5th Anniversary

5 years ago, Billy and I got hitched. It's been awesome. We've done, seen, been through some amazing things and moments these past 5 years. In some ways, I can't believe we've been married that long, in other ways, I can't remember life without him.

Here are a few of those things and moments that stick to my mind:
- The day Billy almost lost my engagement ring
- Being married for Time and Eternity
- Snowmobiling and skiing together for the 1st time
- Going on 3 amazing cruises
- Moving to Des Moines, Iowa
- Finding out we were expecting twins
- The day Logan and Taylor were born
- Being reunited after spending 2 whole months apart
- Finding out we were expecting a little girl
- Walking into our house in Columbus, Ohio

And here are the top 5 things I love about my hubby:
- He is my best friend
- He is an amazing father
- He makes me want to be a better person
- He has all the qualities that reinforce my weaknesses
- He has the ability to separate his work life from his personal life

2006

2011

Easter traditions

We got into our Easter traditions a lot more this year than we did last year, when Logan and Taylor were only 9 months. It was fun to create memories and watch the boys have a blast around others kids.
Saturday morning, we went to the local elementary school for their yearly Easter Egg Hunt. Logan and Taylor immediately saw the eggs on the playground, and it was hard to contain them behind the starting line because they were both so anxious to get started.
After all the eggs were collected, Logan and Taylor went down the slides a few times. Logan would have stayed there all day, if we had let him. But Taylor was more intrigued by what was inside eggs.


We also got to see the Easter Bunny. And while some kids were afraid of this giant rabbit, Logan and Taylor showed no fear. Logan kept grabbing the Bunny's tail, while Taylor was still opening egg after egg.

Sunday morning, we gave the boys their Easter baskets. They were super excited to discover all the surprises hidden inside the eggs. Breakfast was not successful that morning - not with all the candy and chocolates that were everywhere. Church was not successful either - we had to take the boys out for most of the Sacrament meeting. By the time the Sacrament meeting was over, Billy and I were so exhausted to deal with meltdowns and tantrums that we decided to go home. Logan and Taylor fell asleep in no time.

We also decorated some eggs - some with markers and others with stickers. Taylor, especially, was really into it. He loves stickers.

Then Billy went out to the front yard to "hide" the eggs. A few minutes later the boys and I came out to find them and put them into our baskets.

That night, we had dinner at Kai's. Paul and LeiLani had planned a wonderful Easter dinner for all of us. And since it was a beautiful day, we also went to the playground by their apartment. It was a great way to celebrate Easter! I feel so blessed to have family so close by. Logan and Taylor love their cousin Kai so much. We will sure miss him next year.

Pregnancy Week 34

Week 34:
How I'm feeling: It would be so easy for me to totally freak out right now. Really. I've only got 6 weeks before Baby Girl joins our family. Don't get me wrong... I'm super excited to meet her... but we have a lot of changes coming up... and I don't feel ready for this one. I kind of hope she waits until her due date to come because that will give me more time to get ready to move and more one-on-two time with Logan and Taylor. They are at such a fun stage right now... I just don't want to miss a single minute of fun with them. Things are about to get really hectic for our family, so I want them to enjoy these last few weeks of normality as much as possible.

On a different note, my 34 weeks appointment was an interesting one. I totally expected to go in, get weighed, listen to the baby's heartbeat, get my belly measured, be asked if I have any questions, and leave. Total time spent at the doctor's office = 15 minutes. But no! When the doctor measured my belly, she said it was only 30 cm. Since babies are supposed to gain most of their weight toward the end of pregnancy, this worried her. She suggested I get a nonstress test and ultrasound done that day. The nonstress test showed that the baby's heartbeat was normal, and I didn't get any contractions in the 20 minutes that I was hooked up to the machine. The ultrasound, however, showed that the baby was really small, barely over 3 lbs. But everything else was normal, including the fluids. When the doctor came in, she said that there was a possibility I would always have small babies. But because she can't assume that is the case, she wants me to get nonstress tests and ultrasounds every week until I deliver. If the baby gets stressed during a nonstress test or the fluids get really low at an ultrasound, then we'll have to go to the hospital and deliver. If everything continues to be normal, then we'll just wait until I go into labor. When I do go into labor, though, I have to go straight to the hospital. No labor at home. No waiting at home.

We got the house!!!

After less than 48 hours of phone calls back and forth to negotiate a good deal, we got the house that we wanted. When Billy and I first walked into this house, he told me, "So, I actually saw this one last weekend, and I could totally see us living in it. It's the best one I've seen so far, and is definitely my #1 choice. But don't let that influence you..." I didn't. But I, too, fell in love with the house. It was built in 2008, is over 1,900 sq. ft., has a nonfinished but full basement, 4 bedrooms, 2-1/2 bathrooms, and a yard and deck. It is everything we were looking for.

House search - part 2

This past weekend, Billy, Logan, Taylor, and I went to Columbus to find a house. Day 1: We made the 10-hour drive in 12 hours, arriving in Columbus at 1:30 a.m. Overall, the boys did well during the drive and went right back to sleep once we got to the hotel room. Day 2: We looked at 2 brand new houses in the morning and approximately 15 older houses in the afternoon. We were lucky the boys fell asleep in the car and got through houses faster by taking turns going in. Occasionally the houses just weren't what we were looking for and only one of us actually went in. Toward the end the boys woke up and we started taking them inside with us. Day 3: We looked at 4 brand new houses built by Dominion in the morning and 6 brand new houses built by MI in the afternoon. Once again the boys fell asleep in the car for part of the visits and we repeated our routine from the previous day. Later that day we went back to look at the 5 houses and an additional 2 that we were interested in. Day 4: We looked at another 10 or so houses and reaffirmed our choices 1-5. Then while the boys were napping, yet again, in the car, Billy went into our realtor's office to sign some papers and make an offer on our first choice house. Day 5: We made the 10-hour drive home in 11 hours, arriving in Des Moines around 7:30 p.m., which gave Logan and Taylor some much needed time to play and walk around the apartment before going to sleep. The drive back did not go as smoothly as the drive to Columbus, but hey, I was just as sick of being in the car as the boys were, so I completely understood Logan's meltdown in the last hour. The last 5 days were very long, which made me very thankful for Billy's trip to Columbus the previous weekend. It definitely narrowed down our search and made it more effective by letting our realtor know exactly what we were looking for. We were very happy with the houses we saw and could see ourselves living in at least 5 of them. Note on Taylor: He wiggles A LOT in bed! That kid moves non-stop for 10 minutes before he finds a good spot! Then after 30 minutes, it starts all over! Needless to say, Billy and I did not sleep well for 4 nights! One of the nights, Billy and I were discussing our choices while Logan and Taylor were getting ready to fall asleep, when Taylor rolled over toward Billy and gently put his finger over his mouth, then he turned over to me and gently put his finger over my mouth. It was the cutest (and funniest) way to tell us to be quiet.

Pregnancy Weeks 30-32

Week 30 How I'm feeling: I run out of breath really fast (which makes me admire those girls who can work out all the way to the end of their pregnancies); I don't sleep well anymore (I get uncomfortable and continue to snore); and I started feeling nauseous again with certain smells (like when I have to pick up poop from the bath tub - thanks, boys).

Some days, this is how I feel...

Week 32:

How I'm feeling: This little girl is getting stronger every day. Her kicks are so strong that she sometimes makes me say Ouch out loud. I am also getting a lot fatter with this pregnancy than with the previous. With my first pregnancy, I actually had not realized I had gained much weight until I tried on a pair of capris that couldn't even make it past my knees. With this pregnancy, there is no denying that I have gained a ton of weight, especially in my now-cottage-cheesy legs.

This is what I looked like at 32 weeks pregnant with Logan and Taylor.