And the field narrows!

Alright, I just can't resist. All I've talked about at work lately is politics... I don't know why, but for some reason I have gotten really in to the primaries. I've never been huge into the whole political arena, but something clicked this time around. If anyone wants to talk politics... give me a call.. I love talking about it whether I agree or not. I am interested just to hear different points of view.
I guess now Romney is out. So McCain is the obvious nominee for the republicans. And for whatever reason Huckabee is still in it????? Someone explain that one to me. I sort of understood going in to Super Tuesday as he wanted to steal Romney votes, but if you listen to him he touts himself like he has a shot. I think he has a shot of being a McCain VP (which has been speculated as the reason he was in it) but never as President. He's one step from the loony bin if he gives himself that much credit.
Anyway, then you have the democrats which are so neck and neck. Either of them have an excellent shot of winning. From what I've heard Obama is going to pick up more delegates in the next few primaries and get his momentum back up for the convention. I think there will be a lot of angry people if the decision is made by the super delegates. I would be... And the even MORE interesting thing is listening to people around the office who say they would rather vote for Obama than McCain. That shocks me! I mean I'm the first one to say that McCain is evil, but to hear other very conservative people say that they would NEVER vote for McCain is, to say the least, surprising. I actually heard our conservative radio talk show host (Utahs equivalent to Sean Hannity) say he's going to give Obama another look and that Utah could possibly become a blue state. I don't think it would actually happen, but the thought is there. Especially if McCain runs with Huckabee... ::shutter::
Needless to say the next 2 or 3 months are shaping up to be VERY interesting. I'm excited to see what it will bring. And mark my words... if McCain wins in November... I'll have my year supply of food by the time he takes office.

Riverdance...

Woohoo! I got to go to Riverdance!!! It was great, and it'll be something to remember. Thanks Mere for going with me. Its amazing to me how they're able to do those things with their feet. wow. My favorite was probably the tap dance guys. They had 2 tap dancers and they faced off with a few of the Riverdance guys. That was entertaining. And then there was this soloist with an incredibly deep voice that was just amazing. He had range too. He was starting to hit much higher and softer notes.. it was great. I guess my coworker got tickets for him and his wife to go tonight. I was happy to give him a good report and tell him that he will enjoy it. Unfortunately, that was the end to my eventful week. I don't have anything going on until next Wednesday. oh well.

As for the roof (since you asked Chrissy) we have a insurance guy coming to inspect it, but not until Tuesday. So we're waiting. It looks exactly the same and we still have water dripping constantly. I'm REALLY looking forward to this weekend (not) The weather is going to warm up which will be nice, but it'll melt all the snow on our roof and cause more leaks. Lucky us. We feel like we need to do something, but there really isn't anything that we can do. Its such a helpless feeling. My guess is that the insurance guy will tell us its not covered... and we'll have to wait another week to get a roof guy to come look at it. Maybe I'll just schedule a guy and if it is covered under insurance I can cancel him. I hate to let this go even longer. Anyway, we'll see what happens!!

Junior

Well, my little shrimp had his 4 month checkup yesterday. He gained 11 ounces in 2 months. Thats right... you can't even measure his growth in pounds. From 10# 14oz to 11# 9.5oz. And he grew 0.5", but the nurse actually had to remeasure him because the first length she came up with was shorter than he was last time! LOL! He has a minor ear infection and so we're on amoxicillan. Hopefully he won't end up allergic. I'd hate to find out with him being so young. (Eli and Chris are both allergic) Anyway, he did just fine on his shots. Last time he screamed for about 30 minutes after he got them and was cranky for the first 24 hours after. This time he only cried while they were doing it and immediately stopped once the bandaids were on. Plus he was just fine the rest of the day. YEAH! And even better he slept 10 hours straight last night. Anyway, just some random pictures from last night. My little shrimp. (or junior to be nice) ;)

We have a new prophet!

With the passing of Gordon B. Hinckley last week, it has been a long week of reflection. On life, and of the great accomplishments of this great and very humble man. I'll admit when I first learned of his passing, it wasn't sad. It was almost excitement for him that he was able to be with his wife again. He was able to be with the previous leaders of the church, his mentors... and you know that he just went right back to work. Helping and teaching.
Now we have our new prophet. He has always been an amazing man as well, and now we get to see him in a new light as our prophet, seer and revelator. I've always enjoyed listening to him and the stories he tells. He has an amazing memory and knack for remembering names and faces. It'll be a different presidency, but no less. He will take the church into the future and in the way that our Savior wants. And looks like he'll get some new (and young-er) blood in there too with his counselors Pres. Eyring and Pres Uchtdorf. Dieter F. Uchtdorf was just barely called to the quorum... and now to be part of the presidency... must be quite overwhelming. All of them seem to be on the young side compared to how its always been. Done on purpose? Its probably what the church needs right now, and I'm excited to be a part of it.

STOP SNOWING ALREADY!

Its still snowing outside... still. It has snowed on and off for the last couple weeks. It snows, then 2 days later it snows again. This morning we woke up to 6" on our driveway. They actually canceled Sunday School. It was a sacrament only meeting. They wanted the ward to be gone and out of the parking lot before the next ward got there so there wouldn't be any overlap with the parking lot being so treacherous. For whatever reason all the kids in the ward were screaming and tired so it was probably a good thing that we didn't have the block. Just one of those days.
Anyway, Chris (after shoveling snow for the last couple weeks) has now injured himself to where it would be not so much fun to do it some more. So I went out there to do it before church. Luckily the neighbor with the snow blower was out there too and I was able to get some help. The great news? We're only 1/2 done with this storm. We're supposed to get more before tomorrow morning. I just looked outside and theres at least another inch or two already. I hate to think what tomorrow morning will bring. Can't wait to drive into Salt Lake during the morning commute. :( Not to mention that tomorrow is Nathans 4 month check up and all those shots... So tomorrow is not going to be a fun day no matter how you look at it.

Speaking of Nathan, I was thinking about him lately and how many distinguishing features he has. I remember with Eli I was always thinking if something were to happen... what was his most recognizable feature. He was just so normal. I guess it would be his herniated belly button. Well this one... you can pick and choose! So cute... :)

His chin... to this day the most frequent comment I get on him. LOOK at that CHIN! :)


and his *hidden* features... he also has a herniated belly button (but only about 1/2 the size of Elis) and he has a birth mark on his leg.

Joys of home ownership

I want to cry. There is so much water in our roof... And in our house. I just want to cry. I noticed yesterday when I went to get the mail that the door was very swollen and would barely open. Then I noticed a little bubble in the paint on the door jam. I popped it and out came a bunch of water. Then I looked some more and realized there was another HUGE bubble above the door. Popped it and tons of water. Chris was gone, but when he got back we did some investigation and the sheet rock was completely water logged and just peeled away very easily. When he opened it up a little, the water was just trickling out and is now being caught with a bucket. He climbed in the attic and there was water running down three of our trusses. ugh. Of course this Saturday night when we realize all this so we have to wait until Monday. I guess we have a serious ice dam on our roof and the water as it melts and freezes ponds on the bottom and has no where to go but in to the shingles. (and into the house) So pray for us. I'm hoping we can get this fixed. Can't really replace a roof with a foot of snow on it.

Quick update

Well I think we might have found our carpet. Its soft, its multicolored, its got a decent rating, and its priced right. The multi-colored samples are not as dense as the solid colored counterparts, but its as close to what we both want as I think we'll ever get. Its PET polyester, which is recycled coke bottles... so thanks to all you recyclers out there... :) We're just waiting for them to send us larger samples so we can decide on a color.
We're also recently the proud? owners of a Wii. Thats right, there are video games in my house. :) Never thought I'd say that. And as I've said many times before, I'm not anti-video games. It just seems like a waste of money because they're outdated so quickly, then its on to buy the latest and greatest. It also seems silly to spend $50 on every new game. That said, I've spent quite a bit of time playing. Darn that Guitar Hero. There is a song that I really like and I want to learn to play it on the Medium level. (which is HARD!) Eli likes to play the tennis and bowling games. And I think we might need to ban Chris from playing tennis. He is going to smash his hand right through our TV. But in his defense, you really do get into it.
As for the next few days, Saturday is Pres Hinckleys funeral, Sunday is the Superbowl (and we're having Chris' sister and her family over), Monday is a BBQ at work and Nathans 4 month check up, Tuesday is an all day seminar for work and SUPER TUESDAY, and Wednesday is Riverdance! YEAH! Should be a fun week!
And just want to remind everyone to get out and vote on Tuesday (except for you Michiganders) I don't care what your position is or isn't... (mine changes daily) but this is what makes our country great. I just wish my state 'mattered' in the voting a little more. Oh well.

Interview with Myself

Sorry Mere, stealing this from you, which I know you said you stole from someone else. The madness continues...

1.If your doctor told you today that you were pregnant, what would you say?
Do you want that answer with or without the expletives....

2.When was the last time you were on a plane? July 2007 when we went to Tennessee

3.What did the last text message you sent say? Not sure if I've ever sent a text message. I don't have a cell phone.

4. What features do you find most attractive in the opposite sex? Eyes

5. What is a goal you would like to accomplish in the near future? Get my food storage under control

6.Shoe size? 8

7.Been to Mexico? nope. But I keep seeing the Cancun signs at this travel agency I pass everyday, and it sounds heavenly

8. When was the last time you had a massage? When I was pregnant with Eli. WAY too long ago.

9.What was the last TV show you watched? The Presidential Debate (Democrats) last night. I have to say... that was an EXCELLENT debate to watch. Whether you agree with their politics or not, they did a great job.

10. What are your plans for weekend? Watching Pres. Hinckley's funeral on Saturday, cleaning up for Sunday, and having Sara and Kyle over for the Superbowl.

11.If your significant other asked you to marry them TODAy what would you say? Most definitely YES

12.What is in the backseat of your car right now? I'm embarrassed to say... My 2 car seats, a Clinton plan set, orange vest and hard hat, Baby Bjorn, a Transformer that yells 'Autobots... roll out' everytime I hit a bump and random trash that does not need to be there.

13. What were you doing at 8 a.m. this morning? Running around the house grabbing Elis shoes (trying to get them on), getting Nathans bottle and blanket, brushing my teeth... yelling at Eli to turn off Monsters Inc because 'we have to go'... all to get out of the house by 8:10. ugh.

14.If you could marry any celebrity who would it be? Well now that Heath is gone, Brad Pitt seems to be a wise choice. ;)

15. Have you ever been to a strip club? nope

16. What is the best ice cream flavor? Mint chocolate chunk from Ben and Jerrys. Dark chocolate... white mint...

17. What is the last sporting event you watched? does the republican presidential debate count?? LOL! I guess on Sunday, I'll be able to say the Superbowl.

18.Ever go camping? Haven't been since Eli was a year old, and I miss it.

19.Last phone call? a coworker in Kaysville wondering how to write deeds for UDOT.

20. Are you allergic to anything? cats. apples and peaches make my throat really itchy and gives me a stomach ache after, but usually not bad enough to make me stop eating them.

21. What is one thing you have learned about life lately?? That it comes and goes with time, so we need to live our lives in a way that is going to make us the happiest.

22.What do you do at work? at the moment, writing deeds and putting together right of way packages for our design projects, help others with our design program Inroads... lots of fun stuff.

23. What is your mother's name? Margaret or Peggy for short


24.Ever cried for no reason? depends on what you consider no reason. I've been emotional a lot lately when I see a touching commercial, or think too much on how much I love my kids... or being away from my kids... I guess those are reasons though.

25.Can you do the Crank Hat Dance? ???

26. What is your favorite color to wear? I've noticed 90% of my shirts are in the red/pink or light blue/dark blue category. Probably red is my favorite.

27. What is the longest plane ride you have ever been on? DC to Salt Lake. Do long layovers count too?

28.What is the longest road trip you have ever taken? Jacksonville to SLC when I met Chris. Also felt the longest because it was HOT and no A/C through Texas. UGH.

29.What are your turn offs? vulgarity

30.What is your last alcoholic beverage? never had one

31. What are you craving right now? a smoothie and Jasons Deli portabello mushroom wrap. YUM!

Daddys Little Helper

Chris 'trying' to fix the dishwasher. LOL!

Brotherly love

I'm still working on getting a video of Eli and Nathan and how much they love each other. Eli is always the first person to get Nathan to smile in the morning, and Eli just adores everything about his little brother. He wants to kiss and hug and love Nathan every minute of every day. He gets mad when its Nathans nap time - because he can't play with him anymore. We're looking at getting them bunk beds (ones that separate) because they will have so much fun when they get older. ::sigh:: Couldn't have asked for better boys. I hope it lasts as they grow up. ;)

Carpet woes

Why is it so difficult to buy carpet? Or better yet, why can't these companies make carpet that I like?? :) I like that better. Make it the carpet companies fault. We want a frieze multi-colored carpet, preferably nylon, and soft to the touch. oh, and dense so that you can't feel the backing as well. Why is that so hard? I have a couple more stores that I want to check out, but I'm starting to get frustrated. Most of the frieze carpets are not soft, and the ones that are soft are not very dense. ugh.
Good thing I have a large stash of dark chocolate here at work. That'll help take the edge off. ;)

Work update

Well, I've been talking a lot about staying at home vs. working and how hard it has been to come back to work. Today we had our year end reviews and I am feeling much better. I feel like I'm headed somewhere and that I do have a place in my office. They want me to become the resident 'expert' in design and be the go-to person for questions on the programs /special design situations... I'm really excited. Obviously I have a long way to go before I get there, but at least I have direction now. It doesn't make waking my kids up every day any easier, but the time I spend here feels like it is worth it. So for now, I am still going to work and I feel good about that decision.

That was my biggest thing. I wanted to know in no uncertain terms that I was making the right decision. Whether its being home all the time or working. I didn't want to question it everyday. For now, this is where I want to be. I want and need to spend time with my children, but I think this 5 hours a day is the perfect balance. I can do both. I think also that if I were to quit, I would lose (what little) expertise I have and it would be harder to get into my niche later on when I wanted to come back. Not to mention the economy seems to be taking a serious dive and it might be nice to have me working in case (heaven forbid) Chris were to lose his job. Not that I think that will happen... but you know what I mean. Our current leader is still going to be there for another year... and things could (and might) get a lot worse. Sorry, I'll save my politics for another place.

Bumbo Seat

We have recently become the proud owners of a Bumbo Seat. Nathan seems to like it a lot. I know that in my last post I was saying how sad I am that he is rolling and now I am having him "sit"... but I'm just glad to have found something else to put him in while I make dinner or change the laundry loads etc. And for those of you who haven't seen these before, its just a foam seat that kind of sinks them down and allows them to sit before they can sit by themselves. They just have to be able to hold their heads up.

Rolling over

He has been doing it for several weeks now, but I finally tried to get a video of it. Its really dark (I'm wanting him to go to sleep) For some reason I can see this on my computer at home, but not on the computer at work... so it may be too dark for most of you to see. Oh well. In this one, he doesn't quite roll over, but you can tell how he does it. ...ok, so I also just wanted a little video of his sounds. I love baby coos. ::sigh::


The one where he actually rolls is WAY too dark and you can't tell anything. Oh well. I will admit when he first started rolling, I wasn't too thrilled. Mostly because he rolls when trying to go to sleep and then he can't fall asleep on his back and therefore starts screaming. But also, I don't want my tiny little baby to grow up!! He is still a newborn in my eyes and shouldn't be allowed to do such 'grown up' things!!!!!!!!!

I have a date to Riverdance!

I'm so excited!! I've never been to Riverdance, and I am thrilled that I get to go. And thank you Mere for being my date. I'm excited too that I just get to get out of the house for a night. woohoo!!! 2 weeks!!

What wonderful neighbors!

This morning I was walking around with a screaming child in my arms and looking outside watching the snow come down. And I noticed that our driveway had just been shoveled! Huh? So I go outside to look closer and there was only one other driveway shoveled right next door, so I'm assuming it was them. Well, you Utahans know that it snowed ALL day long and when we left for the carpet store you couldn't even tell it had been touched. I just walked back upstairs and its been shoveled AGAIN! By this time all the driveways have been done, so I'm not sure if it was the same neighbor, or someone else. All I know is that someone in our neighborhood deserves to be taken to dinner.

Boring Day

What a late start. It was afternoon before Eli was even dressed, I haven't showered and Nathan won't stop crying. Oh well. I guess one count against staying home. ;) I'd never get anything done! I did go to the grocery store and carpet store. We went to RC Willey this weekend to look for carpet, but we might be able to get a better deal somewhere else. I guess RC Willey (and Home Depot) makes up their own names for the carpet so that you can't call around to different stores and price match. Which sucks. I hate RC Willey. I did see some carpet that I REALLY liked at Ogdens Carpet Outlet, but the color selection wasn't great. It was so soft though.
Oh, and did I mention that we're joining the 'big kid club' now? We've purchased ACTUAL bedroom furniture. We won't put it in our room until we get carpet installed (probably a few more weeks), but its purchased and will be in our garage this evening. YEAH!
...ok, I just walked away and I'm feeling better about my day. Eli and I just made cake cookies (which I forgot how good and EASY they are!) and I have some bread cooking in the bread machine. Sourdough. mmmmmm.... Alright, before you get all impressed - when I went to the grocery store I bought a bread machine box where all you have to do is add water. If it were normal bread, I would have made it from scratch but I was thinking sourdough sounded really good. And I don't know how to make sourdough from scratch.
Well, I'm off to see if I can maybe sneak a shower in before Nathan wakes up. Doubt it, but wish me luck!

Pictures

Still waiting to see my neice, but thats ok... I guess... ;) Here are some pictures from this last week of Nathan.
A little blurry, but I think his little feet are so cute.

I pulled back his pants a little so you could see how bow-legged this poor kid is right now. It'll work itself out, but its cute for now!

The PERFECT picture of Nathan. LOL! A picture is worth 1000 words, and now you know my life.

My cutie

Best Friends (or so says Eli) "He's my best fwend"

Are you a good housewife?

NOPE! I don't think I have ever done a single thing on this list. (sorry Chris) I really have no comment... I'm still trying to pick my jaw off the floor. I would have been an awful 50's housewife. This is an actual Good Housekeeping article from 1955. All I can say is no wonder the women revolted to get equal rights.

Staying at Home vs Working

The debate inside my head continues. Work is not getting easier to come to everyday. I know its only been a few weeks, but it was never an issue with Eli. Now its like everyone is scared to give me work and what they do give me takes all of 30 minutes. Then I come home and look at my kids and all that they are learning and doing and wonder why I'm leaving them just to do remedial tasks at work. But on the other side, I love my job. I like the people I work with, and the things I am able to do... its hard to remain focused at the moment with not much work, but overall its a good job. I also think that the mental break I am able to get helps me come in to the job of parenting with a clearer head.
If I were to quit, money would be tight but not impossible. Our kids college and other savings would either take a hit or be gone altogether. And I would lose learning all the new technology that our field has constantly. I was only gone for 2 months and had a bit of a learning curve. Imagine years...
I know there is no easy answer, and for now at least I am going to continue working. Eli is just killing me with all the things he is learning. He can write his name, and color with a purpose (instead of random scribbles) and he is asking to read the Book of Mormon. And Nathan is right at the beginning. Everything for him is new. He is learning his hands and his feet and how to roll over and all these things that babies do.
Alright, I'm off to my staff meeting. Maybe they'll give me something else to work on. Wish me luck!