Amy and Barry

First Haircut

2012-02-08T08:38:00.005-07:00

We had our doubts the day would ever come, the day Mya would "need" a haircut. I say "need" because it took a while for Barry and I to agree on deciding to cut it. Mya still doesn't have much hair, but she had a mullet and it was driving me bananas! Cutting it seemed so sad when we've waited so long for her to have hair, but a mullet isn't a good look on anyone, so off it went!

She did amazingly well with the cut and didn't seem to be bothered by it at all. Her head was on a constant swivel, which was an added challenge, but overall I was impressed with her patience. I didn't cut the front or sides at all, just the mullet so it was a pretty quick process. Barry says people are going to call her a boy even more now. Everyone already calls her a boy, at least now they'll think she's a boy with a cute haircut. :)

Before

During

"Hey mom, whatcha doin' back there?"

After

Those hairs that look slightly longer on the right side, I trimmed up a little later after these pictures were taken.

So happy to be mullet free!

Horseback Riding

2012-02-08T08:26:00.004-07:00

Mya's friend Finn turned two and for his party the kids got to go horseback riding! Despite the wind, cold, and sun in our eyes, Mya had a grin on her face nearly the whole time. She thought the entire experience was one of the most fun things she'd ever done (and it probably was). When it was time to go back to Finn's house for dinner and cake, we had to strap a screaming Mya into her car seat who cried "Neigh" the whole way there.

The goats were also a big hit since they followed us around sort of like dogs and let us pet them.

Mya got to ride the miniature horse all by herself! Every time I asked her if she was ready to be done, she'd turn away from me and say "No! No! No!"

The Littlest Cookie Monster

2012-02-01T22:21:00.004-07:00

I've posted previously about the cookie monster in our home (Barry) and then right after about the real cookie monster (me). It's not all that surprising we created nothing short of the littlest cookie monster. :)

Nearly everyday I'll ask Mya what she wants for lunch and EVERY time her response is "Cookies." I have no idea how she came up with this. I've never let her have cookies for lunch (or any other meal), but the answer never changes. I ask everyday in anticipation of the response and it makes me giggle each time.

Needless to say, she was pretty excited when I told her she could help me make cookies one evening. We didn't have a lot of time and Barry purchased some cookie dough while Mya and I were in Ohio that was still lingering unopened in the fridge. I had my doubts when it said "Chocolate Chip Flavored" on the label. Flavored?! My suspicions were confirmed, both the dough and cookies were edible, but barely.

A lot of the time when Mya is going to "help" me in the kitchen, I'll bring the necessary supplies to the floor since it's safer than bringing her to the counter. I pulled out the cookie sheet and then set the temperature on the oven. When I turned to ask her if she was ready, I found this.

Every time I put some dough down on the tray, she'd immediately pick up the ball and want to take a bite (can't say I blame her given my cookie dough addiction). Eventually, we got all the dough on the cookie sheet and into the oven.

She didn't love the waiting part. She's also nearly tall enough to open the oven on her own - that's going to be a sad, scary day!

It Takes Two

2012-01-27T22:15:00.004-07:00

We did something I don't think we've ever done...we splurged on a toy Mya LOVED. How did I know she loved it you ask? Her friend has the same toy and anytime we would play at his house, Mya and this toy were inseparable. We debated if Mya really "needed" the toy since she already has a riding toy. I finally justified it as a good investment since kids love riding toys even when they're a little older than she is now and I thought it would be nice to have two for when Mya has friends over. Fortunately, Barry went along with my reasoning falling perfectly into my plan. Now the proud owners of two riding toys, I think he may be catching on to my ulterior motive. :)

Joy in the Journey

2012-01-24T14:40:00.002-07:00

Somedays in Utah are harder than others. These hard days come more frequently after any period of time with either of our families in Ohio or Oregon. Being so far away from so many of the people you love isn't easy. However, until Barry finishes school, Utah is our home and we try to make the most of it. I'll give myself the benefit of the doubt and say about 98% of the time, (ok, maybe more like 92%), I have a positive attitude about where we are and what we're doing, but that doesn't make being away from family and having Barry in school full time any easier. I find myself wishing the time to go quickly, but then feel bad realizing it also means I'm wishing Mya to grow faster than I want her to.

I know that someday, probably all too soon, I'll look back at the time I was trying to entertain Mya all day long in a home the size of a shoebox, Barry was constantly busy with school, and we both worked part time jobs and wish it could be "simple" like that again. After all, it's about finding joy in the journey and I don't ever want to forget the things that make this stage of our lives so much fun!

- Mya is one. I am convinced nothing is more entertaining than having your own one year old.

- Our schedules have all kinds of flexibility. We visit family over the holidays much longer than anyone with a full time job could.

- Mya and I sometimes get to be with Barry during the day and not just in the evenings. I'm confident this is spoiling us and we're REALLY going to miss it when he finishes school and has a full time job.

- We can be spontaneous. More than once, we have made spur of the moment trips to the zoo, aquarium, and even Oregon!

- Our Utah friends are amazing.

- While our home is very small, we don't have to shovel our own snow, mow our own grass, or even take care of our pool.

And once I consider all of that, the hard days don't seem quite as hard. :)

Christmas Catch Up

2012-01-19T14:16:00.011-07:00

Time to play catch up! I've definitely gotten behind in my blogging, but we've only been back from Ohio for a few days and I just couldn't bring myself to spend any of our precious time there working on the blog. We were all there for about two and a half weeks and then when Barry realized how busy the first week of his semester was going to be, Mya and I extended our trip and stayed for a total of four weeks! Being away from Barry wasn't easy, but we had a ton of fun and it was hard to say good bye to Ohio and everyone there we love after such a great visit!

Knowing we'd be in Ohio for Christmas, we started some of the festivities in Utah early. We took Mya to see the Nutcracker on Ice, which she LOVED (for the first hour anyway). She was completely and totally mesmerized by all the jumping and spinning. She also loved all the clapping.

She helped me get out all of our Christmas cards this year as well. It's quite nice having your own envelope licker!

My mother-in-law warned me this would likely be the "box year" and not to get discouraged if Mya was happier with the boxes than the toys that came in them. Looks like she was right.

Because Mya doesn't really understand Christmas yet, we let her open a few presents early to space out the new toy factor. This carriage from Grandma and Papa Shinsel has been a big hit! Here she's taking Minnie for a ride, but most of the time, she's the one trying to ride in it.

Then it was off to Ohio we went! Mya did AMAZING on the plane rides. She refused to sleep, which made for the only day in her life she's ever gone all day without a nap, but even tired she was still happy and excited to see Grandma and Grandpa when we got to Ohio.

Following tradition, my dad and I went to get the Christmas tree the first day we were there. It took us quite a while to find one this year. I'm not sure if he's getting fussier or I am, but it seems to take longer each year to find one we both agree is perfect. :)

"Helping" mom decorate the tree

Our beautiful tree all decorated and ready for Santa to come visit!

One of the best parts of being in Ohio, was the time Mya was able to spend with cousins. This was how she spent most of her time when they were around, surrounded by them. They would follow her, do anything she asked, go anywhere she wanted, and give her any toy she couldn't reach. Much better service than what she's used to from mom and dad!

I wanted to get a picture of our family in front of the tree...Mya didn't.

Such a girly girl!

Christmas Eve jammies

Backed up a little too close to the tree and got poked :)

Mya's big gift this year was her princess castle. Her reaction to it was priceless. She ran into the room full speed when she saw it shouting, "Wook! Wook! Mom, wook!" It has brought countless hours of entertainment and I expect it will bring many more.

Mya continues to love shoes...even if they're not her own!

Reading her new Alaska book from Grandma Shinsel's recent trip there to visit Andy, Amy, Sydney, and new baby Wynn.

It was an unusually warm, dry winter in Ohio this year so we were able to play outside some. This car proved to be a huge hit. Such a huge hit that when we came inside to eat dinner, Mya cried all through dinner and just couldn't seem to get a hold of herself. Grandpa, being a bit of a softy, rushed through his dinner, scooped her up from her high chair, and took her back outside in the dark to let her play in it some more.

Again, surrounded by cousins. These are my brother's kids, which she referred to as "Abby." No matter which one she wanted, he/she was called Abby. We decided of all of their names, Abby's must be the easiest so she just went with that.

I've mentioned before that Mya will dance to any beat including the swish of the washing machine. She was thrilled when she discovered Grandma's washing machine had the same beat and Grandma even let her dance on top of it!

Saying goodbye to Uncle Matt. He and Mya really got to bond having several days together in the same house, normally we don't see him for more than a few minutes at a time.

Mya and Abby. The actual Abby. :)

Quite possibly one of Mya's favorite friends in Ohio, Coco the dog. Mya LOVES dogs and Coco really seemed to love her too. We were lucky enough to see Coco and spend the night at her house at the end of our trip since Mya and I took the non-stop flight from Cincinnati on the way home. Mya was so excited to have Coco to play with, getting her to eat and sleep were nearly impossible while we were there. She also loved taking her for walks and giving her treats. A real highlight of the trip!

One night Grandma was in charge of bubbles for the bath. I couldn't believe how much she dumped in! I tried to tell her it was too much. Mya didn't seem to mind at all. You can't tell very well in the picture, but she has a beard of bubbles here as well.

The last few days we were in Ohio, it finally snowed! It didn't snow much and it was so cold we couldn't stay out for long, but I packed Mya's snow suit all that way and wanted to use it! Much like her mom, Mya is a fan of the snow. Grandpa pulled her all around the yard on her sled and carried her up the hill to sled down multiple times. Her cousins also willingly ran around pulling the sled and held her on their laps for sledding down the bigger part of the hill.

Helping Grandpa shovel the driveway

Right before we were about to go inside, Mya got top heavy and face planted in the snow. While she looks heartbroken here, she actually only cried for a second. Being the good mother I am, rather than reach for her and offer comfort, I naturally reached for my camera to capture the moment instead. :) The real fit came when I insisted she go inside to warm up after this happened!

Like all good things, even our trip to Ohio eventually had to end. It was sad to leave Grandma and Grandpa at the airport and Mya is still asking for them, "Abby," and Coco on a regular basis throughout the days since we've been back. The four hour flight home felt like the longest four hours of my life, but aside from being a bit wiggly, Mya was great!

Mya's reunion with her daddy was one of the sweetest things I've seen. She was standing next to me and as soon as she saw him bend down about 8 feet away from us and hold his arms out, she took off running and wrapped her arms around him shouting "Daddy!" the whole way there. He scooped her up and she giggled the giddiest, happy giggle for the next five minutes saying, "Daddy" over and over again. I think she might have missed him. :) He brought her a Minnie Mouse balloon, which was nearly as big of a hit as he was. We're missing everyone in Ohio lots, but it's good to be home and have our little family together again.

15 Months

2011-12-12T12:54:00.004-07:00

When I typed the title of this post, I put 18 months. Then I realized it wasn't right and Mya just turned 15 months. That pretty much sums up how fast it feels like time is going around here!

She was a champ at her 15 month check up and it wasn't easy for her having remembered where we were and what was coming. She did great and was cooperative for the doctor. She got her last set of vaccines that she'll have to get for quite a while - woo hoo! Mya actually weighs less than she did 3 months ago, but our doctor isn't concerned, she knows Mya is a mover and felt she was over shooting her genetics up until now. :) She's also turned into a GREAT eater so there's even less concern. She weighs 22lbs (38th percentile) and is 30.5 inches tall (53rd percentile).

Mya is one of the busiest toddlers I have ever known. Never is there a dull moment. At each age/stage she gets to, I think to myself, "this one's my favorite." She does so many cute, funny things that we're always laughing with her. I realize she will inevitably keep growing up, but if I could keep her 15 months old forever, here's why I would:

- It does not matter where she is, if she hears music (or the beat of the washing machine swishing), she immediately stops whatever she's doing and dances.

- She calls Barry mom as often (if not more than) she calls him dad.

- She "winks" with both eyes at the same time.

- When she puts her hands up to my face, 95% of the time they smell like cookies.

- When you chase her, she runs as fast as she can in the opposite direction giggling and saying "get you, get you, get you."

- She has a solution for everything. (The other day I told her we could do something when I finished folding the laundry. She immediately pulled every last piece of clothing from the basket, threw it onto the floor, and then asked me for what it was she wanted again. Problem solved.)

- She's fascinated by EVERYTHING. The world is her oyster!

- With help, she can sing all of Happy Birthday, The Itsy Bitsy Spider, and Popcorn Popping on the Apricot Tree. For whatever reason, she HATES Twinkle Twinkle Little Star and shouts "No!" anytime I try to sing it to her. If I keep singing, she'll persist, "No, no, no, no!"

- She thinks it's funny to balance food on her head. I have to agree, I too find it slightly amusing. :)

And probably my single favorite thing about this age...she loves her mom and dad! A pure, unconditional love that never stops. What a sweet blessing she is in our lives!

The food balancing act.

Hair after pig tails. That's right - HAIR!

First time in the snow suit this winter. Can't wait to help her build a snowman!

Happy Birthday

2011-12-10T22:55:00.002-07:00

We celebrated Barry's birthday on the 4th! For about a week leading up to it, I attempted to teach Mya to sing Happy Birthday. Barry was around for one of her practice sessions so we had to fill in with "dear Mya" to not ruin the surprise for his birthday. Unfortunately, one year olds don't always do what you want them to do when you want them to do it and we practiced it enough that come the morning of his birthday, she no longer had any interest in singing it. Good thing he recorded it when she was still being cooperative.

Thanksgiving in Oregon

2011-12-10T22:38:00.004-07:00

I'm so far behind in my posts, it's a little embarrassing. This was our year to spend Thanksgiving in La Grande and we had a great time. I need to make note of our drive there because I'm certain we won't ever get that lucky again...Mya does NOT like her car seat. She will tolerate the car now better than she has in the past, but an hour is usually her limit. The drive to Oregon is about eight. We expected to stop several times and braced ourselves for a long day of travel. Much to our surprise, Mya was a champ! We made one 10 minute stop and that was it! Total travel time was 7 hours and 45 minutes, a record we would have been proud of even in the pre Mya days!

My Sis-in-Law summed up our Oregon Thanksgiving holiday nicely on her blog and in an attempt to get caught up, I'm going to copy and post what she wrote and hope she doesn't mind. :)

Hung out with lots of family.
Ate lots of pie.
Short trip to the Columbia River Temple.
Stomach bug affected all but 3 adults and 3 kids.
Ate more pie!
Girl Party that included Breaking Dawn.

I bought Mya a super cute Thanksgiving shirt...and forgot to pack it. Adding to my agony, I actually bought it on sale after Thanksgiving last year, saved it an entire year, and still forgot to pack it. I was so disappointed, I had a friend send it to me. Due to unfortunate UPS events, it ended up arriving the day after we left. Apparently the Thanksgiving shirt wasn't meant to be, but I still wanted pictures, so here's our little turkey a few days after Thanksgiving and finally in the shirt.

She's pointing to the shirt and saying "Pie!"

Barry still wishes we'd given Mya the middle name Danger. We have yet to convince her chairs are really just for sitting.

Preachy Parenting

2011-11-10T12:49:00.002-07:00

I talk to Mya like she is a grown up most of the time. I explain things to her and assume she's taking in every word making perfect sense of it. In reality, I know that's not the case. None the less, it doesn't stop me from trying to reason things out for her. Today, however, I must have gotten a little too preachy...

I held Mya until she fell asleep for her nap. She immediately woke up and cried when I put her in bed (this almost never happens). Hoping to salvage the nap, I quickly picked her up and held her again. It didn't take long for me to figure out those 5 minutes of sleep was all the nap she thought she needed. I finally let her sit up and put her on my lap facing me. I told her, "You can play for a little bit to get more tired, but you're still going to need a nap. In about a half hour we're going to lay down again because you need to go night night. Do you understand?" She shook her head yes, folded her arms, and said "Amen."

Our Little Pumpkin

2011-10-31T22:39:00.003-06:00

I didn't think anything could ever be cuter than last year's little butterfly, and then there was our little pumpkin. My aunt Leslie gets pumpkins for the kids to carve/paint every year. We opted for the paint, but there's a chance carving would have been less messy! :)

Parenting Fail

2011-10-31T22:32:00.002-06:00

As it turns out, talking about lowering the crib mattress when it seems like it's time isn't just one of those things you should talk about - you actually need to do it. And if you don't, this is what happens...just moments before you walk out the door to take family pictures.

Dancing Machine

2011-10-31T21:55:00.002-06:00

We made a quick trip to La Grande last weekend and one of the nights we were there, Mya stayed with Grandma and Papa so Barry and I could go to Kyle's football game. When we got home, the house was dark. I told Barry to go in quietly because Mya might be sleeping. Ha! We slowly opened the door to find Grandma cuddled up with a pillow, blanket, and binky on the floor, Papa playing music, and Mya dancing in the other room. (A little more like what I actually expected.) I've been wondering where Mya got her rhythm from and now I know...watch Papa, and when he leaves the screen, check out the mirror in the background. You'll see him teaching Mya all her new moves. :)

More Things Barry Says...

2011-10-30T15:15:00.003-06:00

I try to post every funny thing Mya says and does so we won't forget it, but she's not the only one in this house that keeps me laughing. I've posted about funny things Barry has said before, but yesterday he left me speechless with giggles and I didn't want to forget it.

While laying in bed after having stayed up WAY too late, it was time to say a prayer together. Nearly every night before saying this prayer, we'll debate whose turn it is to say it. Barry ALWAYS things it's my turn, so it wasn't any surprise when he instantly said, "I'm pretty sure it's your turn." Determined to have him say it, our conversation went something like this...

Barry: "I'm pretty sure it's your turn to say the prayer."

Me: "No, I'm pretty sure it's your turn because I already said my own bed time prayer, Mya's bed time prayer with her, AND I blessed the pizza we ate earlier, which I'm pretty sure you didn't do."

Barry: "Well, I've had a prayer in my heart all day. I win."

When I finally quit giggling, I said the prayer. I didn't know I'd be living with a comedian when we got married, it's just an added bonus I've come to love along the way! :)

She Sleeps!

2011-10-27T09:50:00.004-06:00

ALL. NIGHT. LONG. With all the blogging I've previously done about the lack of sleep around here, I felt it only fair to share Mya's newest accomplishment...sleeping through the night! I think deep down I always knew the day would come, but on the surface I was starting to have my doubts. I didn't tell anyone about it for days for fear it would go away, but now nearly two weeks into restful nights, I'm ready to share the great news! I thought for sure I'd ruin it all with our trip to Oregon last weekend (more to come on that), being in an unfamiliar place. Much to my surprise, she did better each night and kept the trend going both while we were there and since we've come home.

As you'll see in the picture, she is one crazy sleeper. It's not uncommon to find her at the other end of her bed, with a different blanket, or snuggled up to one of her stuffed animals when I go in to check on her. I continually put blankets on her and she does her best to roll away from them. I just hope she doesn't freeze this winter! Good thing she's got some fleece footy pajamas to grow into just in time for the colder weather.

Catch Up

2011-10-17T11:27:00.006-06:00

I'm afraid if I don't start blogging now, I may never catch up! I need to start back in September when Utah was flooded with Shinsels! Dave, Julie, Drake, and Lincoln all came from North Carolina and Grandma and Papa came from Oregon for the weekend for Julie's brother, Reed's, wedding. Jeff and Jen were wonderful hosts who let the RV park in front of their house and the rest of us stay inside. The kids had a great time playing together and Mya couldn't ever get enough of baby Luke or baby Drake. She'd bend down right next to their faces when they were on the floor and whisper "hi" to them. We're not sure how she decided you have to whisper to babies, but it sure was cute!

On Saturday, we went to the wedding reception where I wanted to get some pictures of Mya with the flowers, but she was more interested in plucking off the petals...and then eating them.

Picking a "flower" for mom

On Sunday, Will and Lincoln had a combined 3rd birthday party. It was so much fun to get together with family and good friends!

Lincoln stood right in front of Barry and said cheese over and over again, but because of the lens Barry had on the camera at the time, he needed to be further away to get a good picture. We told him to go stand by Mya - this is what we got. Turns out he follows directions very well and I'm not sure that much tops Mya's, "I don't really know what's happening here" facial expression.

Every once in a while we just have to contain her by any means available!

Aunt Julie sharing her drink. She's a brave soul, Mya tends to give back more than she takes away!

Mya LOVED to give baby Drake kisses. He looks a little unsure here, but he eventually warmed up to all the love she had to give him.

It was sad to say goodbye to everyone, but we're excited to see them all in Oregon for Thanksgiving!

I've decided Barry is exposed to more germs/disease as a school photographer posing elementary school kids than he ever will be as a nurse! As a result, he got a nasty cold, which he then gave to Mya. After taking such good care of the two of them, I too was rewarded with the cold, so we spent a little over a week just getting everyone better. The weather turned beautiful again right after that though and we were able to go to the zoo one day.

Mya loves to ride on Barry's shoulders constantly leaning over to tell him hi and make sure he knows she's still there. :)

Mya is busy as ever and getting slightly better with her sleeping at night now that she's not sick. Last night, she only woke up once for her binky, but never got out of bed, so I'm counting it as sleeping through the night, woo hoo!!!! I'm not holding my breath it will happen again, but here's to hoping! She loves music and dances, claps, and snaps her fingers to just about anything. Even the washer has enough of a rhythmic beat that we'll catch her standing by it and shaking her booty. :) She is learning how to eat with a fork and to encourage it, I will sometimes sit with her while she eats and cheer her on after each successful bite. Today, I was trying to get some laundry done while she was eating and I kept hearing, "Mom! Yay! Mom! Yay!" and then she'd clap. In addition to all pretty, sparkly things, Mya has also developed a fascination for babies, dogs, birds, helicopters, and the moon. It is so fun to watch her learn new things everyday.

Barry is staying busy with work, school, and clinicals - sometimes all in the same day! We don't get to see him as much as we'd like, but we know it's temporary and appreciate all the hard work he does. Mya gets so excited when he comes home, she usually runs in circles and she cries when he leaves. I have to admit, there are times I want to cry when he leaves too!

I'm doing my best to keep up with a busy little girl and make sure everyone always has clean clothes to wear and food to eat - it's no small task! I purchased a sewing machine and have hemmed my first pair of pants, I was quite proud of myself (even if the hem was a little crooked). I haven't decided what my next project will be, but I'm excited to learn more. I figure I won't be chasing this little girl forever and then I'll need a hobby!

Lastly, today marks two years of wedded bliss! I guess it's true what they say, time flies when you're having fun! :) I love you Barry Jon, so excited I get to spend all my tomorrows with you!

My New Favorite Picture

2011-10-13T08:26:00.001-06:00

Story Time

2011-09-21T11:46:00.002-06:00

Because Mya started taking her morning nap again (Woo Hoo!), the timing hasn't worked out well to go to story time at the library, but today she slept in a little later and the timing worked out just right, so off we went. For the younger kids like Mya, it's actually called "lap time" and is a 20 minute program. As you would expect from the title, the kids sit on their mom's laps and listen to a story...but not my child. Nope, there is no sitting for her. While the other kids were content to look at the book being read in the front of the room from a distance, Mya made multiple attempts to go to the front of the room so she could hold the book herself. When the reader would finish a page, Mya would pick a word from what she'd just read and say it over and over again...loudly. People tend to look at the mom of the child shouting, "Moo, moo, moo!" While the sitting and listening weren't her favorite, she did LOVE the singing and other kids.

When lap time ended, the kids all dispersed throughout the library picking out new books to take home. I let Mya wander for a minute to see if there were any books that would catch her eye. In a matter of seconds she had toddled away from the books, found one of those round stools on wheels, and was pushing it up and down the aisle. Love my busy little girl with an agenda all her own!

Pig Tails and Sleep Deprivation

2011-09-15T09:53:00.004-06:00

I said it wouldn't be long and where there's a will, there's a way! Ok, so maybe they're not substantial pig tails, but they are pig tails! It wasn't easy and took multiple attempts. I had to keep Mya's hands busy with lots of things I wouldn't normally even let her have (there may or may not have been both chocolate and an iPhone involved). The good news is, I gave the pig tails another go again this morning, it took less than 3 minutes, and I got each one on my first try!

After Barry got home (and I'd had a chance to re do the pig tails so they'd stay in a little better), he took some more pictures. Somehow the second round ended up looking a little more like horns than pig tails. What can I say, it's still a work in progress!

Over the course of this past week, Mya has made the transition to one nap...or so I thought. For 5 days straight she has refused her morning nap and taken only a 1 1/2 hr afternoon nap. She literally went from two 1 1/2-2 hr naps to this overnight! The plus side has been that she goes down for both the one nap and bed MUCH easier (most likely because she's exhausted). The bad news is, I'm convinced she's not quite ready for the transition and as a result wakes up multiple times a night from being over tired and gets cranky in both the morning (when she needs to sleep, but won't) and again early in the evening. So after spending days wallowing in self pity over the pre mature loss of half my free time in a day and dealing with a cranky baby, today she falls asleep for a morning nap with no fuss at all allowing me to write this blog post!

I think one of the many things I'm supposed to learn from Mya is how to be flexible. I've made progress, but I still love to plan. I like schedules, structure, and predictability. For example, today I "planned" on taking Mya to her first story time at the library since she was no longer sleeping in the morning. So much for that! Mya has taught me when it comes to her, the one thing I can always plan on, is that she doesn't conform to plans! So while we're all a little sleep deprived this week, perhaps we'll be sleeping through the night next week. A girl can dream, right? :)

Mya Turns 1

2011-09-08T10:56:00.007-06:00

The shirt pretty much says it all...

I think my delay in creating this post is my denial that somehow my baby is now a walking, talking one year old! Her birthday party was an amazing success, Mya is one loved little girl! We had family and friends celebrate with us, even Grandma all the way from Ohio!

Since our place is pretty small, we used the club house where we live for the party and it turned out great!

Brad and Uncle Matt grilled hamburgers and hot dogs (once the grill started working) and they were delicious!

I decided to make Mya's birthday cake myself. Not being a great baker, this was a little risky, but turned out a success. Her cake was a three tiered pink lemonade ice cream cake with pink whipped cream icing and some pearl sprinkles to give it that extra girly look. :) Mya had her own mini version of the actual cake all to herself, which was for the best because I don't think anyone wanted to share the one she ate!

Where's the cake?

A little unsure why everyone was singing to her...

No longer unsure and now loving the attention!

She kept putting her fingers on the cake and then looking at us as if to see if she would get in trouble for it.

Since touching it didn't get her in trouble, she decided to further put it to the test by sticking her finger in it.

Then finally, she got the hang of it!

And LOVED it!

Cleaning up the leftovers.

The larger version of the same cake for everyone else.

The party ended with swimming, Mya's favorite!

It still doesn't seem real that an entire year has gone by! Mya is a happy, healthy, BUSY little girl and we just can't ever seem to get enough of her! The day after her birthday she went to the doctor for her one year check up and everything was great! She now weighs 22 1/2 lbs (75th percentile) and is almost 29 in tall (39th percentile). Her head is still up there in size ranking in the 93rd percentile!

Mya has added several words to her vocabulary and even the things she can't say, she still understands. She said her first sentence on her birthday, "Up please." I am amazed by how much we can tell her and she'll do it. The other day Barry told her to throw away her diaper and she picked it up and marched right over to the trash can with it, we had no idea she could do that, but are now capitalizing on this new skill! :)

She's also getting more creative with her problem solving skills. If she wants something out of her reach, rather than ask for it, she'll simply take matters into her own hands. Case in point, this morning there was a fuzzy blanket on the couch she wanted. Next thing we knew, her lion she can walk behind was in front of the couch, she climbed to its back where she stood for a second and then used its head as a step to further boost her to the couch where she sat with the blanket looking at us clapping and saying yay. We've got our work cut out for us I'm afraid. It's a REALLY good thing she's cute!

1 Year Photos

2011-09-08T10:45:00.004-06:00

Barry, Mya, and I spent a day in the photo studio (yes, it took pretty much the whole day - a nap was included) to get these treasures. And they are just that to me, treasures. Barry is so talented and I am always amazed at the pictures he gets of our sweet girl. She started walking everywhere the day before we took these, so holding still or posing her was simply out of the question. Nearly every picture we took was mid movement because she wouldn't hold still for anything!

The First Year

2011-09-02T08:16:00.004-06:00

August 31, 2011

Mya Renee,

It seems impossible you're already one! Everyone always says the time flies and now I know it really does. We love you so much and can't imagine life without you. Daddy and I prayed you'd come into our lives when the time was right, but had no idea you'd come as soon as you did! We wouldn't have it any other way though and love you being a part of our little family. You bring a light and a joy to our home and lives that simply wasn't there before.

I can remember the day we brought you home from the hospital, laying you in your bouncy seat on the floor, and just staring in amazement as you curled your little hands by your face sleeping and looking so perfect. Now, you're a walking, talking little person who only slows down to sleep! It's been amazing to witness everything you've learned in the year. You are a sweet, strong willed little girl with unparalleled determination. You cry when you can't figure something out or don't get your way, but we just think it's cute.

It's true that having a child is allowing your heart to walk around outside your body. We love you more than you can even understand right now and always will. We thought that life was fun even before you came along, but now we realize that real fun is having you do the fun things with us. You give us an excuse to go places we haven't been since we were kids, like the zoo and aquarium (your favorite) and see it all over again from a new perspective.

I'm not sure which one of us has learned more this first year, as you have taught me so much about being a mom. Being your mom is tiring, difficult, and trying on my patience almost daily, BUT it is awesome! There is NOTHING in this world I'd rather do than spend my days with you! Your giggle is my favorite sound and you make us laugh daily with all the funny things you do. You are my best little buddy and I miss you anytime we're not together. Please don't grow up too fast!

Happy Birthday sweet Baby Girl, we love you!

Mom & Dad

Life As We Know It...

2011-08-24T14:15:00.004-06:00

...will never be the same!

This video was taken last Friday - the day Mya decided crawling was no longer for her. If you're wondering why it's so short, it's because about the time Mya figured out she could walk as far as she wanted, she was already trying to run! I've heard a lot of people say when they first start to walk, it slows them down a little because they can't walk quite as fast as they could crawl. Not this little girl! She is getting fast already and keeping up with her is no small task.

Occasionally, I'll let things slide for just a few minutes in order to finish something I'm trying to do as long as I can see her and know she's safe...

This, however, I did not realize was happening...

I told her I needed to put on my swimming suit and we'd go play in the pool. As I came out of my room ready to go, she came toddling out of the bathroom. It was dark in there and I knew I'd left the toilet seat down, so I didn't think much of it. When I went to change clothes after swimming, I found this. Guess she had a different 'pool' in mind!

Mya is definitely a handful! I admire people with more than one child, I'm not sure I'll ever be ready for that! She is a continual test of my patience, which I am grateful for as it allows me to grow and learn by being her mom. At times, I'm certain I've reached my limit, but then she treats me to two hours of this and I feel my patience meter refill. :)

Why Barry is Going to be the Nurse

2011-08-13T16:18:00.005-06:00

Mya had quite possibly her worst fall to date yesterday. I felt like a complete failure as her mother. We were playing on the floor. I was laying down and she was walking back and forth all around me. She lost her balance and fell landing on the edge of the coffee table where our TV is. She's done this before, so I wasn't too alarmed, but she seemed more upset than usual. Upon further examination, I realized the poor thing had landed right on her ear! :(

There was nothing I could do to catch her, or I would have. The more swollen and blue it got, the worse I felt. Even today it looks awful, but I refuse to take a picture of the actual injury because I don't want to remember it! I wanted to help the swelling go down, but there wasn't a chance she was going to sit still with ice on her ear, so I did what any desperate mom would do...I wrapped an ace bandage around her head to hold the ice (wrapped in a towel) in place. She wasn't a huge fan of the idea, but once I had it in place, she was a trooper to wear it what I felt was an adequate amount of time.

When I finished my handy work, I took a long look at it and realized it's a good thing Barry's the one who's going to be a nurse!

Little Miss Mischief

2011-08-11T10:47:00.008-06:00

Before Mya could crawl, I remember thinking how much easier life would be when she could just follow me around instead of whine at me leaving wanting to follow, but not being able to. Little did I know, once she was mobile instead of following my around, she'd wait patiently for me to get distracted and then quickly head in the opposite direction on some sort of seek and destroy mission!

She's definitely reached the stage of silence meaning she's up to no good. It was after putting in a load of laundry and realizing she was no longer playing with toys where I left here, and completely silent wherever she was, that I came across this...apparently she can open drawers now.

She loves to climb and get into EVERYTHING. I thought boys were the ones who climbed everything, but my mom informed me I was the biggest climber of all of her kids, oh boy, here we go!

Her efforts aren't always quite as successful as she plans and occasionally she requires some back up.

We love watching her personality emerge as she gets older. She LOVES all pretty things. Anything sparkly, shiny, or girly in any way. She also loves music and dancing to it. She does some of the sweetest...and strangest things, but we love it all! She is a pro at blowing kisses now and is quite the little flirt when she sees boys in the store, at the pool, etc. Speaking of the pool, Mya can walk from one side of the baby pool to the other all by herself now. Not only does she love going underwater, but she will put her face in all on her own and blow bubbles! She definitely has Barry's love of water and swimming skills (I still hold my nose to go under water :)). I love how loving she is and think it accounts for quite a bit of her sweetness. While Barry and I were eating dinner last night, she was standing in between us eating snacks of her own off the ottoman. I noticed she had quit eating and seemed to be concentrating. I watched her without letting her know I was paying attention and finally realized what she was up to. She was carefully picking up each one of her snacks and tucking them into the cargo pocket on the side of Barry's shorts. Such a sweet girl to make sure her daddy would have a snack later!

We've also entered the phase of bumps and bruises as Mya is learning to walk. She can go about 8 feet before she loses her balance. She can walk around the entire house behind her lion though, she just gets frustrated when she runs into a wall or other object, as she hasn't quite mastered turns yet. The furthest distance she'll walk on any given day is from wherever she is to wherever she has to go to get her daddy when he comes home from work - she is SUCH a daddy's girl! It is cute to watch how excited she gets to see him come home. If he is home, he doesn't get a break. Even if he's in the bathroom, she sits outside pounding on the door saying, "da, da, da" until he comes out. I fear it's only a matter of time before she asks me if I can go to work so daddy can stay home and play with her!

I still can't believe Mya will turn 1 this month! She is a curious, determined little girl who knows just what she wants! As long as things go her way, she is happy. When they don't...well...I'll let the video speak for itself. :) And in case you're wondering about the sound she's making as she walks along, that's her newest animal noise, the elephant.

Oregon Adventure

2011-07-29T09:51:00.013-06:00

Last Friday morning Barry and I were laying in bed before he had to get up for work discussing our plans for the next few days. He had the upcoming week off of school and didn't have to work until Thursday. We decided to go to La Grande. I packed everything up that day and we left as soon as he got home from work. It was SUCH a fun trip! After everyone was up Saturday morning, we sat there in pajamas talking about what we should do. We've talked about going to Portland a few different times, but it's never happened. Well, we decided we'd go on an adventure in "Papa's bus." Within an hour we were all packed up and on our way, we just didn't know to where! Mya was an awesome little traveler considering all of her naps for 3 days were in the car seat and she shared a bed with me at night.

This is the life!

We headed towards Portland and spent our first night there. The next day we went to Camping World to get a part for Papa's bus where Mama Shinsel and I walked around the lot checking out all the fancy RVs. The guys were too embarrassed to come "shopping" with us, but we had a great time. As we were coming out of one of the RVs, two other men were walking on. They apologized not knowing we were there. Maxine turned to them as we headed down the stairs saying, "It's ok, we've decided not to buy this one, you go ahead." They probably thought we were nuts, but we just went on our way giggling.

Mya loved to play with Grandma's iPad. She was loving the movie that was on it and for some reason kept wanting to give it kisses. So sweet!

We spent our first night in the parking lot of a Wal Mart in Portland. It was quiet, safe, and fun! In the morning we were able to walk into the store and buy all of our breakfast food, quite the convenience!

This was Mya's favorite "perch" in Papa's bus. She constantly wanted to climb here. It's possible you had to be there to really see the humor in this story, but I think it was the funniest moment of our whole trip... I was getting Mya changed and dressed for the day when she got away from me. She immediately headed for her "perch" and started climbing. We were all giggling and admiring her cute, chubbiness when I noticed the cute, chubby cheeks were starting to spread apart. I could see what was coming. "She's pooping, she's pooping!" I shouted. Not sure exactly what to do, I immediately reached my hand up, grabbed each cheek, and pinched them together until Barry could get me a diaper. The good news is, it worked! The bad news is, I may never leave down the time I held Mya's cheeks together to keep her from pooping on the floor!

Mya LOVED anything underwater at the zoo. Here she is watching the penguins. We were there when they fed them, which made it even more fun to watch.

It was a perfect day for snow cones. Mya decided she was a fan as you'll notice she's pulling Grandma's arm down to get another bite.

The snow cones gave us all purple tongues and lips :)

We pushed Mya passed nap time at the zoo and she was one tired girl when we made it back to Papa's bus.

After leaving the zoo, we decided to head to the coast and I'm so glad we did! It was Mya's first trip to the beach and she LOVED it! In fact, it was very difficult to get pictures of her looking at the camera because she was so amazed by the sand.

I thought it would be nice to get a family picture of us on the beach. While we did get one that turned out ok, I like this one even better because it's a more accurate representation of the moment. Mya was being super squirmy and not exactly cooperative, so I suggested Barry put her on his shoulders, which she normally loves. If you make the picture bigger, you'll be able to see that while Barry and I are smiling, Mya is simultaneously pulling Barry's hat off his head and kicking me in the face. Such a little stinker!

After a while in the sand, we took Mya down to the ocean. I let her put her feet in it and she immediately wanted to be down and in the water. I gave up trying to only have her feet wet and plopped her down in it. The water there is freezing, so about the time my feet started going numb from standing next to her, I made her get out.

Honestly, I was surprised it took her this long to start eating the sand...

This is what you get when the baby you let play in the water wants to be back in the sand. So you have to do this next...

It really was nice there was a shower right by the beach, but it wasn't ideal we were fully clothed. We were two wet, sandy girls leaving there!

After leaving the coast, we made one final stop at Multnomah Falls on the way home. Sadly, Mya wasn't as impressed by the waterfall as we had hoped.

The fun didn't stop after we arrived back in La Grande. Grandma and Papa's backyard is a pretty cool place to be!

Mya wanted to go down the slide again and again and again!

The hardest part of any trip to visit family is always the coming home part. Barry has to face the reality of school and work again and Mya is stuck with boring, old mom all day. We've only been home a day and we're ready to go back! Thanks to Grandma and Papa for taking us on such a fun adventure!

Proof

2011-07-14T16:19:00.003-06:00

Mya may look just like her daddy, but she takes after me in a lot of ways. Here's the proof...

As most of you know, I'm a little bit of a neat freak. I thrive on organization and cleanliness (despite the fact that since Mya came along, our house is no longer evidence of this). I don't normally leave dirty diapers laying around, but we've had a rough few days with teething and these slipped by me. It wasn't until Mya was down for her nap that I found this wonderful little surprise. She watched me put the sunscreen back in the basket today and then apparently decided to do some picking up of her own. While it's only the clean diapers I keep in this basket, I feel like her intentions were good. A girl after my own heart!

Peeping Tom

2011-07-05T16:49:00.004-06:00

Mya LOVES the bath/shower. Even if it's not for her, the second she hears the water running, she turbo speed crawls to the bathroom. Her favorite thing to do is stand up on the side of the tub and throw in each one of her toys, the shampoo, soap, lotion - basically, anything she can get a hold of and toss in there. I guess she figures if she needs all of those things for her bath, Barry and I must need them for our shower. I'm sure she's only trying to help. :)

This morning, I was making Barry's lunch while he got ready for work. It wasn't long before I heard him saying, "Be careful standing there, daddy can't catch you." At that moment, I knew where she'd wandered off to. I made his lunch as quick as I could and went to retrieve her. This is what I found.

Lions and Tigers and Bears

2011-07-05T09:59:00.005-06:00

After several miserable teething days (for everyone), we decided to do something fun on the holiday and went to the zoo! We didn't see everything this trip because we purchased a zoo pass and plan to go back again soon. Mya loved it even more than we expected, although her favorite things seemed to be the kids everywhere (each one of which she said 'hi' to) and the birds flying all over the place, so I guess really we could have just gone to the playground!

My two favorite people :)

This will probably sound crazy, but I think the giraffes might be my favorite! They're not loud or scary, their area of the zoo doesn't smell bad, and they really are fascinating to watch up close.

It wouldn't be a trip to the zoo without an ice cream cone, which Mya isn't really supposed to have, but how do you say no to this face?!

Mom's Little Helper

2011-06-30T14:11:00.004-06:00

With Mya cutting two more teeth and entering the separation anxiety phase, we do pretty much everything together. Honestly, I don't mind. I've actually gotten to the point where I'm more concerned when she's not attached to my leg because I don't know what she's getting into! She is my best little buddy. She laughs at all my jokes and shares her Gerber Graduates cheese puffs with me, what more could I ask for?!

Mya is a VERY busy girl! If she's holding still, it's because she's asleep. Because I have things I need to get done around the house, I get creative with ways to contain her. She really is a great little helper.

I might or might not have gotten her a little bit stuck while taking this picture. Not long enough that either of us panicked, but I did have time to think, "Hmm, how will I explain this to Barry?"

Taking the clothes out of the dryer is definitely her favorite part of doing the laundry.

I take it back, she probably loves folding even more. If I don't have her in a basket, she's crawling around destroying neatly folded piles of clothes and giggling!

Her hair got a little messed up during her nap and with the light behind her just right, you can actually see it in this picture!

Mya and I go to the pool nearly everyday because we both love it, but today it was rainy so I had to come up with something fun for us to do inside. I decided we'd make cookies. I know they say you're not supposed to put the Bumbo seat on any elevated surface, but I say why didn't I do it sooner?! (For anyone who's concerned, she was not near any edges or ever out of my arm's reach.) She was so happy to sit there and watch me mix things together. She helped hold measuring cups, M&Ms, and the spatula. When we finished, I introduced her to the best part of making cookies, eating the dough!

That little tongue is working hard...and it had to, knowing that cookie dough wouldn't be a great snack for a baby, the beaters were pre-licked by yours truly leaving just enough to keep her interested. :)

And just like her mom, she LOVES it!

Happy Father's Day

2011-06-27T15:01:00.004-06:00

I know we're a little late to the party, but it wasn't until Father's Day came and went and everyone started posting pictures that I realized it would have been nice to take pictures of Barry and Mya together. Once they were dressed and ready for church yesterday, I quickly took a few pictures and we'll just pretend they were from Father's Day a week earlier. Being our resident photographer, Barry doesn't get much face time on the blog and I certainly didn't want to deprive him of it!

Mya is in the "Hi" phase. It's a real crowd pleaser. Every time Barry or I walk into the room, we're greeted with an enthusiastic, "Hi!" She says it to every stranger she sees in a store, every kid at the pool, anytime one of us is talking on the phone, etc. Also among her favorites lately, are "Hey" and "No." We had a rough day the other day and by the end of it, she was just crawling around the living room shaking her head and saying no to everything in the room. She's standing on her own now for about 30 seconds and can cruise along the furniture like a pro. I don't think it will be long before she's walking. She still hates sleep, gets into EVERYTHING, and never slows down, but she is a ton of fun and I can't imagine our lives without her!

In other exciting news, we got a new nephew and Mya got a new cousin! Dave, Julie, and Lincoln welcomed their new addition, Drake Harrison, on June 15th. We've been living vicariously through pictures of him and can't wait to see him in person sometime. He has the sweetest little face and I just want to kiss it!

Water Baby

2011-06-18T14:17:00.004-06:00

Mya is out little water baby! She LOVES to go swimming. I try to keep her in her float, but when she gets tired of that I take her out and she spends the whole time trying to dive in the water head first. Silly girl. She's a little more fearless than I'd like. I would attempt to explain her joy at the pool, but the pictures pretty well speak for themselves. Sorry for the overload, but with a face that cute, it's hard to pick just one and Grandmas love pictures! :)

Lazy Days and Sundays

2011-06-10T10:57:00.007-06:00

Last Sunday we went to the botanical gardens they have re done at BYU with our friends the Ballz. There is a nice walking trail with a little creek that has waterfalls all along the path. It is beautiful and the kids loved it.

Mya with her cute friend Finn. She just loves him and wanted to hold his hand the whole time.

The water was chilly, but Mya didn't care, she loved the chance to splash her feet in it.

Taking a little break for snack time

Later that day, we were able to go to another park with my family after Sunday dinner. The weather was so nice and Mya LOVES to swing and slide!

She loves her uncle Matt every bit as much as she loves to swing!

Harper and Jami swinging

Mason LOVING the swing!

Both Harper and Mya are sliding pros now!

Don't be fooled by her expression, this was her first time sliding so she was a little unsure, but since then she smiles and giggles the whole way down!

It's Just a Phase

2011-06-04T16:24:00.004-06:00

I tell myself that multiple times a day, it's just a phase. Being a mom is so much harder than I ever imagined. It is fun, rewarding, and the best job in the world, but it is HARD! All those times I saw a mother with happy, well groomed, behaving children and thought, "That looks easy enough," I take it back! Nothing about it is easy, but nearly everything about it is awesome!

We took Mya to the pediatrician for her 9 month check up. At just over 21 lbs, she's jumped to the 86th percentile for weight! Her head is still up there in the 90th percentile, and her 27 in height has dropped her to the 30th percentile. I was explaining to the doctor the various issues we've had with Mya eating and sleeping. After a few minutes of listening she smiled and said Mya displays all the characteristics of the 'strong willed' child. I'm sure this will come as a surprise to most. :) She went on to explain that some children are very easy to parent and content to go with the flow. She then said, "You don't have one of those." The strong willed child does not like to be told no. Every time you say no, she needs to be told yes to an alternative or she'll become frustrated. She needs options so she feels like she's in control of the situation. After giving us some advice and I guess seeing the overwhelmed expression on my face she went on to say, "The good news is, strong willed children turn into wonderful adults and they're typically very bright children! But as far as parenting, just hold on. Prepare to enter survival mode whenever you need to until she's old enough you can reason with her. Remember, you need to let her take the lead because she will resist anything that isn't what she wants."

What does all of this mean? For now, it means Mya doesn't eat what Mya doesn't want to eat, Mya doesn't sleep when Mya doesn't want to sleep, and despite me saying no at least 32 times a day to her climbing on the coffee table, she continues to head straight for the coffee table every time I leave her for 10 seconds.

While we're facing more challenges daily and I find my patience being tested, I don't want to forget the sweet moments within those challenges. One of our issues with sleeping is Mya has learned she can roll over and then crawl all around her crib. She then uses her bumper as a form of ladder and tries her hardest to climb out of the crib. As a result, she has to be asleep or VERY close to asleep before we lay her down in it. In order to accomplish this, we lay down with her on our bed where we can hold her in place until she falls asleep. She rarely puts up a fight using this method and there are no tears involved. I lay there and look at her sweet, little face as she falls asleep, remind myself that this is just a phase, and that someday she'll be all grown up and I'll long for those days when she needed me to lay next to her every time she fell asleep.

I still can't believe Mya is already 9 months old! She is growing and changing so fast it's hard to even keep up with her! She's already gone from crawling to pulling herself up on furniture and trying to walk everywhere. She'll try to repeat nearly everything we say to her. Among her understandable words are dad, mom (although she'll only say it if she's upset), duck, fish, hi, hello, thank you (crazy, I know, but you can understand it!), uh oh, woof (when you talk about what the doggy says) yes, and Mya. She LOVES to go swimming and play outside. Despite my exhaustion at the end of every day, I can't imagine life without our sweet, 'strong willed' baby girl. :)

I'm not sure what this expression is about, but it's an excellent shot of those pearly whites!

Memorial Day Weekend

2011-06-01T15:19:00.006-06:00

I'm sure there is some great reason we are living in Utah far away from both sets of grandparents, but today I just can't imagine what it could possibly be. We went to LaGrande for Memorial Day weekend and the only bad part of the trip was coming home, I just wasn't ready! Having my mom here the first part of May and then being able to go to LaGrande the second part of May is sure making for a lonely first part of June!

Mya was lucky enough to have several of her cousins in town the same weekend we were and loved every second she was able to play with them. I'm not sure how she's ever going to adapt back to having only boring, old mom to play with everyday. Among the weekend's highlights were swimming, a pie crust tutorial, and a BBQ at Brent and Donna's house where Mya was able to check out both the goats and chickens. We can't wait to go and visit again soon!

This was how Mya spent most of the weekend - surrounded by cousins who would do anything to make her smile and laugh :)

We tell Mya to say 'cheese' now and show us her teeth, this is what we get

Now that Mya has been crawling for just over a week, she's decided she's a big girl. She tries to pull herself up on everything, which means a lot of chasing her to save that cute little face from getting smashed into things!

She wasn't too sure about petting the goat at first, but as you can see she's consulting Grandma who assured her it was ok. She didn't really like the way it felt and made a funny face afterward.

Checking out the chickens

Boys will be boys...

Mya and Kaylee opted to do girly things inside with Kami and Jessie while the boys all played outside in the rain and cold. Kaylee loves to brush hair and brought out two brushes from her room for them. I think she may have been a bit disappointed Mya didn't really have any hair to brush!

We're especially going to miss these two. Thanks for such a fun weekend!

It's the Simple Things

2011-05-16T19:48:00.002-06:00

Gas to get to the Park City Outlets $20

Soccer ball at Old Navy $5.50

The joy something as simple as bouncing a ball can bring... Priceless

Springtime Happenings

2011-05-16T17:30:00.005-06:00

Spring has FINALLY made it to Utah! Not every day, but most days now, we're enjoying warmer weather, sunshine, and blue skies. Things have been a little busier than usual and it makes the time seem to go even faster, too fast sometimes.

Barry finished his Spring semester classes and has started his Summer class. That same week the Wright family stopped by to see us en route to San Diego. It was so much fun to have them here even though it was a quick stop. I'm not sure why we didn't take any pictures, but Mya loved seeing all of her cousins and they were all so sweet with her, I sure wish they lived close enough to baby sit! :)

Also that week, my good friend Ashley was sealed to her husband in the Oquirrh Mountain Temple. It is beautiful both inside and out! Barry was sweet enough to stay outside with Mya so I could attend the sealing and he got some great pictures while they waited for me.

Later that evening, we drove to the airport to pick up Grandma! She was here for 10 days, even though it didn't feel nearly that long, and we enjoyed every second! We did lots of fun things including shopping at all of our favorite places (we're teaching Mya to love shopping at a young age). It was great having her here for Mother's day. Having both she and Mya with me made the day extra special. Mya and Barry gave me a sweet card, which included Mya's "signature" with a stamped hand print, roses, and a chocolate pie. I couldn't have asked for a better first Mother's day!

Mya seems to be growing faster than ever! She said her first word a couple of weeks ago, "duck." She's now also saying "hi" and "uh oh" on a consistent basis, but sometimes only gets the "uh" in "uh oh." When we took Grandma to the airport today, she waved good bye to her and nearly every other departing passenger who passed by. I'm not sure they fully appreciated it, but it was super cute. She's still not crawling, but getting closer every day. She gets on all fours, rocks, goes backwards, and can also turn in a circle - it's not going to be long now! Her personality seems to get more animated each day and she always keeps us laughing. We are continually grateful for her and the joy she brings to our little family.

Our Little Easter Bunny

2011-04-26T10:36:00.004-06:00

Ok, I know I'm biased, but I think the cutest Easter Bunny of all this year may have been the one at our house. :)

This was mere seconds before she figured out there was something on her head and that she could, in fact, pull it off - thus the end of the bunny pictures.

Eggs!

We told her Easter was over now, she was less than pleased.

First Teeth

2011-04-25T13:25:00.002-06:00

Well, it happened. Mya got her first teeth last week. The bottom two came in together and it wasn't much fun for anyone involved. They're super cute, but I feel like they make her look more grown up and less like our sweet baby who's growing entirely too fast!

Easter Fun

2011-04-25T10:10:00.005-06:00

Because this was Mya's first Easter, we wanted to make it fun for her. Not that she'll remember it, but we will. I "hid" eggs for her and had a Puff treat inside each one. She loved finding and opening them (especially when she caught on to the treat part).

Getting ready to start our egg hunt

A look of total determination with her eye on the prize

So proud of herself for having found another one

This was about the point she realized each egg had a treat inside

Checking out her gifts from the Easter Bunny

It is very important that all new toys go through a thorough taste test

Apparently both her hands and feet require toys - quite the multi tasker

First Trip to the Park

2011-04-25T09:42:00.004-06:00

A little over a week ago, Utah finally had a warm enough Saturday to take Mya to the park for the first time. The park we went to has a pond with ducks, which she was fascinated by. The swing was also a hit, but she was mostly interested in all of the kids around her.

She LOVED watching the ducks

Barry had a hard time getting Mya to look at the camera. She did, only to give him a "What? You don't have any ducks over there" look.

The REAL Cookie Monster

2011-04-16T20:32:00.004-06:00

I have a confession to make...

When Barry came home from work today he informed me he had counted the cookies mentioned in the previous post - there were 18. He said he took 3 for breakfast today and noticed there were only 4 left when he got home.

That's right, I am responsible for having eaten 11 of the cookies already! They are just so soft, delicious, and full of chocolate. He's right, they really are gourmet. I can't be trusted home alone all day with fresh cookies, the temptation is far too much!

Moral of the story, if Barry and I are coming to your house, hide your cookies, they don't stand a chance.

Cookie Monster

2011-04-15T09:22:00.005-06:00

One of the things I love about Barry is that he really does make me laugh EVERY day.

*Side note: To save money, I've been trying to carefully plan our meals and shop for only those ingredients needed when we go to the store. It saves a ton of money, I've been amazed. Barry knows I do this and has been really good with helping me stick to the budget.*

Barry, however, has a weakness. He LOVES cookies. He loves all cookies (I have yet to find a kind he won't eat), but he really loves the kind from the bakery - the super soft ones that are never greasy (how do they do that?!) with lots of chocolate chunks. Yesterday, he had to work late and I called him on his way home and asked him to stop at WinCo and pick up a loaf of french bread to have with our soup for dinner. The conversation went something like this...

Me: "Hey, can you stop and get a loaf of french bread for us to have with the potato soup?"

Barry: "Sure, is there anything else you need?"

Me: "Yes, actually, I need some wax paper too."

Barry: "Ok, I'll see you in a few minutes."

Barry comes home and sits the bag on the counter. I go to get the french bread from it and find this...

And then this conversation takes place...

Me: "I don't remember asking you to get cookies."

Barry: "Oh, those? They came with the wax paper."

Me: "You know I can make you cookies for much cheaper."

Barry: "Yes, but these are gourmet with lots of chocolate chunks."

Me: "I can make you cookies with lots of chocolate chunks."

Barry: "Actually, I don't think you can because I put your cookie chocolate in that milk shake I made the other night."

I couldn't even be mad, he's just too funny. Having resolved to make the most of the situation, I sat down on the couch with one of the cookies after cleaning up dinner. As I go to take the first bite, Barry says, "You know, I can make you cookies for much cheaper."

Cracks me right up!

I See You

2011-04-10T10:56:00.008-06:00

Mya LOVES to see herself in the mirror. She will look at, talk to, and kiss that cute baby she sees. She has a little fish mirror she can hold onto and loves it. I thought it would be fun to lay her down on the full length mirror and see what she thought of that, it made her day.

We decided that pictures with props were fun and I was pretty sure we could fit Mya in her toy basket. Here's how she felt about it...

Then she decided it would be something fun and new to chew on and was totally ok with it...

I've decided this is my favorite age so far, despite Mya thinking she's a grown up. She has the sweetest personality and is so good natured. It seems like she learns something new everyday. She will now wave when one of us leaves, give kisses, and high five her daddy. We are just absolutely in love with this baby girl!

Baby food is for babies...

2011-04-07T21:37:00.004-06:00

...and Mya is not a baby - at least she doesn't think so. Despite her initial enthusiasm for solid food, over the past few weeks she has eaten less and less and has now worked her way into a full on boycott.

I've tried everything I can think of - feeding her at different times, feeding her when I'm sure she's hungry, only feeding her her very favorite food (bananas and strawberries) - nothing seems to work. I know at this point the food has little nutritional value for her and is more for teaching her how to eat so I'm not all that concerned. I'll keep trying and if she keeps hating it I guess we'll just skip this phase and move right to cheeseburgers and pizza. It's just amazing to me that she LOVED it and now wants nothing to do with it.

I think the underlying issue here is that ever since Mya started sitting up on her own, she thinks she's a grown up. She's refused a bottle for months now, which hasn't been easy and makes my time away from her very limited (good thing I love to be with her). We gave her a sippy cup thinking maybe she was ready for that. She enjoys having something new to chew on with convenient handles, but isn't interested in drinking out of it. What will she drink out of you ask? A glass! That's right, anything we're drinking she'll gladly drink if we offer it to her from our glass. The same goes for our food. Bananas in a jar she turns her head away from, but a mushed up banana from my plate she can't eat fast enough.

Also, she loves to feed herself. I can't imagine where she got such an independent streak... :) The few bites of food I get her to eat she usually only wants if I let her hold the spoon. I'm not ready for a "grown up!" Is it really too much to ask that she just stay little forever???

This is what the Fishy says

2011-04-06T13:00:00.005-06:00

After several days of practicing, I managed to get a video of Mya doing her fishy. She's gone through a few stages on her way to perfecting it. One day, each time I'd make the fishy face for her she'd laugh. She'd make no attempt to copy it - just giggle the whole time I did it. The next day when I tried again, she kept leaning into my face. I was a little confused by this. I'd make the fishy face and each time, she would put her face right into my mouth. Finally, it occurred to me - she thought I was trying to give her kisses! I guess she's used to a lot of kisses from mom!

6 Months (plus 1)

2011-04-04T11:43:00.003-06:00

Because I got a little bit behind, Mya's 6 month update is actually accompanied by her 7 month tricks and pictures. I can't believe she's closer to a one year old than a baby now - it really is crazy just how fast the time goes by!

Mya had her 6 month check up on 3/3/11 the day before we went to Ohio. She is healthy and growing fast! We are continually grateful for such a happy, healthy baby. She weighed in at 17 lbs 3 oz (76th percentile), she's 26 inches tall (60th percentile), and her head is just barely bigger than last time measuring 17.1 inches (77th percentile).

She went through a little phase where she decided she didn't really like solid food anymore, but she's getting much better about it now (I think she may have had a sore throat). I still haven't convinced her to eat any of the green veggies, but we've branched out from just bananas and sweet potatoes to squash, strawberries and bananas, pears, and mango all being among her favorites.

As of the 7 month mark, Mya's latest trick is her "fishy." It's one of the cutest things I've ever seen! She opens and closes her mouth making a little popping sound when she does. As soon as I can get a video of it, I will. In other big news, Mya can sit up all by herself now! What better way to celebrate than a photo shoot with daddy?!

I just had to have a picture of those legs - they really are impressive!

Mya's Aunts, Amy and Julie, made her this tutu. They are so creative and it is ADORABLE on her!

Shenanigans

2011-03-30T15:26:00.004-06:00

When we were in Ohio, Mya started rolling and rolling and rolling - she's able to quickly make her way across a room now. The problem is she mostly throws her giant noggin in the direction she wants to go and in our cozy little home that means we are constantly trying to keep her from rolling into furniture. Not only can she roll, but she can push up on her arms, change directions, and then roll some more. I fear the days before she's crawling are VERY limited.

Today, I laid her down next to the bathroom so I could put on my make up. Within seconds I could no longer see her. Each time I'd say, "Mya, where are you going?" I heard a mischievous giggle in response. I hurried as fast as I could and then looked to see where she'd gone. She had made it all the way by the bed in our room! For those of you that know the layout of our home, you know this is quite the accomplishment for a baby who doesn't crawl. She had changed direction multiple times and even navigated around the doorways! As if that weren't enough, along her way, she stopped to pull over a bag of clothes and even pulled some of the clothes out of the bag! We call her our whirlwind of destruction, Barry has even referred to her as Baby Godzilla as she attempts to tear down the octopus toy that hangs from her play mat.

This picture is horrible quality because I took it with my phone, but it was the only thing close by and I just had to capture that happy, proud look of accomplishment. If I haven't said it before, I'll say it now...it's a good thing she's cute! I think we may have our work cut out for us!

42 Things That Change...

2011-03-21T10:51:00.005-06:00

I was doing some reading online the other day when I came across an article, "42 Things That Change When You Have a Baby." As I was reading through the list, there were some I thought were especially true and I didn't want to forget them. So for the purpose of having them to refer back to and your reading pleasure, just a few of the 42 things...

- The sacrifices you thought you made to have a child no longer seem like sacrifices.

- You respect your body ... finally.

- You respect your parents and love them in a new way.

- You find that your baby's pain feels much worse than your own.

- Your heart breaks much more easily.

- You think of someone else 234,836,178,976 times a day.

- Every day is a surprise.

- Bodily functions are no longer repulsive. In fact, they please you. (Hooray for poop!)

- You become a morning person.

- You take the time for one more hug and kiss even if it means you'll be late.

- You learn that taking a shower is a luxury.

Spring Break in Ohio

2011-03-19T14:51:00.006-06:00

For Barry's spring break, the three of us flew to Ohio to visit my family. We had SO much fun, it was hard to come back to cold, snowy Utah. After the disaster that was our trip at Thanksgiving, I opted for a direct flight into Cincinnati where we spent a night on each end of the trip with my aunt and uncle. It worked out great and it was nice to break up the trip with flying one day and driving one day.

Mya in her great grandmother's rocking chair

One of the highlight's of our trip was Mya's first time eating solid food. I was amazed when we put her in the high chair, I held out the spoon, and she opened right up just like she knew what to do! She absolutely LOVES eating like a big girl. I was surprised at the amount she could eat and how much she seemed to enjoy it (especially bananas). Barry said given her size, nothing about the fact that she loves food was a surprise to him. :)

You'll notice that not only does she open up wide, but also leans forward so as to get the food to her mouth even sooner

Quite possibly Mya's favorite part of grandma's house (even more so than the food) was the "pool." My parents have a large jacuzzi tub in their bathroom and I thought it would be fun to let Mya wear her swimming suit and go "swimming." My motive was two fold. One, I got this bathing suit for her when I was still pregnant and after trying it on her the other day realized it likely won't fit this summer and wanted her to get at least some use out of it and two, she really does love water and her baths.

Mya modeling her shirt from my sister - so stinkin' cute!

What's a pool without a raft? We know we want to take Mya to the pool here this summer, so we figured we'd go ahead and get her a float so she could take full advantage of grandma's "pool." This only made her love "swimming" even more! She'd lean back, kick her feet up underneath the float, and play with all of her toys.

Safety first - got to protect those eyes. Speaking of eyes, I'm fairly certain her's are in the process of turning brown, we will see.

We had lunch at Chick Fil A the day we left to come back to Utah. Mya had been so good for all of our shopping and traveling and everything that when she dove for my mom's ice cream cone, in a moment of weakness, I gave in and thought, "What harm could it do?". I know, I know, babies aren't supposed to have stuff like this until they're over a year old, but I'm confident her little licks didn't even equate to one baby spoon full so I think she'll be ok. Uncle Brent will be so proud! (He was trying to give her ice cream back at Christmas time!) My mom wasn't sure she'd like it being so cold and different from what she's used to. I'll let the pictures speak for themselves...

Now that we're safely back in Utah, it's business as usual. Barry is working and going to school. He had two tests this week, so a lot of time was spent studying. Mya likes to help him study.

I'm pretty sure she gives him the answers.

Fortunately, even with all the studying, there's still time for wrestling. This little girl absolutely adores her daddy and they're pretty darn cute together!

Sleep

2011-02-28T14:31:00.004-07:00

Remember when sleeping in used to be noon? Never did I think there'd come a day when I'd wake up to see that it was 7:47 instead of the usual 7:00 wake up and think, "Wow, I slept in!". Mya has given up her late nights for early mornings. I think I may have preferred the late nights because Barry and I are up anyway, but it's hard to be upset when you wake up to this!

Look closely at the top of this picture. That's right, it's HAIR! She's practically ready for pig tails! :)

Visitors

2011-02-25T13:34:00.004-07:00

Last week Grandma and Papa Shinsel came to visit from Oregon and Dave, Julie, and Lincoln came from North Carolina! We had so much fun spending time together, it was really sad to see them go and everything here seems quiet and boring without them.

Grandma has a new iPad, everyone loves it. I'm not sure how she managed to keep one of her boys from snatching it while she was here, but to my knowledge, it safely made it back to Oregon. Mya's favorite was the fish pond where she could splash the water and make frogs jump by touching it. Note the look of intense concentration.

Mya was fascinated by her cousin Lincoln. I don't think she had even noticed the purple hippo on her jumperoo until he helped her find it. Lincoln was so sweet to share his cars with Mya. She'd never played with cars before and decided they were pretty fun (mostly to chew on), especially the wheels.

It wasn't easy to get a picture of Lincoln and Mya together, that boy isn't still for long! Instead, I decided to capture Mya's look of amazement just watching him play. I'm pretty sure she was taking mental notes for when she can run around like him.

I'm not sure when in all of the chaos Barry managed to take this picture, but oh how I LOVE that little face!

Uncle Dave found all of Mya's tickle spots and she just couldn't get enough! As soon as he'd get anywhere close to her, she'd start giggling with anticipation.

Somehow, I don't have any pictures of Mya and Julie. I'm the worst about getting caught up in the moments without ever thinking to take pictures of anything. It's good that I have Barry or we'd have no record of any of Mya's childhood memories!

Happy Valentine's Day

2011-02-14T13:16:00.003-07:00

To the two loves in my life, Happy Valentine's Day!!! :)

Little Night Owl

2011-02-07T22:33:00.009-07:00

From the beginning, Mya has been our little night owl. I have done extensive reading about babies and sleep and my final conclusions are that one - it depends on the baby, and two - you basically get what you get. Some babies are great sleepers, some are not. It doesn't seem to matter what they're fed, how old they are (beyond about a month), etc. Also, the sleep genes are inherited. Unfortunately, Mya has my sleep genes...or so I thought. I don't need a lot of sleep to function. It's a wonderful thing that has proved useful throughout my life. Because Mya seems to be the baby who doesn't need sleep, I thought for sure she'd inherited my sleeping habits.

We had a breakthrough the other night, Mya slept from 11 - 7:30! It was heaven. I woke up feeling like a whole new person! I figured, she's only 5 months old, that's not too bad! However, tonight I decided to look through the first year calendar my mom kept for me only to discover what Mya did at 5 months, I was doing at 5 WEEKS! Turns out I was a GREAT sleeper as a baby, by 2 months old, I was sleeping from 11 - 9:00! The good news is, once Mya slept through a night on her own, I knew she could do it. Every night since if she wakes up in the middle of the night to eat, I go into her room, pop her binki back in her mouth, and she is sound asleep again in seconds! How did I not figure this out months ago?!

Despite her sleeping through the night, Mya continues to find bed time hilarious. This video was taken of her one night on her way to bed. She had fallen asleep on the couch (sound asleep even) and when I picked her up to carry her to bed she lifted her head, opened her eyes, looked right at Barry who was sitting next to me and told her good night, and then giggled uncontrollably. She was so tired she couldn't even keep her head up, but she just kept trying - what a turkey!

This next video was taken nearly an hour later as she gave the stall tactics one final effort. Blowing bubbles is always her last attempt at staying awake. I think she knows we think it's cute and hopes we'll let her stay up and play. Try as I might, she's not a huge fan of her binki. She will hold it, chew on it, blow bubbles at it, even talk to it, but actually sucking on it is low on her list of priorities.

Like Mother, Like Daughter?

2011-02-02T13:05:00.003-07:00

From the day Mya was born I've heard, "She looks just like her dad." It's a rare occasion that someone thinks she looks like me at all. There are some expressions she has that definitely make her favor one of us over the other. The overall consensus seems to be that she has my eyes, but looks like her dad. I happen to think he's pretty good looking, so I'm ok with that. ;)

My mom gave some of my baby outfits to me for Mya. I found a picture of me in one them and decided to put it on Mya and attempt to recreate the pose. Even though we were about the same age when the pictures were taken, I think I may have been a bit smaller and I can only assume I was much more cooperative than our little wiggle worm was as we attempted to pose her the same way. While I was hoping to discover a mini me, I'm pretty sure this only further shows just how much she looks like her daddy!

This is the other outfit I have. There is no way I ever looked as cute in it as she does! She wasn't too sure about the collar at first, but once she decided the ribbon on it was for eating, she was ok with it.

5 Months!

2011-01-31T16:21:00.005-07:00

Our sweet baby girl is FIVE months old today! I can hardly believe it. It's strange how each one of those sleepless nights felt like they were taking an eternity at the time and now looking back, it seems impossible five months has gone by!

Mya has such a sweet personality, everyday with her is so much fun! We love watching her learn, grow, and change right before our eyes! Here are some of her latest and greatest feats:

1. "Talking" ALL the time, she'll even get louder and talk over us if she doesn't think we're paying enough attention to her.

2. Rolling from her tummy to her back (I have to be honest, I don't encourage rolling in any direction as I'm afraid it might lead to crawling).

3. Laughing out loud, full on belly giggles that turn into happy squeals - we love it!

4. Watching us intently any time we eat, reaching for the food, and opening her mouth a little each time we lift the spoon just in case we might give it to her instead.

5. Sleeping much more consistent 4-5 hour stretches at night (woo hoo)!

She continues to find bed time hilarious, which I don't quite understand, but it sure is cute! Anytime we ask her if she's ready to go night night, this is the response we get...

"It won't be like this for long

One day we'll look back laughin'

At the week we brought her home

This phase is gonna fly by

So baby just hold on

'Cause it won't be like this for long" - Darius Rucker

How it Came to Be

2011-01-25T12:44:00.005-07:00

I realize it's not our anniversary or any other significant milestone, but someone asked me recently how Barry and I met and I figured I should write it all down while I can still remember it like it was yesterday. :)

My friend Ashley and I had been searching all over the Orem area for the perfect place to live. We went to see lots of them, but the one we kept coming back to was in the Italian Villages, which was a new complex on 800 North in Orem. We decided that was the place for us and there were several units to choose from. There was in one particular that we both loved and the location was ideal (a balcony off the master that looked over the pool). We both felt it was the place for us! Move in day came and I was helping Ashley's dad unload the trailer with some of our bigger items. As I struggled up the stairs with one end of a really heavy desk, this super cute guy in a backwards baseball hat comes down the stairs and on his way by asks if we'd like some help. "Yes!" I told him, the remaining entertainment center on the trailer was even heavier than the desk and I wasn't sure how I was going to manage. Fortunately, I didn't have to now that our nice neighbor had stopped to help.

After unloading the trailer, he said to me, "My names's Barry and my friends and I live right above you guys so if you ever need anything, just let us know." I remember at the time having to exercise a LOT of self control to not blurt out, "Well, my friend and I need husbands, so..." deciding in my head that might seem a bit forward, I just thanked him and he went on his way. I remember that I was dying waiting for Ashley to get home from work so I could tell her about our neighbor. She'd barely made it through the door when I busted out, "The hottest guy lives right above us! He had on a backwards baseball hat, which I normally wouldn't be a fan of, but it looked really good on him!" That was the day Barry and I met in August of 2008 and my initial impression of him...

Over the course of the next year, I became friends with the "noisy boys upstairs" and did lots of things with them as a group. Anytime they'd play Rock Band, I'd walk up and scold them for being so loud and not even inviting me. They'd claim that's how they were inviting me. Spring rolled around and Devin (one of Barry's roommates) and I started to play tennis quite a bit. He told me over and over again that Barry and I needed to date. I told him Barry played video games and was not the guy for me. He explained for months every time we did something how perfect Barry and I were for each other and that I needed to give him a chance. As it came to be summer time we would all go out on Barry's boat and have a ton of fun. After each boating escapade, Devin would again tell me, "You and Barry really need to date." Finally I told him, "Ok, fine, but I'm not asking him. When he wants to man up and ask me out, I'll go." And so he did...and I said no...three times. Two times I was legitimately busy and the other I was just too tired.

In June, Ashley moved out and I was looking for a place to live again. I couldn't decide if I should rent or buy or where to go. After much deliberation, I felt like the best move would be right across the parking lot to a 2 bedroom unit I could purchase. I'm so thankful I didn't decide to move somewhere further away because I'm not sure Barry would have come after me. :)

Barry and I started to hang out even more as the summer went on and he ended up helping me pack for my cruise to Alaska in the middle of July. We laughed (mostly at the amount of stuff I was packing) and joked and had a great time. He told me I would never fit it all in my suitcase. Of course, I was determined to prove him wrong (and did). The week I spent in Alaska was fun, but for some reason I was thinking of Barry constantly. What I didn't know at the time, and found out later, was that he too had started to fall and was anxiously awaiting my return.

I got back to Utah just a few days before my birthday. On the morning of my birthday, I went to my car and there was a large "Happy Birthday" balloon on the driver side mirror with a card that said, "Happy Birthday! I hope you have a great day -from your coolest neighbor" (I still have it :)). Barry called me that day and asked if he could take me to dinner for my birthday. I didn't have a good reason not to, but felt bad turning him down again because I really was interested, but wasn't feeling up to dinner that night. I asked him if we could go birthday boating with everyone instead. He was happy to make it happen and told me to meet him at the lake after work. When I got to the lake, he was there with the boat, coolers packed, and all of our friends ready to go. It was the smoothest water I've ever seen on Utah Lake and we had the best evening ever! And that was when it happened. Right then I knew this guy would do anything to make me happy and I was in love!

The rest is history! In August we were engaged and in October we were married. There's not a day that goes by I'm not grateful to have fallen in love with the boy next door!

Big Girl Jammies

2011-01-25T09:44:00.003-07:00

Last night was Mya's first night in big girl jammies (they didn't have feet in them). As most of you know, zippers are a mom's best friend in the middle of the night. Whoever thought all those snaps were going to be a good idea was mistaken. Mya's getting so big that her zip up jammies with feet in them are right on the border of too small so I thought I'd try a two piece set she has in a bigger size.

It didn't take her long to discover her little bare toes she loves so much were out and ready to play. She also decided to deploy some new stall tactics to bed time as a result of her discovery. Barry laid her on the couch next to him to snuggle before bed and she almost immediately started to get him with her toes as if she wanted to make sure he knew they were there too.

Initially, she just wanted to show him.

Then she thought he should smell them.

And finally, she thought he should taste them.

You'll notice in the first picture her little belly is hanging out. This was a common occurrence and every time I'd pull it down after she was asleep, it would startle her. As if all that wasn't enough, when I put her back to bed after eating at 5:45 she refused to sleep. (Side note: Mya has always been sooo good to eat and go right back to sleep at night time, her internal clock is great. Even if she's a little awake when I lay her down, she'll go to sleep almost immediately on her own and I'm able to go back to bed.) Barry and I laid in bed listening to her talk to her blankets and the flowers on her crib bumper for over 30 minutes! I couldn't believe she could be so awake, Barry blamed the jammies for making her think now that she was a big girl she didn't need as much sleep. It's good that she's so cute because even though we were both exhausted, we couldn't help but lay there and laugh. Needless to say, I'll be zipping her back into her footy pajamas tonight!

Little Chunk

2011-01-19T12:07:00.005-07:00

Mya is officially our little chunk! We'll go ahead and celebrate it while it's still cute! :) She had her four (technically four and a half) month check up yesterday and she amazed both the doctor and nurse with her size. She's now 15 lbs 3 oz (71 percentile), 24 inches (25 percentile), and her head is a whopping 17 inches (90 percentile)! I asked the doctor if we should be concerned about the size of her head, she said not yet. She then asked if big heads run in the family and explained that head size is one thing that's all in the genes. I smiled as I looked at Barry and said, "Well, his head's pretty big." She noticed his fitted hat and asked what size it was. He went to take it off and look when I responded, "7 3/8." She smiled and said, "Yeah, that's big." So at least we know where she got it from!

She is a happy, healthy baby and we are so grateful for that. Here she is in all of her chunky glory!

We're going to start taking pictures of Mya with Cookie Monster so those who don't live close by can see just how much she's growing! Unfortunately, if you haven't seen this Cookie Monster in person, you'll just have to wait for the next set of pictures to have anything for comparison.

I really wanted Cookie Monster to just lay by Mya, but she's pretty sure Cookie Monster is for eating.

She can even hold him with her feet!

Let the Adventure Begin...Again!

2011-01-13T11:47:00.002-07:00

It's with a little reluctance I give this post that title. At this time almost exactly a year ago, I posted "Let the Adventure Begin...". Within days of that post Barry embarked on the most physically demanding semester of his life in the Fire Academy AND we found out I was pregnant! I had ended the post telling 2010 to "bring it on" and boy did it! The year brought lots of adventures for us as Barry endured the Fire Academy, we took a trip to Bermuda, and welcomed our sweet baby girl into the world!

Well, it's a new year and we're starting out on a new adventure... we officially signed onto Utah for 2 1/2 more years as Barry started classes this week to become a nurse! He is simultaneously taking the pre requisite classes and getting his CNA (Certified Nursing Assistant) certificate and will start the nursing program at Provo College in the Fall. Yes, it's different from our previous plans for Barry's education and career, but we really feel it's the right thing for both him and our family. I have fully accepted that things just don't always go according to plan and we're really just along for the ride anyway, so here we go!!!

Mya Laughs

2011-01-12T20:17:00.008-07:00

Just because it makes me smile. Oh to be little and so happy about something as simple as jumping up and down... :)

Little Cougar Fan

2011-01-12T19:58:00.003-07:00

It wasn't until I met Barry that I realized there might actually be someone out there who could rival my brother's BYU fandom. Even now, I'm not quite sure who the more loyal fan is, but just for fun I consistently tell Barry I think it's my brother and my brother that I'm pretty sure it's Barry.

At any rate, it was only a matter of time before Mya owned her first Cougar shirt. Because it was a gift from my brother who doesn't believe in pink Cougar shirts, she looks a little like a boy, but I added a bow and made sure she wore it with ruffle bottom, flared jeans to help the girl factor.

Home Sweet Home

2011-01-10T18:43:00.004-07:00

After the month of December in Oregon, we are finally back in Utah! It was bitter sweet - coming home is nice, but leaving behind family is always hard and we miss them tons! I've said it before and I'll say it again, Mya is so fortunate to have grandparents who love her so much. Mya talks to Grandma more than anyone, even more than she talks to her mom and dad! I will miss hearing their sweet conversations everyday. You'll notice in the video just talking isn't enough, she kicks with excitement the whole time. You'll also notice that she's in her pajamas. This is fairly typical of her energy level at night time after her bath when I'm hoping she'll start to settle down for the night...

A Very Merry Christmas

2010-12-29T16:41:00.009-07:00

Last year was the first Christmas Barry and I spent together and I remember thinking at the time it was the best Christmas yet. I thought it all over again this year as I sat there helping Mya open her presents and then reach for each new toy. This was also the first Christmas I have ever been away from my family, which was hard, but the Shinsel family is so great that even being in Oregon still felt a lot like home.

Mya was amazed by all of the presents when I sat her down amidst it all

I was really hoping to have Mya super happy and smiley for all of these Christmas pictures, but it turns out when it comes to presents, she's all business.

This red wrapping paper was her favorite

Mya surprised us with just how willing she was to help open presents. I didn't expect her to be very into it, but she would reach for the paper and then loved the crinkle sound it would make in her fingers.

Mya even held her presents up for display so daddy could take pictures!

All tuckered out after a morning full of wrapping paper and fun new toys

Later in the morning, Andy, Amy, and Sydney came over to open more presents with us. We put the girls together for a picture in their Christmas jammies. I thought it would be a fun tradition to get Christmas pajamas for Mya and let her open them each year on Christmas eve. Then she can sleep in them that night and have new jammies on Christmas morning. Well, I didn't have this idea until after we'd left Utah and arrived in La Grande where the Christmas pajama choices were slim to none. I had just about given up hope when Wal Mart didn't have her size, but then Barry came across a "My First Christmas" sleep sack. Mostly she looks like a marshmallow, but she's a super cute marshmallow! I'll try to plan a little better next year.

Mya LOVES her Cookie Monster. He's very soft and his eyes fit right in her mouth!

Sydney was really good to help Mya figure out how all of her new toys worked

This Christmas was especially great for the Shinsel family as we welcomed Kaylee Mei! Brent and Donna spent the two weeks before Christmas in China finalizing the adoption and are happy to be home with their daughter. She seems to be adapting to all of the changes really well and is an absolute doll! We are excited to have her here with us!

Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow

2010-12-18T20:48:00.006-07:00

Mya was able to experience her first snow today! I know what you're thinking...how could this possibly be her first snow? We went to Ohio for Thanksgiving and that's when Utah got their snow. When we came back it was melted and Ohio got snow. We then made a spur of the moment decision to go to Oregon for the month of December since Barry's school photography work has slowed down and his dad had a temporary job for him. A few days after we arrived in Oregon (where there was no snow), Utah got hit with a big storm. Well, today it was finally our turn! There is LOTS of snow in La Grande now and we are loving it!

It's a good thing Mya is such an easy going baby who tolerates my whims because I could hardly wait to get her snow suit on her and get her out in it hoping she would love snow the way I do. Good news, she does! She was a little unsure when we put on her snow suit that's still a little too big and she could no longer move, but once we got outside she was all smiles, even when I plopped her down in the snow to make her first snow angel! (Side note about the snow suit: My dad picked out this snow suit for Mya long before she was even born he loved it so much and was sure she would need one. The tag claims the size is 3 months. The tag lies. We're pretty sure it's going to fit her next winter too!)

Sydney LOVES "Baby Mya" and Mya loves to watch Sydney play, they are good buds

Gotta love the classic, "Mom, I don't know how I feel about this" face

Our little snow angel :)

These last two pictures were our second outing in the snow. It was coming down in beautiful, big flakes and I just couldn't resist!

Ohio

2010-12-06T19:07:00.005-07:00

We spent Thanksgiving in Ohio this year and had a GREAT time! Traveling with Mya by myself was so worth it for the quality time we were able to spend with my mom and dad. She grew so much in the two weeks we were there, my mom and I had to go shopping for 3 month size clothes because she outgrow all of the newborn ones I had packed!

My mom made a delicious Thanksgiving dinner for everyone. The boys got to shoot clay pigeons and the girls drank hot chocolate and watched a chick flick. It was a wonderful holiday and good times were had by all. Here's a summary of the trip in pictures...

Because my parents have a jacuzzi tub that's a bit too big for Mya, we opted to give her sink baths. She was a little unsure at first, but as you can see, she warmed up to the idea.

Mya loves to have lotion rubbed all over her after a bath and those chubby cheeks make for one great fishy face in the process!

Mya was always full of smiles for Grandma.

Mya was also able to get quality time with her cousins, even the ones who live in Virginia and came up for just a day to spend Thanksgiving with us.

It was a little cool outside so we put up Mya's hood when we went out for some pictures. She is so stinkin' cute, I just love that little face!

Mya Talks

2010-12-06T16:40:00.002-07:00

Mya is quite the conversationalist. However, as soon as she sees the camera, she's silent. Barry got sneaky when we were in Ohio though and managed to capture Mya and I having a little chat. It's kind of long, but she had a lot to say!

Dear Daddy

2010-11-24T20:07:00.002-07:00

Dear Daddy,

I'm having lots of fun here in Ohio, but I REALLY miss you! Mommy says I'll get to see you tomorrow for our first Thanksgiving and I can hardly wait! Mom and Grandma try their best, but sometimes I just need you. When I have a bubble that gets stuck, you can always get it out for me when you put me high up on your shoulder. I've watched TV a few times while I've been here, but there haven't been any of those fun football guys that are always on when you and I watch it together at home.

Talking to you on the phone has been nice, but I'm ready to see you. Mom can't make silly faces nearly as good as yours and I'm not sure she understands how to play the sticking out our tongues game the way you taught me.

Drive safe to the airport tomorrow and have a good flight. I'll see you soon!

Love,
Mya

We Made It!

2010-11-18T17:40:00.003-07:00

I realize it's a bit after the fact, but we did make it to Ohio...no thanks to Delta. Making the trip alone with Mya was about as difficult as I anticipated it might be, but there were some good things along the way as well. Barry read online that you can get an escort pass for someone not flying with you that gets them through security to help with any sort of special need (like me attempting to juggle a newborn and all of our stuff). Sure enough, we were able to get one without a problem and he could get us through security, to the gate, and walk us right to the door where we got on the plane, it was a HUGE help!

There was an extra seat next to me so I was able to take Mya's seat on the plane. She ate during the taxi (try as I might, the timing wasn't quite right and she didn't hold out to eat during take off like everyone suggested), fell asleep during the take off, and slept the entire flight to Atlanta. I should have known the whole trip couldn't be quite that simple. We landed in Atlanta at 5:55 am only to find out our 7:00 am flight had been canceled. Apparently there weren't enough people on it so Delta just cancels it and expects everyone to re book. Well, the next flight was 3 hours later and they were only able to put us on it on stand by. After about an hour of sitting around, I decided to go to one of the Delta help centers and see how likely it was I'd get on that flight so my parents would know when to leave for the airport. (Meanwhile, I'd found a wheelchair I'd put Mya's seat on, had our suitcase underneath it, and the back pack on my back so I could somewhat navigate the miles and miles of Atlanta airport we had to cover - yes, people were staring.) The Delta rep behind the desk looked at his computer for a while and then kindly said "Honey, you won't be getting on that flight." He told me he could confirm me on a different flight that was SIX hours later. There was no way this was going to work for me so I had him check surrounding airports to see if I could fly somewhere else (my parents live 2 hours from the airport, so there are a couple other options about 30-60 minutes further away). He told me there was a flight to Pittsburgh that had seats on it and he was willing to put me on that. It left at 9:35 am, so I took it! Of course, my bag still went to Columbus, (after he assured me it wouldn't) interestingly enough on the flight that had no room for me.

The Pittsburgh airport was unfamiliar, but I was so happy to be there it didn't even matter. Grandma was excited enough to see Mya that it made the whole ordeal worth it. I have to say, the one thing I didn't anticipate was just how good Mya would be. She was a great little traveler! This is what she did for almost all of both flights...

I was so nervous when I couldn't get her to eat during the take off out of SLC that her ears would hurt, but she was tired and kept yawning as she fell asleep, which must have been just as helpful. She woke up in the Atlanta airport only to eat and then went right back to sleep clear through the take off out of Atlanta. Only towards the very end of the trip did she fuss even the littlest bit and at that point, I wanted to cry too. If there's one thing I've learned in my years of flying, it's that the words from the pilot "Flight crew, take your seats" are never a good sign. The flight into Pittsburgh was SO turbulent. I think the pilots constantly trying to improve the situation meant a lot of elevation changes. Even then she only let out about three little cries and then stopped. The worst part of it all was how the plane kept dropping, like hey, is that my stomach up there, dropping. One of the two known fears of newborns is the fear of falling. Mya laid in my arms with huge eyes and both of her hands with a death grip on mine. I can only imagine what must have been going through her mind, I just kept telling her everything was ok and thankfully, it didn't last as long as they thought it would. She fell back asleep as we landed, woke up to eat, and then slept the entire drive to Grandma and Grandpa's house. I couldn't have asked for more, she is a GREAT baby! And it's true what they say, babies really do bring out the best in people. It seemed there was always someone offering to help me with the bags off the plane, down escalators, etc. and I was definitely grateful to all of them! We are so happy to have made it safely and are having a really fun time in Ohio!

Over the river and through the woods...

2010-11-15T17:56:00.002-07:00

...to Grandmother's house we go! Mya and I are off to Ohio tonight through the end of the month. Barry will fly out on Thanksgiving and then we'll all come back together.

I've got to admit, my anxiety about traveling with Mya alone has only grown as the date has neared. It seemed like a great idea at the time, extra time with Grandma and Barry could work a little longer and then make the trip when my brother does. However, now that the time has arrived, I can't believe I ever thought I could travel across the country with a newborn by myself. Of course, I won't be totally by myself, I'll have all of our luggage to keep me company, which is yet another challenge I'm not sure exactly how I'll manage.

We're on the red eye in hopes that Mya will sleep pretty much from Utah to Ohio waking up only to eat. The good news is, at the end of tonight, for better or worse, we'll have arrived in Ohio to a VERY excited Grandma (Grandpa will be there too) and I will have officially survived a trip with Mya all by myself. Wish us luck!

She Tricked Me!

2010-11-03T10:03:00.002-06:00

That's right, sweet little Mya played a trick on her mama this morning! She usually wakes up to eat somewhere between 6:00 and 7:30. On a good day, I can convince her it's still night time and get her right back to sleep after she eats, usually for another two hours, which after a long night of broken sleep is wonderful.

This morning I was especially tired and could see her eye lids getting heavy as she finished eating. I burped her and she wasn't sure she wanted to be sleeping, so I laid her down in my arms with her binky and snuggled her in a blanket. The heavy eye lids instantly returned. About 5 minutes later she was completely out and being so tired myself, I started to close my eyes. That's when I heard her make a little sound. I opened my eyes to find her smiling behind her binky, even better, I figured she was so asleep she was having a good dream. That's when she laughed. That's right, laughed! (She smiles a lot, but the giggles are still somewhat few and far between.) She let out another giggle and then her eyes were wide open! I couldn't believe it. I'm convinced she never had plans of sleeping...

So Big

2010-11-02T20:38:00.005-06:00

Our baby is getting SO big! Seriously, where does the time go?! This isn't the best quality picture because I snapped it with my phone as we were leaving for Mya's 2 month check up today, but I couldn't resist.

Mya's 5 year old cousin, Loren, made her this hat and we LOVE it!

The doctor was pleased with Mya's growth and said everything looks perfect. She weighs 10.5 lbs (37th percentile) - this is a HUGE improvement after the weight gain issues she initially had where she was lurking in the 5th-13th percentiles. She's also getting tall at 22.5 inches putting her in the 45th percentile for height! Then, much to our surprise, Mya rolled over for the first time while we were there! We are so grateful to have such a happy, healthy baby, but she is growing up WAY too fast!

Cutest Butterfly EVER

2010-10-31T13:52:00.004-06:00

Mya wore her costume to three Halloween parties so by the time we were trying to get some pics at home, she had had enough. We managed to get a few though and I know I'm biased, but I'm pretty sure she's the cutest butterfly I've ever seen! She was a hit everywhere we went (even though I had to explain to more than one person she was not a bug).

These first two pictures were actually taken the night we bought the costume and I wanted to try it on her. She was never this happy in it again!

At one point in our attempt to get these pictures we had to stop for daddy to console his little butterfly. Try as I might, she is a daddy's girl for sure!

Grandmas are Great

2010-10-21T16:50:00.002-06:00

I wanted to post this to say a big THANK YOU to Mya's grandmas. They are wonderful women with all the love in the world to offer! They've both been so great to take time off work, travel to Utah, and help with everything from cleaning to holding the baby. Not to mention answering numerous phone calls and texts from an unsure, tired, first-time mom. I can't imagine what we'd ever do without them and I don't want to!

Road Trip

2010-10-20T14:45:00.004-06:00

Barry had a long weekend off of work last weekend, so we decided to make the most of it and road trip to Oregon. Mama Shinsel flew to Utah on Monday to help with Mya and then drove back with us on Wednesday. It was such a fun trip and we're so glad we went! Mya was a traveling champ! She is doing MUCH better, but still not quite herself. The prescription she's on helps the reflux, but it gives her tummy trouble, which just isn't fun. The poor thing can't win!

The trip marked lots of firsts for Mya, she loved it all! It was great to see family and have a nice, relaxing weekend. We were even able to go out to dinner for our anniversary.

Our trip started off Wednesday evening later than planned, so we spent the night in a hotel about halfway. This is Mya enjoying her first night in a hotel. I love those cheeks and I love that she sleeps with her hands by her face just like her daddy. :)

We visited Brent and Donna at their house marking Mya's first trip to a farm. She had this look on her face pretty much the whole time. I think there's a good chance she was trying to figure out what I had put on her head.

We left Mya with Grandma to celebrate our first anniversary. We went to a fun, little restaurant in a really small town (where the ONLY thing there was this restaurant). The western theme was awesome. The table was made of logs and the salad bar was under a covered wagon. Our steak was delicious! We can't wait to go there again sometime.

After a fun filled weekend, we headed back towards Utah in style! Mama and Papa Shinsel recently purchased an RV and to try it out, they drove it to Kim's where we visited her family and spent the night in the driveway. Mama Shinsel was even kind enough to drive our car from La Grande to Mountain Home so Barry, Mya, and I could ride in the RV. I decided to make a sandwich and eat it in the kitchen...just because I could. It made for such a fun ride!

How I Spend My Days

2010-10-08T14:28:00.002-06:00

At some point, Mya will need to sleep in her bed, but until she's feeling better, this is how I spend my days (and nights)...I love my new job! :)

Acid Reflux

2010-10-08T11:33:00.003-06:00

What's so great about this picture you ask? This is Mya sleeping without being held by myself or Barry for the first time in DAYS! Over the course of the past week, our sweet, happy baby turned into a fussy baby who could not be laid down when she finally fell asleep. While I initially blamed grandparents for spoiling her when they were here and then her insisting she be held all the time once they were gone, that wasn't actually the problem.

The fussiness seemed the worst when she would eat. Because of her weight gain issues, several of her feedings are with a bottle. We went through lots of types of bottles sure that was the culprit for how uncomfortable she was. Nope, not that either.

Every time we'd feed her she would scream while we tried to burp her, spit up LOTS (which she never used to do), and get the hiccups (which resulted in even more spit up). Even as she'd finish eating and start to settle down, she'd curl up her little body in pain and whimper. It broke my heart. So, after lots of tears (both hers and mine), I turned to the internet. One search led to another and I finally realized these were all symptoms of infant acid reflux. Also on the list was being restless in her sleep, having stiff legs when she eats, sounding congested, struggling to breathe when sleeping, and restless sleeping. Bless her heart, the poor thing has them all! Being rookie parents, we just assumed those things were all par for the course, not an actual problem.

I called the pediatrician with my diagnosis and they had me bring her right in - sure enough, she has bad acid reflux. The doctor said all babies have it to some extent (spitting up), but she definitely has it to the point of needing to be on a prescription for it. The good news is, she's now taking an antacid that should help a lot. The bad news is, it takes 4-5 days to take full effect.

She is happiest and most comfortable upright and on her stomach, which means I've been spending my nights upright as well and on my back so she can be on her stomach. The nights, and days, have been long and restless this week, but I couldn't in good conscience lay her down when I knew the reason she'd immediately be stirring and letting out little cries was due to her pain. Here's to hoping the medicine is fast and effective so we can all rest and be happy once again!

The Many Faces of Mya

2010-10-06T11:40:00.004-06:00

I can't believe my baby is already 5 weeks old! As you'll see, she's developing quite the personality. We've managed to capture a few of her classic faces...

Surprised

Confused

Deer in headlights

Sleepy - note both hands in front of her face in a further attempt to get us to leave her alone

Last, but not least, Happy :)

Mya's Blessing

2010-10-02T09:41:00.004-06:00

Barry blessed Mya in church last weekend and it was beautiful! We had a hard time finding a dress small enough for her, but we finally did and she looked absolutely adorable for the occasion (the tights were a different story).

We were grateful to have so many of our family members here to share the occasion! Both sets of Mya's grandparents were able to attend coming from opposite sides of the country! We appreciate everyone who was there to support both her and us and missed those of you who couldn't make it.

The proud daddy and his little girl. If you're wondering about Mya's expression, it turns out this is her pooping face.

And this is Barry's "She just pooped, you better take her right now!" face. :)

After an outfit change to due to the above mentioned event, we headed outside for some more pictures, but we'd already missed the window of photo opportunity and Mya just wanted to sleep.

Mama and Papa Shinsel and Kim

Grandma and Grandpa Robinson

What I've learned Thus Far

2010-09-20T14:05:00.004-06:00

There are a few things I've learned in my first 3 weeks of motherhood:

1. Babies cry

2. I am NOT the one in charge of the "schedule"

3. It's amazing what you can accomplish with only one free hand

4. A 6 lb 9 oz baby feels more like 25 lbs when you are lugging her up 4 flights of stairs in her car seat

5. Four broken sleep increments of 2 hours a piece does not equal 8 consecutive hours of sleep

5. I would not survive as a single parent

6. Life is more manageable when Barry is home (see #5 above)

I also know that this baby won't be little forever and as a result, I've also come to accept the following:

1. It's ok for the laundry to pile up

2. The house doesn't have to be spotless at all times

3. Dishes can sit in the sink

4. Regardless of when in the day a shower happens, getting one is an accomplishment

5. Sleep is nice, but not essential to function

It's amazing how something so small and sweet can come into your life and change everything. And the best part is if it ever seems too tiring or too frustrating, I can take one look at this little face and realize, yep, it's all totally worth it!

My Little Watermelon

2010-09-14T09:21:00.002-06:00

This is Barry's new favorite picture of Mya. He says it's funny every time. :)

One Week Old

2010-09-07T18:21:00.004-06:00

It's official, Mya has taken over the blog! I realize the last two posts have been nothing but pictures of her, but I just couldn't resist a couple more. I can't believe she's one week old today! I am head over heels in love with this sweet girl. If I had some way to freeze time and make her stay little forever, I would!

Hospital Photo Shoot

2010-09-06T20:58:00.003-06:00

Barry is super busy with work right now and was only able to take one day off of work when we had the baby. Because this was going to put my home alone with the baby our second day of having her, I opted to stay in the hospital the full 48 hours and then my mom would be here.

Let me just say, I LOVE LOVE LOVE this baby girl! I can't ever seem to get enough of her! I decided to attempt a little photo shoot with Barry's camera in his absence, but I'm not nearly as good with it as he is. The good news is, I had a very patient, self-posing subject. :) Here's what I got.

Happy Birthday Mya Renee

2010-09-06T13:09:00.004-06:00

Mya Renee Shinsel

6 lbs 13 oz 19 in

I've said all along this baby was coming early, however, even I was surprised she decided not to hold out until September! I woke up at 1:00am with a horrible back ache. I continued to have what I assumed were horrible Braxton Hicks contractions every six minutes until morning. I had a doctors appointment that morning and decided not to go into work until after that.

Relief and nervousness came over me all at once when the doctor said there was a 90% chance I wouldn't be pregnant a week from then. After talking for a few more minutes he said, "Actually, if I had to bet, I'd bet you have that baby tomorrow and if I'm wrong it will be because you have her today." Determined not to go to the hospital until I was sure I was in labor, I went into work to start wrapping up the final details. I only made it two hours before I decided to head to the hospital and needed someone else to drive me there.

In the two hours between my appointment and arrival at the hospital, I'd dilated another 2 1/2 cm so I got to stay. At this point, I got REALLY nervous. I frantically called Barry and told him he needed to leave work and come to the hospital because we were having a baby. Once he arrived, the adventure really began.

I got my epidural and figured it was smooth sailing from there - wrong. They started moving me back and forth from side to side. I figured this was standard procedure, right up until the point where the anesthesiologist started saying things like "She's not responding well" and "She's not liking it." Confused, I thought to myself, "Yes, I am and I already can't feel the contractions, this is great!" Having lost patience the anesthesiologist then angrily says to the nurse, "Make the call." Within seconds, my doctor was on the phone and about 8 people surrounded my bed. They put an oxygen mask on me and started to hook up even more monitors. I kept trying to see Barry who had to step away to make room for everyone else. Over and over again he told me everything was ok. Finally I sat up, pulled off my oxygen mask, and said to him, "Clearly, everything is NOT ok!"

About that time everything was unhooked and they headed down the hall to the OR. (I had what they called a titanic contraction right after getting the epidural and it ended up holding on for 6 minutes. The baby wasn't responding well to it and her heart rate dropped into the 40-50 range.) They started to prep me for surgery when her heart rate jumped back into the 130s. Everyone paused and waited as her heart rate stayed steady and decided to take me back to the room. At this point I'd dilated to a 7 and they told me to rest.

About a half hour later I told Barry I thought I felt something. I wasn't sure what it was though, so we just kept talking. About 15 minutes after that, I told him I was sure I felt something. He went to get the nurse (because no one had come in our room to check on me since bringing me back from the OR). She came in, told me I was complete, the head was there, and not to push. My doctor didn't stand a chance at making it from Provo in time, but fortunately his partner was a few streets away and could come right then. He sat down, I pushed 4 times, and she was out! Quite the roller coaster ride and a surprise to just about everyone, but we are so happy she is safely here.

Full Term!

2010-08-29T12:39:00.004-06:00

Having now hit the 37 week mark, Baby Shinsel is officially full term! I'm pretty sure the two of us are now growing larger by the minute! While I'm definitely getting more and more uncomfortable and would love nothing more than for her to come early, I'd really like her to hold out until after Friday. Anytime after that, I would be thrilled for her early arrival.

This is my last week at work and I am SO excited! I've been making a list of projects to keep me busy between when I'm done at work and the baby comes. I'm worried that in all reality, it's only about 2 days worth of keeping me busy, which means I might start going crazy. Even on weekends when I'm home without a project, I start to get a little irritable. Barry's schedule varies from week to week and last weekend he said to me, "I hope I have to work every day you are home and not working before the baby comes." Apparently sitting at home with a large, irritable, bored, pregnant person who's just waiting on the baby to decide she wants to be born doesn't sound like fun to him...weird.

The 37 week baby bump

Due to some recent rearranging we've done, I've run out of plain walls to stand in front of for my belly pictures. I decided these closet doors might work, but then worried the knobs on them would look silly in the picture. Not to worry, my belly was able to effectively hide both of them! Sad and impressive all at the same time.

Esmerelda

2010-08-18T21:05:00.002-06:00

As most of you know, Barry and I have been seriously struggling to agree on a name for Baby Shinsel. Being the plan ahead type that I am, you can imagine the anxiety this causes me. It's rare a day goes by without me asking him what we're going to name the baby.

Tonight, we were laying on the couch together and searching through lists of names. I was on my side with Barry behind me and the laptop balanced on my hip. After minutes of silence and searching through a list he had, Barry says, "How about Esmerelda?" Obviously, this was a joke. He then said, "Isn't that one of the the Smurfs or something?" We continued the conversation debating if Esmerelda was a Smurf or some other movie character. It was at this moment the laptop was thrown off balance forcing me to catch it and I yelped in pain. "What was that?!" Barry asked me. The baby had shifted positions and kicked me so hard he felt it THROUGH MY BACK and the laptop nearly hit the floor!

Barry then calmly says, "Baby, we were kidding about the name Esmerelda." Apparently unborn children don't have a sense of humor...