I love to see the temple

We didn't have any good pictures of the Logan temple in our house. In fact, I have a hard time finding any pictures of it that I like.
It's a unique temple, and I don't think many pictures I have seen accurately portray it.
When I saw this offer for $55.00 off a canvas print I knew exactly what I was going to do. I took a picture of the temple myself while we were in Utah and I ordered an 11x14 print of it.
It just came in the mail a few days ago.

I still need to figure out where to put it, but for now I'm loving it right here on my kitchen desk where we can see it from the dinner table.

summer's end

Or at least, sort of.
I was driving Kent to work early other morning and I noticed how much cooler it felt outside. It was refreshing, with a nice breeze, and the humidity was way down.
When we got in the car I glanced at the temperature reading on the dashboard and I said,
"Wow, Kent, it's only 90 this morning! It's really cool!"

And then I realized the insanity of that statement.
Apparently I've been living in Texas too long.


Last week we had Nicholas's 12 month check up. He's doing great, but the doctor was a bit concerned; Nicholas's head has grown from the 60th percentile to the 97th in the last three months.

So we had to go and get an ultrasound done on his brain (it was actually pretty cool-since he still has his fontanel soft spot they were able to just do the ultrasound on the soft spot and they could see his whole brain from there).

Nicholas learned to say "no" while were there. Kent and I were holding him down because he needed to hold still (yeah, hold still...he's one year old) and the combination of the new place, scary machines around him, dark room, and strange people was more than he wanted to deal with. While he was sobbing he was saying "no, no, no, no, no!" in the saddest little voice. Just about broke my heart.
But there wasn't anything wrong that they could see. Maybe he just had a growth spurt for his head?
I was more worried about it until Kent was talking to his mom about it and she told him that he too, as well as all his brothers, had big heads as children. And my side of the family has a trend towards big-headedness also.There's nothing wrong with that. My boy is still the most adorable kid there is.


I've been watching our friends' little boy a couple of days a week for the past two weeks while their regular sitter has been out of town.
He's a piece of cake to watch, very mellow and low-maintenance, and by the end of the day this is what my house looks like.
We sure have a lot of fun!

stepping

Yesterday morning-Nicholas examining himself in the oven reflection

Just five minutes ago Nicholas walked from the couch all the way to where I was standing in the kitchen.

I guess that means my baby is now a toddler.

He's gotten more and more brave with his steps. I love it. He'll be sitting in the middle of the room and decides that he wants to walk. So he spends a few minutes grunting and maneuvering this way and that until he's standing with his legs spread wide. Then he sticks out his belly and steps off,
sometimes he only gets one or two steps before he wobbles backwards.
But more and more often he manages to get all the way across the room before his excitement gets the better of him and he falls over.

And the whole time he's walking he's got this grin...the "hey look how cool I am!" grin.

How is it possible that every stage with my little boy is more fun than the last one?

hilarity

Last night we had tickets to see Brian Regan.

At about 4:00 I was in the kitchen, Nicholas on my hip. I looked at the clock and realized I hadn't yet started dinner, and when you're planning on making something in the crockpot, you have to start early.
"oh shoot!" I said.
"shoot," said Nicholas. "shoot shoot shoot."
Oops. My little parrot has learned a new word.

I reached down to grab the crockpot out of the drawer, set it on the counter (with one hand, mind you) and then turned to grab the chicken out of the freezer.
The drawer was still open. My knee connected with the corner of it.
"ouch!" I said.
"ouch," said Nicholas. "ouch. shoot. ouch. shoot."
Lovely.

Dinner was stewing, I was laying on the living room floor, and Nicholas was pushing his wheely bee (birthday present) around me when Kent got home from work.
He joined us and we made a happy little family pile on the living room floor, tickling and playing.

Then, the crockpot lid exploded with a bang that first made us wonder if the walls were falling.
Should I grab the baby and evacuate the house?
I didn't know a crockpot lid would do that.
Glass shards in the salsa chicken.

We had scrambled eggs for dinner before we rushed out the door to drop Nicholas off at our friends' house.

Brian Regan was awesome. Or, more descriptively, watching Kent doubled over in laughter, wiping tears from his eyes was awesome.

it's my party

First thing in the morning-streamers on the door, of course!
We had breakfast, opened a present or two, played with bubbles, and then had a little pool party with friends.

Nicholas needed a little help understanding how to open his presents, but he had no problem at all figuring out how to play with them!
Time for birthday cake.
I was so excited to see him dig in and get messy.
Unfortunately, he wouldn't even touch it! He spent a minute or two digging through it with a spoon, but if it got on his hands he simply cried and wanted to get out of his high chair. And he didn't eat any of it.
Ah well, maybe next year.
It was a good day for my little buddy!

on the day he was born

It was a quiet Sunday morning.
I saw the sky turn colors as the sun came up through the hospital room window.

When the nurse told me that I was at a 10 and ready to start pushing, Kent and I looked at each other, feeling things we could never begin to describe. Knowing that our child was about to be born was deeply profound.
Within the next hour, we would be parents.

Nicholas's arrival was surprisingly serene. They placed his warm little body in my arms. He cried only long enough to reassure us that he was indeed breathing and healthy, and then he lay quietly,
looking up at us through squinty blue eyes.

They wrapped him up and placed him in the warming cradle. Kent stood by him, and the two of them stared at each other in mutual amazement.

There was something sacred about those first moments.

I loved him the moment I saw him, but the first time I truly felt like his mother was the next day in our cozy recovery room. Nicholas lay in the cradle next to me, awake but quiet. A nurse came in to take him to the nursery for some routine testing, and as she left with my baby, I felt like a very piece of my being was leaving with him. My heart was broken until they brought him back to me and I could hold him close in my arms.
And then I knew that my life had changed.

Nicholas has changed the flavor of our lives. He is silly, loving, sensitive, loud, curious, cuddly, and happy. There is a sparkle in his eyes. When he smiles, he fills our home with light and joy.
Every night we pray to Heavenly Father and thank Him for sending us this little boy.
This has been the best year of our lives.

Happy Birthday, Nicholas!

see how he grew

one week
one month

two months

three months
four months
five months

six months
seven months

eight months

nine months

ten monthseleven months

the night before he was born

A year ago today, we:

Spent the morning at Sears looking for a new microwave.

Kent bought me new earrings,
which I wore the rest of the day.
We got dressed up and ready for the Saturday night session of Stake Conference.

We got there early so I didn't have to sit on the hard seats in the overflow.

I spent the entire 2 hours walking the hallways anyway.
I was uncomfortable. So uncomfortable.

I said "I am done being pregnant."
Kent said "That probably means you have ten more days until he's born."
I almost cried.

We went to the grocery store to get ice cream.
We saw some friends there, also stopping on their way home from Stake Conference, also buying ice cream.

We came home, ate pizza bread and ice cream.

Then, my water broke.
On my way from the couch to the bathroom. 
Kent had gone upstairs to play video games.
"Kent," I called, "come down here please!"
"But I'm playing a game...come up here."
"No, I really need  you to come down here."
He was quiet, so then I added, "My water broke."
He nearly fell down the stairs he came so fast.

And then he rushed around the house, packing last-minute things and putting the bags in the car and
telling me "it's time to go!"

I wasn't nervous or rushed. I took my time.
I was just happy to think that Kent was wrong...
I wouldn't have to wait 10 more days.

sleeping in the carseat

Still adorable,
even a year later.

because I don't know what to say

and because my blog is crying for a new post,
here is a string of pictures.
All from our Utah trip.

Right before Kent had to leave to come back home so he could work.
He is so sweet to let me and Nicholas stay there without him.

This picture could be called "I wish I had a tripod."
Beautiful Cache Valley.


Every family should have a giant magnifying glass. Endless laughs.


The Logan Temple where Kent and I were married two and a half years ago.

My water baby. He spent a lot of time in swim diapers while we were there.

The view from my parents' backyard.

When Kent got back here he called me and told me that my flowers had grown a lot.
He was right. They're huge!

my finger in the whipped cream

Pure bliss.