Thursday, July 31, 2008

I'm A KNITTER!

Ok, so I'm not going pro. But I did learn a lot today! It was really fun, and I was able to talk to a bunch of people! I'm printing out my pattern as we speak, so I can get started ASAP! :)

Last night was WAY rough! I didn't head to bed until close to midnight. As soon as I was signing off of the computer, I hear Barry say, "Christia, come here." I knew right then and there that something was wrong with Julian. I ran up the stairs, (sorry neighbors, I know they squeak)to find my pillow covered in vomit! Icks! Julian was no where to be found though, until I looked in our bathroom. Poor bug was sick in the bathtub. I stripped him down, and gave him a quick bath. Of course, after the bath, he was no where near ready for bed! So he wanted to go 'downdairs' and watch a 'DDD' and of course, since he was pukey I let him. I reclined our recliner, and then he fell asleep on me, only to wake again a few minutes later. He said, "Mommy, I'm going to puke again." And he did. I was SO thankful that he told me that he had to puke, and didn't just do it all over me!

That was the last of the puke for last night. He woke up bright and early at about 6:30, and was awake. I got to sleep in again :) and my wonderful husband took the sicky downstairs. When I woke up at about 8:30, Julian was acting 100% normal. I don't know what is going on with him! He really hasn't been feeling good since we got here. I hope he kicks whatever bug he's got quickly!!

We went down to the school today. Barry had to get a blood test to check for some antibody, to make sure that he had it. Then we went to the zoo! It was freaking hot today, so next time I get the bright idea to go to the zoo in the heat of the day, talk me out of it! Julian adored the animals. His favorite was either the zebras or giraffes or the lions! Our Point Defiance Zoo pass got us in for free! Yippee! He did keep asking where Grandma was. The last few times we'd gone to the zoo, she came with us. It was kind of hard to explain to him that she was in Washington, and we're in Iowa. He talked to Grandma on the phone today. She asked him when he was coming home, and he replied, "Two days Grandma." It was adorable.

Gabe decided to roll off of the recliner today. Totally my fault, and I feel SUPER guilty about it. I am so embarrassed that my kid fell off the couch (yet I'm blogging about it.) He cried a lot, but I think he was just scared. Poor kid.

I'm really excited for the knitting group. Every Thursday, except for next Thursday. Next Thursday is orientation :)

Tuesday, July 29, 2008

Excited all around!

Well...
#1. Barry set up my washer and dryer! Yay, yippee, I can do laundry! No seriously, I'm SO happy about it! I had been using my cloth diapers for the past 2 days, and they were getting ready! It was delivered today about 2, and we finally set it up at about 9. I washed my diapers, and am SO excited to do my fluffy laundry.

#2. I had a job interview today. That has good and bad parts to it. I do not want to work outside of the home, ever. I know and realize that I definitely may have to. It's just not something I want to do. After talking to Debbi, my awesome neighbor, she thinks I will be able to find someone from the ward to watch the boys. [side vent: DMU will increase Barry's financial aid to pay for the boys to go to daycare, or for someone to watch them, but will not increase it for me to stay home and watch them. I have to provide documentation that I'm working full time, and then fill out my daycare/childcare provider's information. To me, it would make more sense for them to increase the amount so I didn't have to work and could be at home with my boys...am I totally off my rocker for thinking this??: end side vent] I feel better about myself, knowing that I only applied for jobs on Sunday night, and have already had interest, that's a slight confidence booster.

#3. I've always always always wanted to know how to knit or crochet. Seriously I remember saving up my allowance to buy crochet hooks and yarn, but never learning how to do it. My best friend growing up, Anna, her mom was a HUGE crocheter! I still have dolls at my mom's that she crocheted big fancy dresses for! I think that she is why I always longed to do that. Anyway, back to my awesome neighbor, Debbi, well she has a neighbor that is in a knitting club for the spouses of DMU students. And she invited me! I'm SO excited that someone is going to teach me how to do it!

#4. Breaking Dawn comes out on Saturday! Enough said!

#5. I get to refer someone to my most favorite OB ever! I seriously love her, and am so sad to be in Iowa...but I guess it doesn't *really* matter since I'm not having more kids any time soon!

Now the not so exciting things about my day. Julian did not nap. Well I guess, if you want to get technical, he did sleep for 10 minutes in the car on the way home from our appointment. UGH! Trust me, he still realllllllllllllllllly desperately needs to nap!

I think that's all that's happened in Casa de Palizzi today...Oh yeah! We got cable, and internet today, so that is VERY exciting!

Monday, July 28, 2008

Oh and this

Our neighbors down the way, the ones that are moving to Washington for 4th year's rotations, gave us a TON of food today! We were a little stressed about money, since Barry's aid doesn't come in until the 8th or 9th. But they totally hooked us up for food, so we don't have to stress about food & money!

Thanks so much Debbi! I'm really sad that you are moving away! I think we would have a lot to talk about, especially Twilight...and Breaking Dawn...

And another family in the complex, came to say hi, and brought us chocolate cookies! It was way sweet! They've got a little boy who is 18 months, and another on the way! I am really loving the sense of community we've got already, even 4 days into it!

Newfangled Inventions

So, I used something totally new today. Redbox It is freaking awesome. I was able to reserve my movie from home, entered in my Credit Card # and then went to the RedBox and picked it up. It's like a vending machine for movies. The best part is that it is only $1.00 for night! Can't beat that! With the RedBox we were able to finally watch Juno! I liked it a lot! It was pretty cute, and Juno was a funny girl!

I looked in Julian's water table today, and after the downpour yesterday, it was literally FULL! Wow! So I'd say it rained at least 4 inches! It continued to thunder and lightening all night last night. It was kind of crazy to watch!

Julian woke up this morning with a fever, again, this time 100.4! What in the heck? He said his mouth hurt...so I'm going to guess that maybe, finally, his 2 year molars are on the way? Yeah he's almost 2 1/2.

Something cool happened today! Stacy entered my beloved GoodMama photo contest. While the picture didn't win first prize, it's definitely a winner!


I was so excited to see my little boo on the computer! If you go to GoodMama you can see the full thing!

I entered a picture in the contest for next week. We'll see if I win. I'm not too hopeful. TONS of people enter the contest. But it's always fun to take pictures of my boys. Now I need to work on Julian's entry! He's so wild & crazy these days it's hard to get him to sit still!

It's getting late here, so I will go to bed, finally!

Sunday, July 27, 2008

My First Midwestern Thurnderstorm

Was today! How do I forget these things!

So I get a text message from my friend Kelly, she lives in Grimes, Iowa, and says it's getting dark and scary here. (She's about 15 minutes from me) and I look out the window and the sky is dark grey. I pretty much started to panic right then and there. So she tells me there's a severe thunder storm headed here, with rain and lightening. Well, she was right. About 10 minutes later it starts pouring. I'm talking pouring, like a shower it was so much water! I looked out our back window, and my double stroller is sitting out there getting DRENCHED! UGH! So I ran out there, pulled it under the roof, and then moved Julian's bike so it wasn't getting rained on. The weirdest thing was that it was SO hot while it was raining. The water was warm, and the air was hot. It was the weirdest rain ever...and I know rain, I'm from Washington! ;)

The thunder and lightening kept going for about 30 ish minutes. Thankfully it wasn't too close to us.

And we bought a washer and dryer today. Gotta love craigslist.com! We found a used washer and dryer with a 1 year warranty and free delivery for $300! YES! So to celebrate that, I started using my cloth diapers again, oh how I love them!

Home sweet Iowa....

Well we're definitely not in Washington anymore!! We got to Iowa Friday night, about 7:30. We did lose an hour of time, so we were officially 2 hours behind beloved Washington. We drove about 570 miles on Friday. It was a long haul. Luckily, South Dakota wasn't super boring to look at, and once we were in Iowa, the anticipation fueled us through the rest of the way. Well, I had to stop in this teeny tiny little town for gas. There was one gas station, a mile off of the freeway. When I got to the gas station, there were 2 pumps, and there were no digital numbers to be seen! They still had the rolling numbers on the pumps, seriously an antique! I couldn't get my debit card to swipe, so I had to go inside. Before stopping for gasoline, I'd told Barry that I was stopping. He said, OK, I'm going to stop at a rest stop after we get to I-80. Understanding that, I quickly pumped my gas, and got back on the freeway. I drove the legal speed limit, 70 mph, (I didn't drive 70 most of the way here since the Penske truck was SLOW!) and quickly made it to I-80, which is when I got the text message from Barry stating he'd stopped off at a rest stop off of I-680!!! Grrrr! See normally that would be no problem. I had the directions to our place, and am fully capable of driving on the freeway solo, BUT Barry had the keys to the place! By the time I got the text message, he was a good 30 minutes behind me.

I continued on, knowing that I wouldn't be able to get into the house when we did get there. Julian was seriously a fussy, crying, screaming monster. (He pretty much alternated those 3 things then entire 4th day of driving!!!) I had to think fast, or relatively fast, because he was going to be MAD when we got there and A. couldn't go in the house, and B. had NO toys for him to play with. That's when I remembered the park (A.K.A. the playground at the apartments) that he could play at. He was pacified, for the time being with that upcoming adventure. So 30 minutes later, we pull up to our townhouse. I'm in love! It's so cute, ours is brick on the outside. It is so much nicer than I was anticipating! Our rent is so cheap here, I was honestly expecting a disgusting place...but it's way cute! We have a huuuuuge backyard, and are only 10 steps from the playground! It's so fabulous. Also note that about 30 minutes after losing Barry on the freeway, both boys fell asleep, and I had to pee SO bad! When we did get to the house, I let Julian play on the toys while I anxiously waited for Barry to come, not so I could check out the place, but so that I could pee!!

On Saturday morning, some guys from the complex and from our ward came by and helped Barry unload the truck. It was so nice. A few doors down from us is a family that is moving to Washington next week. I am so jealous! I told them to enjoy it for me! I realllllllllllllllllllllly miss Washington.

Oh Friday night, we found Super Walmart. We had to get some basic stuff, i.e. toilet paper, paper towels, blah blah blah. When we left Walmart at 11 pm Central Time, it was seriously still 80 degrees outside! Thank God for central air!

Saturday afternoon, I experienced Super Target. Ahhh my 2 favorite things, food and Target in one place!

Friday night, we ordered Pizza Hut. So freaking good. We had no glasses or plates, so we pretty much ate like heathens.

Saturday night, I COOKED. Yep, you read that right, Christia cooked dinner! I know, don't be too shocked, it's gotta be a regular occurrence now.

Saturday at Super Target, Julian was acting crazy! He was crying, and whining, and then said his tummy hurt. So once we left there, he laid down on the blanket (at home) and slept. It was bizarre. So, this morning, I wake up to gagging/almost puking. Not my idea of an alarm clock! We skipped out on church today, because he was still not 100% and I started not feeling good. Ugh, I hope G doesn't get any bugs!

I cooked dinner again tonight, yeah 2 nights in a row, I'm definitely on a roll! And applied for some jobs. I'm feeling really sad at the prospect of going back to work. Please pray that I will have peace, and that the right job will pretty much just fall into my lap. I loved working for BECU, I'm so scared that another company just won't feel right!

Well it's after midnight here, and the boys have been sleeping for hours! (LITERALLY!!!) I'm going to go to bed, but wanted to update you that read my blog, before I forgot everything!

Friday, July 25, 2008

Almost on the road again...

I just forgot something funny Gabriel did yesterday! We were eating Subway. We means Barry and me. Julian had a hotdog, and Gabriel had milk! Yums! Well Gabriel was pretty sure that milk/formula just wasn't satisfying his hunger. He sneak attacked daddy's sandwich! He was looking at me, and his hand was wandering to the sandwich. He ripped open the sandwich, and tried to pick up the tomato and eat it!

Yeah, apparently he likes food? Maybe he'll be different than his picky as heck brother!

It was totally funny though. He was determined to get that sandwich, and specifically that tomato!

Thursday, July 24, 2008

The writings on the Wall :)

Hi all,
We made it to our goal desination: Wall, SD. We did not stop off to see Mount Rushmore. There was a severe thunderstorm headed right for Rapid City. Tomorrow we have 560 miles until our address! Yay! SO SO SO excited!

I remembered something funny from my drive through Montana. There was a sign for a 'Testicle Festival' and the next town up was Bonner. There is just something wrong with that! My mind might be in the gutter, but in Montana there was nothing else to focus on.

We drove through Wyoming, AKA the most boring state ever!!! Julian was kind of a monster, because he kept screaming, and then waking up Gabriel. I asked him if he was being a nice boy, and he said, no I'm not a nice boy. He is definitely a character! Gabriel was a nice boy, and he didn't cry, until Julian woke him up screaming! Ugh! My friend Elizabeth equated it to training 2 puppies at the same time. They keep undoing the training! Definitely!

We're all tired tonight, and hoping to get an early start tomorrow! So I'm going to go! We're staying at a cute little motel. It's fun!

Hopefully I'll be blogging from home tomorrow! :)


View Larger Map

PS we could have driven farther, there's just nothing in between!

Wednesday, July 23, 2008

Billings, Montana says Hello!!

Well, we did get an earlier start. We left Kellogg at about 9:00. We had to fill up in Kellogg, and then were on the road. We drove all of the way to Missoula, and ate lunch at Cracker Barrel. Can I say YUM??? Wow, it was good. Julian loved the game that they had on the table. He rode with me most of the day, which was fun for the most part. He got to eat some yummmmmy chocolate, and watched some DVDs. The boys were good, again, for the most part.

Julian did something sort of crazy. We were driving through Butte, Montana. I'd rolled down the window to talk to Barry about the gas station we were going to go to. Julian always likes his window rolled down, when mine is. So I rolled his down. As we started to drive, I rolled them back up. Julian said, "Mommy, I smell rain clouds." So at that time, there wasn't a cloud in the sky, and it was over 80 degrees! We had just passed through Bozeman, when randomly, it started POURING DOWN RAIN! I was so shocked, the temperature dropped like 15 degrees and the sky was dark. It was kind of crazy.

I finally saw some wildlife today! I've seen a few eagles flying, but today while I was talking to Jessica on the phone, I saw a whole bunch of deer! It was awesome!

Tomorrow, we are hoping to get to Mount Rushmore! I will be sure to take bunches of pictures. I'm exhausted, as are the boys! Gabriel cried a lot. I am hoping and praying that he is better tomorrow!!

About 470 miles today!

Here's our map

View Larger Map
Just a little under halfway there!

Tuesday, July 22, 2008

Greetings from Kellogg, Idaho!

Well, we left Puyallup at about 11:30 this morning. Yeah we got a late start. It was absolutely the hardest thing I've ever had to do, leaving my mom's house. I cried a lot. I cried every time a new song came on my CD player, all the way until I-90!! Yeah that's about an hour worth of just crying. I realize that I'm not leaving Washington forever. I realize that in my brain, but my heart is still sad.

My friend Keren is in labor as we speak...well hopefully, she's had Norah or Ava by now...I don't know for sure though! I get absolutely NO service in Kellogg, Idaho, as it turns out. We're staying here for the night. Hopefully we'll get super far tomorrow! :) Thanks for the prayers and well wishes, I think they seriously helped, the boys were AMAZING!

I'm going to feed the babe, and then hopefully go to bed! I'm sleepy and we've got another few days of driving ahead of us!


View Larger Map

This shows where we've gone so far!!!

Monday, July 21, 2008

Bloody Nose, Lip and Cries...Oh my!!

So yesterday we went to Port Orchard to visit Chris, Addie & the girls, Katie and Connie. It was ok, a loooong drive though, but nothing compared to what is ahead. Julian had a lot of fun, especially once he realized that there was a kitty. We were playing in Katie's bedroom, Julian and I were, and Katie was holding Gabriel in the living room. Moments before going into Katie's room, I'd asked Katie if she wanted me to take G from her, and she said no. I went back to doing the US puzzle that Julian was doing, and about 30 seconds later, I hear Gabe screaming bloody murder (no pun intended!) I pretty much run out to the living room, and Gabriel had a bloody nose and lip! Poor guy! I guess he flopped himself over?! He thinks he's big. It was pretty traumatic for me, Julian couldn't have cared less, and my step-mom Addie was pretty stressed! There doesn't seem to be any permanent damage. Julian is 2 and hasn't had a bloody nose or lip yet...despite his absolute love for being crazy!!

Jessica and the boys and I went to Target in Gig Harbor, hoping to get some good clearance deals..but no such luck.

Today, we're packing up the last of our stuff that we're using, and then heading out tomorrow morning! Ahhh! It's so surreal. I am very excited to decorate my own place, that is going to be so much fun. I am not excited for the drive and to be SO SO SO far away from my family and friends. It's going to be tough.

Oh, I forgot that Jessica's little boy Preston was also at our going away BBQ.

And Gabriel weighs 18.1 lbs. I weighed him today on my baby scale.

Sunday, July 20, 2008

Sunday...

Wow! I'm getting really freaked out! It's Sunday (technically) and we're leaving Tuesday. SO close.

We got the truck this morning. It is way bigger than I was expecting. At about 9:40 some people from church came over, and helped Barry plow through the boxes. All of the boxes that were upstairs were in the truck in less than 20 minutes. They went to our storage unit afterward, and got through the unit quickly. Bob bought yummy donuts from Happy Donuts. I highly recommend them for donuts! Dare I say that they're better than Krispy Kreme!! (Don't hit me!) After all of that, we went to Target to buy Napoleon a new bed, which he looooves. We got some food for him, and then went to the ILs. The boys are with the R's this weekend, so Julian didn't get to play with them. He did however, play with THE most adorable little girl, named Allison. They picked blueberries together, and ran around the house together. It was priceless.

Tomorrow, I am going over to Port Orchard to see Chris and the fam. Jessica is coming with me, so I don't have to brave it alone. I'm excited to see my little sisters. I'm not excited for the drive, I have a feeling Julian will be asking, "Are we there yet?" about 9 million times.

Tomorrow night (or I guess it's today, technically) we are going to go to Stacy's son Oliver's 1st birthday. Then, we're going to the ILs for dinner & so Julian can play with B&C!

I'm watching The Bucket List, so far really good, but I can definitely tell that it's going to get sad. As if the waterworks haven't already been running today! I've been a tad emotional today, okay a lot emotional. Barry explained to Julian that we were moving to Iowa. He told him that it's going to take us a reallllllly long time to get there, and that we wouldn't get to see Grandma and Grandpa for a while. I think he's going to be VERY confused when we get there. Grandma and Grandpa are pretty much is best friends in the whole wide world. He thinks that they are amazingly awesome (which they are) and would rather stay with them than come with me most days.

On a happier note, Julian is SO excited to ride in the Penske truck. He calls it the big bus. I have some cute pictures of Julian in the Penske truck, 'helping' daddy rearrange it.




And since Gabriel decided to take it upon himself to start solids, ie COTTON CANDY, I decided he was probably ready for some real solids! I don't think he actually ingested much, if any of the rice cereal, but he looked cute, and made a mess!!


I have some more pictures for the GoodMama photo contest that I took, but this blog is pretty pic heavy as it is...buuuut, what the heck?








Saturday, July 19, 2008

OMGosh, how could I have forgotten??

Gabriel had his first solids yesterday! We were at Barry's company BBQ. They had tons of good food, Julian was pretty much in heaven. Ice cream, chips, soda & best of all cotton candy. Well Julian had opened a package of cotton candy, and then put the rest of the cotton candy on Gabe's feet in the stroller. About an hour later, I look down at Gabe, who is furiously sucking on what I thought was his stuffed elephant. Upon a further investigation, I realized Gabriel was eating COTTON CANDY! It was purple cotton candy, which almost exactly resembled his stuffed Elephant, appropriately named, "Ellie" by Grandma. So...Julian's first food was oatmeal, Gabe's was cotton candy, where's the justice??

Friday, July 18, 2008

So grateful

Today was our going away BBQ. I'm so thankful to my sister Angee for having it for us! She opened up her home, and even took her babies (her dogs) to a babysitters! It was a really fun time. I was glad that I was able to talk to so many of my friends, and it was awesome that they were all in one place! That *never* happens :)

There were definitely A LOT of kids/babies there! Here are the kids that I can remember: Julian & Gabriel, Big Gabriel & Gianna, Kaden, Dakota, Isbelle & Andelina, Laura & Gretchen, Isiah & Dylan & Janae. Pfew! That's a bunch of kids. It was so fun.

Julian and Big Gabriel are pretty much best friends. Seriously the whole time, they were playing together. They also have similar taste in girls! Both of them thought Izzy was a doll, which she is!

I'm so thankful to everyone that came to celebrate with us, and bid us a fine farewell. Turns out we're leaving Tuesday now, which is good, one more day to hang out with my friends! We're walking Monday, right?! :)

Some fun pictures, stolen from Keren's myspace.
Carly & ME

Keren & Me

The Girl :)


K so can I tell you how impressed with Keren I am? Seriously, she's over due, by a week and a few days. She still came to my going away party, chowed down on the fresh pineapple (come on natural enzymes!!!) and was so happy and kind. I tell you what, if I were over due, there's no way I would be happy, and sweet about it!

I had so much fun tonight, snuggling up with the baby girls. I got to soak up the pink before I go :)

It's Friday...

Wow! How incredibly scary! It's Friday. My last Friday in Washington, for a while at least! Today, Angee is having a BBQ for us. I'm really excited, and SO thankful to her for having this party for us. I'm thankful for a last chance to see my friends and family! :)

I went to the mall today. I was only going to buy some shirts for Julian, Gabriel, and Preston, my nephew. Why is it impossible to walk out with exactly what I'm supposed to be getting? I ended up with a whole lot of clothes, but they were super duper cheap at Old Navy! (50% off of the lowest price!!) I got some clothes for next summer for both boys. I did though, find some clothes for Julian, Gabriel and Preston! :) Gabe is such a peanut. He is wearing the right size for his age. He is almost 5 months, and wears 3-6 month clothes! I'm NOT used to that! Julian was HUGE, and was wearing 12-18 months by now!

We also went to the zoo this morning. It was REALLY fun! My mom and I went, and met up with Carly and her kids, G&G, and Laura came too! (She's adorably pregnant, by the way!! Totally makes me wish my baby bump!!) Today, since the weather was cooler than normal, more animals were out and about. It was great! We saw polar bears, an entertaining whale show, the red wolves, reindeer, elephants, tigers, and monkeys.

Later on today we're meeting Barry's former co-workers, and we're going to go to his company picnic. It will be fun, it's at the Puyallup Fair!

Oh yeah, at the zoo, Big Gabriel ate an ice cream cone and it was WAY cute! I took some pictures, and really need to upload them!

My mom and Julian rode "Bronco" again! My mom was really wanting to ride the pig, but both times they rode, the pig was taken! Lame! Maybe next time!

We are almost all the way packed up. I need to work harder, since the moving truck will be here Saturday morning! Some people from church are coming Saturday morning to help us pack the truck! Ahhhh! It's really happening, we're really moving to Iowa!

Tuesday, July 15, 2008

Recap of today...

So we started the day off by taking Julian to my mother-in-law's house so that he could play with B&C, and we could get some packing done. We also went to Walmart to get some stuff for the trip. Since we're going to be on the road for about 5 days straight, I'm not going to be able to use my beloved cloth diapers. So we bought some disposable diapers, and wipes, and some other random things. Then we came home and packed up our clothes! All but about 2 weeks worth of clothes. Tomorrow we are packing up the shoes, and hangers, etc. Julian stayed over at my MIL's until about 2, where we picked him up.

My MIL attempted to get him to nap. She tried to lay him down, and he got back up and said, "I'm sorry, I can't do that, Grandma Ann." What a funny little boy I have. When we got in the car he pretty much zonked out instantly. We went and picked up some more boxes, and then came home. The boys and I went to meet Carly and her kiddos at Ruston Way. Carly and I walked all the way down and back! We also decided that 5 years from today, she and I are going to go on a trip to Greece! No kids, no hubbies, just shopping and the beach! :)

Julian decided that the water was fine, despite the fact that it was FREEZING! He went up to his belly button in the water. He fell down, and took a bit of water in, spit it out, and then ran out. He went back for more though, and got knocked down by the waves, and then I had to go save him! Poor guy!

Julian's got a new thing. Whenever we are in the car, driving anywhere, he immediately says, "Mommy, are we there yet?" Seriously. All. Of. The. Time! It's cute, yet super frustrating! I can only imagine our trip to Iowa! The entire way there, I'm sure he will be constantly asking me! UGH! Gabriel gave us a hint of what it was going to be like on the way to Iowa as well. He cried so much today. I don't know if he's teething maybe? But seriously cried, a lot.

Tomorrow's plans are for lunch with Mary and her girls, and Barry's going to finish packing our shoes and stuff, I think we'll be done, except for Julian's toys, which will be an undertaking of its own!

I stayed up WAY too late yesterday, so I think I'm going to be hitting the hay at a reasonable hour tonight! :)

Elephants

So, Gabriel's nursery set is brown and green, with polka dots, stripes, and most importantly: elephants! (Did I use that colon right Angela?) I plan on doing Julian's "big boy bed" in sage green and brown as well, to sort of compliment Gabe's set which I adore. I'm scouring Etsy to find some original artwork for their room. I found a watercolor painting that I absolutely LOVE, but I'm afraid it won't match the color scheme. I will keep looking, but for your viewing pleasure

here

Although this one might be perfection

here


This would be cute

here

with these as well

here



I loooove this nightlight

here

PS I also love the birds.

Monday, July 14, 2008

Wowza...T minus 7 days

So it's Monday (for 4 more minutes at least!) That means that in seven days, we will be getting into the huge Penske truck, or at least Barry will, I will be driving the Explorer, and driving into our future, and the unknown. To say that I'm nervous would put it mildly. To say that I'm excited would be an understatement. To say that I'm scared would be 100% correct. There are so many emotions running through me at any given time. One minute I can be laughing so hard, and the next, crying.

Today, my mom showed me a going away present she bought for Julian. When we went to the zoo last week, she and Julian rode the carousel. There's an episode of Dragon Tales, where Max rides a horse, on the carousel, named Bronco. Julian's been itching to ride a carousel since that episode. So obviously, his horse was called Bronco. My mom rode a dog, I think. It was Julian's first time (that he remembers) riding one. He was so excited, and the look of sheer terror mixed with joy, is a look I'll never forget. Anyway, my mom bought Julian a snow globe. Inside of the snow globe, there is a carousel. Yeah I cried.

I still can't believe that I'm going to be moving SO far away. I am still most definitely in denial. It's going to be way hard to be away from both my family and friends. I go through phases where I'm excited about the prospect of everything being new, and then there's the phases where I feel SUPER guilty about taking my boys away from my parents and Barry's parents. Now logically I know I'm not TAKING THEM AWAY, but I still feel like my parents are going to miss out on so much of their lives, and my boys will miss out on having grandparents so close.

Again, on the drive home from the zoo, my mom and I were talking about grandparents. I don't really remember my biological grandparents. My grandma, Lola, passed away when I was in first grade. She is the grandparent that I remember the most. She was my mom's mom, and lived in the apartment underneath our house. (A mother-in-law apartment) I have very fond memories of Lola, and when/if I ever have a little girl, she will be named after her. Right now her name would be Catherine Lola, but that will likely change between now and the time I ever have a girl, if I ever have a girl. I remember that Lola always had pepsi, which we never had. I would always go downstairs and drink pepsi with her. I remember watching daytime soaps with her, and going to Chinese!

My biological dad's parents I didn't see very much. They lived in Moses Lake. My grandpa was Ernie and my grandma was Phyllis. I remember Grandpa Juergens loved playing cribbage, and Grandma Phyllis loved making quilts, and watching Wheel of Fortune. I always remember Grandpa Juergens wearing the black/white striped overalls, like conductors wear. And I remember when he would pay us a penny a rock, for picking rocks out of the field! Another memory of Grandma Juergens just popped in my head, although my mom and I have been talking about it recently, so I don't know why I didn't think of it sooner. My Grandma Juergens had dentures. I don't know if she always did, but I know she did when I remember back. When I was little, probably like 4 or maybe 5, I got my first cavity. Grandma Juergens told me that since I didn't take care of my teeth, they were all going to rot and fall out, and I would end up with dentures. She then proceeded to click/clack her dentures. I promptly went into the bathroom and brushed my teeth for a good hour straight, hoping to brush away my cavity! The memories I do have of my paternal grandparents are very fond, I just don't have many.

Bob's parents I have the most memories of. They're both still alive, Art and Dixie. However, not married to each other! :)
I remember selling fireworks with Art, and watching Rich's football games. I remember Thanksgiving, and meeting his new wife Sue. For Dixie, the memory that sticks out the most, I made her a corsage in school for Mother's Day. I worked really hard on it, and I think she liked it? I also remember her dog Yanka, and making Italian sodas at Tom's espresso stand.

I really hope that my boys have the opportunity to know and love their grandparents. I think that Julian will because he's 2. He will be able to remember some things. I hope that we are able to come home for residency so that my boys can reconnect with my parents. I think that is what I'm most scared of, them not knowing their grandparents. I know I'm being irrational, we're going to be gone for hopefully only 3 or 4 years. I know that I will be able to fly back, and I am praying that my mom & Bob come for at least one visit!

Wow this blog has gotten out of control long. I will post more tomorrow. Especially since it is technically Tuesday now! :)

Sunday, July 13, 2008

So thankful

My mother-in-law is here! Now while some women might cringe at the thought, I'm relieved. She has been in Utah since December, and since January dealing with our family tragedy and taking care of my two gorgeous and sweet nephews. I'm so happy that she was able to come up, and even if the visit is just for one month, I'm so thankful. Now the timing could have been a little better, like say a month ago...but beggars can't be choosers. Julian spent pretty much the entire day playing with B&C. Barry took the boys up to my in-laws (ILs) this morning while I met Stacy and her boys at the farmer's market. They played around, and rode in the wagon. When I got there, we ate lunch: kettle corn, and sandwiches, and then the boys played in the sprinkler. Fun times!
We left at about 3 so that Julian could take a nap, which never happened. At about 6 we went back over there, with Julian's pool in tow. I figured since we're moving in a week, and wont' A) have a place for a pool in our rental townhouse, and B) have a pool in our townhouse complex, there was no reason to bring it with us. And if two little boys will enjoy it while they're here, even better.
So we attempted to fill it up, not realizing, until it was too late, that the pool was on a slight hill. Yeah half of the pool is full, while the rest is empty! :) We will move the pool tomorrow.
The three big boys took a bath together (I was totally reminiscing about when I was a kid and took baths with my cousins) and then did a few laps around the kitchen/dining room/living room. SO funny!
Tomorrow we will go to church for sacrament, and then the boys and I will head up to my ILs to play some more.

Friday, July 11, 2008

GoodMama photo contest









So I took some pictures, with high hopes of winning a free diaper. Which one do you think I should enter?

Thursday, July 10, 2008

Goodmama

So yesterday I attempted to buy some more diapers for the boys. My absolute favorite brand of cloth diaper is called "goodmama" () Seriously 800 people were trying to buy diapers at the same time, can we say madness? I only wanted two prints, Fin Fancy and Jolly Waffler . What did I end up with? NOTHING! It was serious madness. The cart wouldn't load (which makes total sense, because over 800 people were attempting to check out at once! And by the time it would load everything I wanted was sold out. The owner of goodmama is named Suzanne. She did some stealthy stockings yesterday, but I was out with the boys, so I missed those too! oh well, such is life. I guess I don't really *need* those diapers anyway. Especially since Julian's peed on the potty a few times in the past few days. I sense PL (potty learning) is coming!!

Wednesday, July 9, 2008

Today was a good day

Because we're leaving SO soon, I've been trying so hard to stay busy. I really want to hang out with all of my friends, and see as much Washington as possible. Kind of ironic that I've lived here my entire life, yet seen more of my local area in the past 2 months, than I'd seen prior.
Today we, meaning Barry (who was off from work), Julian and Gabriel, went to Puyallup Park. They had the wading pool. We met up with my friend Carly an her two kiddos, Gabriel (GREAT NAME:]) and Gianna :) SO much fun. Julian was pretty much obsessed with the water, and stayed in until he was shivering. We had a delicious lunch of McDonalds, and just some good fun and conversation. I'm really going to miss Carly and her big G.
Gabriel had his first encounter with the wading pool. Not too impressed. I took pictures, which I will upload later (probably tomorrow.)
After dinner, we went up to Stacy & Brad's house. Julian LOVED chasing Tavin around, and we had a yummy desert of brownies, and popcorn. We played Apples To Apples, and I must say that I won!
Keren is about to have her baby girl, annnnny day now Norah! I am so excited for her.
I am really going to miss my friends here. I am excited that Stacy is going to book some photo sessions in Des Moines, so she can visit and take some pics for the wonderful pictures in DM :)

Julian is sleeping and Gabriel is on the way. Barry's irritated that I'm *still* on the computer, so with this, I will end!

Monday, July 7, 2008

4th of July

So Julian was terrified of the fireworks. He pretty much cried every time someone lit anything off. Silly boy!! So, instead of hanging out with Elizabeth and her family, we spent the majority of the night in Elizabeth's brother's room, watching ever faithful Caillou On Demand. FUN!

Julian had a fun time, because he was able to eat cake! It's pretty much his most favorite food, so he was in heaven.

Two weeks from today, we are leaving! FREAKY! I can't believe it! It is really starting to hit me. We got our lease paperwork today in the mail. Turns out it was all wrong, so we're getting it resent to us. We also go the key to our place!!! SO exciting! :) I'm super excited to have 1100 sq ft to roam around in! It will be muuuuch bigger than the attic we're living in now!!

My mom, Julian, Gabriel and I went to the zoo today! It was really fun. Julian loved that Grandma came with us. They rode the carousel and it was suuuuper cute. We saw an owl. It was adorable, and huge, and weighed only 4.5 lbs!!! WOW! I was in awe. Julian liked to say "oooh oooh oooh" to the owl. Adorable I tell you.

Tonight, we went to McLendon's and bough lady bugs. Yep, you read that right, live lady bugs! My dad, Bob, is having an aphid problem on his roses, so I went and bought some! THE weirdest thing. I bought 1500 lady bugs for $10! What a bargain!!!

K well my little man needs to go to sleep, so I will catch you tomorrow, and post some pics from the 4th.

Saturday, July 5, 2008

Unemployed!

For the first time in over 8 years, I do not have a full time job! It's absolutely strange! I gave my notice to my company on about June 17th. It was surreal to do that, and then Thursday I took in my keys! I am not too emotional about it, which is really surprising to me. I know that I will miss my dearest friends/co workers a lot, but for some reason, it feels 'right' if that makes sense.
I'm so frustrated with myself. My inability to keep track of time/dates is SO annoying. I hate being late to places, that used to be one of my biggest pet peeves, now I find myself late more often than not. I've also missed applying for some great jobs in Iowa simply because I forgot which days they closed! Ugh!
We got a Wii Fit thanks to my crew at BECU! :) Yay! I am hoping that I will lose some weight! That would be awesome. Barry's mad because now he has to share his beloved Wii, but secretly he too is glad that we have the Wii Fit :)
I hope everyone had a fabulous 4th of July. Can anyone else believe it's already here and passed!? It seems like the 20th or 21st is going to be here before we know it!!