These Boots Are Made For Walkin'...

So, we are pretty excited about the accomplishment of our "little" Noah! He's quite excited as well. After many bumps and bruises, scrapes and falls......our "little" man is finally walking. Here, we have proof.........

our sweetie

I have been having a hard time uploading pictures lately... but I finally got this one to work! Here is a picture of our sweet girl.

Noah Induced Blogging Hiatus

Some of you may have noticed that I have not blogged in awhile. It is because our sweet, darling Noah decided that it was a good idea to drizzle hot chocolate into the keyboard of our laptop. I accept full responsibilty having left the hot chocolate next to the open laptop. Needless to say, the computer was out of commission for quite some time. Thanks to my ever patient husband for fixing it and the guys at PC Laptops for helping us over the phone and I'm sure having a good laugh.

Obviously Noah is quite the little monkey lately. He loves to climb and find mischief. He is too scared to walk, but he will climb on a chair and then onto the table. That is how he got to the computer and this morning I caught him on the table polishing off the last of a Coke that I had left there. I don't think he will be taking an afternoon nap. I just took a raw potato out of his mouth that he was trying to eat like an apple. Gross. Brock... Noah is going to give you a run for your money in the mischief department!!

On another note... I am sick... again!!! I am looking for any advice on immune boosting tips and home remedies so I don't spend this winter in bed. Most other winters I am sick about every 5-6 weeks so really any advice will help. I have already increased my Vitamin C, clean my ears out with hydrogen peroxide every day and have a warm steam vaporizer running in our room all the time. Bonus on the vaporizer... it helps Luke's snoring. For all you snorers out there: you should try it and make your spouse well rested for the holidays.

Post your tips. Sorry no pictures, but more to come soon!

Time is flying!

I can't believe it has been another week already. I am adjusted to being a mommy of two... but haven't quite caught up on all chores! I will get there soon, I'm sure. I just wanted to share a few pictures from this last week. Emma is growing and changing every day. She is so beautiful and so precious. Luke has been calling her 'princess' or just Em. It's really cute. We went to the doctor yesterday for checkups and all is well. Emma is perfectly healthy. She now weighs 7 lbs. 12 oz. and is almost 21 inches. And she definitely has some healthy lungs!

Noah weighed in at 27 lbs. 2 oz. and is 33 inches tall. The doctor was pleased to report that his body is catching up with his head! She also said that he is above average in his speech (typical for his age is 3-5 words... he has at least ten!) And she is not worried about him not walking yet. She said in her experience, early talkers = late walkers. Hmmm. She said if he is not walking by 18 months, we need to go back in. But he is moving well and she thinks he is just a scaredy cat. She predicts he will walk on his own within 3 weeks but we have been saying that for about 2 months now! We'll just have to wait and see.

Noah really does love Emma. It is so cute to see him get so concerned if she starts to fuss or cry. He loves to give her kisses on the head and help burp her after a feeding. He even tries to share toys which is so great! It has been lots of fun to see him interact with her and it makes me very excited for the future!

One Week

Hello all!

We have made it through our first week as parents of two. Noah is doing surprisingly well as the big brother. He is very interested in the baby and has started giving her kisses. I have tried several times to document this with the camera, but then Noah just looks up and says CHEESE! The only thing he is struggling with is when it is time for me to feed Emma. No matter what I try to distract him with, he wants to sit right next to us (watch, even) and make sure that I have at least a hand, if not an arm, on him.

Emma is doing great and pretty much sleeps around the clock. She is still so tiny, I can't believe it! She is sleeping about four hours at a time at night and that is good enough for me right now.

We are so grateful to all of those that have helped us over the last week with Noah and food, well wishes and prayers. THANK YOU! WE LOVE YOU!

EMMA DAWN MERKLEY

Hello family and friends. This is just a brief post to let you all know that she is finally here! Emma Dawn Merkley was born on October 30, 2008 at 4:29P.M. Emma weighed 7lbs. 6oz. and was 19 inches long. Megan was a champ and went without any form of pain killer! I was so proud of her! The labor only lasted about an hour and a half! With just three pushes....Emma joined our little family. Both mamma and baby are doing GREAT! ! ! It was a good day! More to come.

Around the corner

According to my doctor this morning... labor is right around the corner. I am 4 cm and 100% so any day now! And the best news... I don't have to be on bedrest anymore! This is most exciting because I am sure I will have more energy. I swear, the more you lay around the more exhausted you feel! So, we are really excited and hope something happens within the next couple of days.

On another note, there is a population explosion going on! I counted the other day and realized that there are TWELVE pregnant ladies (including myself) in my immediate circle of family and friends. Holy cow! That is alot! I don't want to out anybody that might not have made a public announcement, but you know who you are so CONGRATULATIONS! And if you haven't made an announcement, I encourage you to do so when the time is right. I am certain there are more preggies out there ;).

So I haven't blogged this week because, let's be honest, there has not been much worth blogging about. I have pretty much just taught Noah how to be a couch potato. Last Wednesday, we both woke up with a nasty cold, which has yet to leave us. We have just spent our time reading stories, watching movies and tv. Not too much going on!

Pregnancy update: Friday I went to the hospital for my ultrasound and AFI screening. The fluid levels were back up to a 9... just one point into the 'normal' range, so the bedrest worked! Baby looked great so they sent me home. I had my 37 week checkup yesterday and again, baby looked great. I have not progressed at all, despite the contractions that have come because of a coughing or sneezing fit. So, I go back for another AFI tomorrow and a baby will come if the fluid levels are in the 6 range. Wish us luck! We'll keep you posted....

Tuesday

I must say that being on bedrest really doesn't have any perks. Hope beyond hope that it never happens to you. That being said, I am blogging again today to give myself something to do!!! I am taking advantage of the tag from Melissa (who tagged everyone who read her husband tag).

Steven Luke Merkley

(This is a wig that Luke has insisted on keeping around, despite my protests... so I made him wear it one day. Ooooh, HOT!)

* Where did you meet? At my home in Park City in the kitchen. It was sometime in February of 2005. Luke is happy to tell anyone and everyone that I was not very nice on this first occasion. But it wasn’t that I wasn’t nice… I was just indifferent, (I had some personal issues at the time). When I met him the second time in June at my brother’s house, I was very smitten and found reasons to stop by just so I could see him again.

* How long did you date? 8 and half months from our first date, July 1, 2005.

*How long have you been married? 2 years and about 8 months.

* What's your favorite feature of his? His blue, blue eyes, his height and his Merkley thickness. Noah has the same thickness… no scrawny boys for me!

* What's your favorite quality of his? He is very outgoing… polar opposites from me. He has a willingness to talk to anyone and everyone, even though it sometimes embarrasses me and his enthusiasm.

* Does he have a nickname for you? Hunny and some I won’t mention.

* What's his favorite color? Red and camo if you consider camo an actual color.

* What's his favorite food? He is definitely a steak and potatoes man, but loves his sushi too!

* What's his favorite sport? Hunting is a sport to Luke. If I had to pick a traditional sport it would probably be baseball but he hasn’t played in years.

* When and where was your first kiss? It was about a week after our first date at my house. Luke would say that it was a little longer than that, but it wasn’t.

* What's your favorite thing to do as a couple? Being outdoors, or taking a drive.

* Where is his favorite vacation spot? Really, not so sure on this one. There are lots of places that he would like to go or go back to… but of the places that we have been together, I would say Jackson Hole.

* Do you have any children? We are lucky to have one amazing little boy and a little girl on the way!

* How old is he? 27

* Who said I love you first & where? Luke said it first and I had no hesitations about saying it right back.

* What's his favorite type of music? Country, country, country.

* What do you admire most about him? His ability to be easy going and his knowledge about the gospel. Actually, his knowledge about everything! He is smart and doesn’t give himself credit for it. He is also very interested in current events and is so well informed in what is going on in the world around him. It is very admirable that he cares.

* Do you think he'll read this? Yep. He likes checking the blog and actually reminds me to update if he thinks it has been too long. And also, I forewarned him… and he wasn’t too happy. Oh well!

Noah's drawing

Noah took a really late nap on Sunday the 5th. He wasn't ready to go to bed, but I was, so I let him sit up on the bed with me and read stories. He quickly spotted the hotel pad and pen sitting on the night table and got to work! We have tried using crayons and paper before, but he wasn't so interested, so it surprised me when he clicked the pen and started drawing all over the paper. He looked rather studious and focused, so I tried to get a picture of him "at work" instead of looking at me, but it didn't work out too well. He doesn't look to pleased that I interrupted him though...

Here is one of his drawings. I am quite proud of it. And I guess if you need a place to stay in Park City you can refer to the phone number at the bottom! Just kidding, come stay with us!

Our Conference Weekend

Now that I am sitting around doing nothing... I finally have the time to post our pictures of our fun filled Conference Weekend! One of the perks of my mom's job is that she got to take us all to a deluxe home in Silver Lake Village over Conference weekend. We had alot of fun enjoying the huge house with all the perks... king size bed, jetted tub, steam shower, pool table and time with family. Plus, we got to watch conference. I loved all the messages about keeping up hope and having faith, especially in these troubled times.

This is the view from the front of the house. I thought it was pretty...
Noah, who loves to be read to, took a book right over to my aunt Claudia and climbed up on her lap.
Noah trying to get Grandpa to play with him while conference was on. He wasn't too successful... I think Grandpa just gave him a pat on the head. Practicing walking... hasn't done us too much good so far.
Noah didn't know what to make of the oversized tub at first, but soon loved it!

The latest...

So, yesterday I went for my first appt. for the baby to be monitored and fluid levels checked. Alas, the fluid had dropped yet again, but baby is doing great! The fluid is now at 7 cm. and "they" are okay with that... but it was still significant enough to send me to L&D to see if they could figure out why.

Went downstairs to L&D to have more tests done. The nurse couldn't find any leakage but discovered that I am already progressed (3.5 cm and 70%) which was kind of a surprise since I'm only 35.5 weeks. But that's what happened with Noah, so not really a surprise! Apparently, my body just likes to get ready early! And that makes labor faster and easier for me, especially since I prefer non-medicated (don't freak out if you didn't already know that).

Anyway, between the low fluid, the progress and only being 35 weeks, my doc decided to put me on 100% bedrest. In the words of the nurse, "You are allowed to pee and get rid of body odor. No making dinner and find a babysitter for your cute little one." So here I am on my first day of bedrest, already bored out of my mind and posting just for something to do! Many thanks to those who are already helping and have offered to help with food and Noah. Poor little guy isn't going to realize what hit him. And I just have to sit around and do a whole lot of nothing. It is so hard when there are things to be done! Oh well, I guess I should try to enjoy the time of rest while I have it! I have to go back to the hospital next Friday for more tests and if the fluid has dropped anymore, I will for sure be induced. That is, if I don't have the baby on my own before then!

Getting ready for baby

At my monthly appt. last week, my doctor felt like I hadn't grown enough and sent me for an ultrasound to check the size and condition of the baby. I had my ultrasound yesterday morning and am happy to report that our little girl is right on track at a whopping 6 lbs. 3 oz. already! She is just fine but my fluid is a too low and the doctor recommend lots and lots of rest. I am supposed to rest every time Noah does and more if I can fit it in! Who has time to rest that much? I will be monitored weekly now and will have to be induced if the fluid levels drop anymore. So... feeling a little like it's time to pack my bags and get things ready!

Time sure flies when you are having fun! I can't believe it is time already for our little girl to join us. I, at the very least, wanted Noah to be walking by the time the baby was born, but he doesn't care too much for it. He took about three steps this morning, and we haven't been able to get a repeat performance since. Noah is expanding his vocabulary, though! He has started saying a couple of more words like duck, stairs, "no, no, no" and "all done!" It is very cute to hear him saying all done when he is finished with a meal or the bath. Let's hope that we can get him walking before the little one arrives. In the meantime, I will be sewing like crazy to finish up her receiving blankets and nightgowns and moving some furniture around to make room for her cradle in our bedroom.

We will keep you all posted if anything changes and we get sent to the hospital. I wonder what it's like to actually go into labor by myself! :)

A great week with Noah!

All weeks are great with Noah, but he has been especially cute this week! He usually wakes up in the morning or from naps crying and this week, has just been chatting to himself instead. He is learning to entertain himself when he wakes up! He has been so loving and happy all the time. Noah wants to give a hug to everyone (see above). He loves giving kisses to Daddy, too! The other night, he kept kissing Luke all over the face... it was very funny. I just had to share these adorable pictures of our darling little boy...

Noah and Daddy enjoying a Curious George book. I was right there, but Noah wanted his Daddy to read it to him.

Noah's makeshift chair. This is our dustpan, actually. Whenever Noah sees it, he puts it on the floor and gets all situated as if it really was his chair. Most of the time, by the time I grab the camera, he has moved but he held still long enough this time!

Noah reading a story in his rocking chair. He climbs up in this all the time and reads stories to himself. It is very fun to watch.

Autumn

“Every leaf speaks bliss to me, fluttering from the autumn tree."

-Emily Bronte

Autumn is my favorite time of year. I love the colors of Autumn. My dishes and decorations (when they aren't in boxes in a storage unit) are variations of red, orange, green, and bright yellow. I love watching the leaves change and get a little sad when they blow off the trees early. I love taking drives just to look at the leaves changing.

I love the smells of Autumn. I love smelling the rain on the pine trees. I love the cooking smells and the food of Autumn. All of the harvest fruits and vegetables... squash, peaches, apples and anything baking. I love that it is cold enough to enjoy soup again! There is nothing better than a hot bowl of soup with fresh baked rolls or bread.

I love the cool, crisp mornings and the warm afternoons. I love pulling out the box of sweaters I have and getting to wear them without a coat for awhile. I love the "back to school" season... although I haven't enjoyed it for a few years. I will get to enjoy it with my kids soon.

Autumn is Luke's favorite time of year, too. For all the same reasons, plus it is hunting season! Autumn leaves us all too soon. We would both be happy if it stayed this nice all year round.

Last Sunday we took a drive and a picnic with my mom and grandpa. From home we went to Midway to pick Grandpa up, then to Guardsman Pass and down to Brighton. The leaves were beautiful and we had such a great time.

This picture was taken at the Spruces campground, just west of Brighton.

We took a walk around Silver Lake at Brighton. It's a great short walk and perfect for little kids. I highly recommend it.

Noah was really proud of this pinecone that he found.

Luke, Noah and Grandpa at Silver Lake.

thought it was funny

I saw this on Julia's blog and thought I would give it a try. It was good for a laugh! Type your name followed by needs in Google and see what comes up...

1. Megan needs help
2. Megan needs a quiet home in a place with few or no thunder storms and lots of sunshine (truer words were never spoken)
3. Megan needs an ass kicking, now!!
4. Megan needs to buy me a drink (wonder who me is, anyway?)
5. Megan needs a summer intern
6. Megan needs to come back
7. Megan needs a dress rehearsal
8. Megan needs a very quiet home in a place with few or no thunder storms and lots of sunshine (again? Must be really true)
9. Megan needs jobs
10. Megan needs some gun advice

Try it out for a laugh.

Last Day Success!

So, Megan has been on my case about blogging and she really thinks that I should try to get into this blog craze that seems to have everyone so tied up in knots. Well, I told her that I would blog when I actually thought that I had something to say......well, tonight I have something to say. After many hours in the field and many miles hiked by foot I have finally had some success with bow hunting. I tagged my first deer tonight! Talk about a rush! I'll tell the story........

Tonight we had a company get together and I told Megan (my wife) that we weren't going to be staying very long because I was going to go "chase" (that is mostly all I've done is chase) deer. Jokingly I told Megan that there was a buck waiting for me that had my name on it and I didn't want to be late for our date. So, we drove the five minutes it took to go home, I changed into my camos, grabbed my bow, and we were on our way. We got to my "little spot" and from the vehicle I glassed to see if anything was out in the open. Well, I didn't see anything and it appeared that this night, the last night of the general season, the deer were going to give me the slip one more time. I told Megan to let me out and I would hike down the hill aways and see what I could see. I started to hike down and got right behind some trees so that I could glass and hopefully not have the deer "glass" me. I sat down and pulled out the trusty binoculars and scanned the hills. I quickly saw a small doe making her way up and over a little ridge. This doe, however, kept looking back like she was waiting and expecting something to come up behind her. At first I thought nothing of it being as how I though she could be looking for a fawn since there are a lot of does with fawns in the area. I kept watching her, sure that something was going to come up into view and I wanted to know what it would be, even if it was going to be just another doe or fawn. I was about to give up when this 3x3 popped up out of bushes. I glassed him and guessed him and the doe to be about 350 yrds away. They had no idea I was around and continued to feed up and over the ridge. I waited for five minutes or so and guessed that from the looks of it they were headed to a specific spot and there probably wouldn't be any chance that those deer were going to come back over the ridge to the side that I was on. So, I made a quick decision and started out. I figured that since the deer didn't know that I was close by I would be able to climb the small ridge myself and possibly intersect the two as they were feeding along and down the other side. I had tried this tactic before thinking that I could "cut deer off" and it had failed me in the past but I figured that since this was the last day in the area I would give it a shot and see what came of it. I very quietly followed the game trail that led over the ridge. I come up and over the ridge and....nothing. I didn't see a thing. I continued to follow the game trail I was on and very quietly snuck up and over a small burm in hillside I was walking. As I came up ove the burm I spotted the doe...and she spotted me. She bounded off a little ways but stopped and looked back. I pulled out the binoculars and glassed her guessing to be about 40 yrds away. As I was glassing I saw a slight movement in the sage brush in front of her and I saw some antlers sticking up. My blood started pumping and I started to get excited since I knew that it was probably that same buck that I had seen on the other side of the hill. I quickly guessed him to be about 25 yrds away. He was bedded down on the other side of the sage brush and I had no shot. The doe kept looking at me and I thought she would bust me any time and head for Dodge. However, she never took off. She just kind of paced back and forth not quite sure what to think of me. I thought however that the doe was going to bust me and that buck would stand up at any minute. I got down on my knees hoping it would be less conspicuous and drew my bow back and held on the sage. I moved a bit and snapped a twig and that buck all of a sudden stood up and ran about five yards and stopped. I held still trying not to move a muscle and to keep my bow steady on his vitals. He had run about five yards so I moved to my thirty yard pin. The buck calmly walked in front of some sage brush and stood still. He walked a little bit more finally out of the brush and giving me a broadside shot. I made sure my aim was true....and I let 'er rip.

It all seemed slow motion. I saw that arrow head straight for the kill zone.... and BANG!!!!!! I knew my shot was true! I heard the hit and heard and saw that buck take off. I waited five minutes or so not wanting to be too anxious. I walked up to the spot I thought the buck was standing when I shot him and...I saw nothing. No blood, no arrow....just nothing.......but then I kept walking and noticed all the blood! I had hit the buck perfect. It was an awesome shot. I continued walking the blood trail, being as how the sun was fading fast and if I wanted to recover that buck in the light I knew I would have to move. A blind man could have followed the blood trail. About 30 yards from my shot I found my arrow....soaked in blood from tip to tip. I kept walking and about 60 yards from where I had shot the buck...he was DOWN! I couldn't believe it. He had gone no more than sixty yards before piling up in the sage.

Well, the fun part was over and I got down to the dirty work of gutting the little bugger. I didn't have much light left and it was not too fun finishing up in the dark but finally got the business taken care of and started the HIKE. It was all UP hill. It wasn't just some little tiny hill either but a whole lot more steep than I thought it would be! After dragging that bugger up hill about 1000 yards or so I was ready to never shoot anything ever again....ha ha ha. But I finally made it to the road and called my wife to pick me up!

Now, keep in mind that I don't currently own a truck! So, Megan picked me up in the good 'ol trusty Nissan Maxima (that I have dubbed our 4x4 Maxie) and stuffed the dead body in the trunk! Got the deer home, out of the trunk, and hung in the garage! For my FIRST deer, I couldn't have asked for a better night! He's not KING KONG or anything, but to me he's perfect!

WHAT A NIGHT! ! ! ! ! !

Labor Day Weekend Update

Despite Luke and my mom heading out of town for the weekend, I had a pretty good time! I did end up doing all of the things I wanted and having a great time. On Friday, I went to the zoo with Michelle, Taytum, Hannah, Brock, Noah and Mia. We had our hands full with kids but it was still really fun! And the zoo has seriously improved over the last few years.

On Saturday morning, Sahara got into another porcupine (the third time in eight days). Michelle and I had to literally wrestle her to the ground to get the eleven quills out. We both got really muddy, but survived. Hopefully, Sahara will wise up and quit sticking her nose where it doesn't belong! That afternoon, I met Chelsie and Hannah at Liberty Park. The fountain was closed for repairs, but we had a good time on the swings and just letting the kids play on the grass. We are thinking about getting together in a play group fashion once a month until the weather is too cold, and then maybe we'll move it inside. Feel free to join us!

Sunday, I went to church and wrestled Noah all by myself. We had great Sacrament Meeting talks about the temple and the Sunday school lesson was about the Army of Helamen and their mothers. It was good to be at church! Sunday night, it started raining like crazy and did not let up for about 10 hours.

After Noah went to bed, I got cozy and kept reading Breaking Dawn. A loud rainstorm is perfect for reading a vampire novel. I think I read for about 4 hours straight. And my thought: I liked the book and liked the ending, but I was seriously bugged by a few things. I won't give any spoilers out, but the biggest annoyance was the lack of research. Let's just say that some characters are going hunting and they happen upon some elk. The lead hunter get's really excited when they spot a big buck. A buck elk? I've never heard of such a thing! Hello! It's a bull! And it is not weird that I know this kind of stuff... Robyn knew about the typo too! I just want to write a letter to the author and correct her so she doesn't make such a horrendous mistake again!

Luke came home on Monday afternoon after a very wet weekend. His hunting group woke up to about 4 inches of snow on Monday morning. That is some cold camping! I told him he should blog about it, but he declined. So, I will share his camp picture (without permission). Isn't he such a cute hunter?

breaking down

Nope. That's not a typo. I finally broke down and got myself a little copy of Breaking Dawn. I was blog surfing the other day and accidentally read a spoiler of the book. So I appreciate all of you that have let us know that your posts contain spoilers. I was going to wait and buy the entire boxed set in October, but I just couldn't wait any longer.

(http://sweettangerine50.wordpress.com/)

So, I am going to spend my Labor Day weekend cozied up with the book. Luke is hunting and my mom is on her annual canoeing trip with friends, so it's just me and the boy. I have other plans, too! I am going to the zoo with my sister and her kids and going to spend time with Chelsie and Hannah. Noah and Hannah actually played the other day at Grandpa Steve's birthday dinner. Usually Hannah just mows Noah over (even though he is bigger... she's faster). But Noah has figured out her tricks and chases her back. They were so cute, so we are going to take them to the park or something.

And lastly, I am going to work on some sewing projects. More to come on that... I have lots to share!

Amy's Shower

It's always fun to get together with friends! We got together to celebrate the impending arrival of Amy's baby. Any day now!! Thanks to all who came and helped... especially those who just had babies a week earlier. What troopers! We had a great time and I can't wait to get together again soon.

Back row: Whitney (and baby), Karen, Dede, me, Caroline
Middle: Sher and Amy
Front row: Leslie (and baby), Sarah, and Johanna (and baby)

I don't like TED

At my last Dr.'s appt, I decided to point out my very small and what I thought were very insignificant varicose veins. My Dr. didn't seem to think they were so insignificant. She advised me to take a baby aspirin every day and prescribed me these...

(http://www.tedhose.com)

I have to wear them 24/7 to keep my veins from getting worse. Some days I cheat. But aren't they saucy? And super hot. Not as in I'm a hottie, but as in oh so hot I want to cut my legs off. And because they are so super ugly, I can't wear all my cute summer sandals. So, I am stuck in the one pair of shoes I have that are closed toe. Which are green and purple and very flat. I miss my heels!!

So, because I am in flat shoes that don't match anything at all, I feel like I am waddling. I feel like a penguin today. I don't even think that my belly is that big (ha, ha, it's probably huge). But it must be. Yesterday at church a woman said to me, "Oh you just look so miserable and just ready to be done!" Hello! I still have 10 weeks left! I can't look that miserable!

Well, I'll just waddle my way to where the rest of my shoes are stored and hope for cooler weather. Soon.

Quirks - updated

Robyn tagged me to write about six of my quirky traits. So here goes...

1. My feet are very important to the quality of my sleep. I cannot sleep if they are too hot or too cold and will have to use socks accordingly. If I don't have socks on, I usually end up with my big toe crossed over my second toe. Then sleep will easily come.

2. I am very meticulous about how my towels are folded. And sadly, that is pretty much the only housekeeping chore I am meticulous about.

3. Like Robyn, I absolutely cannot stand grammar and spelling mistakes in writing, especially in professional publications! I would love a job where I can proof novels before they head to print. I could do that from home! Any ideas how to get a job like that? P.S. If I make a mistake, it's because I am moving too fast. Please... call me on it.

4. I cannot stand it when people don't use their blinkers. They are there for a reason! Use them!

5. I usually don't admit this. I cry at movies. Most movies make me cry. Movies that I have seen a thousand times and that are probably not worth crying over will still make me cry. When we are trying to pick out a movie, I will often reject a selection of Luke's just on the basis that it will make me cry and I don't feel like crying that day. Some examples... The Little Mermaid and most recently Monsters, Inc. What?! I know. I'm a baby.

6. A two-fer: I can't stand incomplete sets of books. For example, my mom bought Noah a Eric Carle book for his birthday. I thought it was cute and bought another one, only to find out it was part of a set of four! So my mom (she is the same this way) and I went back to the store and finished off the set of four. Good thing they were a bargain... which leads me the second of the two-fer: I can't buy anything that is regular priced. I seriously am a bargain shopper and have a really, really, really hard time paying full price for anything (even a can of tomatoes)! This has saved me some dough over time and so I am thankful for it. And like the incomplete set thing... it runs in the family. You should hear about the deals that my sister gets!

Oh What a Night!

On Tuesday night, I was feeling the need to get out of the house. I asked Luke if he wanted to take a drive. He's always up for a drive, especially if he gets to see an animal or two along the way. And since there are always animals around, we decided to head up towards Guardsman Pass. What a night! It was amazing. I can't believe how lucky we were to see some of our favorite things.

When we got to the top of Guardsman, there was a huge, full double rainbow. You couldn't even see the entire thing without turning your head. Rainbows are one of my favorite sights to see. I love spotting them and being reminded of the miracles that our Heavenly Father works in our lives. Isn't this just breathtaking?

Then, we turn around the bend and I see some dark spots out in a meadow. I asked Luke, "What are those, cows, horses?" Then, it hit me right before it hit him... they were moose. Six moose all together in a meadow. We pulled up closer and discovered that they were all bulls and that there were actually seven! It was so awesome! I have never seen this many moose, let alone bulls, together in one place. We took some great video and will have to share it sometime. This picture is of the five that were closest.

We headed down the hill aways and saw three deer, another bull moose and then a cow and calf moose. They were fun to watch, too. The mother got a little impatient with us after a couple of minutes, so we left them alone and headed back up the hill. It was so amazing. What a great night! I love the outdoors and this beautiful earth we live in.

We Made It!

I've been saying for a few weeks that first birthday parties are more for the mommies than for the babies. It's a celebration of surviving the first year without anybody getting majorly injured or crazy!

It has been a great year and the best of my life to watch Noah learn and grow everyday. His happy demeanor and love just amaze me! I love it when he squeezes my neck with both arms... he gives the best hugs. He is so fun and is so good natured. I can't believe that it has already been a year! I can't imagine my life without this fun and busy boy. He has made me who I am today.

We had a great birthday. We invited grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins over for dinner, cake, and homemade ice cream. It was fun to have everyone over and enjoy this day together!

The girls were more interested in opening Noah's presents than he was...

Noah's farm animal cake that I made for him... and him enjoying it!

Noah gets bigger and stronger every day. His unofficial stats:

Weight: 25 lbs.

Height: 32 in.

Head: 48 cm.

Teeth: 8 (four on top, four on bottom)

We'll get these all verified at his appt. next week. He is crawling like crazy now and my mom predicts he will walk within 6 weeks. We'll see! Noah loves music and loves to dance! He likes to snuggle up and be read to, especially his Sesame Street Animal Alphabet book. He gets it off the shelf so that I will read it to him. He loves to play and loves to eat even more. This kid rarely turns down a meal. So, really no favorite foods to speak of. Anything that will fit in his hand will go in his mouth. He is still saying, Dada, Doggy and Taytay and working on kitty, more, and stairs. I like to think he is working on Momma, but only coincidentally right now.

Noah, Happy Birthday! We love you so much and are so blessed to have you as our first born. Thank you for being the child that you are. We love you!

Happy Birthday Mom!

Today is my mom's birthday and ever year she decides to do something that she never gets the time or opportunity to do. So, we woke up like any other day, but by 9 am, had decided to jump in the car for a day of antiquing and a playing in Bear Lake! The antiquing didn't go so well... the first store we stopped at in Ogden was gone, permanently. The second store we stopped at in Logan was a bust, fun to walk through, but no must have treasures.

We had a great lunch and then headed up Logan canyon to the lake. Noah was a great sport in the car for so long and deserved to play on the beach. We forgot his swimsuit so he got a little wet and cranky. We remedied that by putting him in a trucker hat and just his diaper. It doesn't get more WT than this!


Happy Birthday, Mom! We had a great day and it was fun to share it with you!