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.

Logan & Taylor are 20 months

I feel like Logan and Taylor have changed so much this last month or so. They are learning new things (good and bad) every day and trying new things (good and bad) all the time. My favorite time of the day is when they watch short movies at bedtime while drinking some milk and cuddling with mommy. They are so cute, sweet, and quiet during that time. I love it!

This month, Logan has gotten really good at sharing. Of course that doesn't mean he does it all the time, but most of the time he doesn't mind letting Taylor play with "his" toys or eat "his" food. He continues to improve verbally and says an average of 25 words, his favorite words are "baby" and "shoes." He also likes to say Hi to everyone he meets. I love the way he says it, it's super cute. He also says "shiz!," which I am totally to blame for. He even uses it in the right circumstances, like when he drops something on the ground or spills food. He is very active - he loves to jump, kick, and run. Although we don't get a lot of practice with stairs, he has learned to go up without using his hands, a couple of steps at a time. He still needs some assistance going down if he doesn't do it on his belly. He now recognizes that my belly is getting bigger and will sometimes softly rub his cheek on it and say "baby." On the bad side, he has started to drink from his sippy cup and then spit out the water. Then he taught Taylor how to do it. Bathtime has also been testing my patience because Logan loves to touch the knobs, stand in the tub, splash water everywhere, and throw toys out. I have had to pick my battles and let go of the last two because at least they're not hurting anyone. But Logan is a super sweet and cuddly boy, especially with his daddy lately. And he has the cutest look when he has his head down and looks up. Billy says he got that look from me =) Logan softens my heart every day by doing the cutest and sweetest things.

This month, Taylor has also gotten better at sharing. Of course he still occasionally gets mad when Logan randomly takes toys from him, but overall he doesn't mind as much as he used to. He still doesn't say much, but he is verbal, somewhat. He does talk more now than before, which makes me very happy. This month, he said "kick" as he kicked the ball, and that was not an accident. He also says "zebra", "teeth", "tongue", and another few words, but they are hard to figure out. Billy and I are probably the only ones to understand what he is actually trying to say. Just like Logan, Taylor loves to jump, kick, and run. Several times a day, he gets cabin fever, grabs his coat and shoes, and brings them over to me. Once outside, he explores everything out there. Although we don't get a lot of practice with stairs, he has learned to go up and down the stairs with some assistance. He also enjoys walking around the living room with a blanket over his head, blind-sighted. He is really funny - when he sees Logan doing something he's not supposed to do, he goes over to him and talks to him with his finger in his face, as if he was telling him to stop misbehaving, but he does it very calmly and patiently. On the bad side, he has started to drink from his sippy cup and then spit out the water, just as Logan showed him. Bathtime has also been testing my patience because Taylor loves to touch the knobs, stand in the tub, splash water everywhere, and throw toys out. I have had to pick my battles and let go of the last two because at least they're not hurting anyone. Taylor is such a sweet boy with a smile that would make anyone smile, even the crankiest person, which is me on some days.

Packing

Yeah yeah yeah, I know... We still have 2 whole months before the move. But I am the organizer. And I know that as weeks go by, I will feel really uncomfortable and tired. So I figured I'd start putting everything we are not using on a regular basis in boxes. I am so glad we have a storage unit in the basement. It has allowed us to keep all those things that Logan and Taylor have out-grown so that we can use them again with future children. These last 2 weeks, it got a make-over with some extra boxes of random stuff. The boys' closet also got a make-over with boxes of clothes and kitchen stuff. So that has been my project these last couple of weeks, and it will continue to be for the next 2 months. Wish me luck!

House search - part 1

This weekend, Billy made the 10-hour drive to Columbus, Ohio, to look at houses. We're looking for a (brand new or older) house that has at least 3 bedrooms, a yard, an updated kitchen, and carpet in the living room and bedrooms. So far, it looks like we would probably live in Hilliard or Galloway, and possibly Dublin or Grove City. Billy was able to work with an agent to narrow down our search, so that when we all drive down next weekend, we will only be looking at those houses that really interest us. I am so lucky to have a husband that has the same taste as I do and knows exactly that it is that I want in a house. Still, he wants me to look at the houses in person before purchasing one. Honestly, I would trust him to make the best decision on his own, but it will be kind of fun to go look at houses together, I think. I just hope the boys behave...

We have a plan!

After multiple "conference calls" with my mom, dad, brother, and sister-in-law, and after working around some scheduling issues, we finally came up with a plan.

Friday, June 10: My brother, Frederic, will fly in from Baltmore. Then, hopefully with some help from ward members, we will load up the truck and clean up the apartment. It is really important for us to get help because I will be recovering from having a baby, and perhaps even recovering from a c-section, so I probably won't be much help. It looks like I'll also have to let go of my OCD for a while and be okay with shoes being in the same box as books...
Saturday, June 11: Frederic will leave early in the morning and drive the moving truck, which will also be pulling Billy's car, to Columbus. Billy, all 3 kiddos, and I will leave early in the morning to Columbus, OH, making frequent stops to eat and stretch out everyone's legs. I figured that with Frederic driving slowly and with our multiple stops, we'd probably get to our destination around the same time, which should hopefully be in the early evening. My mom and sister-in-law, Marie, will have made the drive from Baltimore, MD, to Columbus, OH, and will meet us there. With their help as well as help from ward members, we will unload the truck.
Sunday, June 12 - Saturday, June 18: Fred, Marie, and mom will stay to help organize everything in the new house and entertain Logan and Taylor while I take care of the new baby.
Friday, June 17: Billy will start his orientation at Ohio State. It's going to be hard and time-consuming, and from that time on, we probably will not be seeing him much.
Saturday, June 18: Frederic and Marie will start driving back to Baltimore. My mom will stay for another week or so. And my dad will arrive that day.
Sunday, June 19 - Thursday, June 23: Mom and dad will stay and continue to organize everything in the house and play with Logan and Taylor while I get used again to not sleeping much at night.
Friday, June 24: We will be on our own! Billy will be working his butt off and I will be taking care of the 3 kiddos while trying to sleep whenever I can. If we can survive THIS, we can survive ANYTHING!

I am so grateful for my family and their infinite support. They really don't have to take time off their busy lives to help us, but they are doing it anyway, and that means a lot to us.