gore. They just elude to it. And it REALLY focuses on all of the psychological mumbo jumbo I love, so basically I may be a little addicted. It doesn't help that it is almost ALWAYS on one channel or another. I tend to try and do something in the evenings and I usually have the TV on in the background for company. (Why, yes, Jon is still working ridiculous hours. Why do you ask?)

Anyway Jon got home around 11 last night as I was finishing up my umpteenth (Not really) episode for the day and I looked at him and said. "I think this show is going to make me paranoid."

Fast Forward to today. I was at the grocery store by myself (Thank you Carrie for watching S) and getting some meat from the deli. After the clerk was done weighing my order and whatnot he said, "Have a safe day".

Now this may not have struck any of you as odd but it freaked me out that he said that instead of have a good day, or a fun weekend or what not. But I kid you not I spent the rest of the time looking over my shoulder, imagining the whole time that he was a serial killer.

I think I'm paranoid. Looks like I won't be watching Criminal Minds for awhile...

Breathing Deep

2011-05-10T21:48:00.000-07:00

We went back to the playground today. I found myself feeling anxious as we approached. (We walked this time, adventurous, I know.)
Shayla cheered.

I thought maybe we would take it slow. Play on the swings and the sand.
Shayla headed straight for the toy that almost made her my toothless wonder.

I held my breath with each step she took, and tried not to let her see how scared I was.
She played and laughed, and insisted we slide down together.

She wanted to climb up and down by herself, and I let her.
That's what we do as parents. We let our children fall, and get back up. We cry with them when they are hurt, We laugh with them when they are happy. But most of all we love them.

It has been so inspirational to see how Shayla has handled this little trial of hers. She has been so cheerful, and lovie. She has been so brave. Did I tell you that while we were at the park after she fell she was picking flowers for me while I was on the phone with Bishop Keller? Melt my heart.

When I would be whining about pain, she is happy. When I would be worried about my tooth turning grey, she couldn't care less. When I would want to stay home and have a pity party for myself, she is back at the park and having a good time.

Children are amazing.

What Could Have Been...

2011-05-06T22:08:00.000-07:00

Sometimes when I think about what could have been I feel so grateful for a Heavenly Father who watches over me. It makes me count my blessings.

Most of you know I spend most afternoons at the park with Shayla and at least one of her friends. Today I got a text from my friend Carrie wanting to know if we wanted to meet up at the park down the street from our house. It was perfect timing and she was almost there so I loaded Shay up in the car and we headed to the park. We had spent quite a bit of time there. Shayla was playing on the toddler toy, one she plays on 5 days a week. This next part happened in slow motion for me.

I saw Shayla walking dangerously close to the edge of a small stair. I was sitting on a stair not too far away from her watching her play. Close, but not close enough. I kept thinking, "She'll look where she is going." As she neared the edge I called out her name just as she fell off. Her head hit the plastic bridge and as she was picking herself up and I was running to her, I saw her tooth lying on the toy.

I screamed. Scooped up Shayla and the tooth and called out to my friend that Shayla had just knocked out her front tooth. I was in shock. They don't cover this in Mommy 101.

Carrie ran over and put Shayla's tooth back in. Checked her for any signs of other injuries and then tried to figure out what we needed to do to take care of this little girl who has become like a daughter to her.

I called Jon so that he could look up a dentist or someone who could look at her mouth. After I hung up with him I realized our Bishop is a Dentist, so I called back and told him to call Bishop Keller.

Bishop Keller wanted to talk to me about the injury and assess what needed to be done. After he talked to me he said Carrie had done exactly what she should have done and told me some things I needed to do to care for the tooth for the next little bit.

Shayla was fine once she got home and had some pain medicine in her system. It left me so grateful for what didn't happen.

We could have walked to the park like we did 100 times before.
I was there with a pediatrician who knew exactly what to do. (Kind of convenient that one of my bestfriends out here is a pediatrician, wouldn't you say)
Shayla could have been injured so much more seriously.
We had Bishop Keller to call for advice on a Friday afternoon at 5pm. I am so grateful for that little bit of inspiration I was able to have in my moment of panic. Our Father in Heaven was watching over us. I was so frazzled and in shock. I was just standing there trying to figure out what to do. But I had that one moment of clarity.
The worst that could happen at this point is that the tooth doesn't take and she is my toothless wonder for a while.
We could have had a trip to the ER. Instead I was able to take care of her at home.
I'm so grateful for Jon. He dropped everything to come and rescue his hysterical wife and daughter.

One thing that really struck me was when Carrie suggested I have Jon give her a blessing. This may not strike any of you as odd but Carrie is Catholic. We had offered a blessing to her daughter one night when Carrie was really worried about an illness. I guess this stuck with her. I would have eventually calmed down and asked Jon to give Shayla a blessing, but it was one of those moments when you realize that anyone can receive inspiration.

I don't know what we will do when Carrie and Jason move away. Their presence will be greatly missed. Shayla thinks of her as another Mom. She and Lola are convinced they are sisters. Just separated in the womb I always say. Their move keeps coming closer and closer. It will be a sad day in the Laudie home when they leave.

Right now I'm just grateful Carrie was there. I don't know what I would have done without her. I can't even comprehend it. Tonight I'm just grateful.

Easter Part 1

2011-04-28T12:48:00.000-07:00

We had a jam packed, fun filled Easter Weekend! I'm just barely recovering from it. (As is my house) I thought I would show some of our Easter Festivities in Sections, as I felt like it. What can I say, sometimes I'm lazy. Here is Shay's first Easter Egg hunt through pictures.

We started by riding the horse together. It may look like they are each unwilling participants, and Kate may be giving me the glare of death, but this was actually their idea. Those two sillies.

And the hunt Begins!! Shay was rather angry with me that I would have her go look for eggs when she wanted to swing. So she insisted that Jon help her on the hunt. This girl has attitude, with a capital A. (She may or may not get it from me...)

What goodies did Kate find? Apparently it was worth stopping and eating right then! Kate really caught on to the whole Egg hunt and pretty soon her basket was about to over flow. Even with these yummy little pit stops she made.

Cute Grant. I may or may not be campaigning for Shayla to date you when you're both 16. He is a cute kid and really enjoyed the hunt as well. His Mom won the prize with best egg filler, she brought Bubbles!!

Stopping to smell the dandelions. I'm just glad we're past the stage where she tries to eat them...

Oh Kate, If only you knew the yummy goodness hidden inside that shiny gold wrapper. You would have been a little more insistent that we open it immediately.

Shayla checking out Kate's basket. Maybe Kate has something better in hers!

The kids came up with a different idea for filling the eggs. Sand! Why didn't I think of that?

Trying to gather all the kids together for a picture....

Shayla absolutely refused to cooperate so we resorted to this. four cute kids. Shayla, Grant, Easton and Kate.

The bunny ears... Don't you DARE put that on me. With Easton watching to see what Kate does.

We had a fun time with all of these cute kids and their parents. Hopefully next year they're all a little more excited for the eggs! It ended with the parents picking up the majority of the eggs, and even sharing with other little kids who came to the park to play.

Happy Hollow

2011-04-23T22:35:00.000-07:00

For those of you not from California you may be asking what Happy Hollow is. Well, it's a petting zoo. It's pretty darn cute. It has play areas, and picnic areas, and animals you can feed and pet, and Shayla's favorite part, a carousel. Some of my good friends out here and I bought year memberships to this cute little place, so our kids will be having this activity A LOT.

This is Shayla on the carousel. Every time we saw it she would say, "This, More!" She loved it. She would giggle as the animal went up and down and would pet it as we went around.

When Mommy stopped complying she even resorted to trying to break in...

Kate had a different approach. Up and Over.

We waited in line for a ridiculous amount of time to ride a dragon train around (a mistake we won't be repeating any time soon) The kids thought it was great and so magical. The Mom's had trouble not making fun of how ridiculous of a ride it was. There were painted animals all along the track that the kids could look for! Oh boy!

There were these great blue benches that the girls insisted on sitting on. Here are a few of the gems from that experience.

Don't ask me what they are doing to Shay's pants.

And Kate's "Cheese" face. Love it.

Not pictured is their other bestie Easton. He will be such the Ladies man. He had no interest in breaking into Carousels or doing something girlie like sitting on a blue bench. I'm sad I didn't capture a photo of him this trip. He LOVED the goats, Shayla was scared so the camera didn't come out during that experience. I'm sure I'll get many more opportunities though!

What have the Laudies been up to?

2011-04-21T18:49:00.000-07:00

You may be asking yourself what the Laudies have been up to, probably not, but you might be. Well we have been busy.

Shayla has been busy with play dates. This girl LOVES her friends. There are three that she is particularly fond of that she sees all the time. It's funny how she can be in the worst mood ever and all I have to say is, "Should we go see Kate, or Lola, or Easton?" And I get a big smile and an enthusiastic "Yeah!!!" Suddenly all that is wrong in the world is righted.

Shayla has been a little slow when it comes to speech. But recently I realized she isn't as far behind as previously thought, she is just really quiet when she says it so you aren't sure if she actually said something or just jibberish. Her newest word is "Up" This word is used frequently throughout the day. She wants to be "up" in my arms, "up" the slide, "up" the stairs, "up" on the table.... that one she doesn't get away with. But you get the idea. The word up can be used many times in one day. Until today though she would say "Pah!" and you had to know that she was saying "Up".

One of the funniest things she does is when we brush our teeth in the morning. She likes to brush with me, and spit with me. When I spit in the sink she leans forward and pretends to spit as well. If she were to spit it would end up all over our cupboards. She sure feels like a big girl though.

I've been exercising and watching my diet. In the last week I've lost 4 pounds! This is a pretty big accomplishment for me. In the next little while I anticipate being able to wear my "skinny" clothes again. I've gained a lot of muscle mass and have started really looking forward to my workout every day. I work out 5 days a week. Usually for about 40 minutes, but once a week my friend Sara and I do this hike called "the dish" It's almost 4 miles of sheer torture. It feels so great. It has these hills were we are practically pushing the strollers straight up vertically. By the end our calves are killing us but it feels so great. You really feel it working out muscles you never knew you had.

I keep telling Shayla that Mommies goal is to be tan and skinny. I'm half way there with both of those goals. Shayla and I have some pretty awesome farmers tans. My favorite is my feet. I have some really great flip flop tan lines, but they end half way up my foot because of where my pants hit. It almost looks like I didn't wash my feet very well.

Jon has been working like crazy. Nothing new there. I spend most nights home while the baby is sleeping and the Daddy is at work. He bought a new motorcycle that he finds any excuse to ride. There isn't really too much else to tell. He spends most of his time working or sleeping. Poor guy doesn't have much time for anything else. The weekends he devotes entirely to being a Dad. Shayla cries when he leaves.

All in all we are a happy little family. We are looking forward to later in life when Jon can spend more time at home. We have our eye on the prize!

FAIL!!

2011-04-10T22:06:00.000-07:00

So Jon is really great at putting his foot in his mouth. It happens on almost a nightly basis. Now normally I just give him a quizzical look and laugh. But tonight was priceless...

We were having a discussion about his little sister who has a boy hot on her heels, trying to get her to marry him. (I guess the general conference talks sunk in a little too much for him) This discussion lead to our engagement and how we knew it was right. How easy it was. Now you have to realize that Jon and I decided to get married one night. We hadn't talked about it AT ALL before that night. But we had each prayed about it separately and received confirmation before this happened. So it just took one night of talking. We knew it was right that night. So me being the planner I am, I started planning our wedding. Now because of this Jon sometimes makes comments making it sound like he was shocked at how fast we started planning our wedding after that night. I guess he expected us to just talk about it for a few months. So sometimes he makes it sound like I cornered him and forced him into this whole marriage thing. (Not intentionally, this comes back to the whole foot in mouth thing)

During our engagement I was working full time, in college, and Relief Society President. So I planned whenever I had an opportunity. I was a busy bee!

Well tonight I called him out a little on it and as he was trying to suck up to me, with the most loving, honey dripping voice he could conjure, he said: "I was just really scared to propose to you because I was so out of your league..."

Well at that point I cut him off laughing and he back tracked as quickly as possible. Or at least he tried. So what did I do? I posted the comment on facebook for all to enjoy... immediately. Then I hugged him as I laughed and he tried to dig himself out of his hole.

Oh how I love that man! Good thing I didn't marry him for his smooth words, because that was a definite FAIL!!!

Cock-a-doodle-doo!

2011-04-08T16:48:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I took Shayla to a little farm around here with some of her besties and their Moms. We went as Moms because it is a 1.5 mile walk to get there and we like exercise. Plus the kids get to see all of the animals we teach them the noises of.

Shayla LOVED it. She loved seeing the cow and moo'd at it. She loved feeling the sheep wool. She loved watching the ducks and hens. She was one happy little girl to be wandering around that farm.

If there is one friend she loves to get into "trouble" with, it's Kate. Those two cute little girls kept walking around a corner of a barn while the Moms were sitting and chatting and then would come back laughing and giggling. We wondered what in the world was going on, but knew they couldn't get into any trouble so just let it pass and let them continue with their game. Then we heard it...

COCKADOODLE DOO!!!

Two little shrieks followed. Then we saw them running to save their lives, Shayla climbed on my lap and just about around my neck and continued to scream as this rooster came ambling around the corner. Kate wasn't quite as traumatized but we got a really good laugh out of it. He was with us for a bit and every time he made his call Shayla would look at him like he was crazy! By the end she would laugh every time she heard him. I guess it's a lot funnier when you're in Mama's arms.

I wish I had pictures of that particular moment! She sure keeps my life interesting and fun!

Pray Always...

2011-04-05T19:38:00.000-07:00

Since Shayla has learned to fold her arms Jon and I have been working with her on prayer. Most times she folds her arms just until we close our eyes and then tries to go on with eating or whatever else she thinks she should be doing. The one exception is when she goes to bed. She will fold her little arms while we pray and then proudly shouts "Men!" at the end of the prayer.

Today in her bath She suddenly folded her arms and looked at me like, Mom it's time to pray. So we said a little prayer. followed by her customary "MEN". No sooner had she said this than she folded her arms again. I asked her if she wanted to pray again and with her big blue eyes looking up at me she said, "yeah". How can a Mother say no to that? So we prayed again. and again. and again. About the tenth prayer I finally said, "All done!" and distracted her with a ball.

How do you say no to your child when all she wants to do is pray. It melted my heart. I'm glad she likes to pray. I hope it's something we can continue to have her love as she grows. As I was saying my umpteenth prayer for her in the bath I was struck by the thought that we are supposed to teach our children to pray always. But I think this sweet little girl helped give me a lesson on prayer.

Is that a threat?

2011-04-04T21:32:00.000-07:00

Recently my sister pointed out how often I blog/facebook/talk about the gorgeous weather here. She "threatened" that if I didn't cut it out she would be coming to visit us.

So this is for Laura:

It was gorgeous here today. It was 75 and sunny. I wore jeans and felt overdressed. It was definitely a day when my legs should have seen the sun. Also it is beautiful here now. There is something about spring and all the flowers blooming here. I can't even tell you how heavenly it is here.

What Laura failed to realize is that I would LOVE to have them come visit. So I think I will continue to discuss the wonderful, mild climate here until she decides to come and see me.

That's all. If anyone else needs more encouragement to make the trek out to California let me know. I'm more than happy to oblige!

Summer

2011-04-01T16:40:00.000-07:00

I'm sitting on our back porch. Barefoot. In capris and a tshirt. This extra warm weather has made me really excited for summer. And the pool opening back up.

I was really excited yesterday when I packed Shayla up and we headed to the beach to get out of the heat a little. I love summer. I love the fruit. I love the warmth. I love going to the pool every day. I'm really looking forward to our first summer in California. Especially since the summer lasts through October.

Heaven.

Tragedy...

2011-03-29T12:45:00.000-07:00

Tragedy has hit the Laudie home.

We ran out of easy cheese this morning. Yes I may have been trying to bribe Shayla to be in a decent mood with it. We got through a few crackers, and then it ran out. You should have seen the tears when I told her it was "all gone". You would think a puppy had died. Remember the last time I bribed her with easy cheese? here. It was a last ditch effort this morning. She hasn't had it in MONTHS. But she giggled when I took it down from the cupboard.

Thanks Uncle Joe for the gift that brought so much joy to one little girls life. Now the dilemma is whether or not to replace it....

Baby for Sale!!

2011-03-28T20:27:00.000-07:00

Not really. I think I could get arrested for something like that. I thought I had 4 more months before terrible two's were supposed to hit. Good night. This is a little picture of our day:

7am wake up call from Shayla an hour before she normally wakes up.
7:15 Mommy walks down the stairs to do her morning workout and Shayla freaks out as I leave to go to the gym. (Normally I'm back before she wakes up and I get to shower while Jon feeds her)
8:30 Daddy leaves for works. Many tears were shed.
8:35 Shayla screams as I do her hair because she wants the bow in her hair NOW!!!!
8:45 Shayla is pounding at the door and handing me her shoes. Mommy ushers her onto the back patio so that she can get some makeup on.
9:10 We go to the grocery store and all is well as long as she can alternately push the cart and ride on the handles of the cart while we run a quick errand
9:30 Tantrum when being put into car seat to go home
10:00 We arrive at the park for a play date. An hour of not too bad tantrums. A few tears when she had to share her sand toys, and when the slide was too fast and she landed on her bum.
11:15 we arrive home and eat lunch, watch Caillou and get ready for a nap at 12:30
12:30-3 Mommy gets a break
3:00 CUDDLE TIME!(best time of the day)
3:30 Snack time
4:00 Mommy proposes a walk. Shayla decides we should stay home and play on the backporch. Frustration when getting in and out of the toy car. BUBBLES!!! We love bubbles. Mommy teaches her how to use the bubble gun.
5:00 Shay dumps two boxes of crackers on the kitchen floor. Mommy shuts the treat cupboard and there are lots of tears. I guess it's a lot of fun to dump crackers on the floor.
5:15 Dinner. Shayla dumps a bowl of soup on Mommy's pants. Great. I guess it's a lot of fun to dump anything on the floor. Tantrum when Mommy goes upstairs to change said pants.
Tantrum when Mommy scrubs the carpet to get said soup out of it.
I ask Shayla if watching Caillou would make her happy. Her response? "Yeah" through tears. Priceless.
6:00 After reading books and playing with puzzles and eating pudding I insist it is time for her bath. I carry a kicking and screaming child up the stairs and think, "Heaven help us, here come the terrible twos"
6:20 Shayla gets upset when lotion is used. Oh the humanity! Mommy thinks,"Birth control is a wonderful thing" the other thought that went through my head? "No wonder people think about getting pregnant when they have a 12-18 month old. They haven't dealt with this yet."
We read books, pray and Shayla is in bed by 6:30.

Here is to days like this being few and far between. I know what most of you are thinking. Is she talking about Shayla? Easy going, mild mannered Shayla? Carrie must just be in a bad mood. There must be more to the story. I kid you not she has never had this many tantrums in one day. I was contemplating putting an ad on craigslist. It would read something like this:
2 year old for sale or trade. Complete with tantrums and tears. Addicted to Caillou. Demands lots of time outside.
Ah the joys of motherhood. Most of my day looked something like this

And possibly this as well. Man alive I love that girl. I'm glad it's bed time now though. We'll try again tomorrow!

Spring Cleaning

2011-03-27T13:18:00.001-07:00

What do the Laudies do when we have a free Saturday and it's raining cats and dogs outside? We declutter. Maybe I have spring fever. Maybe all of the stuff we have in our house finally drove me to my breaking point. Whatever the reason, Jon and I went through gobs and gobs of things and made a big trip to the Goodwill. (Jon still calls it D.I. sometimes, we don't have those out here)

After we finished, I thought I should have taken before and after photos of our apartment. But I didn't. I now know where everything is in our apartment. It's organized. Shayla has a closet again! We rearranged our furniture and our tiny little townhome feels so much bigger now. I feel like we finally moved in (8 months later)! Now I just need to finish decorating to my hearts content and maybe even color coordinate my closet. Who knows. I'm feeling ambitious.

Shayla wasn't a big fan of the days activity and let us know MULTIPLE times that we should be doing something else. Like reading books or working on puzzles. While she is right that we should work on those, there is also something to be said for digging into a tough project and getting it done.

It felt really good to be so productive. Especially after having slept in until 10 in the morning. I felt like a teenager again. I think I slept for 11 hours that night. Jon was an angel and woke up with Shayla and let me sleep. I haven't been sleeping well for the last couple of nights and it felt so good to catch back up. I was a bit of a walking zombie Thursday and Friday.

The sun has come out, literally, and this next week Shayla and I can get back into our regular routine of playing with friends and spending as much time outside as we can. Have we told you how much we love the weather here? As my friend Sara says, "We pay for it in rent, though." And that is a true statement if I ever heard one. We really love it here. And now I have an organized house to boot! I was going to say clean, but then I looked over at the kitchen and realized I didn't want to lie on the Sabbath.

Laudies Bleed Blue

2011-03-24T21:11:00.000-07:00

It's true. Although I have my no sweet rule during the week, I decided that due to BYU's loss against Florida today I would make these low fat chocolate chip cookies. You can go to the link here. They are surprisingly pretty good, and only a portion of the calories. This blog has a lot of really great low fat/calorie options for comfort food. (Thanks Lindsey for tipping us off!)

It was a rough game. Shayla looked at me like I was crazy when I started screaming as we were sent into Overtime. Then she went to bed and in her prayers we prayed that the Cougars would play well (read win). I guess it's our fault for their loss. We shouldn't have prayed for something so frivolous.

We are having a sad night in the Laudie home (I'm sure all Laudie homes are feeling this loss) But it was nice to have these cookies to indulge in and not feel (super) guilty about the indulgence. Especially since I've been sick this week and have only made it to the gym once.

It was a great season, and we are all excited to see what Jimmer does in the future! Where ever he ends up he will always be fun to watch!

Dear Cougars and Jimmer

2011-03-24T14:06:00.000-07:00

The Laudie Family is nervous for you tonight. In fact we are nervous for all cougar fans right now. We watch you religiously and are decked out in our BYU gear. We look good in blue. If you make it to the final four Jon is definitely going to watch the game and catch Priesthood session on the internet. You are the only thing that could persuade him to do that. I've given my blessing because this is one of the biggest things to happen in BYU sports in 30 years, possibly ever.

We've taught our 18 month old what a cougar says and she growls at the TV for you while you play. We've even gone the extra mile and named her stuffed animal cougar "Jimmer".

Oh and, by the way, Jon has to miss the game tonight so if you could make sure to win so that he can watch another game on Saturday that would be great!

GO COUGARS!!

Californian=Vegetarian (Well Almost)

2011-03-18T22:51:00.000-07:00

Many of you know that I have struggled losing the weight I gained during my pregnancy with Shayla. Granted I wasn't able to exercise for a few months thanks to my allergic reaction to some medicine last year. You can read about that experience in this post My Doctor Adventures. Well a year later I decided to get serious with this whole weight loss thing since I didn't feel good about myself at the size that I was and started to work out on a regular basis.

I'm now running 3 times a week. I run about two miles each time. This happens to be fairly impressive since when I first started running in January I couldn't run a quarter of a mile without dying.

This isn't what I wanted to talk about in this post though. Another phenomenon has occurred since we moved to California, the longer I live here the more vegetarian I go. It started with a diet change to try and help aid my weight loss goals. I started eating a piece of fresh fruit before every meal, at dinner time I eat two cups of salad and it has helped me to cut back on calories while still feeling full.

Then I decided to stop eating chocolate and sweets throughout the week, with one indulgence day. Saturday. Last Saturday was my first indulgence day. Jon and I went out on a date and he decided that he wanted us to indulge in something greasy. So we stopped at Burger King and ordered a few things off their value menu. I ate a few bites and couldn't eat any more. Sunday I was nauseous most of the day. The only thing I really ate was a bowl of cereal that night.

It got me to thinking, if my body went into shock after a few bites of that food what was it doing to me? And how was I eating before that made it where I could eat this stuff without it phasing me? It made me not want to have an indulgence day... Well until I made it through all of this week without eating any sweets. I don't think I'll be losing my sweet tooth any time soon, even if I did lose the ability to handle fast food. It has been an interesting experience.

I didn't realize how much weight I really have lost in the last few months until I saw a picture that was taken of me this summer and compared it to our family pictures taken last week. The difference is noticeable and gave me renewed energy to keep going with my exercise regimen. I plan on beefing it up by doing weights a few times a week and riding a bike as well. Who knew I would turn into a gym rat?

Favorite Pictures (At least some of them...)

2011-03-14T16:16:00.001-07:00

This last Saturday we had a family photo shoot. A lot of the picture turned out really great. Especially the ones of Shayla. It's been really hard picking our favorites. Every time I see this one though I smile!

Maybe it's because these are my two favorite people.

Jon did forgive me that I scheduled the photo shoot during the Mountain West Basketball tournament. On Friday night he was trying to figure out a way to get down to the final before it started at 4:00. After looking at all of the options we decided it wasn't practical to drive 8 hours, or pay $400 for plane tickets, And that we would rather go on other vacations. So instead we watched the game here with some good friends. Now for some of my Shayla favorites...

I'm sure you can see why I think this girl is so cute. These are just a few of the ones that I loved of her.

A picture of me and my love. I think our photo shoot was well worth it. We have so many great pictures and I have so many ideas of what to do with them around the house.

And last but not least a picture of all of us together. There are a few of the family pictures that I really loved. My favorite one has Jon holding a bib in it though... darn bib.

Finger Painting!!

2011-03-11T12:58:00.002-08:00

Yesterday we spent the afternoon with one of Shayla's favorite friends, Kate. They are really cute together and light up when they see each other. (They also find it hilarious to shriek at the top of their lungs at each other. Not one of mine and Sara's favorite things.)

I love these pictures of her. We went over to Kate's and her Mom is a cool Mom and lets her child do fun things like this. I tend to get a little discouraged by messy things like this. I have a hard enough time keeping the house clean without these projects! But I think I should make more of an effort. Sometimes I feel like I impede Shay's development because it's easier or cleaner if I do something.

We now have Shayla's art work on our fridge. She loved it! Although she was a little freaked out by the fact that she had paint all over her fingers! I think I will break down and let her do this. I let her play with play-do and bubble sometimes... does that count. One day I'll be a cool Mom.

Just What The Doctor Ordered

2011-03-02T22:42:00.001-08:00

This weekend we had a little weekend getaway. We took the opportunity to drive to Fresno and go to one of my cousins wedding receptions. We weren't able to make it to the wedding in Utah so we made a point to go to this part of the celebration at least.

We booked a hotel room and really enjoyed ourselves. We called ahead to make sure we could check in early to watch the big BYU game. Jon was very happy to watch that game! (Don't ask me what he thought of todays game.) The game was during Shayla's nap time so we put her to bed in the bathroom. (Oh the things we parents do to our children.)

We saw my Uncle Steve and Aunt Kathy. We also saw my cousin Alex and were able to congratulate him and his new wife Amy. Shayla even showed me how big she is getting by letting my Uncle Steve walk off with her and show her some of the pretty lights. My baby used to be so shy!

The next day we took Shayla to the zoo. She loved it. She is definitely her Daddy's girl! Her favorite animals were the sea lions. Every time they barked she would laugh back at them. You could tell that she thought they were communicating with each other. It was a good thing we had a firm grip on her or I think she may have jumped in the pool with the sea lions!

Shayla was a champ on the car ride. We plugged her in to the portable DVD player and I think she was a little sad when we were done driving and she had to stop watching her cartoons. We had a great weekend. It was promptly followed by Jon pulling a late night the next night to work on the beast of a project he's on.

He did that so that I could go to our Relief Society Activity on Tuesday night. I'm on the committee and we were all in charge of bringing a chocolate treat. I decided to make chocolate truffles. (You know the super easy kind that you make with oreos but looks really impressive?) They were a big hit and my favorite comment of the night was a sweet sister who asked me if I had culinary training. It pretty much made my year.

The best part was that my friend Sara was laughing behind me because we had just finished talking about how deceptively easy they were to make. I said thank you and didn't have the heart to tell her that just about anyone could make them. No training required. Oh well, it made me feel good at least. Jon was sad that there weren't more left over. I left a healthy amount of them home for us to enjoy though. But we are trying to lose weight so I tried not to leave too many. (They may be gone now after the BYU game tonight though... You didn't hear it from me.)

A Not So Perfect Day

2011-02-08T18:49:00.000-08:00

We had such a wonderful weekend. Followed by Monday. I'm not too big of a fan of Jon's hours in general but it's becoming a little ridiculous. I was expecting Jon to come in a little late so I went to bed last night. I woke up at 4am and realized he still wasn't home. So I called to make sure I didn't need to send out a search party. He was ok and just finishing up the last bit of work he had. He got home at 4:30 and then I couldn't fall back asleep before Shay woke up at 6:30. Lucky me. Did I mention I'm sick? Oh yes I forgot to make this even more fun I'm currently sick.

This late night thing has been happening once a week for the last three weeks. The first time I thought, "Poor Jon" The second time I thought, "Are you serious?" And the third time I'm a little ticked. We knew that there would be occasional late nights, but by late I mean 11pm. not 4am. I'm frustrated because we didn't sign up for these hours. I'm frustrated because we won't be compensated for the extra unexpected work. I'm frustrated because, thanks to the sluggish economy, we won't even have a bonus to look forward to. I'm frustrated because Jon is the only one working these hours. Everyone else has been leaving at around 6pm. I'm frustrated because I don't feel well. I'm frustrated because after working until all hours of the night he has to go in at his regular time and doesn't come home early. He usually comes home around 7 after a night like that, or even possibly later. I'm frustrated for the stress it puts on Jon and the strain it puts on our family.

Basically I'm just frustrated tonight.

A Perfect Day

2011-02-06T18:22:00.003-08:00

What is my idea of a perfect day? They tend to happen on Saturdays when Jon is actually home and we can have fun as a family. We started by running to the park that is about a mile from our house. I was able to run the whole way and could have kept going. This is a rather large feat for me since I have never been a runner and have never run a full mile without stopping in my life.

We played at the park for about an hour and then ran to the store that is halfway between our house and the park and picked up a few things we needed. After that we walked the rest of the way home to cool down from a workout.

After Shayla's nap we drove to the beach and enjoyed the sun a little bit more. We couldn't resist since it was a sunny 75 and just absolutely perfect. We played in the sand and built sandcastles and also ran through the surf splashing each other and laughing when the water went over Shayla's toes.

We found a little hole in the wall fish shack and had some delicious fish tacos and fish and chips. It was so delicious. (Did I mention it was delicious? because it was) Shayla kept saying, "Num num num". I haven't ever really been a fish person but I've been converted since moving here. It gives a new meaning to the phrase, "fresh fish" when they catch it and immediately cook it right in front of you.

Then we drove home and it was time for our baby's bed time. Oh how I love her. It was one of those days when nothing goes wrong and you just have a genuinely good and perfect day. I was with the two people I love the most and we were doing so many of the things we love to do.

Growing up

2011-01-31T12:56:00.000-08:00

That's right. My little girl is growing up. And she seems to let me know every day that she is getting too big for me. For those of you who knew her during her first year of life you will be surprised that she actually leaves my side now. The invisible leash I seemed to have attached to her has disappeared over night. She used to stay within a 10 foot radius of me... at all times... no more. She even prefers having other people hold her sometimes. I expect this with Jon. It made me happy for him the first time I tried to hold her and she shook her head "no" and held on tight for him. It was so good for him. For so long he was the exiled Daddy. Always looking in on my relationship with Shayla and wanting to join in, but she always let him know he was not welcome. On many occasions he would look at me with puppy dog eyes and say, "My daughter hates me." Not anymore. Now if she doesn't get her morning cuddle from him she runs up to him and tries to push him on the couch. As if she is saying, "Daddy we cuddle in the morning, you can't really try and leave without a cuddle" (The best part of this arrangement is that Mommy usually gets to sleep in a little while Daddy and Baby cuddle.)

What really surprised was last week when we were at the park and she decided to adopt her friends Mom as her own. I guess I wasn't good enough anymore. This girl used to cower in my shoulder if anyone came near here. But when I tried to take her back from my 5 month pregnant friend she swatted me away.

Shay is a big 18 months! I think I'm most excited for her to start nursery and to actually be able to listen during a church meeting!
She is 36 inches tall and 25 pounds.
Her favorite activities are singing and listening to music. And dancing to said music. I love watching her in the center of the room twirling and swaying.
She loves reading books! Her favorite book is "Mommy may I please have a cookie" (Maybe because it has something to do with a cookie)
Her favorite word is "This" in fact it's one of her only words. Shayla learned early on if she says "this" and points at what she wants she gets it and doesn't need to say the actual word. She is a problem solver and too clever. We've been trying to work on this by talking about what "This" is every time she says it. My favorite was last week when she pointed at me and said "this" and gave me a hug. (She knows how to say Mama and Dad but for some reason I was "this") She is a little behind in her speech development so we go back in to the doctor in a few months to just do a check and make sure she doesn't need speech therapy.
Her favorite time of day is cuddle time. (Followed closely by any time she gets to eat) We cuddle in the morning when she wakes up and also in the afternoon when she wakes up from her nap.

We have a beautiful, happy, healthy girl and I feel so blessed to have her in our life. She is very mild mannered but knows what she wants. She shares her toys willingly and loves to be outside. She even tries to do her own hair sometimes. I just love this girl!

Bundle of Joy

2011-01-20T20:25:00.000-08:00

No this isn't a pregnancy announcement. We are still awhile away from that. First a trip to Guate is in order. Today while I was folding laundry Shayla decided this was the best way to use a laundry basket...

She is intently watching a cartoon right here. Do you notice the easy cheese in the background? It happens to be her new favorite food. I had a bad mommy moment this afternoon and left her in her bed while I tried to finish a project. Then as I was headed up to finally get her (It had been a half hour and she was getting insistent) I realized I had left our laundry in the dryers of the laundry room at our complex! Whoops! I went and grabbed the laundry because it would have been impossible to get with Shay. When I finally got her out of bed she was not happy with me. Hence the easy cheese lunch. Yes I suck up to my daughter.

My favorite part was that she collected some of her favorite toys to sit in there with her. She was highly entertained with this arrangement for a good half hour. In case you are wondering I was extremely productive in that half hour. I did all the things I should have done during her nap.

Fishermans Wharf

2011-01-20T20:08:00.001-08:00

Oh how I love three day weekends! I've come to appreciate them a lot more now that Jon works long hours. I never imagined how much I would look forward to the rare commodity time with Jon would become.

Saturday we were in charge of Temple baby sitting for the ward and had an unprecedented 18 kids to watch. Luckily we thought ahead and brought a laptop and a movie. After driving to Oakland to babysit in the morning we weren't really in the mood to drive again and decided to take a walk to the park in the afternoon. Sunday was busy like Sunday's usually are. We had some good friends over for dinner and enjoyed spending time.

On Monday we had all day to do what we wanted so in the morning we went for a 2 mile run. (Yep we've started running together.) I have to admit I'm still incredibly out of shape but I'm hoping that I will slim down to close to my prebaby weight some time soon. There would be something so safisfying about fitting back into the clothes I wore before I had Shayla.

Once Shayla woke up we traveled to San Fran and walked up and down Fisherman's Wharf. Jon was extremely nervous the whole time I had Shayla up on this railing. She thought it was great and I had a firm grip on her. He was planning in his mind what he would do if I dropped her. Silly Daddy. Mommies don't drop babies.

We saw the biggest claw grabber thing I have ever seen. Could you imagine actually grabbing one of those things? If I didn't think it would have been a colossal waste of money I might have made Jon try. All I have to say is holy tamol-e.

We really enjoyed seeing it again. The last time we were there Shay was just a little baby. 3 months old to be exact. What were we thinking bringing her? This is what she remembers of her first trip here... Yep that's right she slept through the whole thing. My sweet baby.

I think Jon's favorite part of the trip was when a man dressed up like a monster jumped out of a trash can and freaked me out. The best part was that the sun was in my eyes so all I saw was this form coming at me suddenly yelling....

We had a great time and made sure to buy some sourdough bread from Boudin's. It was fantastic. We came home and had it with some yummy minestrone soup. The perfect way to end a wonderful weekend.

Sun!

2011-01-14T14:19:00.000-08:00

It is currently 62 degrees and sunny. We have nothing but sun and mid 60's in the forecast for the next week and a half. I love my life. That's all.

Sleepy girl

2011-01-11T20:27:00.000-08:00

At some point every night we hear Shayla drop her binkie out of her bed. Either intentional or not.... We aren't quite sure which.The other night Jon walked in to check on her and put the binkie back in her bed and this is what we found

Shayla has always loved lying this way in her bed and would get really frustrated when she started getting too long to sleep this way. She's a smart girl. A problem solver.

We got a good laugh over this. Sleepy baby!

New Years Eve

2011-01-09T20:49:00.001-08:00

You may ask yourself how the parents of a 1 1/2 year old spend New Years Eve. Well I can tell you what we did... Thanks to Jon's work we went to a ridiculously expensive restaurant and had a little bit of a night out on the town together. You may be asking what I think a ridiculously expensive dinner is... Well we both choked a little when we saw the bill. It would have been double the cost if we were drinkers. (Another time when I am so grateful that we are mormon!) The only reason it was kind of sad that we don't drink is because they had specific wine pairings for each dish. It is the only time I have ever thought it would be cool to drink just for the experience. Instead we had some nice glasses of sparkling cider. mmmm.

It was a 5 course dinner with 4 desserts. It took three hours to eat and was quite the experience! The waiters timed everything to a T. It was like watching an intricate dance the way they served. First they would place the silverware you would need in front of you for that course, then simultaneously 2 other waiters would place our plates in front of us at the exact same time.

Our first course was an oyster with rutabaga choucroute. It was served on a bed of sea salt. In the lighting it looked a little bit like rice and Jon may have tried a little bit... you didn't hear it from me....

Then we had an Arpege egg. It is an egg that has been lightly poached in it's shell and the top of the shell is cut off in a perfect circle. Then they add a few more layers to it and you eat the whole thing very, very carefully and delicately.

The second course was Ceviche of lobster and sea bream. It was good but the first time I've eaten raw fish. (Well kind of raw. Cooked in Lemon juice) then it had grape fruit and fennel with it. The waiter noticed that I didn't eat my grapefruit and so they substituted it for orange in another course that had grapefruit. They were very observant and very happy to help in anyway they could. We felt like fish out of water! Oh it was so out of our element! but a fun once in a lifetime opportunity.

Our third course was Atlantic stone bass roasted with sesame and hickory nuts
dungeness crab, a bouillon of dried tuna and black tea.
It was probably one of my favorite courses. It was amazingly delicious. And this comes from a girl who really doesn't like sea food!

Our fourth course was Abalone in brown butter, salad leaves from the garden. served with a light puree of smoked lentils. In case you are wondering what abalone is, snail. A large sea snail to be exact. It's about the size of a thick pork chop. I didn't know what it was when I ate it, which may be a good thing since I think I would have been freaked out by the thought of snail. It was pretty good though. One of Jon's favorite's.

Our fifth course was Roast sirloin of wagyu beef served with a potato and truffle croquette and vegetable hash. The croquette was probably the tastiest thing I have ever tasted in my life. When I ate it I think I died and went to heaven. This was both of our favorite meals.

Our first desert was a Champagne jello, raspberries, rose sorbet and lychee. I can honestly say I tasted champagne. It really wasn't that good. After that I didn't feel like I had missed out on anything with the whole wine thing

Then we were served a frozen orange parfait with black sesame ice cream, topped with meyer lemon croutons and honey peanut crumble with citrus supremes
This was a really odd desert. Not my favorite but very fancy and very unique.

Then they served us home made truffles and Petits fours. It was so amazing and I was stuffed by the end of the meal. It was such a great experience.

We got home at about 11, Jon took the babysitter home and we went to bed early. Suddenly when you are the parent of a toddler staying up until midnight jsut doesn't seem that cool. Sorry there aren't any pictures but we didn't want to stick out too much as people who had never been to a place like that. It was fun getting dressed up and going out on the town with my love though!

Christmas Day

2011-01-07T14:46:00.000-08:00

We had a relaxing Christmas Day. We woke up when Shayla did and the best part was seeing her reaction when we walked downstairs. She just looked at us like, "What are those toys doing there? They weren't there before!" After a minute she decided she would get out of Jon's arms and investigate.

She immediately went for the shopping cart and tried to drag it somewhere. (My only guess is that she was afraid we were going to take it away. I'm not sure why, we don't take toys away from her.)

I promise you it was like she was trying to keep it away from us though. The other funny thing that she did was sit on all of her toys at first while we opened presents. I guess she thought if she sat on them they would be safe.

You can't really tell in this photo but every time I took out a new toy she would promptly put it under her little tushie. Silly girl. It took awhile to get through all of the presents just because she was so distracted by each new toy. Usually as soon as one was opened she would stand panting until it was out of it's packaging.

A big hit that day was a puppy who barks and walks. She kept picking him up and giving him kisses. It made Jon and I feel a little guilty that she doesn't have a pet. She also likes to stare out the window at all the squirrels around. When one happens into our backyard she stands at the glass door and shrieks at them pointing saying, "That! That!" Cute girl.

Christmas Eve!

2011-01-04T18:58:00.000-08:00

Ok so I know that it is January 4th... but I thought I would catch everyone up over the next few days on our Christmas and New Years festivities. Many of you know that we stayed in California this year and had our first Christmas alone. It was relaxing and fantastic! On Christmas Eve we started a new Laudie tradition and traveled into the City to walk around and see the large tree in Union Square.

It was cold (for California) so we bundled up. Yep that's right, bundling in California meant we walked around with sweaters on. I did put a hat on Shayla at least...

Shayla loved the tree and kept telling us stories about it in her Shaylanese. (This is the language she is currently speaking) I was a good Mommy this day and listened attentively.

Jon also listened very carefully as she told us all about what was happening.

Shayla's favorite part of the day though was climbing all over the steps. She did this over and over again. She also liked chasing the pigeons. Luckily they never let her get near enough to them to snap a picture of this part of the day.

We went home and put Shay to bed, had a nice Christmas Eve dinner. And played Santa! For the first time we got to be Santa and Mrs. Claus! It was exciting! It made me so excited for Christmas day! Then we had to wait until the next morning to see Shayla's reaction....

Bad Mommy

2010-12-19T11:11:00.000-08:00

I have been having a bad Mom kind of week. First I clipped Shayla's leg in one of her onesies. Then she had a clumsy kind of day and kept falling hard on asphalt while we were walking places. (Of course we ran into my little old German lady neighbor. Who we only seem to see when Shayla has just fallen or is tired or is crying hysterical for one reason or another. I swear she is going to call Child Protective Services on me.) Shayla was left with a big goose egg from that day.

Then she was watching cartoons on the couch and I guess she thought it would be a good idea to fall face first into her toy bin on the floor. So we added a few more bruises. But wait, it gets better!

Shayla woke up Friday morning having slept in a poopy diaper all night long. Her bum cheeks were about the color of a fire truck. So she ran around naked all Friday.

But the best moment of all was when she fell down the stairs yesterday. Yes my child fell down the stairs. Well actually she fell down A stair. Just one. This of course was right after I was bragging to Jon about how well she was doing on the stairs. I didn't think too much of the spill until she wasn't able to walk on her left foot. Luckily for me our best friends here just happen to be doctors. We didn't rush to the emergency room, we rushed to Jason and Carrie's apartment. Luckily they reassured us it was just a sprain.

Can anything else happen to this little girl? I'm afraid to ask... Bad. Mommy.

Christmas Craziness.

2010-12-14T21:49:00.002-08:00

There are some days when I feel like a wonder Mom/wife. I even have the shirt to prove it. This last week has been full of days where at the end I just sit back and sigh. To put it lightly I have been a busy bee. Between Christmas Shopping and food shopping and Laundry and decorating for Christmas and wrapping Christmas presents and working on Christmas presents/projects and baking and writing a Christmas letter and addressing all of our Christmas letters and buying Jon new pants (since he apparently forgot how to shop for himself) and all of my regular cooking and cleaning and Shayla activities. I have even found time to take Shayla to the park during all of this Christmas Craziness.

Since the next week will be occupied with baking goodies (that will definitely make me gain back the 5 pounds I've lost), I have decided to document it with photo's. (The food, not my gaining weight)

These are truffles. And in case you are wondering they are divine! mmmm... I love chocolate!

These are the ones that wouldn't fit in the two large containers that I put in the freezer. Darn it all, I'm just going to have to eat them. HARD. LIFE. I was even nice enough to send Jon links to presents that I would like so that he could just order it online since he is working 15 hour days. My only request is to have him for part of Christmas Eve and all of Christmas. I don't think that's asking for much.

Our Christmas Tree Adventure!

2010-12-11T21:10:00.003-08:00

We decided to cut our own Christmas tree this year. There is an adorable little tree farm on the way to Half Moon Bay with Santa and train rides and everything you would think was a little kids dream. So we packed up the car and headed down there with Carrie, Jason and Lola.

Here's Shayla on the car ride there. She was giving me a huge cheesy grin seconds before this but the darn flash on the camera took too long to charge so I ended up with an "Are you crazy Mom" look.

Shayla had fun wandering around looking at the trees and even found one that she really liked. Too bad it was $50 regardless of the size of the tree or else we might have bought one for her room too. It kind of reminds me of the Charlie Brown Christmas tree.

The girls had a lot of fun playing with each other. They are about as cute as they come. Each of them gets so excited when they hear each others name or see the other one. And you all know that Shayla likes to go and knock on their door.

Lola decided she liked the tree as well....

Isn't it gorgeous here? Kind of strange to be looking for a Christmas tree when it's 65 and sunny outside!

We didn't like any of the trees there so Jon had to at least pretend like he was going to cut one down.

Like I mentioned before there was a Santa there. So Jon got the camera ready and I laughed my head off. What a great picture! I think you can see all the way to her tonsils. I laughed so hard. Maybe that makes me a mean Mom. Bahaha! Poor Santa....

Then we headed back to Mountain View and picked up a tree from our local super market. It was actually significantly less and looked a lot better. I picked my favorite one and it is MASSIVE. I wasn't sure if it would fit in our apartment. Jason and Carrie actually cut down a tree while we were at the tree farm but it had leaches on it so we left it there and walked away very slowly to not raise suspicion. Here are the proud Daddy's. The really huge tree hanging out of the back is ours....

There were a few low hanging branches that needed to be cleared away so Jon was happy to take his machete to it. Oh, yes, he used a machete. Shayla was placed in her highchair so she would be safe and out of the way.

Here is the finished product! Our apartment is now decorated and smells nice and piney. MMM... It's beginning to SMELL a lot like Christmas, even if it isn't beginning to LOOK a lot like Christmas. Don't get me started on my season confusion! (Notice how it barely fits? There is about an inch of space above the tree before it hits the ceiling.)

Can you tell he's her Daddy?

2010-12-10T21:01:00.000-08:00

I came across this picture of Jon's first birthday the other day...

And now for Shayla's first birthday...

I've decided that she has my eyes and just about everything else is Jon. All of these are old pictures now. It amazes me how fast she is growing up. It's interesting to look at old pictures of each of us. I think Jon and I must have looked similar as babies. It will be interesting to see who she turns out being more like. Some people say she is all her Momma and others think she is her Daddy. I think she is a pretty good mix.

I forgot how to use a camera...

2010-12-09T22:21:00.000-08:00

Not really. But in the 2 1/2 weeks I was in Utah I managed to not take any pictures at all! You'll just have to believe me that I was there.

We had a great time catching up with friends and family. Took advantage of having Grandparents around and went out on as many dates as possible, and spent way too much money!

Here are a few of the highlights. The Friday after Thanksgiving I dragged Jon to the art exhibit at BYU. I'm a huge fan of Carl Bloch and I told him that I was going with or without him. It was one of the few things I wanted to accomplish while we were there. It was FANTASTIC! Everyone who has an opportunity to go, should. Such a wonderful exhibit that focuses on the Saviors life and so interesting to see the inspiration that can go into a work of art.

When we arrived we were standing waiting to hand someone our ticket and check in our coat. Jon pulled on my arm and motioned to a man standing about 100 feet away from us and said, "Isn't that a General Authority?" It was. It was Elder D. Todd Christofferson. It was exciting seeing an apostle that close to you. And not on a stand or something. We checked in our coats and he was not more than two feet away from us when we walked out of the coat check room. We smiled at him and were prepared to go on our way, not wanting to impose. But he turned to us and shook our hands and asked what our names were. He then proceeded to introduce himself. (As if we didn't know who he was, we haven't grown up listening to him speak in General Conference or anything.) I looked at him and with a twinkle in my eye, said, "Oh, we know who you are." He, and everyone in his group, laughed at us and we went on our way. Such an amazing way to start that exhibit. It definitely helped put us in the right spirit. We rented ipads for the tour and it was amazing. Carl Bloch was so inspired.

We were also able to attend the baby blessing of Dan and Lisa Argyle's little girl, Lydia. You forget how little babies are. They grow up so fast. I feel like every time I turn around Shayla has grown up a little bit more. I'm sure that they will continue the same thing about their little angel. You turn around and they are a toddler, the next thing I know she will be entering kindergarten.

Shayla started warming up to everyone in Utah. Much to the happiness of her Grandparents. We haven't ever stayed with Jon's parents for an extended time. They had the opportunity for a few days to have us there and Shayla really warmed up to them. She even walked over to Shannon at one point and held up her arms to be held. (She usually screams if Shannon comes near her) Shannon looked at me and asked who's child this was, it couldn't possibly be Shay! But it was. She loves both sets of Grandparents now.

My niece Abby was baptized on Saturday and Shayla was on one. We had moved into the Chapel and there was a musical number. She decided she should be up there and escaped and was up on the podium peaking at everyone over the banister and shrieking in delight. It was one of those moments when I just decided to pretend like she wasn't my child. At least until she became too disruptive....

It is really nice to be home, and in 60 degree weather again. Shayla has been looking at everything in wonder. She is so happy to be able to go on walks without being in a huge coat and still freezing. I think she also must have thought that I got rid of all of her things. She kept running around and bringing things for me to see.

It is really nice to be back and have Jon with us again. We sure missed him when he came back to California without us. He surprised Shayla with a teddy bear when he arrived at the airport and she showered her Daddy with hugs and kisses. She loves him so much. And he is wrapped around that little girls finger. I have to do all the discipline when he isn't around, he's just a big softy when it comes to her. He is such a good Dad. We are both lucky to have him.

Movember

2010-11-18T18:57:00.000-08:00

What is Movember you ask? No it isn't a typo... It is for mens health awareness month. In honor of it Jon grew a beard.

Looks pretty good, eh? I just hate kissing it...

No that isn't Wolverine... That's Jon. This was the beginning of the transformation into a mustache. He almost went to work like this...

Instead he went to work like this. I busted out laughing every time I saw him, and I think Shayla may have been a little scared. He got a lot of odd looks at work as well. Not how you would expect an investment banker to look, is it?

Last night he shaved it all off and I am happy to report that my clean cut husband has returned!

SUN!!!

2010-11-17T21:15:00.000-08:00

I checked the weather today. Not the weather for California but the weather for Utah... I immediately started mourning the loss of warmth and sun when we go to visit. How can there be such a big discrepancy when we only live 12 hours away? I celebrated still being in California by going to the beach with Shayla and our Neighbor Carrie and her daughter, Shay's best friend, Lola. Shayla was so excited that she tried to get in her car seat before we put it in their car.

We had a good time playing in the surf. Then we headed to the blanket to play with some sand toys. Shayla loved it! We built a sandcastle and she liked grabbing sand and putting it in the toys.

Lola got sick of the toys pretty quick and decided to go and flirt with a little boy playing on the beach too. She kept throwing her toys at him and expecting him to pick them up for her.

Much to Jon's approval Shayla stayed and played in the sand. She didn't really care about the little boy. Even when he came up to see what she was doing. Carrie and I joked around about how Lola would be mad if Shayla didn't back off from her man!

I love that we are able to get out every day and go to the beach or the park and enjoy the sunshine. Jon was really confused about the weather anywhere but here and didn't understand why someone would need a climate controlled storage unit. It hasn't even been cold... I then reminded him that it has been snowing in Utah. Not everyone is used to 70 degrees and sunny every day. We sure are loving it here!

Stubborn

2010-11-08T19:02:00.000-08:00

The one thing I can say about Shayla is that she is stubborn. She always knows better than Mom. (I thought I had a few more years before this started!) She always knows how it should be done. She is my most avid critic. She also has decided that she knows where we should be going. One thing that I have really liked about having Shayla walk is that I don't have to carry her everywhere. She just follows behind me. Until this last week...

If Shayla doesn't like where I am going she just sits right down on the sidewalk and refuses to move. She'll just smile at me like, "I dare you to come get me". So I do go to get her and...

she crawls away from me. Yes she knows how to stand up and walk but she will crawl away. Maybe she thinks it's faster...

The best part is that she is headed to her best friend Lola's house. They live just a few doors down from us and Shayla knows where it is and how to get there. If she happens to get there before I can catch her she will pound on their door so that she can come in and play. Sometimes she gets confused and knocks on some strangers door... Then I have to explain why my 15 month old is pounding on their door. Not awkward at all....

BeAcH DaY!!

2010-11-06T20:22:00.003-07:00

One of the perks of living in California is that we can go to the beach on November 6th and play in the surf. Plus it's only about a half hour away from our house so it's really convenient too! No sooner did we arrive than we promptly removed our shoes to feel the soft sand between our toes. Shayla even drew in it with her fingers and then got upset when the sand wouldn't come off her hands so that she could eat a graham cracker.

The best part is watching Shayla play in the surf. She just laughs hysterically as the water starts to come up to her. She likes to stomp on the foam at the edge of the tide.

She also loves to play with her Daddy in the water. No joke after we started going to the beach she started really enjoying her baths. I guess she decided if water was that much fun at the beach it must be ok when Mom is trying to clean her as well.

She also enjoys finding shells and rocks and bringing them to me. She is a little smarty pants and observes everything. Last time we were there I was looking for sea shells and sand dollars and this time she would find them on her own and bring them to me!

She and I also hung out on the blanket and ate treats and watched all of the dogs playing on the beach. She really liked one Retriever that would run into the surf and retrieve a stick his owner had thrown in and then start rolling around in the sand. Shayla would laugh and giggle and start woofing at the dog. All I have to say is I'm glad that I'm not the one who had to clean up that dog after that! It was hard enough cleaning all the sand off a 15 month old!

We had a blast! Shayla was so sad when we left that she just kept waving goodbye to the beach as we walked back to the car.

Jon's favorite part of the day was that we saw what looked like a pirate ship sailing out a bit from us. There were a lot of sail boats out and it was a gorgeous day to be there! 60 degrees and very pleasant. It is by far one of our favorite things to do here! (Looking at these pictures can you believe that it isn't summer anymore?) I'm starting to have season confusion. It's still September in my mind because of this weather!

What a great day! Plus BYU won their football game to boot! We are one happy Laudie family tonight!

Piano

2010-11-05T20:47:00.001-07:00

When we moved to California we moved our piano from Houston, where it has been residing the last few years with Jon's sister Liz. We gave it some much needed repairs since it is over 100 years old. As soon as it arrived it became Shay's favorite piece of furniture.

She usually only gets to play when Jon is home. Another reason why she is so excited to see Jon walk through the door. (Most days she wakes up just as Jon is leaving for work and goes to bed before he gets home. They spend a lot of time together on the weekend.)

I think the only down side for Jon is that if he is playing she will come over and take his hands off the keys so that she can play. This little girl always gets what she wants from her Daddy! (Another reason she is always happy to see him) When I won't let her do something she usually goes running to him. Yep she already knows how to work the parents.

I think we have a little musician on our hands. She loves music and likes to sing along too. I love this girl. She makes me smile!

Halloween

2010-10-31T19:41:00.001-07:00

First we got ready and went to church. The best part was when Shayla was so tired she couldn't sit up any longer. She was playing with some of the other little kids in the ward and she just was lying there. So a little boy named Brad came and started nuzzling her, and a little girl named Kate came up and laid down right on top of her. It was just a big cuddle fest. None of the parents sitting there could tell you what happened during the last 15 minutes of Elders Quorum/Relief Society because we were all laughing so hard!

Then after she finished her dinner we let Shayla enjoy some of her spoils from the night before.

Can you tell she's happy about it?

Then we got ready to go out trick or treating... Shayla helped herself to some of our candy a little early.
Such a cute little kittie. Her costume was a big hit!

Then her best friend Lola arrived to go trick or treating with us.

We had so much fun and Shayla insisted on carrying her pumpkin full of candy. She even remembered the drill from the night before and would go up and pick her own candy... sometimes she would help herself to more than one. She was so sad when we came home and I wouldn't let her eat any of the candy and she had to stop trick or treating. What a little trooper! I can't wait to go with her again next year!

I did go around in the hat... I left everything else at home though. One night of being all dressed up was enough for me. Especially after Jon looked at me and told me that I'm much prettier in real life. That was his way of complimenting me. Oh how I love my husband!

Picture of the week

2010-10-31T11:20:00.000-07:00

Ok so this picture is a month old, but I love it. This is what we wake up to in the morning. Isn't she a doll?

Trunk-or-treat!

2010-10-30T19:58:00.000-07:00

We just got back from taking Shayla on her first trunk-or-treating experience. She loved it. At first she was pretty apprehensive and just wanted to be held in our arms, but the last half she actually walked up to people to grab candy. This is her type of holiday! Free Candy!

She loved seeing all the other kids running around. We were a little apprehensive about taking her, thinking that she would just be a big pill and cower in our shoulders. She surprised us and was a big cutie. She would walk up and take a piece of candy and then try and turn to put it in her plastic pumpkin she was carrying, but it was so heavy with candy that it would turn with her. Hilarious and adorable all at the same time.

Everyone went all out with it, lots of decorations and music and candy. Any kids dream come true! The ward did a really great job of making it festive. After the trunk or treat was over everyone went inside for pizza. We had to bounce right after that to put Shayla to bed but it looked like it was going to be a Halloween extravaganza! Maybe next year we can stay for longer.

We went as a Witch (Carrie), a broomstick (Jon) and a little black cat (Shayla). Yes we were a themed family. That's right. Tomorrow we're going trick or treating with some friends and Shayla will still be a black cat but I'm going to leave the wig and outfit at home.

2010-10-24T09:58:00.001-07:00

I love going on dates with my husband. It happens far to infrequently, especially since moving to California where we didn't know anyone to watch Shay for us.

Last night some of our friends watched her for us so that we could drive into San Francisco and have dinner with one my cousins and her husband. They were here for Ryans work for the weekend and we took the opportunity to go and have a good old time.

We drove down Lombard street, ate at a little whole in the wall Thai restaurant (It was amazing by the way) and then drove to Ghiradelli Square to have some ice cream. We even got stared at by a few crazy guys.

All in all it was a success. Our car wasn't towed when we parked it at a broken street meter. We made it through the city safely. And Shayla had a really good time. The nice part is that she didn't even cry when we left.

Oh and the most exciting part of the night was when the Giants won against the the Phillies so we're headed to the World Series!! This excitement is coming from a girl who has NEVER followed baseball. There is something exciting about it when it's happening 30 miles away from where you live.

2010-10-22T13:43:00.001-07:00

For some reason I have one of those faces. I can't tell you the countless conversations I've had with people who think they know me from somewhere. Everyone thinks they know me, or that they grew up with my parents. Jon and I had a discussion about this the other day when I had a woman walk up to me in the grocery store. I was in the self checkout line with Shayla in her stroller. She came up and said, "Are you open?"

I was a little shocked but then kindly explained to her that this was self checkout. Jons response was that I just have one of those faces. That's not quite what I meant by I have one of those faces. I can't tell you then number of times I've been in a store and been mistaken for someone who works there. Do I just look very approachable? It used to make more sense to me when I would be there in a work uniform, but a lady pushing a stroller? Really? You think she's working here?

In Houston I had to stop going to Walmart alone because without fail I would be cornered by some person telling me a sob story and why I needed to give them money. Really I stopped going to walmart in Houston for a lot of reasons. All of these experiences have made me wonder though.

I've also made an October resolution and will be posting on our blog more regularly. Especially now that we live in the land of the liberals!

Picture of the week

2010-08-28T17:45:00.000-07:00

You would think I posed this, but no it really is a candid shot!

We made it!

2010-08-26T12:59:00.000-07:00

Let me relate the story to all of you.

Jon left on August 1st to Chicago for a two week training. I being the planner that I am decided that it would be a good idea if Shayla and I arrived via plane on August 12 so that we could check into our apartment, hopefully the moving company would arrive with all of our stuff, and we would be able to start unpacking our apartment before Jon had to officially start in the Palo Alto office on August 16th. Jon flew in to the San Francisco airport on the 13th. That way we could avoid the 14 hour drive with a one year old. I thought this sounded like a great plan! Definitely less painful than a car ride. As I'm sure most of you are aware we made it safe and sound to California. So far we enjoyed our time here but when I first arrived Jon was afraid (and rightfully so) that I would turn myself around and buy a ticket back to Utah for Shayla and I.

Oh, the one detail I forgot to mention is that Jon drove one of our cars out to San Francisco on July 30th so that we wouldn't have to pay to move the second car. (The company paid to move one car, since we are a two car family that meant we needed to get the other one out somehow) Then he parked that car at the airport that he flew out of and that Shay and I would be flying into. We had it ALL planned out...

So the morning of the 12th arrives, Jon's parents had been kind enough to let me sleep at their house that night and then drive me to the airport at 5 am. We thought it would be best if I arrived in the morning so that I could get everything settled. That meant that I had a flight at 7am. ouch.

I dragged myself out of bed. Interrupted Shayla's peaceful slumber and we all loaded into the van so that I could begin this journey. I thought that if I could just get through the lay over in LA we would be home free...

Well we got through the layover and I got our bags. Now you have to realize the pathetic site I was walking through the airport. I had a baby in a stroller that I was pushing with one hand and two suitcases linked together be dragged by my other hand. I had multiple people offer to help but I declined because I could do this! I was tough!

Then I tried to find the car...

These were the instructions I had. We're parked in level 2 section D in long term parking. It's an orange section. It's in a parking garage. You may have to take a shuttle, but I don't know because some terminals are right next to it, so you might just have to walk across the street.

So I just had to find a parking garage and 2D. I saw a sign for a parking garage, this was going to be easier than I thought. So I took the elevator and walked to the parking garage, took another elevator up to level 2 and saw D. Victory! So I dragged and pushed my way around section D. I went up and down all the aisles. No car. Then I looked down at the paper and it was supposed to be in an orange section. Well B was orange, D was purple. So I dragged and pushed my way to the other end of the parking garage and walked up and down section B. No car.

By this time I was hysterical. I had blisters on my feet. I was exhausted. I called Jon, "Where did you park the car?" (I may have been a little meaner than that)

After a lot of "I'm sorry dears" from Jon I realized I was in a parking garage but not long term parking. So now I had to figure out how to get back to the airport. It was harder than it sounded. After a few maps and a few elevators I finally got back. Barely holding back the tears I went to the information desk and asked them how to get to long term parking. Go upstairs and across the street. OK.

So I went upstairs and saw a police officer and asked him. He told me to cross the street at a certain junction. ok.
Then there was a lady blocking my way. and she snapped at me to wait a minute when I tried to get around her. Yes me, the lady pushing a stroller with one hand and dragging 100 pounds of luggage behind her. So I waited there... and waited, holding back tears. Finally she looked up at me and smiled and I gave her a half smile back and walked past. Then she saw me. And said, "Oh, you poor dear." That is when I burst into tears. From that point on I had people offering to help me and miss their flights, get my luggage on the shuttle that would get us to the car (finally). And overall a huge outpouring of sympathy.

One woman said, "Well at least your home now!" Ummm, I'm just moving here today. "Oh well you have family around, right?" No... "Where is your husband?" Chicago, until tomorrow. "Do you know the area at all?" No. Then the bus driver asked me where my stop was and behind tears I said, "I don't know. My husband just told me 2D."

Looking back now it's fairly humorous. Then... not so much.

And poor Jon, in Chicago, can't help us at all, feeling horrible, crying along with me. Boy was I glad when that day was over!

I promised Shannon (Jon's Mom) that I would blog about this story. It's pretty classic.
We did eventually find the car after searching for an hour and a half. Got to the apartment. Our other car was delivered to us. I set up the pack and play and an air mattress. Met one of my neighbors who has an 11 month old little girl and just happens to be a pediatrician. She's taking the year off so that her husband could do a residency out here. Things started looking up. Now we are enjoying our time here. We've already started making friends which I am so thankful for. Heavenly Father has really been looking out for us.

I'm really glad I didn't turn around and buy a ticket back to Utah. Luckily for Jon the thought didn't cross my mind.

2010-05-31T10:30:00.000-07:00

Shayla has recently mastered the art of waving.

She waves to everyone who walks in the room, she waves at everyone who walks out of the room.
She waves to her toys, and the pictures on the wall.
She waves at the tv.
She waves at cars and trains and animals and trees and plants.
Sometimes I'm not sure what she is waving at. I love that this cute little part of her personality has started to come out.

She also has started to learn the art of dancing. (Yes it is pretty obvious she's my daughter, why do you ask?) Every time music starts she starts bouncing to the beat. My favorite was when she did this while she was sitting on me watching super why.
She also does a little hip thrust wiggle when she's excited... I always wonder what people think when they see it....
Jon and I just laugh. I love that girl, sometimes I'm still overwhelmed with how much I love that little girl. That is my little update on her.

2010-05-04T11:17:00.000-07:00

Well among the craziness of last week we also moved in with my parents for the next few months to save on a rent before making the big move to California. Shay was a little skeptical about the whole thing at first but once she realized that Mom and Dad were staying she decided to milk it for all it's worth. My parents are eating up the extra time with their granddaughter and Shayla is loving all the extra attention. She is convinced that she is the center of everyone's universe. She is a riot. She likes to play a game where she passes from one person to the next. Then she lays her head on their shoulder for about a second and then reaches for the next person. She is too smart for her own good.

I took her to the doctor last week and he said that she was advanced for her age. Verbally and Motor skills. She's a smartie pants. He was checking some of her reflexes and she was crying like the world was ending, so he gave her back to me when he was done and she laid her head on my shoulder crying, then looked at him and glared like he was the worst person in the world. As he left she perked right back up and he said, "You have a little manipulator on your hands." Yes, yes I do.

It was also our two year anniversary on Sunday. Yay for us! We left Shayla with my parents Saturday afternoon and had a nice date. It was really nice being a couple again rather than parents. We sure love being parents but you need to have time to just enjoy each other.

We are still attending our ward in Spanish Fork since I'm still in the YW Presidency. I guess the Bishop was informed that if he released me there would be a revolt on his hands. Jon is a little opposed to the idea because we both think you should attend where you live, but he was really opposed this sunday because if we had gone to my parents ward then he could have watched the Jazz game. Good thing they lost or I might really have been in trouble! Normally I wouldn't stay going to a ward I didn't live in the boundaries of but since it will only be for a few months I'm pretty indifferent about it. Every time we start planning an activity for after I leave it makes me a little sad though.

2010-04-27T21:07:00.000-07:00

I had a big realization the other day. I was sitting at home wishing that we had friends. Don't get me wrong we have friends. But some of them have moved away, some are still single and want nothing to do with married people, and some I've just completely lost contact with.

It's all my fault. I completely realize that. For the first time in my marriage I found myself longing for more company than just my husband.

We have also met friends in all of the wards we have moved into. In Houston we were too interested in seeing everything Houston had to offer. Plus the one time we tried to make friends there was that unfortunate incident with the antique chair. In this ward it seems like just as we were starting to make friends we were offered a job out of state so everyone knew we were leaving and wrote us off, and we didn't try too hard either. I have a few good friends in the ward. Emily and I take our babies on walks together and I love everyone in the Young Womens Presidency with me.

Our other obstacle seems to have been that we have family so close that there is almost always something going on. Not a bad thing at all. Just a part of the equation.

I realized that if we are going to be happy in California we are going to have to really extend ourselves and make sure to try and develop friendships as soon as possible. Maybe then we won't miss Utah and all that is familiar. Maybe we won't feel a big void in our life from moving away from our family... Maybe.

I'm looking forward to this new adventure we have in store. I'm looking forward to being "The Laudies" Not an extension of Ron and Shannon or Gary and Diane. I'm looking forward to the weather and all that there is to do there. I've heard the wards are great and I'm looking forward to meeting new people.

I'm looking forward to a lot of things. But I also realized some of my weaknesses that I have after being married. I never had this problem as a single adult. I always had a plethora of good friends. I've also recently realized I have an irrational fear that people don't really like me. (Or maybe rational, who knows) Sometimes I worry that people are only friends with us because they love Jon. It amazes me how marriage has changed me, or how life has changed me. I'm not sure which. I hesitate putting this out there because I'm not looking for anything. These are just realizations I've had about myself the last little bit.

HE DID IT!!!

2010-04-24T21:01:00.000-07:00

Jon Graduated! Yay!

After two very long graduation ceremonies, that chapter of his life is closed. I can truly say I helped my husband graduate. After all I did most of his history class for him. If it wasn't for me he wouldn't have graduated, right? Well I can claim that at least.

In celebration we bought a new car today! A brand new 2010 Hyundai Sonata. I won't tell you how much we spent. Just rest assured that Jon is still a Laudie and we got the best deal possible. We have the spreadsheet to prove it. Hyundai had a killer sale going on and after much deliberation (and a really bad experience with Menlove Toyota) we finally decided to go for it. It should be a nice car to travel back and forth from California in. Over all we're quite pleased with ourselves. We'll see how happy we are once we start having to pay for it though. It is probably the only new car we will drive because mile for mile it would cost less than buying a used car. Again we have the spreadsheet to prove it. Yes Jon graduated in finance. Is it that obvious?

2010-04-07T21:31:00.000-07:00

Jon sold his Honda today. There has been great mourning in the Laudie household.

At least by him... He keeps asking me about sellers remorse. Then I remind him that they paid above book value.

So the story goes something like this:
Jon: So I put my car up on KSL and someone is coming by to look at it tonight.
Me: Oh... I thought we weren't planning on selling it until after graduation.
Jon: I just wanted to see if anyone would look at it. I didn't put any pictures up or anything. I listed it way above book value.
Me:Oh, okay. Well I guess it won't hurt to have them look at it.

2 hours later they were offering to buy it above book value so Jon came in and asked if it was alright. I told him that it was more than anyone else would pay for it, so go for it.
He came in a few minutes later near tears watching his car drive away. The car that he fell in love with me in. I have a funny sentimental husband. I hugged him, told him it would be alright and then asked him to take care of Shayla while I finished dinner. After all, you can only mourn so long for a hunk of metal.

Shayla

2010-04-05T15:41:00.000-07:00

Here are some fun pictures from a family photo shoot we did.
We have such a cute little pill. With the chubbiest little cheeks.
She kept making the funniest faces. And definitely was not in the mood to have her picture taken. But we got a few good poses out of her.
It was also a little colder that day then we had been expecting.

March Madness

2010-04-05T15:36:00.000-07:00

I would just like to announce that I am whooping Jon once again in the brackets. And his brothers and Dad.

Pretty good considering I didn't know what in the world March Madness was a few years ago. I had a Bishopric who was doing something they called "March Gladness" and I remember being so confused. I just went along with it. It made so much more sense when I found out what March Madness was.

I've decided...

2010-03-23T21:48:00.000-07:00

I've decided that it's hard to teach a teenager a life lesson that you already learned. Didn't you know, they already know.

I've decided that the cutest thing in the world is when Shayla and I are singing, "I'm bringing home a baby bumble bee.." She bounces to the beat.

I've decided that being in a play is slightly overrated when you have to worry about babysitters and sleeping schedules all the time.

I've decided that I enjoy making things for people.

I've decided that service is so much more fun when people aren't expecting it.

I've decided that my neighbor downstairs is about as obnoxious as they come. I've been refraining from complaining on here.

I've decided that my husband probably brags about my cooking to much. Every few weeks I get a request to send this recipe or that recipe so his coworkers can have it.

I've decided that sometimes all I want to do is sit in a room all by myself and have it be silent. Just every once in awhile.

I've decided that I am the type of person who needs the sun. I accomplish so much more on sunny days.

I've decided that the worst cleaning job is the bathroom.

I've decided this stupid allergic reaction should go away already. 2 months later... are you serious.

I've decided that Shayla should start showing an interest in crawling. I can't believe all the developmental things you have to worry about with kids.

I've decided that my two favorite foods are chocolate and french fries. You really want to make me happy? Have those on hand.

And I've decided that life in general is good.

Jonathan

2010-03-12T14:16:00.000-08:00

That's what I call him when he is being a pill... Or chasing after cows and making them jump into a lake and almost drown. (Dan and Lisa know what I'm talking about.) It seems like there are many instances in our married life that I give him a stern look and say, "Jonathan". You know it's serious when I bust out the full name, "Jonathan Dalton Laudie". He used to say he was giving me practice for when I became a Mom. So I now know what tone to say "Shayla Riis" in.

The latest opportunity he gave me to say it was on stage. I couldn't say it. This last Monday he did everything he could to see if he could make me break character on stage and laugh... he almost succeeded.

He started by pretending he didn't know his line. I batted my eyes at him and waited. Then he grabbed me in a bear hug and didn't let go. So I finally broke free and he almost fell of stage. I'm not sure if it was on purpose or accident but I had to take a few seconds to compose myself.

He got off stage and I told him that he was mean. We'll see if he tries it again. Life is never boring with Jonathan around.

Shaybug

2010-03-10T10:26:00.002-08:00

I can't believe how fast my little girl is growing. We were playing with the mirror today (Her favorite friend is herself) and she made a face where I could see a little girl instead of my little infant. I can't believe how fast it changes.

This last Saturday she discovered her tongue... she is constantly just sticking it out as she plays, is held, is fed, etc. I guess she likes the way it feels, she'll feel it and then screech in happiness. It really is the cutest thing in the world.

I have found that I absolutely adore my baby. I didn't think that I could love a child this much. I'll have to post a picture of her sticking her tongue out. I've been trying to catch it with the camera but she is fascinated with the camera and the second I pull it out she stops doing whatever it was that I wanted to get a picture of.

The latest thing we have been working on is her standing up muscles. Not hard since her favorite thing since she was born is to stand. But Jon has this fear that while he is gone in Chicago,for training, in August that she will take her first steps.

I've promised to push her down until he gets back.

Performance!

2010-03-04T11:17:00.001-08:00

Well the time has come for performances of Scapino to start!

We will be performing Scapino at the Springville playhouse
(in the basement of the springville library)

Every weekend in March Friday, Saturday, Monday

House opens at 7:00 show starts at 7:30

You can check out springvilleplayhouse.org to find a $1 off coupon

normal priced tickets are $8

My Doctor Adventures

2010-03-01T22:02:00.000-08:00

Sorry that I haven't been very good at writing on this thing. I'm not sure how many of you know my little adventure that happened this last month... Well here goes.

On Saturday January 30th, Jon and I watched as many episodes of Lost as we could before we could no longer hold our eyes open. Then went to bed. I was EXHAUSTED. But unable to sleep. (It reminded me of pregnancy a little bit) At 1am I realized my elbow really itched so I reached up to feel it and there was a bump on my elbow. I started cursing the spider that had apparently bit me and rolled back over to fall asleep. A few minutes later my hands started to itch and hurt like they were swelling and on fire. I switched on our lamp and made Jon get out of bed so I could find the spider and find out if I needed to be rushed to the hospital. That's when I noticed that I had red bumps all over my legs and arms. I went into the bathroom and sure enough they were all over my face as well. I went out to the living room to google and see if this is a common reaction to a certain spider bite. An hour later I came to the conclusion that I was having my first ever allergic reaction.

I only had one problem... Jon and I aren't allergic to anything. I had no Benadryl in the house and it was 3 in the morning. I went back to bed to try and sleep and then figured I would send Jon to the store in the morning. No such luck. I couldn't sleep. I guess Shay couldn't either because she woke up at 4. I sent Jon back to bed and she and I made a late night run to Walmart. We were back by about 5:30 and I fed her a bottle and she went back to bed. I then took my first ever dose of Benadryl and told Jon what I needed him to do for my church responsibilities to be taken care of that day, and fell into a troubled sleep.

I continued to get worse throughout the day and my feet and hands were so swollen I felt like someone was grinding glass into them. It hurt to be alive on every inch of my body. I had hives from my scalp to my feet and everywhere in between.

We finally decided we should go to the Provo instacare since my hives were so aggressive and we were told it would be a two hour wait. I filled out the paper work and after talking to my Mom, who told me they would just give me Benadryl and send me home since I could still breath, I told them I decided I would just leave instead of waiting 2 hours to get more Benadryl. They rushed me back to see a nurse. Who promptly told me that the hives on my face were just zits... news to me. They gave me a shot of Benadryl and told me that would help and the Dr would be in to see me shortly. I had decided by this time that the reaction I was having, was to an antibiotic that I was taking, and had told this to the nurse multiple times. They said I should start feeling better soon but as I sat there my hands started to visibly swell and suddenly the palm of my hands were 10 times their normal size. Kind of a freaky thing to see. My Mom told me that I was the first person she had ever seen visibly swell like that, other than in the movies, until now she always thought they just made that up.

The Dr came in and told me I was being ridiculous. That the reaction was not to the antibiotic because it didn't come from the penicillin group and that I should take a cool bath and use a better lotion and I would feel better. He did add that if they weren't gone in 7 days I should go see my normal dr. Thanks for nothing, dimwit. This interaction made me wonder if he got his degree online. And I still had to pay for the visit!!

He sent me home. Yes he sent me home. I continued to get worse over the night and we went to the BYU student health center that next morning. They gave me a shot of Epinephrine, my hives got worse. At that point the Dr started pulling other doctors in and having them look and see what they thought. 2 hours later, I had 2 antihistamines, an oral steroid and a steroid injection and the shot of epinephrine going through my system and was told if I wasn't feeling relief in 3 hours I was to come back immediately. And to never, never, never take that antibiotic again.

I did start feeling relief at exactly 3 hours and for the next week and a half I was on oral steroids and 2 antihistamines, this was just taking the edge off my pain and itching. So I've been seeing an allergist. Who told me that the way I was treated at the instacare was "atrocious" and I'm getting better. I'm now only on 1 antihistamine that I only have to take once a day and he thinks I'll be 100% better sometime in the next few weeks.

All this for me to say, just don't have an allergic reaction... Luckily I have a wonderful husband who took a week off of work to try and get this figured out. I don't know what I would do without him.

A Day of Love...

2010-02-15T11:04:00.001-08:00

There have been many times when parents or other people who we love have looked at Jon and I and told us that we were made for each other. Usually I just give my husband a big kiss on the cheek and laugh in agreement. But sometimes I get struck with how we were prepared for each other. I had one of those moments last night as we celebrated Valentines day, Laudie Style.

For those of you who know Jon and his family well, you know that his little sister Amy was tragically taken from them at the age of 3. A car accident and a blink of an eye and she was gone. Her birthday is February 14.

I have never been one of those girls who has craved an over the top romantic Valentines day celebration. I always found it silly when I was single that some girls dress in black and mourn the day that can be known as "singles awareness day". For some reason I was never dating anyone on Valentines day. No matter how close a break up happened to Valentines day I never seemed to be mourning the loss of a romantic interest. Valentines day for me has always been a day to celebrate love, but not the kind that is traditionally celebrated on that day. I was always amazed at the number of friends and family that would remember me on that day and do something to let me know that I was important to them. I always found myself grateful to my Heavenly Father for the love that he showed me through friends and family and would try and return that love to those around me. My Valentines day was always busy and full of service for those I love.

This little sister in law of mine is dear to my heart. I haven't ever met her in the flesh but I have felt her presence many times as important things happened in mine and Jon's life, and she has impacted me and my life. I felt her presence the day Jon and I were married, I could feel how happy she was for us. The day my daughter was blessed I know she was there. I have heard from many who were in that circle that Shayla was about to cry, when suddenly she looked up at something beyond what anyone else could see and just smiled. I know that there were many loved ones there that day that many of us just couldn't see through the veil.

Our Valentines day celebration usually entails some small things that Jon and I do to tell each other we love each other, we go to dinner sometime in Valentine week, but that night is reserved for celebrating Amy's life. And I wouldn't have it any other way.

Jon and I went to his parents house last night and had lasagna, the traditional dinner, and spent time with some of those we love. Then we came home and read some of his Mothers stories and insights she has had since the time that Amy left this earth. We cried together as we read, "The Lasagna Miracle" and "The goat story". And ended the evening so grateful to our Heavenly Father for the care he takes of each one of us.

Amy's story has made it so that I don't take for granted that I will be able to hold my daughter in this life. That I will be able to watch her grow and hopefully have a family of her own. It makes me hold on to her a little tighter. Be a little more patient. Cherish each moment with her a little bit more. It also makes me want to be a better wife and love my wonderful husband a little bit more.

This post may be a little too personal for some, but it is what is in my heart. I'm grateful to a Heavenly Father who knew Jon and I so well that he could fit us so perfectly together.

Remind me...

2010-02-04T20:33:00.003-08:00

Remind me when I'm coherent to tell you all the adventures of this week. Until then onto the next round of medication!

Sometimes I love being a Mom and sometimes....

2010-01-27T15:48:00.000-08:00

Sometimes I love being a Mom.

I love it when I walk in a room and her eyes light up and she starts squawking and waving her arms and legs frantically trying to get to me.

I love it when she wants to cuddle.

I love it when she learns how to do something new.

I love it when she smiles and when she laughs.

I love it when she breathes in really fast and it sounds like an asthma attack. Really she is just excited and likes the way it sounds.

I love watching her train of thought. She has such an expressive face.

I love bath time.

I love watching her sleep.

I love watching her try and figure how to use a toy, or a cup, or a spoon.

I love the face she makes when she thinks something is disgusting.

Some things I don't love though

I don't love her waking up at 3 am with a high fever and worrying about if she is ok.

I don't love that she has started solid foods. I was so excited for it at first, but the stuff that comes out of either end now is significantly more stinky.

I don't love that her new favorite toy is my hair or jewelry.

I don't love that I can't stay looking nice for more than an hour. She always brands me as a Mom in some way or another.

I don't love that there is always another load of laundry to be done. Sometimes I wonder how something so small can wreak havoc on so many things.

My list of things I don't love are so much smaller than what I do love. I still find myself looking at Jon and in amazement saying, "I just love this girl."

Sometimes I Think I'm Crazy

2010-01-23T18:37:00.000-08:00

I especially think I'm crazy when I dream. Last night I had a dream that Jon was bathing Shayla and closed the shower curtain and walked out of the bathroom with her all alone. I heard her crying and went in to check on her and she had flipped onto her stomach and was crying. I snatched her up and held her to me calling for Jon, even using his full name. He refused to come...why? Because he was playing a video game. Best part it was for a class so it was his "homework". To get an "A" in the class you had to beat level 8 and he was working really hard on it.
Then I decided to leave Shayla with him again and he put her on top of the table on a blanket with her toys around her. I was so mad! It was right then that Shayla started fussing and I woke up and was so relieved it was a dream.

At least I'm not one of those people who hold a grudge after having a dream like that right? My favorite part was that he had to play a video game for school... I would take a class like that! What a waste of tuition!

I don't agree with Jon's post

2010-01-22T21:39:00.000-08:00

Just so you all know... my husband does not suck at acting. He's just never done it before so he's getting a little more constructive criticism than the rest of us because we've taken classes and been in other productions. I happen to have a husband who is too hard on himself and thinks he should be a natural at everything. I sure do love him. He's putting up with a lot for me right now. Good thing we get to spend the time together doing something other than watching American Idol or Modern Family which has become my new favorite show. I like it even better than the office. I can SO relate!

Shayla has found a new power she holds over everyone she comes into contact with. She has figured out that if she reaches her arms up for people, wonder of wonders, they reach back and hold her. So she happily passes from one person to the next. She discovered this on Thursday when I took her to my sisters house. I was holding her and she reached for my sister. My jaw dropped. This child NEVER chooses someone else over me. She realized what she had done and immediately turned around searching for her Momma. Somewhere in all of this it turned into a game for her and she thinks it's absolutely fabulous.

My reaction when she did this was shock and a small feeling of rejection. I called Jon and told him I now know how he feels. It hurt my heart a little when I thought she loved someone else more all of a sudden. I sure love that girl. She's growing up too fast! Six months next Tuesday. The next thing I know I'll turn around and we'll be fighting over whether or not she can date boys. In my Dads words, "That girl will be Hell on wheels."

Wow.

2010-01-21T21:36:00.001-08:00

I suck at acting. Period.

Finger update

2010-01-16T10:03:00.002-08:00

I'm sure you've all been dying to hear how my finger is healing... I have no feeling whatsoever on the pad of my pointer finger. I actually think it's pretty funny. I showed it to the Secretary in our Young Womens, Emily, and said, "I burnt it really bad, there's no feeling." She said, "Yes, yes you did."

Well we've had an exciting week. The day I burnt off half my finger the washer also died. We had a funeral for it later this week. The only problem is I have a 5 month old baby... the next morning she woke up and had peed all over her bed. I had no more clean sheets. I almost dissolved in tears and told Jon we needed a washer TODAY! He complied after I found a washer AND dryer in really good shape for $75 on KSL. We then gave away our washer that had given up the ghost and sold our dryer for $60. We ended up only $15 worse off than before and our new ones are nicer than our old ones. I've been quite pleased with myself ever since.

Shayla has turned into an EXTREME mama's girl. When we leave her at my Mom and Dad's while we go to play practice my Mom hides behind a corner while we leave so she doesn't dissolve in her arms. This last Thursday she refused to eat the whole time she was there. As soon as I was there she took her bottle without any trouble. It feels good to be loved.

Unfortunately for Jon he doesn't get quite the same treatment. She hides in my shoulder when he walks in because she is afraid he will take her away... which he usually does. I guess if she could just hold on tighter, right? She does love him though and if I'm not an option she is so excited to see him when he comes around.

We've both been working on losing weight recently and so if you see me hobbling around I'm not hurt, just in pain from over doing it. I keep thinking it will get better at some point and then I make my work out harder... I think I see a problem.

Jon loves me...

2010-01-12T21:26:00.003-08:00

Wanna know how I know? Because he tried out for a play with me. We just got a phone call today telling us we made it in! Best part is that we play opposite each other. Which means I will be kissing my husband in front of an audience for the next couple of months.

For those who know Jon, he doesn't do theater. At all. At all. I was just content with the fact that he came and auditioned. It was so fun seeing him. And he really tried, which was just so cute and endearing. But we made it and he now gets to learn the ropes a little.

He keeps asking me questions like: "Does this mean I'm gay?" It makes me a little worried that he's asking... Or "Do I have to wear makeup now?" mmmm... no. It's a small theater so he's escaping that part.

Sometime I do stupid things when I have too many things going on. I was making a cafe rio dinner for some friends we had overand was even making homemade tortillas. Then I decided since I'm super Mom I didn't need to pay attention to the hot pan on the stove, I decided to grab it to turn the tortilla while doing something else... the result? A big nasty blister on the tip of my pointer finger. It finally stopped burning 4 hours after I did this.

Yes I am a Moron.

Milestones

2010-01-10T19:34:00.002-08:00

Shayla has been reaching a lot of milestones this weekend.
It hurts my heart a little.

She can now roll from her back to her stomach. She's been rolling from her stomach to her back for the last month.

Today we were at my sisters house and her daughter said, "Ouch! It hurts when she bites on my finger because she has a tooth!" I being the all knowing mother said "She doesn't have a tooth, Abby." I then went over and felt inside her mouth and sure enough she had cut her first tooth. This may explain why she was up until 1 a.m. last night. And why she was a little bit difficult at times. She has also almost completely weaned herself. I think it had something to do with the tooth coming in.

So many times I find myself taking a mental snap shot of what she looks like right now so that I can always remember. Or try and tell myself over and over again about the freckle on her scalp before it gets completely covered by hair. Also what she looks like when she sleeps.
She is growing so fast and there are so many things that a picture just doesn't do justice.

It all changes so fast.

Sorry for the Hiatus

2010-01-06T21:26:00.004-08:00

Jon informed me today that people actually read our blog. Which surprised me a little. I will start having it as a priority in my life.

We have had an eventful couple of months. First Jon was offered a job in Idaho Falls, which we accepted. A month later we were offered a job in Palo Alto, CA. Which we also excepted. That made for an awkward conversation for Jon to make to the people in Idaho. Anyone else know of any job offers across the country we can accept? It seems to be a favorite past time of ours.

I was put in the Young Women organization in our ward. The only unfortunate part of this was that it ruined my plans to leave church right after sacrament meeting well into April. Darn RSV season. And darn tricky ward members making me stay active.
The best story so far was during our good news minute where one of the girls announced that her family had won a free car. Apparently they had received an advertisement in the mail with a key and if the secret numbers on the ad matched then you are a winner!! When asked what car they won she said "I don't know... an Escalade or something..." Later that week we also received an ad in the mail shockingly similar. We only won a chevy cavalier though...
As we read farther it said that you could win one of many prizes. I guess they had mailed out 37,000 ads to people all along Utah County. 1 person won a car, 1 person won $1,000 in gold coins, 1 person won a TV and everyone else won $3 in gold coins. We almost went in to claim our $3 in gold coins.
I laughed really hard and I may just keep that ad for a good laugh every now and then.

Shayla has mastered the art of taking the binkie out of her mouth and putting it back in. She demonstrated her proficiency in this the other day when she was sitting on my lap. She took the binkie out, threw up all over me, and put the binkie back in. Smart little girl.

Well more to come later. It's late and my alarm clock tends to wake up earlier than I would like.

Daddy's girl

2009-10-23T16:48:00.003-07:00

This picture needed it's own post because it's just so stinking cute. I walked into the kitchen the other day and Jon was working on the computer while Shayla was fast asleep on his shoulder with her finger in her mouth. I'm just glad she held this pose long enough to get the camera!
It seems like so many cute things happen but I always miss taking a picture because the camera is never where I need it!
Love them both so much!

My Big Girl

2009-10-23T16:38:00.004-07:00

I can't believe how big she is getting! I sure love this little girl. She is a big Momma's girl.

Where does the time go?

2009-10-23T16:29:00.002-07:00

Seriously? Where does it go? I seem to forget what day of the week it is. And don't even ask me the date. Sometimes Jon does... I usually laugh and hand him one of our cell phones. I have no need for it unless there is an appointment or birthday coming up.

Welcome to the world of Mom I guess.

Shayla is almost 3 months old now! Sleeping through the night too. I'm a much better Mom and Wife when I'm well rested.

I always think about posting on the blog I promise but then Shayla wakes up and I don't really worry too much about it. Plus there isn't that much to tell. My days all are about the same.

I wake up sometime between 7 and 8:30, feed the baby, shower and clean the house, feed the baby, run a quick errand, put Shayla down for a nap, feed the baby, run another quick errand, another nap, yet another feeding, make dinner, spend time with Jon and find time for a few more feedings somewhere in there.

Well now you know all the intimate details of my life...
Today I actually did go over and hang out with my sister-in-law. We raked leaves and let all the kiddo's jump in them. So fun to be outside in the autumn air and enjoy the sun. It was definitely a pleasant day. I think we're going to try and get together more often. There's just something to be said about having a conversation with an adult every once in awhile. It also makes me a better Mom.
I'll post some new pictures of our little pumpkin too. Sorry to those friends with us on facebook, some of these may be a repeat!

I'm a parent too.

2009-10-05T17:48:00.003-07:00

Ok... Just to prove I am a parent here also, I will call for a change of the title to "You know you're a PARENT..."

1) I also discuss the consistency of my child's poop. Quite often sadly...

2) By the end of the day I always have spit-up or drool on my shirt.

3) You definitely sing more nursery songs than I do. You have me here.

4) I definitely know the difference between a warning cry and a hysterical cry. Look out cause she's about to get real mad!

5) I talk in baby talk, but only at home, so the edge goes to you again on this one.

6) Yeah, it's cute. You probably think it's cuter than I do, though...

7) Sleeping in means 7:30 on a good day for me...

8) I'd drive the get-away car.

9) Umm... no comment here. No pony-tails or makeup for me.

10) I know guys can lactate and all, but... this one goes to you.

So, 6 out of 10 apply to me also.

You Know You're a Mother When...

2009-10-04T22:38:00.002-07:00

You know you're a mother when:

1. You discuss the color and consistency of your childs poop.

2. Having spit up or drool on your clothes is normal.

3. You sing nursery songs so much you could almost sing them backwards and in your sleep.

4. You know the difference between a warning cry and the hysterical cry and try to get as much done before the hysterical cry begins.

5. You find yourself talking in Baby Talk more than anything else.

6. You even find your babies cry adorable sometimes.
For me it's usually when she juts her lip out right before she starts to cry.

7. Sleeping in means 8am on a good day

8. You know that you would kill to protect your child.

9. Wet ponytails and no makeup is your most common style.

10. You dress for comfort and ease of feeding the baby. A lot of times that means Jon's t-shirts.

At first I was going to title this you know you're a parent when, but then I realized that Jon really can't claim a lot of these. There's something to say about being the Mom. I am the expert on my child. This is something that has been hard to learn. But even Jon has to ask for my advice on what is making her upset or what not. I know everything about her; from the freckle on her head to her little pinky toe.

P.S. I'm really excited because her hair is filling in. But I'm also really sad because she no longer fits in any of her newborn clothes. She has grown up so much in the last two months. It hurts my heart a little.

The Good Samaritan

2009-10-01T12:42:00.002-07:00

Last night as I was making dinner I heard some ruckus going on in one of the other apartments or outside. At first I thought it was our neighbors dog barking but after a few minutes I realized it was a woman screaming. I looked out our window to see if it was just people horsing around. What I saw was some guy leaning into a car yelling at a woman as she was screaming for help.
I immediately grabbed my phone and walked outside.
I yelled to the woman and asked if she was okay. The guy turned around and glared at me and barked, "She's fine!"
Without thinking I said, "She can speak for herself, Are you okay?"
After I said this I thought, Oh crap. I'm gonna get beat up. The guy looked shocked and the woman asked for my help. Before I had time to do anything else he yelled some obscenity at me, threw something at the woman and slammed the car door shut and stomped off. I watched him walk away and he kept turning around to glare at me and yell things to me. When he was out of sight I walked down our stairs to check on the woman and helped her pick up her things that he had thrown on our lawn.
He started coming back toward us and she jumped in the car and locked the doors and drove off. He saw me again and stayed on the other side of the street yelling things at me. Again I thought, Oh crap.
But he kept walking. For some reason he was scared of me. Or Heavenly Father was protecting me. Maybe a little of both. I don't know what happened after that and I probably never will, but I feel good that I did the right thing in a scary situation.
I'm also grateful that my dad taught his girls never to be afraid of men. Or anyone for that matter.
What bothered me was that cars just kept driving by as this woman yelled for help. Is this what our society has turned into? To give them the benefit of the doubt maybe they didn't know what was happening, but I'm shocked that on a busier street I was the only one who stopped to assist someone in need. I hope I never get to a point where I am so wrapped up in my own life that I think I'm too busy to help someone out.
Okay I'm off my soap box now.

Even a Girl Knows

2009-09-26T19:41:00.005-07:00

Today we went to the BYU football game and had awesome seats. 7th row, in the north end zone. The thing that amazed me was how much more I knew about football than the MALE fans around us. Let me just tell you about some of the things we snickered about through the game.

1. You don't start a cheer when our offense is on the field. A nice loud cheer was going on as a pivotal play was about to take place and it took me to say "Guys!!" before everyone shushed. I know better and I'm a girl!

2. At one point I heard a male fan behind me cheering for "Neal Chambers", "Go Neal Chambers". Ummm... Last time I checked it's O'neill Chambers...
Maybe they should figure out which player they're cheering for...

3. I've decided Male cheerleaders are nothing more than a pretty face. We were on offense and about to punt on a 4th down when all of a sudden I hear a male cheerleader start the "DE- FENSE" chant... I raised my eyebrow at Jon and then full out started laughing when some of the fans joined in. Again wondering if they knew which team they were cheering for.

4. I had sent Jon to get some water for me before the game started so that he wouldn't miss any of the action. While he was gone some guys showed up and were sitting in front of me. The one guy was telling his friends all about BYU football and acting like Joe Cool. Jon showed up and a prominent player on the team, Harvey Unga, had just made a play. I laughed when the guy turned around and asked Jon who #45 was. Again even I know that and I'm a girl.

5. Through out the game I had bouts where I no longer felt like standing. I didn't tell the guys in front of me to sit down. I just sat there until something interesting was happening. The kids standing behind us seemed annoyed at this. I'm sorry I paid for this SEAT. If I choose to sit that's fine, but I won't impose my choice on other people. Goodness. (Personal Pet Peeve)

I can't even remember everything that happened but I do know that there were times when I had to hold back out right laughter at some of the things people were doing. You would have thought it was their first football game. Oh well. For all of you guys out there who made these mistakes I just want you to know that even a girl knows better.