The Past Week...

To start off with...Happy Memorial Day! Today Jesse and I both have it off and Ryker doesn't have school. So we were able to sleep in a little bit and then get to working on our house projects. Well kinda. Jesse got started and I had to fight the crowds at the grocery store and Lowe's. But before I get to all that I need to update about this last week.

 

Every spare moment we have is spent working on the house. Getting it all unpacked and feeling more like home. I had Monday, Tuesday and Thursday this week to work on things. Every time I would break down a box it was such a satisfying feeling to get rid of another one.

 

I haven't really posted any pictures of the inside of our home. But this is the living room. Its one of my favorites. I love how open it is. The loft above the couch is the kids toy room area. Another feature that I love....

 

 ....There isn't much too it right now. But eventually I want to make this really cute with storage shelves and just a place that they boys can go play. I love that I can hear them playing up there because of the openness of it. And I love that there is a designated area for the toys. So now they're room can be just beds and clothes. When I finish their room I'll post pictures of that. It's mostly done, I'm just waiting on a dresser that I ordered and a desk chair for Ryker. Then I'll post pictures.



The storage area in the basement is great. There is a lot of space for things that we need, but don't need it for everyday use. I was able to get that all organized and it felt good.

 

So what we really have left to un-box and get settled is our bedroom and the nursery. Plus all the projects we want to get started. The biggest one we want to start is our bedroom. Hence why we haven't bothered unpacking it yet. So we are sort of living out of a suitcase. Haha. I told Jesse that I really want our bedroom to be finished before the baby comes. So crossing all my fingers and toes that that can become a reality. While he's doing that I can at least work on getting the nursery all ready and give the boys bathroom a face-lift. (Oh you just wait to see the before pictures of this bathroom. It's comical). Hopefully the face-lift will go smoothly.

 

This last Thursday Ryker had a Local Track Meet.  At the last minute I realized it was up at Davis High not Vermont, so we had dinner on the go as we drove up there in rush hour traffic. Thankfully we arrived in time and he was able to get checked in for the events that he wanted to participate in. Which were; 50m dash, the 200m run and the softball throw. They were aloud to pick up to 3.

 

I was proud of Riker on the 50m dash because he took second in his age group. His form has improved a ton since last year, and I can tell he's still holding back. So I think he could be even faster. But either way I am very proud of him.

 

 He's the second kid in the blue shirt about to cross the finish line.

 

All of the South Davis Rec. Center kids got a participation medal. Ryker was SOOO excited about it. He said that he now has a medal just like Mom and Dad. What a cutie. I love that he wants to be like us. Makes me feel good. I hope that he'll always keep that desire. I worry for the teenage years when they start to not like mom and dad as much. Hopefully that won't happen with Ryker, but for now I'll treasure this time with him.

 So back to today... Jesse and I have plans to excavate the hill on the front of the house and turn it into something cool. First thing that has to go are the pine trees that are in the way. I tried to talk Jesse into hiring out my client's husband to come and take them down. I was going to do trade work again to pay for it, but Jesse insisted on doing it himself.

He started working on it on Saturday and then is finishing it up today. Our next door neighbor, Steve has been so friendly and came over to help Jesse out on both days. Today Steve is actually taking most of the trees with him. He says he wants the wood. And that will save us a few trips to the dump. He's so thoughtful.

 

 I was grateful that Steve was willing to come over and help because Jesse (bless his heart) has the hardest time asking for any help. He never wants to put anyone out and would rather do it himself. Which I think is a great attribute about him. But, in this situation I was so glad he had help so that nobody got hurt and the work would go by a lot faster.

They chopped that whole thing into big pieces and Steve hauled it away into his yard. I wonder if his wife if like "What the heck?" Cuz that's how I would feel. I wouldn't want to keep it, but he wants it all.

I am waiting for Jesse to get to a good point where he can take the sink out of the countertop in the boy's bathroom. I have plans on painting the awful blue countertop grey. Let's pray that it works and that it looks good.

Also, I need to take a picture but I thought I should mention it anyway. I am 27 weeks pregnant as of yesterday. With our bathroom and bedroom such a mess with boxes and such, I haven't dared take a picture of myself in the mess. But I just wanted to take note that I am now in my 3rd trimester. AHHH! So exciting and nerve racking at the same time. 13 weeks left. That's it. We were telling people we were pregnant when I was about that far along. But now that I only have that time left, I feel anxious to get things ready for his arrival.

I feel great though. Been exercising almost everyday and still able to do a lot of things. I don't really feel "pregnant" yet. Well I do, just not the horribly uncomfortable-ness you can get. I'm sure that'll come by the end.

Still no names. Ugh. Why is it so difficult the 3rd time around? Haha. It's ok I think it'll come. Just gotta work on it.



Jesse's First Half Marathon...

It was quite the rainy Saturday yesterday. Which is great because we need the water for this summer. But it's a bit much when you have to run your first ever Half Marathon in it.

 

Jesse got into this race back at the first of the year and thought he would have plenty of time to train and be totally ready for the big day. Well not knowing that we would be moving it kinda took away from his time to really train for this race. But that still didn't stop him from doing it. I would have been a nervous wreck going into it not having run a whole lot. The highest mileage he ran in the last 5 months was 5.23 miles. His plan on race day was to just run/walk the whole thing. His goal was just to finish.

 

The night before the race I helped him get everything together that he might need. And the weather was not looking promising. But we still had hope that the rain would hold out until the end of the race.

 

He left early that morning and met up with my friend Candice who invited him to bum a ride up to the starting line instead of riding the bus transports up there an hour before. He was grateful for the extra sleep.

 

My plan was to meet him at the finish line. The race was suppose to start at 6:45am and Jesse said he didn't think he would start running until 7:15am. And he thought it would take him 2 1/2 hours at the fastest to finish it. So my plan was to get there around 9:30am.

 

After I got the boys ready and dropped Ryker off at my brother's house (so he could take him to his football game), Cy and I headed up to Ogden. In Bountiful it wasn't raining and so I started to feel hopeful that Jesse was having the same luck. But the closer I got to Ogden the rain was just pouring down. Oh I was feeling so sad for him and all the racers.

 

After I parked and got Cy in the stroller I headed to the finish line. I saw so many racers just drenched from the down pour. And then I started to feel panicked that Jesse was done already because I was seeing so many people done. And sure enough, as I got closer to the finish line I heard my name and there was Jesse across the street just soaked and with his medal around his neck.

 

Oh I kinda wanted to cry because I didn't make it there in time. I know that feeling between finishing with someone at the end for you and not. So I really wanted to be there to support him. But he finished way faster than he anticipated. Because it was raining so hard we just hurried back to the car. So I didn't get any pictures of him at the finish line.

 

As we walked to the car we talked about the race. He told me the sky was clear and saw a rainbow before the race started. But that didn't last long. I guess it just started to rain as soon as they started and never stopped.

 

But the cool thing about it all was Jesse was able to run the entire thing. He never walked any of it. Except when he stopped to get a drink at the water stations. But then would start running again after he drank it.

 

I'm so proud of him for finishing that race so strong. I think I would have cried.

 

His official finishing time was 2:13. Which I think is fantastic for not ever training and being soaked to the bone. Can you imagine how well he would have done if he would have trained? He certainly has potential to be a great athlete. He's great already being able to pull out 13.1 miles from nothing, but he could be really fast.

 

I love the finisher medal that they gave the racers. I think they are really cool. 

 

We still had time to make it to Ryker's flag football game. Those poor boys having to play in the rain. Again, I would cry. 

 

 

 

I sat in my chair under an umbrella all snuggled up with Cy to stay warm while we watched Ryker play and Jesse coach the game.

I went to work after that and my boys all went home to warm up and get some rest.

1st year of preschool checked off...

Friday night we got to see Cy perform in his end of year preschool program. One year down, one to go. And then he'll be going to Ryker's school. So fun to see these boys grow up. Thank goodness we have another one on the way to continue experiencing it. 

 The kids all sang one song together first about the Ocean Blue. Then they all came down in the audience and sang and danced with the adults. Cy seemed a bit shy over the idea. He just clung onto Jesse's leg the whole time. It made me laugh that some of the adults didn't want to sing and dance around. I saw a few older ones leaving when that part of the program started. I admit it wasn't my favorite thing, but I still participated.

After it was over we had to get a picture with his teacher. I think I have blogged about this before, but he name is Jeri Eggett, but Cy calls her "Sister". Not sure how that came about, but it has stuck. She has told me that she really likes it. I think it's cute that he's nicknamed her that.

It's crazy to think that this school year is already winding down to a close. Well it's done for Cy anyway, but Ryker still has a few more weeks. They are so excited for the summer.

Starting to Feel Like Home...

Yesterday and today, Jesse and I worked our butts off getting this house in order. And it's starting to feel like ours. Granted we still have a lot of unpacking to do and many projects we want to do, but it's actually been great to be able to work side by side (as a team) putting things in their rightful place.

We have both done out fair share of cleaning, but Jesse gets the reward for cleaning out the toilets. They were SOOOO bad that he had to use a pumas stone to get them looking good again. I know I would have thrown up. So bless his heart for taking one for the team and sparing the pregnant one.

Not much more to update at the moment. I really should have some pictures, but I will eventually. But for now I just wanted to give a short up date on how we have been doing. Jesse still has 4 more days off so he'll be able to work on it while I'm at work. So that's great. I think this week will be a good week for us getting our lives sorted out.

Oh, oh... I just remembered this. Last night for FHE Jesse had the idea to dedicate the home. Which I love that he thought of that. So for our closing prayer we knelt in the most center part of our home (which ended up being the kitchen) and Jesse offered the prayer. It brought a peaceful feeling into our home and I could tell the boys felt it as well because of how still and quiet they were. I'm blessed with a priesthood holding husband to be worthy to do something like this that will make a big difference on our home.

Unforgettable Mother's Day Moment

As Ryker and I were getting ready for church, Cy went into our bedroom and laid down on my bed because he wasn't feeling very well. He had thrown up a couple of time last night, but I thought he was feeling better this morning because he was telling me how hungry he was and he wanted some eggs. So I scrambled him some eggs and he downed them. Then he asked for more. But by the time I got done cooking them he didn't really want them anymore. But he was still acting happy and playing around with Ryker. But not for long. He was then winding down and saying that he wanted to throw up. 

 

He climbed into my bed and before I know it he's sound asleep with only 20 minutes before church started. Oh and he looked so peaceful that I didn't have the heart to wake him. But I decided to just take him to Sacrament Meeting and let Ryker finish up the rest of the block by himself and then walk home (since our house is directly across the street from our house).

 

I wake him up and we walk across the street and head into the chapel.  

 The whole time during sacrament he just laid on my lap like a noodle. After the sacrament was passed Cy told me that he needed to throw up. So I leave Ryker in the chapel alone and go on the search for the bathroom. I find it and Cy drapes himself over the toilet. We wait and wait and wait, but nothing came. We walked around for a bit and then went back to the bathroom. Still nothing.

Finally went back into the chapel. Only after sitting for a minute or two Cy tells me he needs to throw up. So again I leave the chapel and before I can get out of the foyer he starts to throw up. It is all over him, all over me and on the floor. I decide to forget the bathroom and run outside to let him finish there.

Now what? Him and I are covered in throw up and Ryker is in the chapel still. I go into get Ryker and it was right as the primary was going up to sing a Mothers Day songs. So I wait for him to finish and then tell him what happened. I asked him if he still wanted to stay alone and he said yes. So I left.

Actually before we left I had to wipe up the foyer floor. I went to get some paper towels from the bathroom. When I was headed back there was a teenage boy that had a role of paper towels for me as well. Thoughtful thing. Then he said to me "Happy Mother's Day!". Haha.

It really is quite comical if you think about it. This will be a Mother's Day moment that I won't forget.

I took him home and changed our clothes and he fell asleep in my bed again for over an hour. I fell asleep with him and woke up right before Riker came home from church.

 I sat in our living room waiting and watching for him to come out of the church. He's kinda small in this picture but he is walking along the sidewalk. When he came inside he told me that he hurried home because I might be worried about him. What a thoughtful good kid. I love that I can trust him to do that. He also told me that he had a good day at church. Which I was glad about.

 I woke up Cy so we could head down to Grandma Heidi's house. I had just asked today if it was ok the boys and I went over there. Christian, KayTee and Kendall were there too, so we got to play games together.

On the way down Cy just looked miserable. I felt so bad for him.

 He threw up one time while we were there. But by the time we were headed back home he seemed to have perked up. Hopefully the worst is over and he can be back to his busy self tomorrow.

Mother's Day!!!!

Last night was our first night sleeping in our new home. YAY!!!! But before I get to that let me talk about last night.

 

We spent the evening with Jesse's family because today he had to work the last shift of his Go-Around. So we wanted to spend some time with his mom. The whole family went out for Sushi to Heidi's favorite restaurant. And then we all gathered at their home and played games. Uncle Christian was in town so his daughter KayTee and her husband Kendall also joined us for the celebrations. We had such a good time. Spending time with the Smith's is always so enjoyable. I'm so blessed to have married into such a wonderful family.

 

After we left the party, we headed to my parents home to gather up all our belongings and took them up to our house. Earlier that day Jesse and my brother Tyson were able to get our mattress up to the new home as well. So we just had to get our clothes and toiletries.

 

The boys were sound asleep in the truck while we gathered and cleaned things up. Then we headed home. The boys mattresses are just in the office still so we just laid the mattresses on the ground and they slept next to each other with boxes surrounding them. Haha. (It's going to be nice to get things more settled).

 

I was about to get ready for bed when Jesse informed me that the water was turned off because he needed to fix a valve for the washer. So he spent the next 2 hours trying to get the soldering done so it wouldn't leak. I fell asleep around midnight and around 1:00am he woke me up to tell me he wasn't having much luck. But it was good enough to be able to turn the water on so we could get ready for bed and shower. Then we turned the water back off. Thankfully he'll be home tomorrow for the next 6 days and he'll get it all squared away.

 

We fell asleep and Jesse had to leave for work at 7am. He kissed me goodbye and I laid there just thinking. I was feeling so grateful so my wonderful husband and especially on this Mother's Day for my 2 Moms in my life. I truly am blessed. After texting a few messages to those that I love I fell back asleep until 9ish. The boys were hungry and I got up and made them breakfast.

 

After hanging out for a little while Ryker gave me two of gifts to me that he made in school. The first one was a flower bouquet. As I unwrapped it he had written me sweet notes in Spanish and in English.

 

"To Mom"... "You are Best in the World"... and "Love you with all my heart" .

 His next gift I unwrapped and found a picture magnet of him on it with a reason why he loves me. "I'm so glad that you are in my family."

Then another sweet note inside that put me in tears.

"Dear Mom, I'm so so glad you are in my family! You are the nicest person in the holl wide world. Happy mothers day. :) Love Ryker"

It's so simple, but the words touched my heart. I felt his love and his sweetness. He's so dear to my heart and am so grateful to have him as my son. I have a feeling this is just the beginning of many sweet notes from him.

Being a mother truly is the greatest calling a woman could have. Yes it is hard at times, but I wouldn't trade it for the world. Because it's so hard at times it makes it the most rewarding! Life really is GOOD! I have a wonderful husband and 2 (almost 3) wonderful boys who love and cherish me. And for that I am grateful.

New Home Update...

It's been 2 weeks since we moved out of our old home, and this whole time we are still sleeping at my parents. So it feels like I'm just living in a limbo-crazy-messy life when it comes to the house/home situation. Our goal is to have our beds and suitcases out of my parents house before they get home on Sunday evening. Which I think it doable. But I am just relying on Jesse because I can't be of much help with the mattress in my current pregnant state. I'm also hoping that he'll be all done running the gas line for the dryer and we can have the gas turned back on to the house. It's been very cold and rainy this past week, so there hasn't been a way to heat the house. Plus taking a cold shower doesn't sound too appetizing either. So living at 2 different homes is hard.

 

Monday I spent several hours cleaning out the kitchen cabinets, drawers, pantry and microwave. And can I just say how hard it was because the previous owners didn't take any care to clean anything out. Ugh. So I had to refrain from gagging and wanting to throw up when I started to clean things out. Every drawer and cabinet was lined with crumbs and such. 

 This cabinet was the worst. Piles of cornmeal(?) and popped popcorn. Thank goodness I found Jesse's ShopVac to just vacuum it out before I sanitized it with 409 cleaner.

 I found a couple of drawers that had little kid's drawings on the sides. It just made me smile because I could relate to having a mischievous little one.

It took me several hours to clean out the kitchen. By the time I finished cleaning it, I was totally pooped. So I saved unboxing stuff and organizing for Tuesday. I got almost all of the kitchen done (minus the pantry). I'm thinking Monday and Tuesday I'll be able to finish that up and then move onto the boys bedroom.

One room at a time. It's really hard and takes so much time, but over time it'll happen and it'll start to feel like our own.

24 weeks!!!

I thought I would give a little update on how baby boy is coming along.

 

24 weeks. It's hard to believe how fast this last month has gone by. It felt like an eternity to get to 20 weeks to find out what we are having. But now another 4 almost 5 weeks has snuck by and it feels like this baby is going to be here before we know it. Which I'm sure will be the case because Summers are always so busy.

 

I have been able to stay active still and that has been so fun this time around. With the other 2 boys I never really exercised, but I love that I have been able to keep it up with this one. I has helped me feel really good. Plus it helped a ton during that yucky first trimester. Now that I'm in the second trimester I am feeling great!!!

 The belly is getting bigger and soon enough I'm not going to be able to see my toes.

 I have days where I feel fabulous and beautiful. I love that I have this baby boy developing inside of me and that I get to have the honor of carrying him and providing a safe and healthy environment for him to grow in. It's truly a miracle and a blessing from God to have a child develop so perfectly inside me without even seeing what's going on. Just feel him moving around when I sit down. So I know he's there and doing well.

10 Years!!!!!

10 years

120 months

522 weeks

3,652 days

87,658 hours

5,259,488 minutes

315,569,260 seconds

However you look at it, I would consider this anniversary to be quite the accomplishment. It seems so common these days for couples not to last to the 10 year mark. So I feel very blessed that we have come this far and we still LIKE each other. We really enjoy being together and truly make a great couple.

 

Looking back over the last 10 years simply makes me so happy to think about all the wonderful things we have experienced together. Sure we have had our rough patches, but I think those moments have taught us how to be better and to enjoy the good moments. I feel like we have grown into a good team and a couple that is truly bonded for eternity. I'm not trying to proclaim that we are this perfect couple, what I am trying to say is that I think that we both are willing to put in the effort to make our marriage work. Which I think trickles down into our family life. It's a constant effort that needs to be made. But I think that the difference between successful and unsuccessful marriages. And I think I can speak for Jesse when I say this, that we want to have a successful marriage.

 

I look back at my 19 year old self on the day we got married and I would have to admit that I didn't know to the full extent what a good life I was headed towards. Jesse is the best that has happened to me. I was just a girl when we married, and I feel like he's help me grow into someone I couldn't imagine possible for myself. He's shown me how to become a better person.

 

Heavenly Father truly has blessed me to have married the greatest man on this earth. Sorry to all the other girls out there that I got the best man!

 Our Maui Trip was our gift to each other this year, but we still needed to go on a date to celebrate. Funny thing... Every time a new Iron Man or Avengers movie comes out, it happens to land on our anniversary weekend. We have had 4 years of that happen. So when the second Avengers Movie came out a few days ago, we had to go see it because it's now a Tradition. Haha.

Jesse took us downtown to the Gateway to see the movie. It had been since November that we had gone to see a movie in the theater together. Ahhhh... That just made me sound like a boring adult. But it's true. Having kids changes things when it comes to being up with the latest movie. I'm ok with it because it's just the stage of life that we are in. But it was really quite enjoyable to go and see a movie together.

 

 

Once the movie was over we went to the Sushi Restaurant -Happy Sumo- that was just right below the theater. Since being pregnant I have to stay away from the raw fished sushi rolls, but I still get to enjoy the cooked ones.

After dinner we walked around City Creek Mall for a little bit, and then headed home. It was a simple yet perfect night, I almost didn't want the night to end. The past few months our date nights have been few and far between due to vacationing, selling our old home and buying a new one. But we need to get back into our routine of date nights again because I really do like this guy and want to spend time with him whenever I can,

I love you Jesse Robert Smith and thank you for the best 10 years together! I look so forward to what the next 10 will bring! Happy Anniversary!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!



Official Owners!!!

Thursday morning we met at 8:30am to sign the closing papers on our new home. They originally thought we could sign on Tuesday afternoon, but the paper work wasn't ready in time, So it turned out to be Thursday instead.

That was the start of Jesse's 4 days off, so he has been working hard the last three days getting stuff from the garage and putting it through out the house. I have been working the past four days so I haven't been much help. I won't really get to help out until my days off on Monday and Tuesday. There is so much unpacking to be done I don't even know where to begin. It's quite overwhelming. But I'm sure it'll all come together.

It is hard for me to try and think about settling into that house when I want so much of it changed. I wish so bad that we could just remodel what we want done and then move in. But that's not really how it goes. So I'm just going to have to deal.

Tyson and Jessica stopped by Thursday night to check out the basement because we mentioned to them that we were thinking about making the basement into an apartment. The square footage of the basement is about 1400. So it's about double what they have in their apartment is right now. Anyway, they came to look and they really are interested in moving in. Sweet. It'll be great to have them as our first renters to test the waters out. Plus being able to have a little extra money coming in to help with some remodeling will be great.

Jesse plans to make it so they would have their own separate entrance plus close off the stairway leading upstairs. So that way they can have their own living space. Before that he is running a gas line from the furnace room up a floor and over to the laundry set up. Reason being is, we have a gas dryer and because Jesse will go to great lengths to save some money he is running a gas line so that we can use our current washer and dryer and not have to buy new ones. At first I thought the idea was crazy, but he'll be able to set it up so that in the future he can tap into that line for a gas fireplace and a gas stove. So there is so great reasoning behind going to all the effort of running a gas line through the house.

So that's it for now. I'm sorry I don't have any pictures for this post. I don't really feel like there is much to post besides a messy house with boxes all over the place. But I'm sure I'll have some soon. Probably a lot of before and after pictures as we start to make this house our home.

Flag Football

My brother Tyson is in charge of coordinating the flag football teams at the Rec Center. A few months ago he was telling me about it and mentioned that I should sign Ryker up. So I did. Actually Tyson did it for me since he's in charge of it.

 

Everything was all set up until the day we got home from Maui, I got a phone call from Tyson. He told me that the guy that volunteered to coach Ryker's team wouldn't pass the background check. Eek. So Tyson was in need of a coach for Ryker's team. He then asked if Jesse would be able to coach. So he agreed to do it.

 

The first game was cancelled due to bad weather. So the first official game the team got to play was this last Saturday. But Jesse had to work and so did I. So Mike and Heidi stood in for us.

 

Tonight was our second game and Jesse and I were able to attend. Ryker had so much fun on Saturday that he has been talking everyday how excited he was to play again. I was excited to watch him play and Jesse was excited to coach.

 



 

The team played really well, but they lost. They didn't care though. They all just had so much fun! Ryker was the biggest cheerleader on the field. He was so excited for each of his teammates when they did something well. I love his personality that makes him instantly love and make new friends. I really think that he loves to be apart of a team. Even if the team doesn't win a single game this season Ryker won't care because he is just having fun playing the game.

Our Final Goodbyes...

Yesterday morning we officially closed/sold (whatever you call it) on  our cute first home. So surreal. After signing the papers I had to go to work. But while I was working Jesse, his friend Kris, and my parents worked on the remaining of the house. My parents were so wonderful and cleaned the house from top to bottom. If anyone ever needs a good cleaning guy... call my dad... he knows how to do it right. 

 

Anyway, one of Jesse's plans yesterday was to get the chicken coop apart to the point that he could take it up to the new house. He's been saying it wouldn't be a problem. But I got a phone call from him while I was at work and he had bad news for me. I guess he built the coup alot stronger and sturdier than he thought. And he couldn't get it apart without destroying it. Hence his phone call... because by that point he said it was in pieces. :-( So the bad news was that we would have to find a new home for our 9 chickens.

 

All I could think about was that Ryker was going to be crushed.

 

I got home from work around 5:00pm and everyone was outside talking, My parents had just finished cleaning while Jesse and Kris were finishing up their projects. I said thank you to my parents and to Kris for helping us out all day. Honestly what a blessing it is to have family and friends willing to sacrifice their time to help us out.

 

I asked my mom to snap a quick picture of us in front of our First Home. (Looking at this picture makes me emotional, ahhhh).

After they left I walked decided to walk through the house. I didn't even make it 10 steps into the house before my emotional dam broke. Those who know me, know that I'm not an emotional person, but there was no way to fight back all the emotions I was feeling as I walked through our physically empty home that was filled to the brim with so many memories. Even the ones you'd want to forget seemed to fill my heart with joy.

Every room I walked in my crying got uglier and uglier. Especially when I went into the nursery. Oh man. All the memories of being up through the night, checking on sleeping babes, teaching them to pray for the first time, reading them bedtime stories... the list goes on.... I had to stop myself and move onto the next room before I completely fell apart.

When I left the house and went into the backyard I met Jesse with tears in my eyes. Then Ryker saw me crying and came and hugged me. Then he started crying.... I looked at Jesse and his eyes were red so he came and hugged us. So just imagine us in a group hug just crying on each others shoulders. It's kinda comical when you think about it. But at the moment we were just feeling the sadness and reality that we wouldn't be in that home anymore.

And poor Ryker was so so sad about giving our chickens to a new owner. My heart went out to him. We gave 6 of them to our next door neighbors and 3 to another neighbor. And Ryker just cried and hugged each chicken goodbye.  Cy was sad too, but not nearly as much as Ryker.

What an emotional and tiring few days we have experienced this past few days. It's been tough to handle, but we know that the Lord has guided us in this direction and so we know that what we are doing it right. Even though it feels really hard right now, I'm sure we will look back with fondness on this event. We'll be able to piece our lives and our home together to make new memories.

We'll build a new coup at our new home and in the Spring time next year we will get new baby chicks. That feels very far away (especially to a 7 year old), but I'm sure it'll be here before we know it.

Tonight will be the 2nd night at my parents home. I'm grateful how gracious they have been to let us stay with them. Especially since they are trying to sell their home still. Hopefully we won't be too much of a burden.

We are thinking that we should be closing on the new home on Tuesday (April 28). And then we'll have to get the house in order and cleaned. Because it's been vacant for months the power and water isn't even on. So we gotta get that figured out and then give it a good cleaning before we move everything from the garage into the house.

There is a lot of work ahead of us, but we will make the most of it.

Last Night In Our First Home

All day yesterday we spent boxing up our house. And man is it alot of work. Also what a realization of how much we have. It's crazy. And quite overwhelming if you ask me. But we just worked hard and got alot of it done. Mike and Heidi came out and helped alot as well.  By the end of the night I was beat, but we still weren't done.

Today we were suppose to go sign papers to close on this house, but our realtor called us around 10:00am and told us it wasn't going to happen. Blah. So it got pushed back to tomorrow at 10:30am. So that's good.

But today I was feeling tired and rather emotional from this whole thing. I should be excited about it but I fought back the tears all day. I'm sure by the time I finish this post the water works dam will be broken and I'll be a sobbing mess.

I am not usually an emotional person, but for some reason I am today. We have made so many memories in this house that I'm finding it really hard to say goodbye. We started our family here and put so much work into it. Our hearts and souls were poured into this little home of ours, and it's really hard to close those chapters of our lives and move on to the future ones.

But for some reason opening up empty kitchen cabinets is where it really sparked my emotions. And the rest of the day I had moments where I felt it coming on and I just couldn't let it out yet.

We had guys from our ward come to help us tonight. Plus friends and family members. It was fantastic. The guys cleared this house up so fast. I was impressed and very grateful for their hard work and strong muscles.

As the house began to clear and the night began to fall I got the boys showered and ready for bed. The rest of the guys took the last load up to the house and everyone else went home. I was alone in the house. I went to check on the boys in their beds. Only thing left in their rooms were mattresses and their bedding. A wave of emotions hit me again with the realization that this will be the last night we sleep in our home.

Why am I having such a hard time with this? I should be so happy about moving. But I really am struggling with the whole process of it all. It makes me never want to move again. I'm sure being pregnant doesn't help. I just need to look for the positive in all of this. That should help. Right? In a few months this will all be past us.

Farewell to our first home. It's been so good to us. Looking forward to the future!

It's Happening...

The past day or so Jesse has started to box things up. I've been at work so it's been nice to know that he could take over and help out with getting things ready to move. Not going to lie it makes me a little sad and anxious having the house being boxed up and in disarray. But that's just how it's going to be the next few weeks. So no point in complaining about it. Just let it happen and go with it.

On Tuesday we will be signing papers to sell our home. Yikes. I can't believe how it snuck up on us already. After we sign papers we are going to be moving our stuff out of the house. Because we aren't closing on our new home until the end of April we will be moving in with my parents for a week until we can officially move into our new home.

Because the new home is currently vaccine they have agreed to let us move our stuff into the garage until we sign the closing papers. This is very nice of them because it'll be very nice to only have to move our stuff once, and not twice.

We are going to be living in a state of limbo for awhile. But that's ok. We will just take one day/project at a time.

It's really nice that Jesse is on his 6 day break right now, so we can get this move done. Tomorrow and Tuesday are going to be very busy packing days. Neither one of us has anything planned besides that. So I'm hoping we can get a good chunk done tomorrow. As for today we are taking it easy. Especially since it's Sunday, but we are getting a little break before the crazy begins.

As stressful as this all is, it's just part of life. And it'll pass. Everything has been working out so well that we know that this is the path that Heavenly Father wants us to be on. So I really shouldn't complain because this is what we are suppose to be doing right now.

It was our last Sunday in the Bountiful 7th ward today and it's sad. During sacrament Ryker said to Jesse and me...."It's a shame to leave this ward."

So true. This has been the only ward that Ryker and Cyrus have known. So I think it's hard for them to say goodbye to it. But thankfully because they are so young they will transition into the new ward and make new friends just fine. Even though we are going to be in limbo for a week we think that we'll be going to the new ward next week. Might as well right?

Well hopefully all goes well this week. I'm sure it will. I'll keep you posted.

Bearing Testimony

Jesse had a shift today so the boys and I went to church today. Nothing new really, that's been our lives the past year and a half, so we are used to that. Only thing different today was I was going to be subbing Cy's Sunbeam class. The lesson was about Easter. I had mixed feelings about it because it's not always easy to get 3 and 4 year olds attention and to hold it long enough to give a spiritual lesson.

 

But once I started talking about Jesus these kids were so into it. I showed them pictures of Jesus in Gethsemane, teaching the Sermon on the Mount, etc. But the picture I should them of Christ on the cross they all gathered around me to get a closer look and they were so quiet. It was like they could feel the reverence from that picture. It really struck me. I was so impressed that these little people could feel and know the importance of this picture. Oh it was a sweet moment.

 

They even kept their attention of the rest of the lesson. It was fantastic.

 

Well after the lesson we went to sharing time and then headed into the Chapel for Sacrament Meeting. Yes you read that right, we have a backwards block. It's been like that for 10 years for us, so it's going to be weird going to the regular way in our new ward.

 

Anyway, as we were partaking of the sacrament I got thinking about those Sunbeams and how much they impressed me. My heart started to feel full. Then it dawned on me... It was fast and testimony meeting. And right then I knew I would be bearing my testimony.

 

I'm not posting about this because I am trying to brag that I bore my testimony, just wait there is a reason behind all this story.

 

As I was gathering my thoughts on what I would say it occurred to me that this would be our last testimony meeting in this ward. Then my heart filled up, almost to explosion. It felt like the Spirit was screaming at me to go up. I couldn't ignore it. So I went up.

 

I could see Ryker in the congregation looking up at me again with that proud look he gives me. And he had tears in his eyes. This tender kid was feeling touched.

 

When I sat down in between the boys, Ryker wouldn't let go of me. I could feel that he was just ready to burst. Checking to make sure he was ok several times and he said yes. Finally I asked him if he felt like he needed to bare his testimony. Now usually when I ask him if he wants to do it he never wants to, but on this day he decided that he wanted to. So he got up and walked to the front. An older woman had beat him to the microphone, so he sad next to the Stake President and Bishop Olsen.

 

As this older women went on about who knows what? Ryker is anxiously waiting for his turn. I could tell he was nervous, so I started to feel nervous for him. Then I started to feel impatient that the woman wasn't done yet. I don't think I listened very well to her testimony because I was so focused on Ryker.

 

His turn finally came and my heart felt so proud of him that it could burst. He just nailed it. You never would have guessed he was nervous and he bore such a sweet little testimony. So proud of him.

 

When he sat down with Cy and I, he mentioned to me how good that made him feel. Even though he was really nervous. What a stud. That fear is strong and to get over it and bare testimony was a moment I hope never to forget. I was dying that Jesse wasn't there to witness this.

Ryker has always had a tender heart and sweet spirit. And I am so proud of him for bearing his testimony today. I just have a feeling he is going to be such a good solid example to his younger brothers, friends and family members for the rest of his life. He's a special kid.

Legacy Duathlon 2015

I am kinda sentimental about this race because it was my first race that got me into the love for racing. So when it was coming around I really wanted to do it. Even though I was pregnant. And.... I really wanted Jesse to do it with me. So what did I do? I signed us up.

 

First race of the season and I really was excited about it. But being pregnant I knew that I just wanted to do the race to just do it. Not really caring if I placed or not. Just finish and say that I did it being 4 1/2 months pregnant. So I signed Jesse and I up for the short course. Which is what I have done the past 2 years. I decided I didn't need to do the long course quite yet. Maybe next year? And Jesse only wanted to do the short course anyway. So it was perfect.

 

Saturday morning came and I headed down to the transition area in NSL. Jesse would be meeting me there because he was coming from work that morning. Talk about a tough man... working a 24 hour shift and then coming straight to the race.

 

I had everything there all set up ready for him to just come, change his clothes and get going. He had taken his bike to work because he had a flat tire that needed repairing. So that was the only think missing. But other than that he was set.



I found lots of friends at the race that I was excited to see. From left to right: Me, Jesse, Chad (I met him at GPP), Ryan Dailey (from the Top Gear Team that no longer exists... sad day), Jeff Lewis (Top Gear team and works out at GPP as well), and Jeff's son Jonah. They were all doing the long course except me, Jesse and Jonah. Chad, Ryan and Jeff are doing the St. George Half IRONMAN at the beginning of May. So that's exciting for them.

Anyway, so Jesse and I started about 10 seconds apart from each other and we were able to stay together mostly the whole time. On the bike ride we took turns being in the lead. But I loved having him with me the entire time. The second run came and I had transitioned a little faster than he had but knew he would catch up to me on the run. Because let's be honest, my running is slower now that I'm caring this extra weight. But Jesse never caught up. I guess he had a bad cramp in his calf and he had to stop and stretch it out.

I finished with a time of 1:04:58. Jesse finished with a time of 1:06:49. Not too shabby. When I got my slip of paper with my time it tells you what you are in your age division and at that moment I was 1st in my age division. Um? Come again? My goal was just to finish this race and here I was placing. And being pregnant. Shocked is the only word that comes to mind of how I was feeling about it.

Jesse placed 5th in his division, but because 2 of the guys in his division placed in the overall category he got bumped up into 3rd place. So he too got a medal. YAY!!!! We both took home a Gold and Bronze for our family. I'd say it was quite the accomplished morning for us. So very proud of Jesse.

My brother Tyson had brought the boys to cheer us on. Unfortunately he didn't make it in time for the boys to see us finish. They arrived shortly there after. Ryker was really bummed because he had made a little sign that said "GO MOM AND DAD!" How cute is he?

But either way I was so happy to see them there. And when they got there I could already see their proud looks on their faces. I love that about Ryker, he really was so proud of us. I hope that he will keep that attitude when he is a teenager. Haha.

Oh how I love this little family of mine.

3 Boys!!!

The day we had been anxiously waiting for had finally arrived. AHHHH!!!!! We picked up Ryker from school and headed straight to LDS hospital where the appointment was set up for. We had to get there a little bit earlier to register and then wait for our name to be called.

A month ago when I had set up the appointment I had set it up after school hours so that the boys could go. They warned me that at that time there was a rule enforced that kids 12 and under were not aloud to be in the hospitals because of flu season. The receptionist said by the time my appointment came around the rule might be lifted. So I had prayed that it would be lifted and when I called the day before (Mon) they informed me that it had been lifted! Thank you Heavenly Father.

 

The boys were all really excited as we were driving down to SLC. On the drive down Ryker was asking us what we were all hoping it would be. Of course Jesse was hoping for a girl but would be happy with a boy as well. That was pretty much the unanimous vote in the car.

 

When we arrived at the hospital we had to do a little bit of waiting. I looked up at one point and saw this image. I got a kick out of it. Especially Cy. Ryker was reading his book for school and Jesse was playing on his phone. So Cy picked up a magazine and joined in. It made me laugh.

I would say though that we had about 90% of our friends and family vote that we were having a girl. Things about this pregnancy have been different that the other boys pregnancies and I only had a girl name picked out. So Jesse and I had started to convince ourselves that it was a girl.

Well we were all wrong. Right off the bat the technician saw that we were having a boy. And it just made me laugh because I was thinking everybody is going to be so surprised. Haha.

As we sat and watched our little guy moving around and the technician checking out every thing about his brain, heart, kidneys, bones etc., we couldn't help but feel excited about this little man joining our family. 

Do you see the "foot print" in this photo?

This one is him with his ankles crossed.  (On the left is the knees and on the right are the two feet, his ankles are in the shadow) Oh Ryker loved when we saw this, he made sure that the technician took a picture of it. So she did. She was so good with the boys. Cy really liked hearing the heartbeat, so he asked to hear it again and at the end of the appointment she let him hear it again. They were just tickled during the whole time watching the screen. I got a kick out of them.

This is the same picture as the one in the collage. But I just love it. His profile is perfection. It makes me so excited to see what he looks like in person. 

On the drive home I was asking Jesse if he was sad we weren't having a girl. I loved his response. "How could I be sad when we are being blessed with a perfect healthy boy? I would be very ungrateful if I was still wishing to have a girl. This boy is perfect."

I totally agree. I know we would have be happy either way. But it truly is a blessing from God that this little guy is perfectly healthy and I can't complain about that.

Now the thing is coming up with names. We don't have any picked out. Haha. Thankfully we still have 20 more weeks to figure that out.