a few things we have been up to

I'm working tomorrow. But I have my stuff ready for tomorrow, Ro's stuff ready, the dishes done, the laundry put away, and the toys cleaned up - so I thought I would put up a quick post before I head off to bed. Not too many new pictures to share, but here are just a few of the things we have been up to.

Fixed the legs on this old table and painted it. (Don't pay attention to the dirty kitchen floor! Or the nail holes in the floor boards, new floor boards are on the never ending list of things to do.)

Brad built closet organizers. We each have a bit different design for our closets. Yet again I am sooo glad he is so handy. I can fit so much more in there now. It is still a bit crowded - we don't have a dresser in our room but we do have a really cool wardrobe type thing that we are fixing up. I'll put a picture of it up later.

We started on the fence for the front yard. Here is Ro showing off one of the holes for the posts. Can't wait until it is done... then me and Roman can hang out outside and I won't have to chase him the whole time. Looking forward to having a caged animal!

And last but not lease... we have been being drug outside all day by a certain someone no matter what the weather is like. But I have been liking the rain, good for the sod and the grass seed we put in. But enough is enough, some sun now please to help it grow!

bye bye baby curls

Okay. We finally did it. Roman got a haircut. Jacklyn cut it when she was up. His hair was getting a little out of control. I know it is so sappy, and I used to laugh at people like me, so feel free to laugh. But when it is your own kid you see such a difference. He looks so much more grown up now. Not my baby anymore, now he is my little boy.
Here are a few pictures of the long hair and the new little boy hair. The last three are all outside on the same day, just before the cut and then after. (ps - aren't these the funniest pjs!)

srping time... lots of pictures

We have been having lots of fun enjoying the nice warm weather. Like any kid Roman likes to spend all the time he can outside. He is always standing at the door hanging on the door knob yelling and growling to go outside. Yes growling, it is his new thing he thinks is neat. And by neat I think he means annoying! He has no interest in speaking with actual words, what's the point when he gets everything he wants anyway. He is also into running everywhere. And my new favorite thing he does is he will be doing something and have a tiny little smile then a little chuckle, like he has an inside joke with himself and whatever toy he is playing with. He is so much fun. Here are a bunch of pictures of what we have been up to lately.

Pots and pans are always a favorite toy at grandma and grandpas house. He has been spending lots of time there because I have been working a lot. It is sooo nice to live by them so they can babysit. Roman loves it and doesn't even care that I am gone, which makes going to work so much easier.

Mowing the lawn with grandpa. In all seriousness, this is the longest I have seen him sit and focus on something since... last summer when he learned to sit!

Playing in the dogs drinking water outside.
Going for rides in the wheel barrel.
Eating popsicles.
Sharing popsicles with the dogs.
Playing in the sprinkler and going swimming in the hot tub. Forget the rest of us, Grandpa turned the hot tub temperature down so it is now Roman's personal swimming pool.
Swinging (with out of control crazy static hair)
Helping dad outside.

grass

No more ugly dirt yard, we finally have nice GREEN grass. On Saturday we laid sod in our front yard. It has been slow going because Saturday is basically the only day Brad has to get a ton of work done all at once. First he had to dig up and loosen the dirt. Then he had to level the yard out with a bobcat. Then he had to dig out the path and fill it with gravel and lay the paving blocks down. Then he had to do the slate rock walls. Finally three or four Saturday's later we have grass. We still have to fill in around the paving blocks with crushed rocks, fill in the planters with mulch and flowers, and build a little fence around the front yard to keep Roman in. But it is all starting to come together and to the point you can see results. Yeah!

Saturday was sooo hot. Roman had tons of fun being outside and helping. (and getting too much sun thus wearing a funny looking hat) He enjoyed digging in the dirt, eating the dirt, eating rocks, riding in the wheel barrel, eating dirt, dumping water all over himself and the dirt, eating mud and sitting in mud.

Emily and Tom and Jacklyn and their kiddies were up. So much fun hanging out with them and Max and Melanie and their kids. Roman had fun running around chasing Brighton and Luke and stopping now and again to hug Layla. Brad and Tom and Max did the guy thing - whatever that is. And we stayed up until 2:00 in the morning talking and laughing until we cried. Good times.

my healthy little boy

I worked today. Not a bad day at work, but there was a really really sick little baby today. And not the sick that will get better over time. Many many problems with this little one. Makes my heart ache. For the baby yes, but today it was mostly for the mom. What do you say to her? How do you even begin to comfort her? Her first baby. I can't even imagine it.

Being at work makes me long for Roman. To hold him and hug him and kiss him and thank our Father in Heaven that he is a healthy little boy. So everyone hug their kiddos an extra time today and be thankful they are healthy.

bath time

What little kid doesn't love their bath? Not only does Romes like to play in the bath, he likes to drink the bath. Here are some funny bath faces and bath hair from the other night. Speaking of hair, I will admit that Ro's hair is getting a bit out of control. It needs a trim, but I don't know if I can stand to cut off all the baby curls. We will see what Jacklyn says when she is home.








Speaking of baths, I have a feeling someone will be needing more baths now that the weather is nice and we spend more time outside in the dirt. This is how we dressed last week...


And this is how we have dressed this week. Crazy Southern Alberta weather.

um, can you say slacker

The end of the month is coming soon, so I had to get my one post in for the month. I am working nights right now. It is a slow night. Let's see, what have we been up to since I posted last. Getting more done on the house. We hit a point where we were just sick of renos and didn't do much over the winter. Brad built closet organizers for our bedroom closets, very nice to have more shelves and stuff. More baseboard and door casings have gone up. Brad is almost done building a really cool cabinet thing for shoes and stuff to go in the corner of our entry. Started a bit of landscaping, lots more to come. Kitchen renos are soon to come. Slow going as both Brad and I are working a ton, and work is going good. Roman is getting crazier and crazier as the days go by. He loves to be the center of attention and totally puts on a show. He has a new growling scream when he wants something. He is very mischievous and just loves to do things he knows he isn't supposed to. He looks and waits until I am looking before he does whatever it is he shouldn't be. He laughs when I tell him no and laughs and tries even harder when I go to him and pull him away. But of course when Brad says no he listens and makes the cute little pout with the bottom lip quiver and forces a cry. Loves to be outside, so we go on lots of walks and to my parent's house to play with the dogs in the backyard, so glad the weather is getting nice. So really not too much, same old stuff. I really don't know why I don't post more, just finding lots to do to keep busy I guess.
Here's a funny story that happened today...
We were at my parent's house for Sunday dinner. Roman has a really bad diaper rash and my mom insisted we take his diaper off and let his cute little red bum air out. Brad and I asked and asked, are you sure, what if he pees? She said it's fine we'll just clean it up. So of course 5 minutes after his diaper is off he pees all over the rug. So I took him upstairs to the kitchen while mom and Brad cleaned the rug. And as soon as the rug was clean he pooped all over the kitchen floor. Bath time. As I said, I'm at work so I'll have to put up some pictures up later.

I'm home from work now, so here is a quick picture before I head off to bed. I love climbing into bed after working all night! Ignore the messy living room - not my fault, I was at work. Here is Romes in his easter vest all ready for church.

happy birthday roman

Late post yet again. Life is just so so busy. So many things on my place right now, which is good right??? Anyway, my little baby boy had his first birthday last weekend! Here it comes, the classic phrase - I can't believe it has been a whole year! But seriously, doesn't it just go by so fast? And yes I was the typical sentimental mom. I won't bore you with all that. But it was fun to sit around for a few days and say, oh at this time exactly one year ago this is what we were doing. So funny how everything changes in a split second. We just had a few people over, my family, Brad's parents, and Bryan and Erin and their kiddies. Roman LOVES being around their kids. He is so happy just to run around with them and he is always trying to give Isaiah hugs and kisses. He likes all his new books and toys, totally spoiled of course. But he didn't like his cake. Well actually he liked the cake okay, but he hated the frosting and having it all over his hands because then it got in his mouth. He is so much fun these days, just learning so much. I really didn't expect him to be walking by his first birthday, but he has been toddling around for almost two months now. His new thing is running around. Lots of bumps on the head. He is working on tooth number 5 and he weighs 25 pounds. Not sure how tall he is, but his pants are at least 18-24 months. My big tank of a little baby boy. We love you Roman. Happy first birthday.

He really likes ripping the paper on his presents. And the boxes they came in. The actual present was just okay compared to the paper and the box. Big suprise right.


This is Brad's chair from when he was little. We just recovered it. Ro LOVES it. Sits in it and rocks back and forth really fast. Then he thinks he is so cool when he can just stand up out of the chair and sit back down, and stand up and sit down....

I know the cake looks pink, but it's not. It is a poor excuse for an orange basketball. We had basketball and baseball cupcakes too. He's not quite sure about the frosting. Brad was on camera duty and took only a few pictures and tons of video. So he is getting some still pictures off of the video - ones with cake all over. But this is all there is for now.

We found this little horse for $5 at Christmas. He thinks it is hilarious to get pushed around on it. And he loves to push it around and smile at the face and give the horsey kisses.

He gets very upset when his monkey rides on it, or sits in his chair and runs over to move his monkey out of the way.

soooooo much fun

We have been very busy. With work, being sick.... and SNOWBOARDING!!!!!!!
I didn't get to go at all last year because I was very prego. And I wasn't sure if/when I would get to go this year. It just worked out that during reading week Brad had some days where he was in between houses and not working and my family was staying at a condo in Whitefish for a few days. Of course I got sick the day before we were supposed to go. And it was not a fun car ride down being sick, and taking an extra hour because of bad roads. But it was all worth it the next day on the hill! My dad stayed at the condo with Roman and the rest of us had a great day of skiing and snowboarding. It was the perfect temperature and it snowed on and off, which was good because it kept the hill from getting too icy. The top was really foggy. Not just oh Big Mountain is always foggy at the top - I mean FOG, white out condition fog. There was one time I thought I was stopped but was really going sideways. It was crazy, but good powder up there so we braved the fog a few times. It felt strange when I strapped my board on and headed down the hill, but it came back fast. And because my mom and I played hockey all winter we were the least sore of anyone the next day. Roman had a great time being spoiled by grandpa and going in the hot tub at night. He never stopped, just ran around the condo all day. Here he is trying to walk in the snow, not too good on the uneven ground. Now I have to work some extra shifts so Brad and I can take a few day trips when spring skiing weather starts. Oh do I miss the days when I donated plasma twice a week to get money so Linsey, Jen and I could go snowboarding every week. And the Utah snow and warm weather.... the good ol' days.

a little late

Happy late Valentines day. It was a busy day. Brad worked, I worked. Giving out sugar cookies. A fun and yummy dinner with Brad's family because lots of birthdays this week. Some quite time for me and Brad when Roman surprised us by going to bed early. Nothing too special, just a good day to remind me of what and who I love and why.

There is the obvious.
Brad. I may be a little bit biased, but I think I got the greatest husband in the world. He is so good to me. He is my best friend. He brings so much joy into my life. Can't imagine life without him.
Roman. Melts my heart when I see him smile. Couldn't ask for a better little baby boy. So fun to see him grow and see more of his personality come out. He is a handful, but I love him.
Family. It is so nice to be so close to family. There is good and bad about moving back to Raymond, but being so close to our families makes it all worth it.

Then there is the fun stuff.
I love Valentines day and Christmas because everything is red. I love red. I always have and probably always will. Favorite red things: my kitchen aid mixer and measuring cups and spoons, my spring form cheesecake pan, my dish clothes, my pottery barn retro telephone, my soft micro fleece bathrobe, my favorite bra, my kitchen and bathroom walls, Roman's highchair, Roman's infant car seat, Roman's red crib sheets, my red tin stars, my puffy vest, my snowboard coat... just to name a few. There is something about the color red, it is strong, it is bold, it makes a statement.

And to finish off, there is the quirky stuff.
Laundry is my favorite household chore. I like to save it up so there is lots to separate into all different colors. Then I like to dump it all in the living room and fold it while I watch tv. I love the smell of clean laundry. Today was laundry day. How can you tell... big shirt, tight too small onsie, and long underware for pants.

it's been a long day

My day started at 6:00 - or do I count 3:30 when I got up to give Roman his soother.... Anyway, 6:00 when Roman woke up. Because he has been sick and teething on and off we have gotten into the habit of bringing him into bed with us when he wakes up between 6 and 7. So he is in bed with us at 6:00 and the alarm is set for 6:30, always annoying when that happens. I gave up and just got in the shower. Then I had to get myself ready and all Roman's stuff and then Roman when I woke him and Brad up at 7:30. Took Roman to my parent's house and headed off to work. Yep, to work. Today was my first day back to work after my maternity leave. If you can call it work - hospital orientation. Boring, but I was getting paid to sit there and be bored! But the start of work nonetheless. I go again tomorrow. I am working casual and will try to work a shift or two a week.
Roman did great. In fact, my mom said he really didn't even notice I wasn't there. A good thing I guess, the better he does the easier it will be to go to work. I must admit I was a little sad that he didn't seem to miss me. I missed him. I guess it will get easier as time goes on. I miss my old job and I am a little nervous to start at a whole new hospital after not working for a year, but at the same time I am really excited to be back. I liked the adult conversation and talk of stuff other than babies. I liked having to be somewhere at a certain time and to have things structured when I was there. I liked feeling that I had a purpose and I was going to accomplish something definite and measurable before the shift was done. It's not that I don't enjoy motherhood and it isn't purposeful, it's just a different feeling. Hard to explain.
I guess Oprah had a show awhile ago on stay at home moms vs. working moms. Wish I could have seen it, I'm sure it was interesting to hear from both sides. Different things for different people I guess. For me I like to have something that is my own, separate from my work as a wife and mother. It is a good outlet, a good way to be challenged and to learn. I feel that working a little bit is good for me and will therefore be good for my family. If I am burnt out at home work will be good and if I am burnt out at work home will be good. I am sure I'll change my views as Roman grows and I have more kids. And after working for awhile and having some bad shifts I will probably want to stop working! But for today I am glad to be a working mom.

check this out

Held Roman for his bottle this afternoon and turned on the tv while he was drinking. Caught a bit of Oprah and she had this lady on who invented Spanx. Check it out here. I can't decide if it is worth it - how comfortable they would be with the g's and if I really want to add another layer. But there are certain clothes that it would be nice to have these with - hide what I like to call the baby fat love handles. Anyway, everyone on Oprah was raving about them and I thought it was worth it to check them out. Just passing it along.

In other news, hockey is over. My mom and I have been playing in a womens pick up league here in Raymond once a week. Sooooo much fun and such a great workout. Way better than going to the gym. I'm sad it's over but looking forward to next November when we start up again. Anyone want to join in?

motherhood

My cousin's wife Katie had a great post on her blog. It is about a talk given by Elder Jeffrey R. Holland entitled "Because She is a Mother" from the May 1997 Ensign. Such a great talk. Click here to get to it. I am so thankful to have the gospel in my life. This is what Katie said: "I've reflected on this talk often through the past months. It's given me a boost when I can't imagine getting up one more time at night, as we bounced Grace for hours on end on the exercise ball, or when it gets a little lonely being at home. I love being a Mom. It's hard, but I wouldn't trade it for anything." I so agree.

And still on the topic of motherhood...
For one of our ongoing enrichment activities my ward made blankets and put together newborn kits to send to Peru. I was able to put together 5 kits - diapers, pins, socks, soap, a sleeper, a onesie, a touque, a burp cloth, and a blanket. I rounded up a bunch of extra clothes, sleepers, and onesies to send. My mom and I made cloth diapers. I made a bunch of blankets and sent extra ones I had been given for Roman that were never used, and I made burp clothes from the scrap material. In total I sent 14 blankets. All together our ward send around 25 baby kits and over 130 blankets.


I'm not sure exactly what area in Peru everything was sent, but I guess the mothers there have nothing for their babies. Some babies go home from the hospital wrapped in newspaper. Doesn't that just make your heart ache. And not just for the babies. How would you feel as one of these mothers. You feel such love and devotion for this baby and are consumed with the need to provide and protect this child, and yet you can not, on your own, provide a blanket for your baby. I'm not sure if this came out right, I don't mean for it to sound like I am blaming the mother - far from it. It is just that this is the first opportunity of this type I have had since I have become a mother and I have begun to look at it from a different perspective. I think I might feel like I had failed my child if I could not provide such necessities for him. But hopefully these women have a different perspective than me and they do not feel the same. And hopefully our gift will bring joy to them and their families. But all the same, it has been nice to be humbled and reminded of what is important in life. It has been nice to look in Roman's closet each day and feel guilt at the many choices of clothes but also feel thanks to the Lord for all I have been given.

my word

So Rhonda had this on her blog awhile ago...

"Thought a lot about something Ali Edwards wrote."
"Can you identify a single word that sums up what you want for yourself in 2007?It can be something tangible or intangible. It could be a thought or a feeling or an emotion. It can be singular or plural. The key is to find something that has personal meaning for you. This is not your mother's word or your spouse's word or your child's word - this is YOUR word.One little word can have big meaning in your life if you allow yourself to be open to the possibilities. And here's one thing that is totally interesting: sometimes a word will pop into your brain and it will not make any sense to you right now. Give it some time. Let it percolate a bit. I have often found that our hearts speak to us in very unique ways. Maybe this is a word you need to hear but just aren't ready for it yet. Again, be open to the possibilities."

Rhonda's word is faith.
Lindsay's word is believe. And on the topic of goals Lins also had an excellent quote that I am going to borrow:
"We must be willing to get rid of the life we planned so as to have the life that is waiting for us." Joseph Campell.
Kinda a have goals but go with the flow don't be so set in your ways attitude for the new year.

So I have looked around and seen what some people have been using for their word, some good ones out there. I really took awhile to pick one. I just had too many swimming around in my head, too many directions I could go - and didn't have much sleep for awhile there! So I finally thought of a word that can bring together all the craziness. My word is LEARN. Some of the stuff this word will hopefully lead to: I am starting a new job at a new hospital in February after not working for a whole year - lots to learn; learn to be more proficient with photoshop; learn to make AND KEEP a budget; learn not be so worried about our student loan debt, learn to be happy with all I have and that the grass isn't always greener; learn to be a better mother, wife, daughter, sister, and friend; learn to cook better and learn new things to cook instead of the same old stuff; learn more about my testimony; learn to believe in myself and my abilities; learn to have faith that Brad will get a teaching job in the future; learn that God does have a plan and I will have to learn to wait for Him... And anything else that comes up this year.
So much to look forward to this year, so much that could happen and so many ways it could go. We aren't just students anymore, it is scary that the year is so open, but I will learn to join the real world!

time flies... when your baby is teething

Where to start? The last week and a half have been a blur, Ro's top teeth are coming in - not really coming, more like inching along. And of course he has a cold at the same time, of course. So not much sleep going on at our house. But enough of that, let's jump back to Christmas. (seeing as everyone I know has done posts about Christmas except me) On Saturday the 23 all of Brad's side of the family was together. We made a whole day of it - we went bowling, then skating, then dinner and swimming. Sooo much fun. We are going to make a yearly thing out of it. We also spent Christmas eve day with Brad's family - lots and lots of fun, food, and presents.

Ro's favorite thing about bowling was the little thing that blows the air out where the balls sit.

He didn't love ice skating, but he didn't hate it either. He was just content to sit and watch the rest of the kids or go for a lap in his stroller.

Swimming is his new favorite thing. He LOVED it. Jumped up and down and couldn't wait to get in the pool - even though he had never been before, strange I know. He smiled and laughed and splashed and kicked for over an hour. All that body fat is good for something. Poor Lucy was purple and blue all over before Ro's lips even changed a shade! We have since been back to the pool and he still loves it, guess it is going to be a weekly thing now. I have to keep him liking the water so he has fun at the lake this summer.

We did Christmas morning with my family. Romes did better than we thought on Christmas morning. He actually pulled at the paper when he could see a bit of what was inside.



Ro had his first encounter with snow - touching it at least. He thought it was pretty funny and he likes to eat it.

Well I guess that's all for now. It was really strange to actually be here, sleeping in our own house and not living out of a suitcase, and not having a defined Christmas break. It didn't totally feel like Christmas, but I guess we'll get used to it. Still fun though. How can you not enjoy it - it's Christmas!

Christmas time is here...

Last year we had cable and got to partake of the fire place channel. A channel that for all of December plays Christmas music and has a genuine fireplace burning 24-7. It was so fun to decorate the tree and wrap presents with it on; or just have it on during the day when I was cleaning or getting ready for work or whatever. I remember Linds saying she even watched it while she fed Alli in the middle of the night. I love that channel and I miss it - we have satellite tv now. So Brad got me this fireplace DVD! (Mostly as a joke, but I really do use it) The music isn't as nice, but a fire is a fire and I just play the music I want to listen to on the stereo. Roman even likes to watch it with me.


It's Romans first Christmas and of course he loves the tree and the ornaments and the presents. So my handy husband got some scraps of wood and built this little fence. It even folds up so when Ro is in bed or people come over it is easy to move. It is the perfect size for Ro to stand at and he spends much of his day just walking along it and trying to reach things on the other side.


The handy little fence leads him right to the window and he loves to look out and see cars drive by. So fun to just sit and watch him do laps on the fence and window and get excited when anything outside moves.


This is my early Christmas present. I have had my eye on this nativity set for quite some time. Brad finally let me get it - it was a really good sale. Basically I got three sets for the price of two. None of the people have faces, and I like how simple it is. A good reminder of the reason for the season.