Literally "Labor" Day Weekend

 Last year for Labor Day weekend we started a tradition with the Smith Family that we would go down to Moab every year over Labor Day weekend. This year we were able to have all day Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday. Unlike last year we only had Saturday, Sunday and half Monday. So we were all really excited to have a 4 day vacation.

Thursday night after we all got off work we met at the Smith Home and caravanned to Moab. We got there about midnight and after unloading the cars we all crashed in our beds.

Friday morning after breakfast we all headed out for a hike to Corona Arch. It's about a mile hike in. So we thought it would be a nice short and easy hike for the boys and our pregnant sister in law.

Cy enjoyed being in the kid carrier. Occasionally he would fuss because he was hot. So we would spray water on him and that seemed to do the trick.

Ryker was enjoying climbing on the rocks and using Andrew's walking stick.

 It is such a pretty view once you reach the top. It's neat too because Bowtie and Corona Arch are right by each other.

 We stopped in the shade to cool down and have our packed lunches. You can tell by Ryker's sweaty head and red face that it was rather a hot hike. But aren't those 2 little faces the cutest things you have ever seen?

 Once cooling off we went closer to the Corona Arch to check it out. The pictures don't give this Arch any justice. It is so amazing up close. I'm so surprised that it doesn't just fall over. About 4 1/2 years ago Jesse and I hiked this same hike when we had gone down to Moab for our 2 year anniversary. So it was fun being there this time with our 2 boys.

 Boys being boys... Jesse and Ryker were searching for lizards. It was cute watching them work together and get excited when they would turn over a rock and find one.

 Our next hike was up Milcreek. This one was really fun because we got to hike in the stream. It made for a much cooler hike too. Ryker just loved it too.

 If you stayed on the trail it wound back and forth across the creek. You could also hike in the creek the whole way (which is what we did on the way back).

 At the top there was a little waterfall and a small pool where we all were able to cool down and enjoy they neat surroundings....

 ...while little Cy took a nap in the carrier.

 We thought the waterfall would make for a good picture, so we all took turns taking pictures with our little families.

That night Andrew and Emily treated us to a yummy dinner and we all retired to bed. About 5:00 in the morning I got up to use the restroom and get myself a drink of water. Heidi found me in the kitchen and told me that Emily had had contractions in the middle of the night and they were at the Moab Hospital where they gave her some medicine to stop her labor. She was only 36 weeks and I'm pretty sure she didn't want to have her baby in Moab.

As soon as Dad, Andrew and Emily got back to the condo (5:30am) they packed up their things, ate breakfast, packed a lunch, and they left for Salt Lake City.

Originally the plan for Saturday was to go on a bike ride. Mom and Emily were planning on staying behind with the boys with the rest of us went. So with the recent change of plans, Mom just stayed behind with the boys while Jesse and I went on the bike ride. We were all thinking that Emily would go home and get some rest and little Sterling can cook for 4 more weeks inside her tummy.

The bike ride that we went on was the Moab Brands trails. There are 4 or 5 trails that are all connected together. We rode on Circle O and Rockin' A. Our total mileage was just under 12 miles.

 This was my 2nd mountain bike experience, and can I say it was MUCH better than the first. Last year's bike ride wasn't too much fun.I thought I was going to die (it didn't help that I was pregnant either). So I am glad that this year was a fun experience for me. It makes me want to get into it more and be awesome like Jesse. I loved riding on the slick rock. I guess it's just so fun because you can't really do that anywhere else. Moab is just cool like that.

When we got back from our bike ride, Jesse and I had lunch and were able to relax until we had heard from Dad that Emily went back to the hospital. Her contractions had started back up again. Dad told us that she was dilated to a 4 and she was about to get her epidural. We were feeling shocked. First of all this baby was going to be 4 weeks early, and second we were going to have to go home too.

So we packed up all the food and baggage and headed to Salt Lake. It was a bitter-sweet moment. Bitter because we had 2 more days paid to stay in Moab. Sweet because we were going to meet our first nephew and the boys first cousin. 

We arrived at Jordon Valley Hospital around 10pm. Sterling Roark Smith was born at 8:34pm and weighed 7lbs 3oz. Since he was considered a premature baby he was instantly taken to the NICU where they figured out that he really wasn't a preemie. I guess Emily wasn't exactly sure of her last period and the ultrasound due date was showing that Sterling was measuring bigger. The nurses in the NICU also noticed that Sterling had the lines on his feet which doesn't happen until a baby is about 38 weeks.

When we arrived at the hospital little Sterling was in the Well Baby room so we weren't able to meet him that night. But we got to see Andrew and Emily though. Emily looked like she was feeling great.

Sunday night Jesse and I went to visit again. And this time we got the chance to meet our first nephew. Jesse is officially "UNCLE JESSE".

Mike and Heidi watched our boys for us while we went to visit. Apparently children are not aloud in the room unless they are siblings of the baby. So they will have to meet him another time.

(Just a little side note; Sterling was born on Cy's 6 month birthday. So they both will have each other's un-birthdays. I thought that was cool.)

Today, being Monday, Jesse and I and the boys have had a comfortable day at home doing a whole lot of nothing. haha

So a funny weekend we had. A tip to our family for future vacations... Don't take a pregnant woman to Moab over "LABOR" Day weekend.

The things he comes up with

Yesterday Ryker was being such a goof. He came up to me like this and said ' I'm like a spiderman'





A few hours later he tells me ' I'm going to send pizza to our home, OK?' As he is getting on the computer.

Why 3 Days Felt Like a Month

Early Friday morning (Aug 19) our little family ventured to Sacramento, CA. Jesse's cousin KayTee was getting married in the Sacramento Temple and had invited us to attend the sealing ceremony. We thought it would be a nice excuse to get away for a few days.

Flying standby with my mom's JetBlue benefits. Our first flight left at 6:45am and landed in Long Beach a little over an hour later. This was Cy's first flight. And let's just say it didn't go too well. He was tired, hungry, and his ears were bugging him. So he was NOT a happy camper. He developed a screeching noise on that flight, which I'm sure was rather annoying to all the other passengers. It was such a stressful feeling. Thank heavens I had Jesse there so we could tag team both of the boys. Once we landed in Long Beach we decided to walk to Denny's for breakfast. Back in January, Alexa and I walked there, so I knew right where to go. This time the walk seemed so much faster NOT being 8 months pregnant.

After stuffing our bellies, and me pumping in the public restroom (so fun)...we walked back to the airport completing our 3 mile round trip walk. Once going through security I went up to the man at the gate to ask him if they had called the standby people yet. He said no. But while I was walking away I heard him say that the flight was all sold out. Hearing that was a shock because my mom had mentioned to me that all the flights looked really open. So I call her to find out what was going on. Apparently they canceled several flights that day due to maintenance problems with their planes. So all the rest of the open flights were then booked up.

While we were waiting to see if someone possibly doesn't show up, we get called up to the gate desk and they tell us there are 2 seats left. And we needed 3. Jesse and I just stared at each other wondering what to do. The JetBlue worker tells us we need to hurry and make a decision because there were other people that want those seats.

Jesse made the final decision that I should go with Cy and him and Ryker will take the next flight back to Salt Lake. As I'm about to go through the gate, I loose it. I was an emotional wreck. Ryker was crying because I was leaving him, and I was starting to feel overwhelmed with a baby and all the luggage by myself.

I get on the plane and I have Cy in one arm and the diaper bag, my purse and my pump all in the other. Here I am the LAST one to get on the plane and I have all this stuff, and a baby. I probably looked like a frazzled mess. Thankfully the man and woman I was sitting next to offered to hold Cy while I put my things in the overhead storage compartments.

Once I get situated with Cy in my lap he starts screaming. I'm doing everything I can think of to get him to calm down. I felt like I had all the people on the plane glaring at the back of my head. It didn't help either that I was on the very front row. That was the longest 1 hour flight I have ever been on. About 10 minutes before we land Cy finally falls asleep. His nap was short lived when I had to get up and get all my things. Once again that man and woman sitting by me helped me with all my stuff until I got the stroller and could pile it all in there. They were heaven sent.

We landed about 12:15. Heidi was flying in on SouthWest airlines, and her fight wasn't landing until 2ish. She was going to get a rental car for us, so I had to stay put with all our luggage. I had the stroller, the diaper bag, my purse, my pump, two car seats, and two pieces of luggage. I didn't dare carry all that stuff around the airport. So Cy and I just hung out by the baggage claim till Heidi got there.

In the mean time, I talked to Jesse and he was able to get on the flight to San Fransisco where KayTee's dad, Christian lives. Originally Christian wasn't going to drive to Sacramento till Saturday morning with Grandma Sally, but things changed when Jesse and Ryker couldn't make it on the Sacramento flight. So Christian and Grandma picked Jesse and Ryker up and drove to Sacramento that night.

Once Heidi got the rental car we headed to our hotel. (On the way we got some food that I was desperate for...McDonalds has never tasted so good... and that's saying alot because I don't like to eat there).

We finally get situated in our hotel after having to add another room on for Christian and Grandma, and moving to another room that has 2 full beds instead of one and a hide a bed.

It had been several hours since I had pumped so I go into the bedroom to do so. I go to plug in my adapter plug and SPARKS and FIRE and SMOKE come shooting out of the socket. It scared the living day lights out of me.

My plug was in there honestly like an nano-second and the prong got melted. So now here I am without a plug to pump. We call the front desk and they send a repair man up. He looked at it and there wasn't anything that he could find that could have caused the socket to cause such craziness. The lady at the front desk said they would replace my plug. But when I called Medela to have them send me a new one, they sent it for free. Thankfully I had a battery pack that could plug into my pump, or else I would have really been S.O.L. After that we just kept hoping nothing else would happen. It was starting to be the trip of misfortunate events. But at the same time things were still working out.

Jesse, Ryker, Christian and Grandma all arrived that night. And boy was I happy to see them. It felt like it had been a week. I was so happy that Jesse and Ryker were able to make it after all that. After a much needed meal we all went to bed to rest for the following day.

The next morning we all headed to the temple. Christian was so dear to watch Ryker and Cyrus while Grandma, Heidi, Jesse and I went to the Sealing Ceremony. It was so wonderful to be in that sealing room. I'm sure it was the combination of how hard it was to get there, and the spirit being so strong in their ceremony. Cute Kendall was crying before the sealer even began. It made all our efforts to get there SO worth it.

That night we went to the reception. It was held in her mother's backyard. It was just beautiful! I got to meet Christian and Heidi's Aunt, Uncle and cousins. So that was fun.

The following Sunday morning we about to leave for the airport when I get a phone call from mom. She asks me how I feel about renting a car to drive home. Right there I know there must be something wrong. All of the flights to get home were full until Tuesday. UGH!!!

So after a long deliberation we decided to drive the car Heidi had rented home. So around noon we headed for Utah.

The boys did really great in the car. They got more sleep then the rest of the trip. Which made them much happier and in return, made the parents happier.

We made several stops for feedings, diaper changes and stretching. One of those stops was in Winnemucka, NV. Jesse found a park that Ryker and him were able to burn some energy playing around. Cy and I relaxed on the grass while he ate his peaches.

Our last stop was in Elko for dinner. After we were done the boys fell asleep around 9:30 in the car. We finally arrived home at 2:00am. Poor Jesse drove that whole way. Thank Heavens he is a night owl. I never would have made it.

After unloading the car and getting the boys in bed, Jesse and I helped ourselves to a cookie and a glass of milk. He was smelling the milk carton like it had gone sour. I told him we have only been gone three days so it should be fine. In return he said 'it feels like we have been gone a month'. He's right it did feel that way. We did alot of traveling in that short amount of time that it felt like a really long trip.

Thank heavens the boys slept in Monday morning. It gave Jesse and I a chance to get that much needed rest. Especially Jesse since he had to go to work. Cy was the sleepiest one. Finally at 11am I woke him up because I had to return the rental car. I wonder how long he would have slept if I hadn't woken him up. So he had slept in the car from 9:30pm Sunday night till Monday morning at 11am. That's more than 14 hours of sleep. The poor thing was so worn out.

Home Sweet Home!

Busiest Month Ever-Shower Time

My sister in law, Emily Smith. And my cousin in law, Angela Smith are both pregnant with boys and are due only a day apart from each other at the end of September. So Heidi and I decided to throw them a joint baby shower.

So the night of August 17th we had the the woman on the Smith side and the Bohm side all come and join us to celebrate these cute pregnant bellies.

Happy Babies to the 2 of you! Love you and hope all is well when baby arrives. Can't wait to meet the little guys. (And I am going to be an Aunt... yeah!)

Her Big Day!!!!!!!

5 weeks came and went, and now my little sister is a married woman. On August 16th, she married her missionary who she had waited 2 long years for. They both seem really happy. Now their high school romance is continuing on to be husband and wife. Forever! HUGS all around.

The Goodrich, Smith, Duke and Goodwin clan.

Ryker wanted to be in the lime light along with the bride and groom.

After the temple ceremony and pictures. We all headed over to the Joseph Smith Memorial Building to have a yummy luncheon.

After that I went back to the salon to get the girls all ready for the reception. While Jesse got the boys ready. Don't the boys look so handsome in their bow ties? I love them. Good choice Lex.

From left to right: Jon, Tyson, Craig and Jesse.

My favorite bridesmaid outfit I ever had.

And off they went.

My Sista's Bridals

I had to post these because she is just so stunning. I can't believe I am related to her. She makes the most beautiful bride. During the shoot I just kept thinking how breath taking she looked. Once again my dear friend Courtney did another awesome photo shoot. That girls gots skills!!!!

Continuing on and on...

Sunday Aug 14, Tyson flew in from Alaska for the wedding. It was so great to have him there. He almost wasn't going to get the time off of work with the wedding being in such short notice, but he made it! Yeah!

The last time he saw Cy was at the end of April. Cy was about a month old. Now that he is 5 months old, it's like Ty is meeting a new person.

I love this picture of Cyrus just smiling at Ty. It's so sweet. They are both studying each other.

With the ENTIRE family together for Sunday dinner we were all so happy. It has been a long time since we were all in the same room together. After dinner we all went outside to play Dead or Alive (this might be the name we made up for it). Everyone is trying to catch the ball to add up to 500 points. Each throw is worth something different. The person throwing the ball gets to decide that. They also get to decide if you have to catch it alive or dead to get the points. As you can see from the pictures, the boys were more into than the girls. I was watching and feeding Cy on the side lines, so I just took pictures.

I really wish that we could have more of these Sundays. It's so heavenly to have everyone together. When I was a kid I cared less about my family and more about my friends and other things. Now that I am older, the main thing that makes me the happiest is... my Family.

Busiest Month Ever Continued

On the night of Aug 13 all the girls went out for our version of a Bachelorette Party for Alexa. Olive Garden and a Movie. Manda and I put together a basket for Alexa so her 'wedding night' goes a little smoother for her. I thought she would be totally embarrassed, but surprisingly she wasn't.

After filling our bellies with tons of breadsticks and alfredo sauce, we went to see The Help. Alexa and I have both read the book... which by the way is sooo good...and surprisingly the movie is really good as well. Usually the movie is so disappointing once you have read the book. But they did a really good job casting the movie. Go see it... but read the book first. It's amazing!!!! One of my favorites!

Ryker Interjection

Ryker has continued to be a helper to his little brother. He's very independant and wants to do everything that mom and dad does to help Cy. For example...

Then on our way home from church a few weeks ago, Ryker wanted to push Cy in the stroller. He likes to hold him, play with him...

...and snuggle him.

What a good big brother he is.

They are so cute together. I'm so lucky to have such adorable boys.