Seeing Sanchii

8 Month Update

2012-02-10T12:00:00.000-07:00

8 Months Old

-- You got your first cold the day after turning 8 months old. You had such a hard time trying to breath through your stuffed up nose and suck your thumb at the same time – you were miserable. I hate being sick but seeing you stuffed up and miserable was worse then any cold I’ve ever had in my life!

-- You’ve learned how to put your blocks in the bucket! Daddy has been trying to teach you this for weeks but you didn’t seem to care until now. He was pretty excited.

-- You’re really into playing peek-a-boo these days. You’ll use a blanket, Daddy’s hat or your own hands to hide. One night Daddy was covering his face with his hands playing peek-a-boo with you and you would put your face right up against his hands so when he moved them and said “Peek-A-Boo!” you were nose-to-nose. Pretty much melts his heart… and mine too.

-- You’ve started reaching for us when you want to be picked up and I kinda love it.

-- When you first wake up in the mornings you take your time before making any noises to let us know you are awake. It takes me a while to fully wake up and get out of bed too so you must get this from me. We can always tell when you wake up because you kick your feet against the crib, tapping the zipper of your sleep sack. It makes us laugh every morning. Is there any better way to start the day?!

-- You are saying “momma” and “mom” clearly as well as ba, th, and ta sounds

-- You love to go to the neighborhood splash pad and play in the water. Cold water and getting sprayed in the face don’t seem to bother you at all. I can’t wait to go there next summer once you are walking!

-- Two more teeth have popped up! So far teething doesn’t seem to be bothering you too much but I sort of miss your goofy little one-tooth grin.

-- You have discovered what an asset your feet can be and when you are laying down on your changing table or in the bath, you grab for toys with your feet like a little monkey. You’ve even figured out how to unplug the bathtub drain with just your feet… smartypants!

-- Gram-Gram taught you how to make motorboat noises with your mouth and now you do it everywhere we go. It gets you lots of attention and laughs, which you seem to love!

-- You have discovered a new view standing up on your feet and try so hard to pull yourself up on things but you’re so short you have a hard time reaching for something to pull up on. It’s only a matter of time before you start cruising!

-- You’re just starting to crawl, however, it is quite non-traditional and humorous to watch. I’m not sure how to describe it – something like a cross between an inchworm and a wounded soldier, with an added leg kick every now and then. Well, here, see for yourself…

-- You have learned how to turn the pages when we read books but you still don’t seem interested in sitting still long enough to actually get through them. I look forward to when reading becomes part of your bedtime routine.

-- And if having your first cold wasn’t bad enough, this month you also got really sick with some nasty virus. We took a road trip to visit family in Colorado Springs and the InstaCare dr. there thought it was rotavirus but you had already been vaccinated for that. Whatever the bug was, it was a nasty one. High fever, diarrhea that made you scream, constant projectile puking (all over great-grandma’s freshly cleaned carpets)… you were so lethargic and couldn’t keep any food or fluids down. We made it almost all the way home before you couldn’t take it any longer and threw up all over the back seat of the car! The whole thing was just awful. You actually lost a lot of weight and your adorable chubby cheeks and popeye arms are not nearly as squishy anymore.

-- You love music and whenever you hear a song come on you have this funny head bop that you do. Sometimes you’ll even throw in some twisting at the waist if you really like the song a lot.

-- You’ve added pursed lips to your adorable scrunchy smile. Look at those amazing lips!

New Foods this Month: uh, I don’t remember! I think we started dairy this month (cheese, cottage cheese and yogurt), as well as beans, chicken and applesauce. I wasn’t really keeping track anymore.

Favorite Toys: Jumparoo, Laugh ‘n Learn Puppy, Drum (I have no idea why Amazon has this priced so high. Maybe because it's an older model... I found ours at a Thrift Store for $1.50!), O-Ball Rattle, mini soccer ball

I'm Back!

2012-02-10T10:00:00.000-07:00

Look out... I've got a lot of updates coming your way! :)

Summertime

2011-10-06T18:04:00.000-06:00

Fall has finally arrived in Utah. Yesterday was the first day in months where temperatures didn’t hover in the 80’s. It was overcast and rainy and crisp…and I loved it! The rain reminds me of home and although I prefer the weather here in Utah for the most part, I do miss a good rainy day every now and then. So now that summer is officially over in every way, I figured it’s time for a summer recap!

As soon as the weather got warm enough, we hit the pool for Evangeline’s first swim…

Then we hit the road and drove to Seattle for a visit in July...

Such a good little traveler

We got to spend time in Bellingham with the two of our favorite families, the Loy’s & the Blumberg's (unfortunately this is just one of many times this summer that I didn't have a spare arm to be taking pictures so this is all I got)...

On a walk with the Loy's... I miss being surrounded by such tall trees!

...and spent the 4^th of July at the cabin…

My favorite place in this whole world - McKee's Beach

The Annual McKee's Beach 4th of July Parade

Fireworks from the deck

We got to spend lots of time with family…

Playing with cousins Charlie & Josie

Visiting with Grandma Kathy

Hanging out with the Hirschman cousins

Uncle Andy is so sweet!

Playing with cousin Ayantu

Riding in the car with Ayantu & Jack

Having fun with Great-Aunt Janet

And so intrigued by Great-Aunt Kelli

Playing with Great-Grammy Carol

Picking fresh raspberries from Grandpa's garden

Captivated by Grandma Shala's necklace

A quick trip back to the cabin to see Grandma Frankie, Emma and my Aunt Sook & cousin Gracie

Loving on Auntie Em

…and friends…

Vanessa & Sebastian, me & Evangeline, and Traci & Jake

…and brought Gram Gram home with us for another week of fun…

We played at the neighborhood splash pad…

…and went to the Hogle Zoo…

…and played in the pool on the deck…

…and went camping (another time where I took almost zero pictures)…

…and skyped with Gram Gram…

Now bring on the boots and scarves, soup and pumpkin desserts, colorful leaves, crisp air and all the wonderful things that fall brings…

Summer Storms

2011-09-10T16:37:00.000-06:00

Once again I'm feeling very behind on my posts. There are so many fun things we did this summer that are worthy of documenting. However, while I get those organized (why does uploading pictures onto blogger have to take FOR.EV.ER?!), I'll leave you with this...

Utah is known for it's amazing lightening storms, especially in late August. A few weeks ago we had a storm that seemed to go directly over our house. We watched it start in the distance from our back door. As it moved closer it seemed like lightening was going to strike right in our own back yard. Until finally it passed to the front of our house and moved north. The crashes of thunder were so deep and loud, and for a few minutes were immediately following the flashes of lightening so we knew it was just as close as it felt! I couldn't resist grabbing the camera and attempting to catch a bolt or two. Using just a simple point and shoot really doesn't do it justice, but trust me, it was the most amazing storm I've even seen!

Here is some video. I apologize for my annoying gasps; there were a few times where I felt like the lightening was going to hit my toes! The last one I got on video startled me so much I ran inside so the thunder gets cut off.

Skip to about 50 seconds an watch for 2 bolts of lightening.

Summer Storm from Natalie Sanchez on Vimeo.

6 and 7 Months

2011-08-13T23:59:00.000-06:00

Evangeline turned 8 months old on Friday. And as if time wasn’t already moving quickly enough, having a summer packed full of fun things has just made it seem to go by that much faster. But more on those fun things later. I was about to post her 7 month update until I noticed that I’m further behind then I thought. So here are some highlights from the last two months!

6 MONTHS

Evangeline - 6 months old

-- We’re finally settling into a more predictable schedule this month. It’s so nice to be able to plan ahead and know that with few exceptions, you wake up around 8am, nap from 10-12 and 3-5 and go to bed at 8:30. You’re also back to loving your crib. Often times, when I lay you down for your naps, you’ll lean your head back until you feel it hit the mattress, then you pop your thumb in your mouth, take a deep breath, close your eyes and you’re out! Sometimes you’ll cry when I start to walk out of the room but it never lasts long. This is such a HUGE change from the last few months!

-- The day before you turned 6 months, you got your first taste of solid food. We fed you avocado and you L.O.V.E.D it! By the end of the month you had tried Rice and Oatmeal Cereal, Avocado, Bananas, Apples, Plums, Sweet Potato and Peas. Sweet Potato and Avocado seem to be your favorite, and Peas are definitely your least favorite (who can blame you!), but you are a good eater and have yet to spit anything out.

little less thumb, little more carrots from Natalie Sanchez on Vimeo.

-- Your hair is getting long enough now where the sides are starting to grow over your ears like Daddy’s does when he needs a haircut. I can’t wait until it’s long enough to pull back with pretty clips and put into pigtails and braids!

-- Sometimes you smile so big that you crinkle your nose, squint your eyes and flash your one tooth. I call it your scrunchy smile and I love it!

-- You’ve learned how to give kisses. This might be my favorite milestone yet! There is just nothing better then one of your slobbery smooches, especially when you grab my face with your hands and lean in. I love love love it!

Evangeline loves her Aunt Jen!

-- At the end of 6 months and beginning of 7 months you went on your first road trip and were fantastic! You didn’t take as long of naps as you usually do, but you rarely got fussy and seemed to enjoy the adventure. We drove from Utah to Seattle and were gone for just over two weeks. You were a great sleeper almost everywhere we went and you had a LOT of people loving on you! All our family and friends couldn’t wait to see you, hold you, kiss you and play with you and you definitely turned the charm on!

-- Your personality is really developing and starting to shine through. Your Daddy and I both agree that Joy is the perfect middle name for you! You are so full of joy, waking up with a smile in the mornings and squawking and smiling all day long (squawking is still your form of laughter). You also bring a tremendous amount of joy to us, your grandparents and family and just about everyone that spends time with you or gets one of your adorable scrunchy smiles!

Favorite Toys: Bird Car Seat Pull Toy, Jumparoo, Sophie, Lovie Lamb

Favorite Foods: Avocado, Apples & Sweet Potatoes

7 MONTHS

Evangeline - 7 months

-- You love to shout and squeal and have learned how to do it even louder and longer this month.

-- You are constantly bouncing! Every time you try to stand up you are always bouncing away and have gotten really good at bouncing in your jumperoo and in the excersaucers at church.

-- We started putting you in the nursery at church once we got back from our trip to Seattle. You were 7 ½ months and you seem to do pretty well, even though it’s during one of your feedings and nap time. I think I’m the one with separation anxiety at this point!

-- You seem to know the difference between people you know and strangers now. You are usually still very friendly with strangers, smiling at them, laughing and sometimes letting them hold you, however, sometimes you put your arms out for mommy or daddy to take you back.

Discovering the baby in the mirror

-- You have learned when you are funny and will repeat things that make us laugh. You are also ticklish now, especially on your sides and feet.

-- You are constantly trying to reach for anything and everything within sight. Unless you are busy sleeping or nursing, you are reaching for something, and sometimes even while you are sleeping or nursing! You have mastered the art of “swiping”, so nothing within reach is safe! I’ve also given up on wearing any jewelry these days because it’s just too tempting for your little hands to tug on.

-- Daddy taught you how to hold onto two of your stacking rings, one in each hand, and tap them together. I love watching you two play this new game. He’ll give you the rings, pick up two of his own, start tapping them and then you’ll follow. After a few taps, you throw your hands up in the air which sends your rings flying and then try and grab Daddy’s and it starts all over again.

She loves those puffs

-- Bath time is still your favorite time of day. You take baths in the big tub now and you love to splash and reach around for toys, especially your rubber duckies and stacking cups.

-- You have started showing an interest in books (other then just chewing on the covers and pulling on the pages!). You will actually sit still, listen and watch the pictures as I turn the pages. I love reading to you, especially stories from your children’s bible.

-- You learned how to clap. However, this is a story deserving of it’s own post…

Favorite Toys: Jumparoo, Fisher Price Stacking Rings, Wooden Blocks & Bucket

New Foods: Carrots, Butternut Squash, Green Beans, Apricots, Peaches, Raspberries (thanks to Grandpa!), Grapes (in a mesh feeder) and Puffs (which you LOVE!)

Father's Day Part II

2011-07-30T02:03:00.000-06:00

Yes, I realize this post is severely overdue. However, every time I’ve tried to sit down and catch up on this blog I just simply could not put this past me. And it’s important. Becoming parents was the biggest thing that’s happened to us in the last year, actually, in the last 6 years, and will be one of the biggest moments in our lives. I love that! I love big life moments. Having children is something both Jeremy and I have desired for a long time. Even before we were “ready” to start our own family, we have always wanted children. Before we had met and even more so after we were married. We had probably had thousands of conversations about how many kids we want, what we might name them, what it would be like to be parents and the way we’d want to raise them. (Funny how things change in just a few years, and especially after actually becoming parents… 4 kids has turned into who knows, maybe only 3, name ideas have evolved, and neither of us are exactly the way we expected to be as parents so far.) So although we celebrated Fathers Day over a month ago (really?! already?!), I must acknowledge the wonderful man that I have had the privilege of watching become a father for the first time this year.

I have always felt that I couldn’t have dreamt or prayed for a more perfect husband. Jeremy is truly the most loving, compassionate and thoughtful man I have ever met. Watching him with Evangeline makes me overflow with joy and I know that someday when she grows up, she too will know that she could not have ever dreamt or prayed for a more perfect father. They already have such a connection. Evangeline loves her Daddy and when he is in the room, she acts like nothing else matters. Her eyes are glued to him every morning as she sits on our bed while he gets ready for work. She smiles the minute he walks through the door after a long day of work. She’ll even stop eating and search for him the second she hears his voice, even if it’s just over the phone!

And it’s no wonder she loves him so much. Jeremy takes every opportunity he has to be involved and spend time with her. He is the one who gets her up, changes her diaper, and brings her to me for her first feeding five out of the seven mornings every week. He gives her a bath just about every night and sings silly songs to her the whole time. It’s her favorite part of the day!

There is not a day that goes by that Jeremy doesn’t mention how much he loves her. “She melts my heart!” is a commonly used phrase in our house these days. Watching the two of them meltsmy heart. I have so much to be thankful for!

Apparently a lot has changed on Blogger in the month I was gone. I can't seem to figure out how to caption my photos anymore! (Adding "Get to know Blogger Better" on my endless list of Things to Do.) The following are just a few pictures actually taken on Father's Day. Please ignore the horribly tacky wrapping paper. Somehow that didn't make the list of Things to Do that week. However, the Stir Crazy popcorn popper was a hit. It's the same one Jeremy's family had while he was growing up so it was a little nostalgic for him to watch as the oil heated and the popcorn started popping...until we realized that we overfilled it and it started exploding everywhere! We both are looking forward to lots of family movie nights with delicious homemade popcorn to come.

2011-06-20T15:46:00.002-06:00

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Meet my dad...

2011-06-19T00:24:00.001-06:00

John Dennison

He’s a handsome one, huh?! This is an older picture of him, but one of my most favorites. He works in construction – and has his whole life. That makes him quite a handy man. He can build anything... furniture, a house, you name it! He just recently made a picnic table for my brother just because. When I was younger he made us kids “play planks”. They were basically like life-sized lincoln logs but were flat instead of log shaped. When they were all set up they made a 2-story fort. They looked something like this:

Talk about hours of endless fun! I never got tired of hanging out in our play plank fort.

My dad is also an amazing water-skier. Check out that rooster tail! He taught me how to ski when I was 10 and I’ve loved it ever since. But I’ll never be as good as him. I’m too afraid to lean to the side. :)

He has taught me a lot of other things too. How to ride a bike, how to row a boat, the difference between a flat head and philips head screwdriver, and apparently how to use a jackhammer too!

And that is just the beginning. More importantly then anything else, my dad has taught me some pretty important life lessons. Our father-daughter relationship wasn’t always easy. We’re too similar to get along perfectly all the time. However, it is because of those difficult times that I have learned so much about life, love, forgiveness and the things that matter most. The older I get, the more I realize how much I admire and respect this man.

Dad - Thank you for always being the best dad you know how to be… you’re pretty darn amazing.

Happy Father’s Day! I love you.

Weekend Happenings: Enjoying Avocados & a Baby Dedication

2011-06-14T00:31:00.002-06:00

This weekend was a big one around here…

Evangeline turned 6 months old and with that came her first taste of solid food.

We started with avocado and she L.O.V.E’d it!

Then on Sunday morning we had her dedicated at church. I had no idea how nervous I was going to be until our Pastor called us up on stage. Man, those lights are bright and hot! But despite being nervous, I’m so glad we were able to stand with such a large group of people and pray for our little girl.

3,4,5 and onto 6 Months Old

2011-06-10T22:36:00.009-06:00

Evangeline will be 6 months old on Sunday. Six months! Each month that goes by is filled with so much joy as we see more and more of our baby girl’s personality shine through. Every new stage is filled with excitement as we get to watch her grow so very quickly. So, before this information is too outdated, here’s a glimpse of the past few months:

3 Months Old:

Evangeline - 3 Months Old

· You started kicking and splashing a lot in the bath. You’ve always seemed to like baths but this is a whole new world of fun now!

· Rolling over has gotten easier for you, but you still don’t seem to do it often.

· You giggle lots and make a funny noise when you’re excited (like if someone laughs really hard and then makes a loud noise when breathing in)… It’s quite a unique “laugh”, and we think it’s hilarious!

· You have learned how to multi-task quite well – your newest “trick” is batting at two toys and kicking a third all at the same time on your play mat. It gets you quite excited!

· You are using your fingers more and have figured out how to separate the two dangling rings from the elephant toy on your play mat.

· You suck on everything. As soon as you can get your mouth on something – my hands, daddy’s arm, Sophie the Giraffe, your own fingers, etc. – you attack it as if I haven’t fed you in hours!

nom nom nom

· When you are tired but haven’t fallen asleep yet, you’ll often babble quietly to yourself until you fall asleep. So adorable!

· When you get over tired your cry starts to sound like a siren. Although I can hardly stand to hear you cry (I never expected to be this much of a softy!), I can’t help but laugh at this one!

· Favorite Toys: Play Mat (especially the elephant with hanging rings), orange mini O-Ball, Sophie

4 Months Old:

Evangeline - 4 Months Old

· You started making “L” sounds with your tongue.

· You can grab your feet and quickly learned you could suck on your toes. Now every time you wake up from a nap the first thing you do is kick those legs straight up into the air and play with your feet. So cute!

· You’ve figured out how to roll from your back onto your side but can’t quite make it all the way onto your stomach. You’re so close!

· You got your first tooth! It seems so soon – I couldn’t believe it!

Can you see my tooth?

· You’ve been babbling a lot and your voice is getting louder. I love it!

· You will do anything to be able to look at a bright computer or TV screen, twisting and leaning to catch a glimpse.

Staring at the laptop

· You are showing signs of recognizing “your song”, Ma Belle Evangeline. One time Daddy was driving you home from Wednesday night church while I went to the grocery store. You were crying pretty hard until he started singing your song. The only way he could keep you from crying was to sing really loud. You fell asleep before he got you home!

· Started sitting up on your own while sitting on my lap.

Happy Girl

· Napping has become our biggest challenge. You get tired after being awake for 2 hours, but I can’t seem to get you to nap for longer then 45 minutes at a time, tops! This means you need 4 naps a day. It’s a little exhausting keeping up with it but I know it will change soon.

· Favorite Toys: Play Mat, Doorway Jumper, large green O-Ball Rattle, Cloth Crinkle Book, Singing Mirror Snail, Sophie

5 Months Old:

Evangeline - 5 Months Old

· Started saying “dah”, “nah”, “mah” and “bah”

· You love playing in your Jumparoo and quickly figured out how to jump around in it. Although, you’re still a little to short to reach the ground so put a roasting pan underneath you and that worked perfectly. Now we’ve moved down to a book and hopefully soon you’ll be able to reach all on your own! You also like to push your feet on everything they come in contact with and can stand on my lap when I hold you by your waist or hands.

· You rarely take a pacifier anymore, but you love to chew on the edge and hold them as I rock you before your naps. You took a break from sucking your thumb, but by the end of 5 months it’s back, but you’ve switched to the left. Weird!

· You still love your play mat. You love to pull on the toys and try to get them to your mouth, and you wiggle and scoot and roll around on the matt. We’re definitely getting the most of our money’s worth with that toy!

· Although you can’t get yourself into a sitting position on your own just yet, you can sit up unassisted for long periods of time.

Look at me momma!

· At about 5 ½ months I finally packed away all your 0-3 month clothes. You’re getting so big!

· You’re finally getting the hang of Peek-a-Boo and it makes you laugh and smile.

· Naptime continues to be our biggest challenge and is getting even harder. You still need a nap every two hours, but this month your crying has gotten louder and longer, and you’ve even learned how to scream. It breaks my heart! No matter what I do, you can’t seem to fall asleep on your own anymore and you refuse to sleep in your crib. You won’t fall asleep without me rocking or nursing you and if I try to put you down those big eyes of yours pop right open and fill with tears. Thankfully, by the end of this month we’ve made some progress and you are back to soothing yourself and napping in your crib!

· You’ve noticed food! You can’t seem to take your eyes off of people as you watch them eat or drink. It’s been so hard to wait to introduce you to solid food.

Yummy!

· You love reaching for anything in sight, especially if you are being held and the person holding you has anything in their other hand (food, drink, remote, cell phone, etc.)

Reaching for the phone

· Favorite Toys: Play Mat, Jumparoo, Cloth Crinkle Book, Singing Mirror Snail, Sophie, Birdie Car Seat Pull Toy, plush toys & your lovey lamb blanket

We love you so much baby girl! Can't wait to see all the new things you learn next month!

Wiggle Worm

2011-03-16T23:50:00.002-06:00

Friday morning I got quite the surprise. It was about 6am and I woke up to Evangeline’s typical slightly fussy cooing noises that she makes to let me know she’s awake and ready for a fresh diaper and breakfast. I took a peek at her in the monitor before getting up just to make sure she was fully awake before I went into her room. (Side note: We got a video monitor as a gift when Evangeline was born. It’s one of the coolest baby gadgets we were given and it definitely made the transition to sleeping in her crib so much easier on us. We love to peek on her and many times we’ll catch her kicking her feet or thrashing her head from side to side. Don’t ask me how the girl doesn’t wake herself up!) All this is pretty routine, except this time I was confused by what I saw. I could see Evangeline in her crib in the exact same spot that I put her down the evening before, except for the fact that she was turned a full 180 degrees. Her head was where her feet usually are, and her feet were where her head usually is!

How on earth could she have done this on her own?! Sure she wiggles a lot but how could she turn herself a full 180 degrees without waking herself up? How did she not hit her head on the side of the crib? How is she in the exact same spot I laid her down in, just flipped around?!

I woke Jeremy up. He was just as surprised at her new position as I was, but he thought it was funny. I just couldn’t make sense of how she could have done this on her own! Did I wake up in the middle of the night to feed her, lay her back down that way and just forget about it? Nope. I always put her head in the same spot. We have a sheet protector there in case she spits up so I never put her head anywhere else. And Jeremy was sure he didn’t move her either. But someone had to have moved her. There was no way she could have moved this much on her own, all while fast asleep. Then I remembered we had slept with our bedroom window open for the first time since the fall.

I started to panic. Someone must have come into our house and moved her. I was convinced! So I made Jeremy get out of bed and search our house for the intruder. No surprise, he found nothing. I’ll blame it on the fact that I was still half asleep and a little delirious. Not to mention, I have a strong track record for being a worrywart and thinking of the absolute worst-case scenario.

Looking back, I now realize how ridiculous this was. I guess our little girl really is quite the wiggle worm!

3 Months Old Already?!

2011-03-10T23:15:00.002-07:00

Well, they were right. Every single person that told me “It goes by so fast!” or “They grow up so quickly!” was right. And of course, I knew they would be. All you have to do is compare a newborn to a one year old. That’s a lot of growing and changing to take place in 12 months. In fact, there probably is no other time in our lives that we grow and change that dramatically in one year. And although I was given fair warning, no one could have prepared me for how it feels to watch my tiny little baby grow and change so fast! I am so thankful that I am able to stay home with Evangeline. It seems like every day she is learning and adding something new to her bag of tricks! And although many of these “tricks” that make me so proud of her are actually just typical baby development, I wouldn’t want to miss a second of it. I used to think I might get bored or go stir crazy as a stay-at-home-mom, but so far it’s been just the opposite. This is the most fun and exciting job I’ve ever had. (Of course, this wouldn’t be an honest representation of being a new mom if I didn’t mention the fact that I’ve also never been more sensitive, emotional, or had more anxiety then I do these days!)

Evangeline will be 3 months old on Saturday and yes, it went by fast! So, since this is the first time I’ve blogged since she was born, I thought I’d post her monthly photos and a few of her “tricks” to get caught up. I’ve been taking her picture every month in the same place (on the rocking chair in her nursery) with her stuffed elephant and a banner to mark her age so we can watch her grow. I’ve also been writing down the things she is doing each month for her baby book.

The First 4 Weeks:

Evangeline - 1 Week Old

You are a very smiley baby. You first smiled at us in the hospital the day after you were born.

Your very first smile!

When you were first born, you had the most incredibly smelly gas. I had to apologize to the nurses in the hospital a few times because of how stinky our room would get!
You love to sleep and have already teased us with a few long stretches. You slept for seven straight hours one night when you were 4 weeks old! Most nights your longest stretch of sleep is 4-5 hours.
You rarely cry when you wake up in middle of the night for feedings. You just lay in your bassinette and make grunting/fussing noises until I wake up.
You love taking a bath. You are alway so calm in your tub and you don't even seem to mind when we pour water over your face. Sometimes it makes you wiggle but I'm so surprised it doesn't make you cry!

Bathtime

When you were 3 weeks old, you rolled from your belly to your back 4 times in a row.
You get the hiccups at least once every day. It’s one of the cutest things in the world and it doesn’t seem to bother you a bit.
When you were 3 and 4 weeks old, every night without fail you’d spit up while you were sleeping. Many times out your nose! This really freaked me out because you’d do it while I was sleeping too. I was always afraid you were going to choke and I would sleep right through it. Thank goodness this only lasted two weeks!
You don’t love being in your car seat awake, but you love riding in the car. It puts you right to sleep.
You don’t like to be swaddled with your arms down. Every time we swaddle your arms in, you fuss and fight to move your little fists up to your face. I call you my little Houdini because no matter how tight Daddy swaddles you, you still find a way to break those arms out! Once you get them to you face you start to cry until we loosen your swaddle enough for your arms to come all the way out. You usually fall asleep with your arms straight out to your sides or with hands right up by your face.

Sleeping with her arms out and her legs up!

1 Month Old:

Evangeline - 1 Month Old

Your eyelashes grew longer and seem curlier. You are such a pretty baby!
You’ve become quite a burp'er. It's pretty shocking he huge noise that comes out of you.
You had your first ride on an airplane at five weeks old. We went to Seattle to visit family and you got to go to your first wedding. You slept the whole way there and only cried during landing on the way home.
At five weeks old, your eyes started lightening from a very dark grey to brighter grey-blue w/ more texture.

Check out those dark blue eyes!
I can't wait to see what color they end up.

Also at five weeks, you started tracking with your eyes when daddy moved a book that had black & white pictures in it.
When you were six weeks old, you started sleeping in your crib at night and for at least one nap a day.

You're alway such a happy girl in the mornings,
wiggling away in your crib.

At seven weeks, you started cooing and responding with sounds. Daddy and I love to make noises and watch you mimic us.
Your hands have found your mouth! You love to suck on your fists. Sometimes you’ll wake up in the morning and the sleeves of your jammies are soaked!
You grew out of your newborn sized clothes at seven weeks. I was sad to pack up your tiny little clothes, but was so excited about the adorable things we had in the next size up. Picking out your outfit and getting you dressed is one of my favorite parts of the day!

Packing up the old to make room for the new.

2 Months Old:

Evangeline - 2 Months Old

You slept over 9 hours at night when you were nine weeks old and 11 hours at eleven weeks. You sleep through the night just about every night now and I am so thankful for that, even if that means you'll rarely nap for longer then 45 minutes!
You've started squealing when you get excited. Daddy and I do all kinds of silly things to get you to squeal and it works every time! We love how it sounds and can’t wait for you to learn how to laugh.
Now your hands have found each other! You like to play with your fingers and are getting good at grabbing, batting and even kicking at toys that dangle above you on your play mat.
You love to sit up and can pull yourself up into a sitting position with just a little help.
You noticed your feet at ten weeks. You can’t reach them yet but you like to stare at them and wiggle your toes. You get such an intense look of concentration on your face when you do this. We think it’s hilarious!

So focused on those toes!

You rolled over from your belly to your back again. You haven’t done that since you were three weeks old. Being on your belly sure makes you frustrated though. You kick and grunt and fuss until we finally roll you over onto your back. Then you are happy as can be!
At ten weeks you started sucking your thumb. I can’t believe it! It’s so cute when you do it, but I sucked my thumb until I was waaaayyy too old so I hope this doesn’t become a long-term habit. I try to replace your thumb with your paci when I can, but you definitely seem to prefer that thumb. (You are stubborn too, just like momma!)

Lovin' on that thumb!

The Nursery

2010-12-10T00:03:00.001-07:00

Well, my due date has come and gone and our little Evangeline is still not here on the outside yet. I am now officially 4 days overdue and there really is no sign of her arrival so far. But we’re ready! I’ve read about a dozen books, the car seat is installed, our house is just about spotless, my freezer, fridge and pantry are full of meals and snacks, my mom is here and the baby’s room is ready. I’m feeling quite good still and there is no major snowstorm in the forecast. I really can’t complain! So, since my mom and I are finding ourselves trying to fill the days with things to do while we wait for this stubborn little one, I decided maybe I should take this opportunity to post pictures of her room.

Now, I must preface this by saying yes, I had waaaaaay toooo much spare time during this pregnancy. I had quit my job as a wedding coordinator just a few weeks before we found out we were pregnant (go figure!). I spent a few months working full time as a temp a Jeremy’s office but by summer I had cut back to working just two days a week. I officially became a stay at home mom two weeks ago. Jeremy and I had never had weekends off together and I had never had so much time during the week. So, with all this spare time (soon to become a favorite pastime) we took on a bunch of DIY projects to create a pretty and relaxing nursery for our baby girl while sticking to a budget. We both love how it turned out and are so excited to bring Evangeline home to her very own room! So, here it is:

The crib was a gift from my mom, sister and brothers. I love the clean lines and the extra storage drawer underneath.

The curtains, crib skirt, mobile and russian doll art are all DIY.

The owl hooks were also a semi-DIY project that I turned into hair clip/bow hangers. The little pink top is something Jeremy found at a consignment store!

Jeremy used Illustrator to create a graphic print of a scripture verse (Matt. 19:14).

This changing table was the very first thing we bought for her nursery. It was a $20 find on our local classifieds that Jeremy refinished. He also made the added shelf to hold all the diaper changing supplies.

My very favorite doll from my childhood, Melissa Sue. She's definitely seen better days but I couldn't resist adding her to the room!

The blocks were another DIY project and once Evangeline is here, we'll replace the floral paper in the frame with a photo of her.

Here is the closet that Jeremy made an amazing built-in for. I love all the added storage and still haven't figured out a use for each of the baskets. I can't believe how much extra storage we ended up with but I'm sure we'll find lots of things to put in there as she gets older.

I made closet dividers out of wooden letter "o"'s, left over fabric from some of the other DIY projects and sticky foam numbers. I didn't realize how much more organized I'd feel with these until we put them in but I really like having them now!

I can't wait to read books in the rocking chair, peek on her while she is fast asleep in her crib and play with all her toys. Now we just need our baby girl to get here!

Evangeline Joy Sanchez

2010-12-04T15:21:00.002-07:00

* Posted by Jeremy

What a journey it has been as we have waited for the arrival of our baby girl. Her room is ready, car seat installed, hospital bags packed…now we just wait until she decides to come meet the world. While we wait, I thought it would be a good idea to explain where we came up with her name, Evangeline Joy.

Anyone who knows Natalie and I knows that we can be two of the most indecisive people on the planet. After all, I gained the nickname Mr. Perhaps from my siblings in college because I would hesitate to commit to anything. Needless to say, picking the name of our firstborn child seemed like a daunting task.

Rewind back to October 2009. We took a trip to Mexico to celebrate our 5 year anniversary. We had been trying to get pregnant for well over a year and had begun the process of facing the reality of infertility. Our tropical vacation was a great break in the middle of a busy schedule and trying to process the trial we were stepping into.

Searching for a good book to read on our vacation, I settled on the classic novel, Uncle Tom’s Cabin. Let me first point out that I can hardly call myself a reader of “classic novels.” In fact, the number of these timeless books I have under my belt is probably less than I can count on one hand and most of those were read in school. Needless to say, someone had recommended it and I decided to give it a try.

Uncle Tom’s Cabin is about slavery and was written in the mid 1800s. As I was reading the book I was drawn to the character of a daughter of a slave owner. She was a little 5-year-old girl who developed a special friendship with Uncle Tom. Her name was Evangeline. There are two traits that stood out about Evangeline, 1 – She loved Jesus, 2 – She had a tender and compassionate heart for people. I would tell Natalie different parts about the book and what an adorable character Evangeline was. After finishing the book, which I definitely recommend, Evangeline’s character always stuck with me.

Now, here I sit on the day before her due date thinking of what an amazing thing God has done since that trip. After being told by my Dr. that we would not be able to get pregnant, we prayed for a miracle and God answered. Five days after the devastating news we got the most exciting news of all…we were pregnant! This “good news” sparked the biggest roller coaster we’ve ever been on.

After finding out we were having a baby girl, the name talk began, and went on…and on…and on! Evangeline, which means messenger of good news, was always on the back of my mind and Natalie started to like it more and more. The more we said it…the more it just felt right. After cycling through name after name, we finally settled on this beautiful name. The middle name wasn’t so difficult, especially since we knew it had to be short since we picked a 10-letter first name. Joy, the emotion of great happiness, fit perfectly.

I never knew that I could love this little girl so much before I have even seen her and heard her cry! My prayer is that she will grow up to have the two traits that drew me to her name over a year ago, that she will love Jesus, and that she will have a tender heart for people. Thankfully, we serve a God who answers our prayers…I can’t wait to meet you Evangeline Joy!

After we picked her name we heard about a song called "Ma Belle Evangeline" from the Disney movie The Princess and the Frog. It made us love the name even more! Check out the clip here.

6 Years Ago...

2010-11-08T22:24:00.000-07:00

October 2, 2004

October 2, 2010

My, how things have changed!

We had a great time celebrating our 6 Year Anniversary. We spent an evening at Hotel Monaco and had an amazing dinner at Bambara. The pictures are a little rough since I didn’t want to use my flash in the restaurant, but aren’t those hounds tooth booths amazing?!

And the food… mmmmm

Steak, Potatoes & Grilled Asparagus

Sea Scallops over Zucchini Risotto

Although it’s been a little over a month since we celebrated our anniversary I couldn’t let it go by unmentioned. God knew exactly what I needed in a spouse and I feel so incredibly blessed to be married to Jeremy. He really is my best friend and I enjoy every bit of time we get to spend together. He always makes sure I know how much he loves me, and even if he never said it, his actions speak so clearly. These last six years, although not perfect, have been the absolute best years of my life. I can’t wait for all the Lord has in store for us in the next 6 years and beyond!

September Visits

2010-10-26T13:56:00.001-06:00

September was a busy month for us. We started the month with an extended Labor Day weekend trip to Nashville to visit family and ended the month with more family visiting us here. We definitely enjoyed all the time off of work, but enjoyed the time with family even more.

While in Nashville, we spent most of our time relaxing and eating great food! We went to a lot of local places and had lots of great southern cuisine. We went swimming, played football in the front yard, played board games and video games, and stayed up late every night! I couldn’t believe how grown up Lucy and Mae are (although we say that every time we see them, I really mean it!) and we finally got to meet our newest niece Opal Magnolia. We joke that Joey & Brynn’s home has a revolving door because they probably have someone visiting them more days out of the year than not. It’s a busy schedule to keep up with but they are wonderful hosts and definitely know how to show you a good time. Brynn never runs out of great ideas for places to go or things to do and she’s definitely your go-to person if you ever need a restaurant recommendation!

Thanks for such a fun trip you guys! We miss you already and can’t wait to come back!

Playing Life with Lucy & Mae

The guys watching football while Mae updates her Webkins

Straightening Mae's hair

Next up was Lucy!

Brynn & Opal

One of the many yummy restaurants we went to.

Lucy couldn't resist a big soaking wet hug for Joey!

Getting new Webkins at Cracker Barrel

The girls were so sweet to their soon-to-be new girl cousin!

A few weeks after we got home from Nashville, Jason & Jackie flew down to visit us here for the week. We had a great time hanging out, staying up late and sleeping in, watching movies and a Law & Order marathon, and again, lots of eating! This was our last visit with them before we all become parents so we were determined to make the most of it! Our baby is due at the beginning of December and Jason and Jackie’s adoption should be complete right around the same time. It’s been so fun to have someone in the family who is going through so many of the same things at the same time. Jackie and I spent a lot of time discussing nursery colors and decorations, gift registries, and all things baby related! We also made a trip to the Park City Outlets and had lots of fun shopping for our baby girls. They were having some great sales and we ended up driving home with what felt like a whole store’s worth of cute new clothes!

Thanks for making the trip down you guys! We always enjoy our time with you and can’t wait to meet your sweet little girl!

Jackie and I discussing baby gift registries!

One of our many adorable finds at the outlets... how cute will this be on Ayantu?!

Jackie having a hard time deciding on baby bedding.

We had fun with our scanning guns at Babies R Us!

Making Saturday morning breakfast... yes that clock says 11am!

Jackie our expert waffle maker!

Dinner at Hoppers with the Morton's & Chen
(How is this the only picture I got of Jason?!)

Joelle loves buffalo wings!

Suzie & Adalyn

Jackie & Emmy

The Morton girls brought over a gift for baby Ayantu

The bag was full of goodies, including skinny jeans!!!

Visiting Home Sweet Home – Week 2

2010-10-08T23:26:00.000-06:00

Disclaimer: I’ve been working on this post for quite some time! It’s LOOOONG overdue but since I got Week 1 posted I feel like I can’t move on until I finish a Week 2 post. To be honest, one thing that’s been holding me up is my desire to learn how to use Photoshop. I’d like to learn how to edit our photos better but I also wanted to teach myself how to make a simple collage so that I don’t have to post each photo individually. Unfortunately I have a few other projects that have taken priority so this blog just sits. So, for the two people that read this… I apologize if I left you hanging. I know you’ve been checking daily for updates. ;) And furthermore, I apologize that there is no creativity involved. I simply wrote to get it done.

The second week of our trip to Seattle was packed full of fun things. Jeremy flew in on Friday and things were go-go-go all the way until our flight home! After picking him up at the airport, we headed down to Puyallup to visit some of his family. We hung out at Ron & Jenny’s, had dinner and Jason & Jackie were able to share a little bit about the baby they are in the process of adopting from Ethiopia for the first time!

Judah, Charlie & Coleman were all knocked out by the time we reached Puyallup.

Jason & Jackie about to make the big reveal!

Then we finally got to meet our newest nephew, Jack Ronald! Jason & Jillian were on vacation in Colorado and we went to pick them up at the airport. How cute is this little guy!

Saturday we went to a movie and the Puyallup Farmer’s Market.

Ron takes charge to make sure we all cross the street safely... he's quite the flagger!

Yummy raspberries at the Farmer's Market

Sunday we got to go to South Hill Calvary for church and were treated by Jason leading worship and a great teaching by Ron. We also got to be there for baby Jack’s dedication!

Monday Ron & Jeremy played golf at Chamber’s Bay. It was a cold, foggy morning, but beautiful nonetheless. While the guys played golf, Jenny and I got to spend the afternoon together and went to an adorable little baby consignment shop in Sumner.

The guys and their caddy's.

That evening we celebrating all the August birthdays in the family (missed you Mae Mae!) with smothered burritos at Jen & Andy’s. Yummy!

Our amazing chefs - Ron & Jenny

Yummy smothered burritos!

Birthday girls - me, Jill & Jen

Judah's solution to his lost helmet - I think that's part of one of his many costumes!

Jackie's all business on the Big Wheel

Jeremy takes it for a spin

And of course Jen had to give it a try too!

Andy - reflecting on his skater days

Strayer in action!

Tuesday morning we got to meet my Grammy Carol for breakfast. I love how well she and Jeremy connect… football, of all things, is their favorite topic of conversation! She is such a special person in my life and I’m so glad that they enjoy each others company.

Tuesday was also Jen’s birthday so we spent the afternoon at Carkeek Park with her and the kids. I used to spend a week every summer at a Campfire Day Camp there so it brought back so many memories I have from my childhood. This is one of the things I miss most about living in Seattle… the trees, the view, the salt water… it was a perfect day!

All Jen wanted was one good picture with the kids... it was just too much to ask for that day. Playing in the sand proved to be too much of a distraction for the boys!

Josie loved playing in the water with the seaweed

That evening we went out for a fancy dinner at Arnie’s on the Edmonds waterfront to celebrate Jen’s birthday and to thank her and Andy for letting us crash at their place for the week. Dinner, dessert and the view were all amazing!

Wednesday evening we had a BBQ with some old college friends at a park on Lake Sammamish.

Barry and Jeremy catch up

Cameron, Joel & Stephanie, Barry & Jamie, Christy & Cory, Carrie & Trey, me & Jeremy

Thursday we got to spend the whole day with Kathy, my mother-in-law. We had Teriyaki for lunch (one of Jeremy’s “must-do’s” when we visit), spent some time shopping, and then Lorne made amazing ribs for dinner. Unfortunately I managed to forget to take a single picture the whole day.

Friday was Seafair day. We spent the morning and the greater part of the day on Lake Washington with my Dad, Shala, her mom Marge, and my sweet little sister Emma. Unfortunately the weather had taken a turn for the worse and it was cold and a little grey. However, it made for an excited and LOUD low air show by the Blue Angels. I was so glad that we were home for this as Seafair and the Blue Angels show was something I always looked forward to as a kid.

Jeremy the master sandwich maker

How is this the only picture we got of my dad?! And none of Shala!

Here come the Blue Angels

They flew right over us - we couldn't believe how loud it was!

In a matter of seconds they were gone!

Saturday we had made plans to spend the day at my Dad’s beach house in Stanwood. Unfortunately the weather never improved (typical Seattle!) and our plans for a fun day enjoying the beach changed quickly. We still were able to go crabbing which I was really looking forward to. There’s nothing quite like fresh Dungeness crab straight from the Puget Sound! The swift current made the task of dropping and pulling the pots quite challenging, but Jeremy, Andy and Nick did quite an incredible job and we ended up with 10 keepers in 2 ½ hours!

Heading out to catch some crab for dinner! Yummy!

Jill, Vanessa & Baby Jack on the beach

Heading out to drop the crab pots

Making the drop... let's hope we catch some!

Our runaway boat - The combination of a quickly rising tide, and a few hours of waiting to pull the pots created a small glitch in the plan. How on earth were we going to get our boat back!

Thank goodness the neighbors had a motorized boat!

Our little rowboat is saved!

Pulling up the pots - success!!

Check out all those crabs!

Judah was a little timid at first but it didn't take long before he was holding them!

"Andy Burgers" for dinner

Vanessa, Jackie, Jill, Traci, me & Jen - Enjoying the catch of the day

Crab Round 2: Nick, Charlie, Jackie, Coleman, Strayer & Josie

Jeremy & his mom

Beach bonfire & s'mores

Charlie & Coleman

"White Rabbit, White Rabbit, White Rabbit"

Toney - the master bonfire starter. Not sure how he did it after such a wet day!

Sunday we made the trek up to Bellingham with Traci, Toney, Nick & Vanessa for a day packed full of fun and visiting old friends. We made it to church at Calvary Northwest… We got to enjoy lunch at a yummy taco place with the Blumberg’s. It was so great to get to spend even just a small amount of time with a family that was such an influential part of our lives while we were students and dating. Once again, no pictures.

Then we headed to our old stomping grounds… the house on H St. that Traci & I lived in, the Taylor Heights apartment that Jeremy, Nick & Toney lived in, Boulevard Park, where we all spent lots of our free time and the place where Nick proposed to Vanessa and last but not least WWU! I think it’s the first time Jer and I have been back on campus since we graduated in 2004. It was fun to walk around and reminisce about our days as college students.

Who knew what the Lord had in store for us! All pregnant together. Traci due in October, me in December, Vanessa in March! What an answer to prayer!

As if that wasn’t enough packed into our day, we ended the trip to Bellingham with dinner at the Loy’s house. The Loy’s are another family that were quite influential to us. They led our college bible study and Brody was an amazing mentor to Jeremy. They were a great example of a couple with a strong marriage and a Godly household. We couldn’t believe how grown up their four kids are now. I guess that’s what happens when you don’t get to see people very often! I really can’t believe that we didn’t take any pictures of this either.

Although we packed a lot into our time in Seattle, the dreaded Monday finally did arrive. We squeezed in one last breakfast with my Mom, packed our things and spent some last minute time at the Hirschman’s and had one last dinner with the Sanchez family before heading to the airport… back to reality and our other “Home Sweet Home”.

Putting on makeup with Josie

She would mimic everything I did!

Stick out those bellies!

Jeremy helped Andy get the base to their treehouse up

Judah the architect drew Jeremy the plans for what the treehouse will look like

The architect explains his drawing

Visiting Home Sweet Home – Week 1

2010-09-22T16:24:00.005-06:00

At the end of July and beginning of August I had the opportunity to spend 2 whole weeks in Seattle! I had been looking forward to this trip for a long time. It had been almost 2 years since our last visit! I had a great time visiting our family and friends but still felt like there was a lot that I would have liked to do that there just simply wasn’t time for. I really miss living in the great Northwest!

A few highlights & photos from the trip:

One of the first things I got to do once I got into town was spend an afternoon with my mom’s side of the family. We enjoyed lunch together and spent time catching up in the cabana of my mom’s condo. And although it wasn’t technically a shower, I did get some wonderful gifts for the baby too! One of the many highlights was getting to visit with my Uncle Sean, Aunt Gabrielle and my cousins Kevin & Blaine. The last time I got to see them was at our wedding over 5 years ago! Saying that they have been through a lot over the past few years is a severe understatement. My Uncle Sean has experienced a brain tumor, kidney failure, regular dialysis, and multiple life changing medical mistakes that have led to a disease called NSF and paralysis. Physically he may not be the same, but somehow he has been able to stay positive and is still very much the Uncle Sean I remember – kind, upbeat, and funny! I’m so glad that we were all able to get together. This is one quirky family but I sure do love them!

Opening gifts for the baby

My Grammy Carol and the sweet little soft bear she gave me.

My Aunt Melanie found these tie-dye t-shirts at the Portland Market. She'll look like a true NW girl in these!

The whole family, minus my cousin Justin.

Traci stopped by after lunch.
The matching skirts was an accident.

On Tuesday afternoon, my Aunt Janet and I went downtown to the Pike Place Market. Visiting the market was on my list of must-do’s while in town. I can’t remember the last time I had been. Probably when I was a kid. But who can forget the famous fish throwers, all the arts & crafts booths, the yummy food and of course all the gorgeous fresh cut flowers. Even the smell of the salty sea air brought back so many memories. We had a great time perusing the booths and enjoyed fish and chips for lunch with a great view of the Puget Sound.

Enjoying my Aunt Janet's company
and lunch with a gorgeous view!

Row after row of gorgeous locally grown fresh cut flowers!

I couldn't resist buying a few $5 bouquets for our mom's and the hosts of my shower!

Tuesday evening I was treated to a baby shower hosted by my sister-in-law Jen and my best friend Traci. Jen added sweet little decorations all around her home and did a fantastic job on the food, including homemade vanilla cupcakes with strawberry meringue frosting. Yummy! Traci put together some fun games that kept everyone entertained and had cute little potted plants as prizes. I was so happy to get to see so many of my family members and friends all together and was so blessed by all the gifts for our little baby girl.

My grandma Frankie was one of the first guests to arrive!

Jen & her heavenly cupcakes!

My sister-in-law Jackie and my niece Josie

My mother-in-law Kathy & Josie

The pretty packages

Shower games

I love this diaper bag!

Shala & my little sister Emma

Longtime friends & moms/daughters:
Judy & Traci, me & my mom

My mom's longtime friend Sandy - she gave me my very first haircut, and many thereafter!

My Grandma Jean & Grandpa Dave

Girl Cousins! Nikki, me, my sister Anna & Cecelia

Wednesday afternoon I picked up my little sister Emma from her soccer camp. I got there early so I could watch her scrimmage. She’s quite the little athlete! After camp, we went to McDonald’s and got Happy Meals & dipped cones. Not the healthiest choice of course, but it was sure fun to have some sister time!

Emma defending her teams goal!

Enjoying a yummy ice cream treat!

That evening I got to enjoy dinner with the very first roommates I ever had. During my freshman year at WWU, I was assigned to a dorm room with two other girls. Traci and I had requested to room together but much to our surprise a third girl was added to our room. Naomi ended up becoming a great friend and we had a year none of us could forget! She and her husband Jared live on a houseboat right across from UW. (They both work in offices right on Lake Union and can actually kayak to work!) Naomi and I went for a quick kayak adventure and then had a great dinner on their deck watching the sunset. I really wish Jeremy could have been there that night!

The adorable house boat... what a fun place to live!

Naomi & Traci

Kayaking under the freeway!

Thursday I had a relaxing day at Traci’s cabin on Flowing Lake. Another roommate that we shared during college, Val, was able to make the trip down from Canada for the afternoon and I finally got to meet her adorable kids Viola & Jesse. I think it’s been over 5 years since I’ve gotten to see her! Although it was a gloomy afternoon, we enjoyed playing with the kids and Val even got in a little wakeboarding.

Highlights I didn’t get pictures of:

Staying at my mom’s the first week. She was a fantastic hostess and although I’m not an animal person in the least bit, I really enjoyed her little dog Pippen!

Birthday Pedicures with Traci & Maygen. Can you believe it was the very first pedicure I’ve ever had?! Don’t ask me what took so long, it was glorious!

Dinner with Michelle, an old friend from high school

Staying up until 4:30am talking with my sister talking about all kinds of sister things!

20 Weeks - It's a...

2010-08-16T12:18:00.002-06:00

We had our 20 week prenatal appointment a few weeks back. Two days after the appointment I left for Seattle and am just now getting around to blogging about it all. This appointment was a BIG milestone for us. Dr. W told us after we lost Baby B that my pregnancy was considered high risk, however, if I could make it to 20 weeks without any new complications then they would then consider me a normal “singleton” pregnancy. (“Singleton” is actually the term they use!)

The 20 week appointment is a big milestone for any pregnancy since this is when the anatomy scan is done. They check the babies head, neck, spine, heart, arms and legs for any potential birth defects or diseases detectable through ultrasound. This is also when you typically can find out if you are expecting a boy or girl. I was having a little big of anxiety the morning of our appointment. Everything had been going so well over the last few weeks and I didn’t want that to change! I knew this appointment had potential to reveal the things you don’t want to hear and as much as I wanted the reassurance that everything was going to be ok, I wasn’t sure it would be. We also still hadn’t decided whether we were going to wait to find out the sex of the baby or if we wanted them to tell us.

Well, we got great news! Our baby looks perfectly healthy, is growing at a slow but still healthy rate and I am officially back to a “normal” pregnancy status. Whew! We got lots of great ultrasound pictures and even a DVD with video footage of the scan. That was a great surprise! She gave us quite a show, moving around her arms & legs, and even opening and closing her mouth at one point. She’s adorable!

That’s right… she is adorable! We also found out we’re having a baby girl!

But don’t worry, I’ll spare you the pictures that prove it. Even though it’s pretty impossible to tell what you’re looking at, I still don’t like the idea of putting a picture of our babies genitals online. Gonna start teaching her the value in modesty as early as possible! I know she’ll thank me later.

The Start of a Busy Summer

2010-07-21T01:03:00.002-06:00

I finally have some photos to share! This summer has proven to be a busy one but instead of being busy working late nights and lots of weddings, it been busy with fun!

At the end of June, we went to our first rodeo. I don’t remember rodeo’s being a popular thing to do in Washington but it's THE thing to do in the summer here in Utah. Every city here has it’s own “city days” with a parade, carnival, and a rodeo. We went to the Pony Express Days PRCA Rodeo in Eagle Mountain. I think at least 1/3 of the city residents were there! Although we missed the mutton busting event and never really figured out how the barrel racing and bull riding scoring worked, we still had fun.

Emmy and Joelle had a great time decked out in their rodeo gear of face paint, Annie Oakley toy guns, a toy bull and a mutton busting trophey!

At the end of June we got to spend an evening visiting with my grandparents. They were on a road trip and made a stop in Utah. I don’t think Jeremy and I have ever had a chance to visit with them outside of family get-togethers. We got to catch up on all kinds of things over pie and ice cream and even got to hear about how my grandparents met while they were students at Seattle University. I can’t wait to see them again during our trip to Seattle in a few weeks.

Me with my Grandma Frankie & Grandpa Rod

Just a few days after my grandparents left, my mom flew into town for her annual 4^th of July visit. We had a great time catching up and talking about pregnancy and baby stuff. I was just starting to “show” when she got here and although it will only be a few weeks between her visit here and our trip there, I think she’s going to be surprised at the size of this bump!

We had a great lunch at Red Iguana. This might just have to be a regular stop every year when mom's in town. It's one of a few restaurants in SLC featured on Diners, Drive Ins & Dives... yumm!

We spent the 4th of July at the Salt Lake Bee's game with the Morton's and got to see a great fireworks show afterwards.

Sweet little Gabba

We got to spend some time at Babies 'R Us getting our registry started. The bump is finally starting to show!

14 & 16 Weeks

2010-06-23T11:38:00.000-06:00

We just got our latest ultrasound pics scanned onto the computer last night so I thought I'd share them. Because my pregnancy is considered "high risk", I've been seeing our doctor every two weeks instead of every month. With each appointment I've had, they have done ultrasounds to monitor the growth of Baby A and to see if Baby B is shrinking at all. So far Baby A looks great and Baby B doesn't seem to want to "vanish". It hasn't really shrunk at all but Dr. W doesn't seem too concerned about that. I'll have two more appointments before we hit the 20 week milestone and after that, if things are still going well, we'll go back to seeing Dr. C and hopefully I'll no longer be considered "high risk"!

So here are our most recent pics of Baby Sanchez...

Almost 14 WEEKS:

Baby is the size of a lemon, it's arms and legs are growing in length, it can now make facial expressions and even suck it's thumb! (Wonder if he or she will take after mommy!) In this pic you can see Baby's fetal heart rate at the bottom (it was measuring 158 BMP which is great!) You can also see little Baby B to the upper right of Baby A (the tiny little dot inside the smaller sac)! I realized the other day that this is my only pic of the two of them together!

And here is a much less alien looking picture of Baby waving at us!

Almost 16 WEEKS:

We didn't get as many cute pictures at this appointment but Baby's bones were really visible. We got to see both femurs and the spine but didn't get pictures because our little one is now quite active, even though I can't feel it yet. I love this pic of Baby's arm from it's shoulder (on right) to all the way to it's hands (left)! This week Baby is the size of an avocado, it's eyes and ears are moving into their final position, it's starting to grow toenails and it's heart is now pumping 25 quarts of blood a day.

A Hard Time Made a Little Easier

2010-06-22T17:29:00.002-06:00

It’s been a little over a month since we got the disappointing news that one of our twins had miscarried and only one baby was going to make it. As I wrote before, that was definitely one of the hardest times Jeremy and I had experienced in our marriage, and really in our lives. There were times when I was able to be strong and could talk about it without getting more then a just little teary eyed. And then there were those times when all we could do was just cry and be sad. Every day was different from the next but the one thing that I knew was that we were surrounded by people who love us, both near and far, who were calling, texting, emailing, visiting & us leaving Facebook messages. Your prayers and support were greatly needed and even more so appreciated! I can’t say THANK YOU enough for all of your love!

I have to mention one thing that we were particularly blessed by during this time. I’m not sure if I was more surprised by the “what” or the “who” but I must say that it really helped us get through that first night. In the last 5 years that Jeremy has worked for Sizzling Platter, he has gotten to know quite a few of his coworkers on a personal level. But of all the people in the office, there is a small group of people referred to as “The Band”. The Band consists of Jeremy, Sa-le & Josh. The nickname started when the guys were constantly setting up and tearing down sound equipment for various training events throughout the company. What started as a joke turned into a nickname that has stuck ever since. The Band has done a lot together professionally… traveling for two weeks at a time to open new restaurants, filming training and promotional videos, running mid-year conferences off of 15 minutes of sleep, job promotions and changes in positions, as well as many other successes. The Band has also been through a lot personally… weddings, birthdays, babies, hospital visits, kava nights, BBQ’s, fantasy football drafts, and the list goes on…

Anyway, the evening after our doctor appointment, Josh sent Jeremy a text with his condolences and offered to bring us dinner. Jeremy said thanks but not to worry about driving so far out of the way. Josh responded by saying they cared too much not to make the trip. 45 minutes later he and Sa-le were at our door delivering a full care package of all kinds of yummy things. Instead of ordering us take-out that they knew would be cold and soggy by the time they reached our house waaayyy out in Eagle Mountain, they brought pre-prepared food from Red Robin (an SPI restaurant of course) that only needed a quick zap in the microwave… Jeremy’s favorite teriyaki chicken, mac ‘n cheese, and apple pie. Along with that they brought mini cartons of ice cream, my favorite Jr. Mints & Cadbury chocolate, donuts, and a Redbox movie! I’m not sure if I was more surprised by how much thought went into picking out each item or the fact that they were willing to drive 35 minutes south of the office when they live 45 minutes in the opposite direction! We ended up spending over an hour visiting with them. It was so nice to have some lighthearted conversation and it was helpful in reminding us that we would get through this difficult time. I am so thankful for these friends!

The Journey Continues...

2010-05-22T23:55:00.000-06:00

Yesterday we had our first appointment with Dr. W, our new OB who specializes in multiples. We weren’t really sure what to expect from the appointment but I was excited to get more questions answered and meet our new doctor. Jeremy was able to get work off and met me there. We were crossing our fingers for an ultrasound so that we could just see those babies again! I wanted that reassurance again that they were still there and healthy.

The appointment seemed to go as expected at first. Dr. W answered a few questions and then we moved on to the ultrasound. I noticed right away that one baby seemed larger then the other but I waited for the doctor to tell us what we were actually looking at. He focused in on “Baby A” first. There was a clear outline of a head and body and you could see the heart beating. “Baby A” was very active and was moving around a lot. Dr. W said that although it made it harder to get good sonogram pictures, it was a great sign of a healthy baby. It was so fun to see what looked like an actual baby in there! I felt like I could relax a little bit. The heartbeat was normal at 160bpm and we got to see the baby’s arm and what looked like little feet too!

Then we moved on to “Baby B”. As Dr. W was searching to get a good view I mentioned that I noticed that at first glance “Baby B” seemed smaller. By his reaction I immediately knew something wasn’t right. He confirmed that he had noticed the same thing and then explained what we were looking at. There was really nothing about “Baby B” that looked like a baby. It was much smaller then “Baby A” and was in a much smaller sac too. There was no movement and Dr. W confirmed there was no heartbeat. He said that “Baby B” looked as though it has stopped growing at about 7 weeks and had miscarried.

At first we both seemed to take the news ok. I felt like I had known all along that this was a possibility so I guess in some way I wasn’t completely surprised. We had a lot more questions and Dr. W was great at gently delivering the bad news and encouraging us. He said that at this point we should expect that “Baby A” will be just fine. He wants to monitor me carefully over the next few weeks to make sure that “Baby A” continues to grow while the evidence of “Baby B” will shrink and ultimately will become what they call a vanishing twin. He also explained how, if all goes well, I shouldn’t experience the physical side of a miscarriage. If I do, that would put “Baby A” at risk of miscarrying also.

Here’s “Baby A”:

And here is “Baby B” (Notice the scale on the right side - this picture is zoomed in much closer then the pic of "Baby A"):

Once the nurse and Dr. W left the room, we both just lost it. We just sat there and cried. We had sonogram pictures of both “Baby A” and “Baby B” and we kept looking at them and the difference was so clear. I finally had to tuck them away in my purse so we could try and pull ourselves together enough to leave the office!

Needless to say it turned out to be a difficult night for us. We spent a lot of time making phone calls to our parents and texting people to let them know and ask for their prayers. It was not the kind of news we wanted to have to share. I am an optimistic person and always seem to find a way to look on the bright side of any situation or trial I am faced with. I kept thinking things like, “Well, at least I can look forward to a more normal pregnancy,” and “I guess this means we won’t need to buy a bigger car after all.” And of course I don’t want to overlook the fact that even though we’ve lost one baby, I’m still pregnant! But it felt weird to talk about good things when really I was just sad. I think my dad said it best. He said, “Honey, that’s a good trait to have, but it’s ok. It’s ok to be sad today. Tomorrow you can be happy but it’s ok to be sad today. And we’ll be sad with you.” I don’t think Jeremy or I has cried that hard in a very long time. Actually, I don’t think we’ve ever cried that hard together until now.

As I was writing one of my posts from a few weeks ago, I wrote this:

“Have I mentioned how good God is yet?! I love living a life dedicated to Him. It’s filled with so much more joy and excitement then I could dream up for myself! Sure there are trials and life is not always easy or perfect, but it’s so worth the blessings!”

I ended up taking it out of the post because it didn’t seemed to flow with the rest of what I had written. But I kept it because I knew I wanted to say it at some point when it would fit better. Jeremy has been my “blog editor” to help keep me from getting too long winded and to minimize my tangents (I’m a master at “spiderwebbing” in conversations!) After I told him I was going to omit that part we started talking about how easy it is to praise the Lord in good times, but that it is a true test of our faith if we can still praise Him during our trials. I told him how I had felt a little convicted after writing it because I wasn’t sure if I would still feel that way if we were faced with another trial. I specifically used the example of if we were to lose one or both babies. He gave me that look that said, “why are you thinking about that”, but he also agreed. We both agreed that would be our prayer. That no matter the circumstance in this pregnancy or anything else in life, good or bad, we wanted to be able to praise the Lord for His divine and perfect plan. Life is not always easy or perfect. I don’t understand why God decided to take one baby away. But what I do know is that God is still good and His plans for my life are still filled with more joy and excitement then I could dream up for myself.

My First Prenatal Appointment

2010-05-21T12:23:00.001-06:00

I had scheduled my first prenatal appointment on the exact day that would mark Week 10 of being pregnant. Both Jeremy and I were so excited and we didn’t want to wait one extra day to get things rolling! Our doctor had been the one who had helped us in the beginning stages of diagnosing our infertility but he then referred us to a specialist so it had been a while since we had seen him. He is such a great doctor, an all-around nice guy and was so great with us when we were going through the difficult part of this journey. He has delivered many of our friends babies and he reassured us that when we did get pregnant that he would love to be our doctor. I couldn’t wait to share with him our story and have him as our doctor!

The appointment seemed to go just as I had expected. Dr. C was excited to see us there and answered all of my questions. One of the questions I asked was how he recommended preparing for labor and if there was a particular method he recommended. I just told him that I wanted to avoid a C-Section at all costs (surgery freaks me out!) He reassured me that only 20% of labors result in a C-Section and that we shouldn’t have anything to worry about at this point.

Then we moved on to the Doppler and ultrasound. Dr. C said he would start by listening for the baby’s heart beat and then we’d do the ultrasound to actually see what was going on inside! I couldn’t wait! This was the part that we both felt would really finally confirm that YES, we are pregnant! But once I laid back he changed his mind and went straight for the ultrasound. Jeremy picked up on this little switcheroo and thought it was odd but I was so anxious I don’t think I was hearing a word anyone said. He turned the ultrasound screen on and moved that wand around a few times but didn’t say anything at all. It seemed like 15 minutes of silence but it was probably only a matter of seconds. I just wanted to hear that confirmation that there was a healthy baby in there! All the sudden he said in a surprisingly calm voice, “Oh my goodness.” followed by more silence.

Not what I was expecting, nor what I wanted! Jeremy was holding my hand and I just squeezed it. Just tell me there is a healthy baby in there!!

He moved the wand over to the left side of my stomach and said “Are you guys seeing this?!” I actually wasn’t seeing it very well since I was laying back and of course I had never looked at an ultrasound before so I had no idea what I was looking for! Then he pointed to the screen and said, “Well, here is a baby. Can you see the heart beating?” Jeremy got excited and confirmed that he saw it. I couldn’t really tell. Then he moved the wand over to the right side of my stomach and said “And here is another baby and it’s heart beating!” Ummm, what?!

OH.MY.GOSH! We’re having twins! SHOCK.OF.MY.LIFE!

As shocked as I was, I do feel like there was a small part of me that knew that all along! My Grammy Carol is an identical twin and there was always conversation about whether there was a “twin gene” passed down in our family when I was growing up. My sister and I even talked about it and wondered if either one of us would ever have twins. There are also a few sets of fraternal twins on the Sanchez side. To some extent I think feeling like you might be having twins probably normal. The idea of twins seems so amazing and what could possibly be more adorable then a newborn baby… well, two newborn babies of course! But then there was that drawing in the book of the mother nursing twins that I pointed out to Suzie or the joke that I made to Jeremy about twins being the only explanation for how sick I felt. I even prayed one time when we were waiting on the Lord to bless us with a baby that He would use this circumstance in our life to clearly show himself strong so that when we finally did get pregnant it would be so obvious the work He did in our lives, even if that means twins! Really, I should have known all along. Even the title of this blog that I named back in December seems even more perfect now! When the Lord blesses, He blesses big!

So then came another round of phone calls. It was like announcing we were pregnant all over again, but this time with even more shocked reactions, screams and a lot of laughter! We couldn’t be more excited about our “double blessing”! I’m the most scared and yet the most excited I think I’ve ever been in my whole life. Turns out the doctor skipped the Doppler and went straight to the ultrasound because my stomach seemed a little larger then normal for 10 Weeks! I think he was silent at first because he was checking for both heartbeats to confirm that both babies were healthy before saying anything. I’m glad he did it that way! Dr. C also informed me as we finished up our first appointment that carrying twins means my chances of a C-Section just increased dramatically. But now I just don’t seem to care about that as much. He did have to refer us to a specialist since twin pregnancy (and higher order multiples) is considered high risk. I’m bummed to lose the doctor we were so excited to have in the first place, but the good news is, he’s a family practitioner, so once the babies (that is weird to say!) are born, he’ll be their pediatrician!

After this post I will officially be caught up to "real time" so I promise I'll start adding pictures, some non-baby related posts and I do my best to make them shorter! :)

Sharing the News!

2010-05-18T13:28:00.003-06:00

It took days for the news to really settle in. Am I really pregnant? Is this real?! I was feeling a little guilty that I was so shocked. We had prayed with such expectation that God could do this so why was I so surprised when He did?!

We waited a day to let it all settle in, and then the phone calls began. That is when the chaos started and it has yet to slow down. It was so fun to tell our family and friends. We got some great reactions as I think everyone was just as shocked as we were.

Emma was the only one that wasn’t quite sure how to respond. She said she wasn’t sure if she was ready to be Aunt Emma just yet. And let’s be honest, at 7 years old, who is ready to be an Aunt!? Since I’m not due until the fall, I promised her she wouldn’t be an Aunt until she was in the second grade, just so she’d know she had some time to think about it!

We got to share the news over Skype with Traci and Toney and that was great! They were about 12 weeks pregnant themselves at the time and we had all been praying that just maybe the Lord would allow us to be pregnant together. Let’s just say there were lots of tears and screams!

On Saturday we walked over to Isaac and Suzie’s house to share the news with them. That was a funny moment! Their two older girls, Emmy and Joelle, were supposed to be in the middle of a nap but were having too much fun playing to sleep, so when we got there Isaac was upstairs with them. Suzie was in the shower and it just seemed like a bad time for us to stop by and hang out. But we couldn’t wait any longer to share the news with them! So Jeremy just blurted it out to Isaac, “Dude, we’re gonna have a kid!” (That seemed to be his phrase of choice in announcing the news!) He immediately went to get Suzie out of the shower. I think he said something along the lines of “You’ve got to get out of the shower right now and come downstairs. Jeremy and Natalie are here and have something to tell you!” Of course she figured it out right way and came racing downstairs pretty shortly after. We all just laughed and then Suzie shared her pregnancy “library” with me. She had all the books I could have wanted and I’m so thankful she was willing to pass them on! One of the first pages I flipped to in the book What to Expect When You’re Expecting was a page with a drawing of a mother nursing twins. I laughed, showed the picture to Suzie and said “Wow! That looks overwhelming!” If I only knew…

Sharing the news seems to be just one of the many exciting and fun parts of being pregnant, but along with the good comes the bad! Just as we had made all the phone calls to our parents, grandparents, siblings and a few friends (wow, that cell phone bill was out of control!) the infamous pregnancy symptoms started to set in. First came the exhaustion – extreme exhaustion – and then the unsettled rumbling stomach. (No morning sickness yet, and from what I understand, that is something to be thankful for!) I was feeling downright miserable and for some reason I felt guilty about it. Everyone that I talked to kept reassuring me how normal these feelings were but there was nothing NORMAL about how I was feeling! I kept thinking that maybe my body was just not responding well to being pregnant, that maybe I’m not cut out for this! No amount of sleep seemed to be helping and even just sitting upright was wearing me out! My house was quickly becoming a mess but I just couldn’t seem to function at all! Week 7 came and went, then Week 8 and Week 9 and I still wasn’t feeling good. People kept promising me that I’d start feeling better in the second trimester, at week 12 or 13, but that seemed sooo far away! At one point I jokingly told Jeremy “I swear my symptoms are even worse then anyone understands. I better be having twins because there is just no other explanation for this!” I couldn’t wait for my first doctor appointment at Week 10 to ask if there was anything that could help!

Our Journey Thus Far

2010-05-10T18:46:00.003-06:00

As I mentioned in my last post, there were some personal things going on our lives that never made it on our blog in its short-lived beginning. Well, it actually started the summer of ’08 but I’ll spare you too many details…

We finally decided we were as ready as we’d ever be to expand our family. We had waited longer then we ever thought we would but we felt great about being able to buy our first home before taking the next step. But month after month went by and nothing changed. Still not pregnant. Growing up I always had this quiet fear that maybe I couldn’t get pregnant. I’m not sure why I thought that but I also thought it was probably a normal fear that any girl who hoped to one day be a mother might have. The longer I waited the greater my fear got, and the more I knew that I just needed to find my strength in Jesus. God promises that He will give us the desires of our heart if we seek after Him, but he never promises that He’ll give us everything we want in life, in the exact way and at the exact time that we want it. He was teaching me to be patient and to trust in His plans for me and not my own!

“Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.” Ephesians 3:20-21

Once we hit the 12-month mark we started seeking information about infertility. I must admit that this was a low time in my life. Really, it was a low time for both of us but thankfully God used it to strengthen our marriage. This was definitely the largest trial God had ever placed before either of us. After many doctors appointments it was confirmed that I was actually perfectly healthy (a huge relief) and a simple vein surgery for Jeremy may be all we needed (this is where I’ll spare you the details!). Finding out what was keeping us from getting pregnant was on one hand such a relief. We had some answers, some specific things to be praying for and a plan of action. However, it definitely came as a shock and was an emotional time for us. Again, the Lord was teaching us to seek after Him and trust in Him!

Jeremy had his surgery in December ’09 and it was as good of an experience as you could hope for when it comes to surgery. What seemed like such a simple, routine outpatient surgery proved difficult in recovery but Jeremy was such a trooper! I’ll never forget one of the first things he said as the anesthesia was just beginning to wear off. After multiple times of opening his eyes with a look of panic on his face, trying so hard to lift his head and sit up only to quickly flop back down in the hospital bed, he looked at me and said in the sweetest voice “Can we have a baby now?”. Oh I just lost it! I sat down next to him and just cried. I couldn’t understand how I could be so blessed with such an amazing husband who had the desire to be a father almost more then I desired to be a mother and yet God was still giving us this trial! I wasn’t angry, I just couldn’t make any sense of it! I knew He must have something bigger for us then we could see. And that was my prayer. That when this process came to some sort of conclusion that God’s work in our lives and in this trial would be sooo clear that even our friends and family who don’t believe in Him would see it! I couldn’t wait to give Him all the glory!

But now we were back to the waiting process. We were told that it would take some time, that the odds were in our favor but that there was no guarantee that we would get pregnant. We were also told that it would take a minimum of 3 months before we’d see any improvement at all, and that most couples with this type of infertility don’t get pregnant until at least 5-10 months after surgery, if at all.

Then came February. It had only been 2 months so we weren’t expecting much, but in my heart I knew God was bigger then any of these trials and ultimately we would get pregnant in His timing (if it were His will for us), no matter what the doctors said about our “chances”. My cycle was running behind schedule but at first I didn’t really think much of it. There had been many months where this was the case and it was proving to be just more challenge in trying to get pregnant. They say timing is everything but it was impossible for us to predict! Once I hit day 41 I finally allowed myself to buy a pregnancy test. Most women would know they are pregnant if they reached 41 days but not me! Long story short, I got 3 negatives and even a negative blood test result! This was the first time I had actually allowed myself to cry after a getting a negative. It was also the first time that I really believed I was pregnant, which is why it took 3 negative home tests and a negative blood test to convince me that I wasn’t. This was the lowest of all my lows!

March rolled around making it 3 months since Jeremy’s surgery and he went in for another test to see just how successful it was. On April 1^st we got the results back. There were signs of small improvement, but according to the doctor, it wasn’t significant enough to get pregnant (at least not yet). The doctor was honest, but also encouraged us that this was to be expected and that we should just continue to wait and things should keep slowly improving. Although it wasn’t perfect news, Jeremy and I talked about it, prayed about it, and decided that we would try to be patient and give it a few more months before we would consider attempting any fertility treatments or adoption. I just really wanted to get pregnant and I really wanted it to be “unassisted”!

My cycle was late again, and 41 days late exactly on the day of that doctors phone call. That was nothing new for me though and I wasn’t about to even allow myself to start thinking I might be pregnant. I just went through all of that! A few more days went by and still nothing. I was starting to get upset that we might have a new issue to face in this journey of infertility and that maybe I wasn’t as perfectly healthy as they thought. So on Tuesday, April 6^th I sent Jeremy a text and asked him to pick up the cheapest pregnancy test from the grocery store on his way home from work. There was no way I was going to spend $7 on another fancy test just to tell me what I already knew… “Not Pregnant”. However, a small amount of hope was starting to creep in on me so I figured this was the only way to squash that and be back in reality. (Don’t ask me where this pessimism came from; I’m typically a “glass-half-full kind of girl”!)

Now previously, the few times I had purchased a pregnancy test I would race home and take it right away, anxiously waiting those 3 minutes for the results and they never seemed that clear. This was different though. I wasn’t taking the test to find out if I was pregnant, I was taking the test to confirm that I wasn’t. So, once Jeremy got home we ate dinner, watched some TV and got ready for bed all while that little box sat in the grocery bag on the counter. I had almost forgotten about it until I poured myself a glass of water in the kitchen and went to shut off the light. There it was. Jeremy was taking the garbage out so I thought that was the perfect chance to run to the bathroom and take it real quick. Last time he practically broke down the bathroom door while I was peeing on the darn thing because he wanted to see the results so bad! This way I knew I could take the test in private and then gently deliver the negative results so he wouldn’t have to wait impatiently like last time. The lines started showing up almost instantly. But I couldn’t tell if I was reading this stupid cheap test right. Was a plus sign positive? My heart was pounding and I was fighting back tears but I was sure I was reading this thing wrong. I knew I wasn’t pregnant, the doctor had just told us we wouldn’t be for a while! (In hind sight it seems pretty obvious that of course plus and positive go together!) I kept checking the diagram on the box and looking at the test back and forth. Why can’t I figure this out?! I heard Jeremy walk back inside and I just stood there in our bedroom, frozen and crying. When he walked in he was confused. I think he forgot about the test too. He was ready to start consoling me until I blurted out “What does this say?!” He grabbed the test out of my hand and proceeded to do the exact same thing I did… compare the diagram to the test back and forth, back and forth. I kept saying “I think that’s positive! Is it positive?”

Neither one of us was really sure, so Jeremy did the only thing he knew to do in a situation like this… call is older sister Jen in Seattle. (He also happened to call her on the second day of our Honeymoon to ask her a question… but don’t worry, that was about what he should do about the swollen eye that the gardenia I had worn in my hair had given him!) Of course Jen stayed calm and reminded Jeremy that it was hard for her to tell without looking at the test herself, but that it sounded like it might be positive. So, to be sure, he took a picture of the test with his phone and texted it to her! (I can’t believe we did that! Sorry Jen!) The text seemed to take a few minutes to go through so while we were waiting for Jen’s confirmation, we decided to drive to the store at 11pm and buy a different brand. Forget this horizontal and vertical line business, we needed to see that word “Pregnant” to know for sure. So I filled up my water bottle and starting guzzling as we drove to the store. I laughed at myself because I felt like I was experiencing first hand the opening scene from the movie Juno. If only I had some Sunny D!

While we were driving, Jen called back and said “Yep, that says pregnant for sure!” I couldn’t believe it! Was this real?! I had to see that word! So we bought the second test anyway and sure enough, we’re pregnant! And 6 weeks at that! Once again, God has shown Himself strong! His plan is bigger and better then any of our dreams! Why did I ever doubt that?

(So much for sparing you too many details, huh? I promise I did spare some!)

Back to Blogging

2010-05-07T18:17:00.001-06:00

I started this blog back in December '09, when we first got our MacBook, as a way of practicing for the blog I planned to create when I started my wedding planning business (Blue Bird Event Design). Blogs seem to be a popular thing, especially in the wedding industry and since I really didn’t know how they worked I thought I’d try a personal one first. I never told anyone about it and that turned out to be a good thing because I had already abandoned it by the beginning of January! Journaling has never been something I’ve been good at nor consistent with so I’m not sure why I thought a public journal would be any different! Not to mention the fact that I just didn’t have much to say. At the time, our lives were busy with what seemed like the same old usual stuff (work, work and work), and a few personal things that we didn’t care to share on the internet. Nothing that seemed exciting enough to expect other people to actually take the time to read about. Well, things have certainly changed!

It seems like whenever Jeremy and I are at a point in our lives where change is on the horizon, God likes to shake us up a bit and remind us that it’s not about our own plans, but what He has for us. And He sure has kept His promise that His plans are much bigger and better then what we could even dream up for ourselves. It all started with us graduating from college together, getting married, moving to Utah and both starting new jobs all within 5 months time. Then there was a long calm before the next “storm”. Recently I quit my stable job and started a business. Shortly after that we found out I was pregnant! And let me just say, the surprises haven’t stopped since! (More on all that and why the title of this blog seems all the more fitting soon!)

So that is what brings me back to this abandoned blog. I figure no matter how horrible of a writer I think I am or how inconsistent a journal-er I have been, I just need to suck it up and document this crazy wonderful time in our lives. I know I’ll look back on this later and be so thankful for the preservation of memories that I can pass on to our children. Living away from our family is harder now more then ever as I so wish that you all could be more a part of this process with us. However, that just makes me even more thankful for the wonderful friends and “family” the Lord has provided us with here! So, hopefully this blog will help preserve some memories but also serve as source of information for our long distance loved ones (and maybe that will save us a little on our cell phone bill because our budget just got insanely tight!)

After-Christmas Sale Shopping

2010-01-05T18:22:00.012-07:00

Ahhhh what a day! Not only did we run straight out the day after Christmas and purchase our gifts for each other this year (iPhones), but it was one of my most favorite shopping days of the year. It couldn’t have gone more perfectly.

We went straight to AT&T and got those practically-life-altering-definitely-bank-breaking gadgets. We were told that it was best to drain the phones battery completely before recharging it to extend the ultimate life of the battery. Perfect! Now Jeremy had a distraction: to play around on that shiney new phone and drain the battery as quickly as possible so he could recharge the phone over night and wake up with his new baby fully charged and ready for a full day!

I, on the other hand, had some serious shopping to do and a perfectly distracted, completely content husband.

(Jeremy later realized how little I had used my phone on the first day and couldn't understand how on earth I could wait to get familiarized with it. As you know from my last post, I definitely have a great appreciation for this great Christmas gift, but this is a perfect example of how much I LOVE shopping the day after Christmas!)

Now, this day might have gone slightly different if it weren’t for one thing: we always budget every year for after-Christmas shopping. That way, even though we’ve just blown through a significant portion of our bank account, there is still some cash left for all the deals to be had. I can have my fun and build on our collection of Christmas décor and gift-wrapping supplies at a fraction of the cost, and Jeremy doesn’t have to have a heart attack! It really is a perfect plan for us!

So, after we made the day of one very lucky AT&T sales associate (1 hour, a new family plan contract, 2 iPhones, AppleCare, 2 cases and a pack of non-glare screen protectors later… Amanda may have had almost as good of a day as I did!), we headed off for Target. Every year Target seems to have Christmas decorations that are just what I am looking for. The day after Christmas, everything gets marked down 30-50%, but don't wait, it all goes quickly! Wish I had pictures of what I scored last year! Here’s what I got this year:

And here's my favorite part... the price breakdown! I listed the regular price first with the sale price I paid in parentheses:

Silver Tray: $14.99 ($7.49)
Ornament Storage Boxes: $8.99ea ($5.00ea x2)
10pk Christmas Cards: $6.99ea ($3.49ea x2)
12 Medium Silver Glass Ball Ornaments: $2.50ea ($1.25ea x2)
15 Small Silver Glass Ball Ornaments: $2.50ea ($1.25ea x3)
Indoor Lights Digital Timer: $9.99 ($6.98)
4pk Sparkly Snowflake Ornaments: $1.00 ($0.50ea x3)
16pk Beaded Ornament Hooks: $3.99ea ($1.99ea x3)
6pk Snowflake Glass Ball Ornaments: $6.00 ($3.00)
Grey Beaded Candle Holder: $6.99 ($3.48)
Red & Green Mercury Glass Votives: $0.99ea ($0.49ea x7)
Silver Mercury Glass Bird: $4.99 ($2.49)
2pk Mirrored Disco Ball Ornaments: $2.00 ($1.00)
28pk Asst. Silver Glass Ball Ornaments (not shown) : $9.99 ($5.00)

Retail Total: $121.31
Sale Total: $63.57!

I love scoring something for 50% percent off, but that many items... it's definitely one of my favorite parts about Christmas. Another favorite part is that since these decorations won't make it up this year, it's like shopping for free when I pull them out of their boxes next year! A lot of times I forget what I've bought the year before too, so the surprise of what I might find in those boxes is always exciting.

Here are a few trees that I bought last year mixed with my new silver tray, green mercury glass votives and a handful of pinecones I already had. This might be my holiday centerpiece next year:

Now, I know some of the items and quantities of what I bought might seem a bit strange. First of all, I'm not exaclty sure what I'm going to do with each of the items I bought, but I know I'll have fun being creative when it comes time to decorate next year. And no, not all of those silver ornaments are for the tree! I know the disco ball ornaments might seem like a tacky homage to the '70s but I was inspired by some of my other favorite bloggers here (Sherry's disco ball ornaments) and here (Katie's Advent Calendar-Day 23) who have used them in these and many other ways that are anything but tacky. The ornament storage boxes included a cardboard grid for protection, but they ended up being for ornaments larger then the ones we have. We decided to keep one as an upgrade to the cardboard box we've been using for our strands of lights, and the other box we'll save for any new decorations that might be accumulated next year. Clearly my obsession over mercury glass (I bought every last votive I could find) and birds (the Christmas cards have a cute red sparkly bird on a snowy branch) is not yet over! And neither was my shopping...

Next stop - Hobby Lobby! For those of you who have never been to a Hobby Lobby you are missing out... unless you go after Christmas. You see, it's a giant craft and home decor store (think Michael's, Joann's or Robert's on steroids). They've got great prices, even better sales and they are owned by Christians... an added bonus! What's not to love, right?

Wrong!

Their sale started December 21st. Ugh! That's right, I think I remember that from last year. How could I forget! I missed it! Almost all of their holiday merchandise was gone and I was bummed. But, I did happen to find a few things worth mentioning:

And again, my favorite part, the price breakdown:

Quatrafoil Mirrors: $24.99ea ($12.49ea x2)
Mercury Glass Ornament: $5.99 ($2.99)
6pk Mini Glittery Star Ornaments: $4.99 ($2.49)
Silver Ribbon Ornament Hangers: $1.99ea ($0.99ea x3)

Retail Total: $66.93
Sale Total: $33.43!

The mirrors are for a different house project but I just love the shape of them! I'm not sure if I'll leave the frames as they are. We'll have to see how the project pans out when I am able to get the rest of the items. Again... mercury glass shows up. I fell in love with a set of silver mercury glass ornaments with bronze tops just like this from Crate and Barrell but we don't have a C&B here in Utah and by the time I discovered them online they were only available in-store. So, naturally when I found these at Hobby Lobby I practically jumped for joy, which definitely got the attention of my husband, whose face was still glowing (both figuratively and literally) from his new iPhone! They only had a few left and it took almost everything within me not to buy them all. But after a little bit of rational thinking I decided on just one. There weren't enough left to repeat around a Christmas tree to keep the tree balanced, not to mention they are pretty darn heavy and still a bit pricey even after the 50% off. I grabbed one and headed for the registers.

Last stop.... Kohl's.

Normally Jeremy would have been way over his shopping time limit by now, and we had just about hit our $100 budget, but his phone was proving to be a perfect distraction. I'll admit, I took advantage of the moment.

We had gotten a pretty late start on the day so it was almost store closing time. I didn't have high expectations for what might be left in the store, and that was a good thing, since there wasn't much left in their holiday section. However, they were having a huge store-wide sale, although... don't they always?! I could have gone crazy, but I kept my sightline focused. I skipped past the clothes, shoes and jewelry and headed straight for the back of the store. Here's what I found that I couldn't leave without:

Price breakdown:

Grey Isotoner Mittens: $24.00 ($7.69)
Monogrammed Ceramic Candle: $12.99 ($3.99)
Glass Candlesticks: Tall $12.99 ($6.49), Short $9.99 ($4.99)
Glittery "Peace" and "Joy" Ornaments: $3.99ea ($1.19ea)

Retail Price: $67.95
Sale Price: $25.54

Wow! I saved over 70%! Love that!

I've been wanted a pair of mittens for a while now. I lost the left glove of the only pair I owned last year in one of the many snowy day "adventures" I had. (Loooong story short: I got my car stuck at the entrance of our neighborhood one snowy morning and went back that evening after the roads had been plowed with just my spare key to drive it home. I proceeded to set the alarm off multiples times without my alarm remote and managed to annoy just about every neighbor before finally getting it home. The glove was lost in one of my multiple trips walking back and forth between the car and our house.) Glad to have a new pair again! Let's hope this year is a little less "adventurous" then last! And although the monogrammed candle and glass candlesticks are not holiday related, I couldn't pass up the price!

So, since technically the ornaments are the only Christmas related thing from Kohl's, and the mirrors from Hobby Lobby are for a different project, if I add up the totals and include tax, I actually came under budget this year! Ok, maybe that's a stretch... after all, Christmas related or not, I still bought the items during the After-Christmas Sales. Either way, I was pretty darn close and definitely streched my dollar!

I am excited about my thrifty finds and can't wait for my free "shopping" adventure when I pull out our Christmas decorations next year. My goal is to get decorating the day after Thanksgiving, and to make that a tradition. But for this year, it's all boxed up and ready for the basement.

In the first 24 hours...

2009-12-27T21:13:00.002-07:00

It has officially been just over 24 hours of being the proud owner of a brand-spankin’ new iPhone and I.AM.IN.LOVE. We had decided to forgo traditional Christmas presents this year for a variety of reasons. We’ve been saving up and setting aside any cash gifts we received, and then yesterday… we spent it all! Jeremy was in Apple heaven!

T-Mobile – we’re sorry to be traitors, but what do you expect?!

AT&T – Thanks for taking care of our 6 year breakup. It could have gotten messy and you all know how much we hate confrontation.

I am definitely behind the times when it comes to technology. I rely on my very smart and charming semi-techi husband to help me accomplish most things above the basic word processing, web browsing, music downloading type of “computer activities”. And I must admit that he even taught me some of those things. But, to my credit, I had never even owned a computer before we got married and things like iPods and smart phones were non-existent at the time. So, needless to say, I am quite intimidated by this tiny piece of amazing technology. However, it has only taken me a 24-hour taste to understand what a beautiful thing this will be!

Now, don't get me wrong, I actually loved my old phone. It even "features" a large, color screen and built-in speakerphone! (Apparantly those were still big selling features 3 years ago.) It was light and slender and it did what I asked of it, faithfully, no arguing. I can't help but appreciate the effort it put forth. But who wants to win the award for "Best Effort"? I just had no idea what smart phones were capable of! And although technically the verdict is still out on which smart phone is the best, I don’t think I need to say where my vote lands. Here is what I love about my iPhone in the very beginning stage of what I think might become a beautiful relationship:

1. Downloading Apps – Now, I realize that I’ve just seen a smidge of what’s out there and I’ll admit, I haven’t actually used any of the practical apps quite yet, mostly just the games. But whoever creates these is amazingly creative and I can tell my life is already getting simpler and more organized! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

2. Visual Voicemail – It’s like voicemail screening. I can actually see who left me a voicemail without even listening to them and choose the ones I want to listen to no matter what order they are in! Genius!

3. Texting Conversation Bubbles – You mean I can actually see my whole texting conversation on one screen?! Why don’t all phones have this?! No more flipping back and forth opening and closing texts.

4. My cute protective case – it’s a semi-soft case with a black & white plaid fabric back. Love it!

The list could really go on and on, but these are the major things I have been enjoying so far. Can’t wait to try out my GroceryGadget app and beat my current high score on BubbleWrap!

What are your favorite apps?

Where it all begins...

2009-12-27T19:25:00.002-07:00

Did I seriously just start a blog?! I hate writing! Always have. What am I getting myself into?!

Well, maybe hate is a strong choice of word, but I've never felt I was any good at writing. I avoided English classes in college like the plague, I always waited until the morning of to write my papers and I've never successfully kept a journal. So what makes me think I can write a blog? Jeremy's been wondering the same!

The answer is simple though... because I think it will be fun! And when the fun wears off, then it will be my motivation. To do more house projects, or take more pictures, or just simply get more tech savvy. I guess it's the challenge of the commitment that has me intrigued. Whatever my reason-of-the moment, I'm excited to have a small piece of our lives documented. And if that means that no one else reads this blog but me, well then, that's just fine.