Random Tidbits

So it has been forever since my last post, but our days just seem to be the same, and not very exciting at that. Last weekend we had planned to go camping, but Emma ended up getting sick and so we postponed the camp out until next weekend. Poor little girl. She had the weirdest symptoms. She has only ever had the stomach flu once before so it was hard to know what to expect. Mostly, she had A LOT of intestinal problems. Luckily I had just bought a new box of diapers because she sure went through a lot. She is feeling so much better now, and continues to be her joyful, smiling, highly demanding self. Today was Thursday, which is Library day. It's nice to have something to look forward too each week. We go to a "Story time" where they read books, but also sing songs and have toys for the kids to play with. I have really enjoyed watching Emma interact with other children and see how she follows directions. She really does do an excellent job, for the most part, it's just hard when we are at home, and it is Mommy asking her to do something. This morning she was pitching a fit because I gave her "rice crispies" for breakfast (which she asked for), and she changed her mind and wanted Fruit Loops instead. Mom would not give in and proceeded to ignore the tantrum, but as soon as her Daddy started down the stairs and told her she better cut it out, she ran to her chair and sat down to eat. Boy, do I need to get some more "scare" power in our house.:)

Our biggest concern right now is with our newest "pet". Unfortunately we did not invite this one to our home, and he has plenty of nice "burrows" for himself in our freshly grown grass. We had a gopher move in, and he is sure being destructive. We need to just get rid of him, but we wanted to try some more humane ways of doing so before we resort to the worst. He sure has made a mess of our yard, and Rusty can't help adding to the problem by digging to find the little guy. Oh, the joys of home ownership.

The good news is that our garden vegetables are starting to grow, and our plants are looking a whole lot better this year. Hopefully we can keep everything alive this time around.

Busy March and April

So many things have happened in the last few weeks and I am FINALLY getting around to posting about them. I finally have videos/pictures from our Utah trip. It was so much fun seeing everyone.
Emma turned 2 years old on April 1st and we had a pretty low key party. We have a sister in our ward that we are really good friends with. She lives with her niece and family and Emma loves playing with her great nephew Quinn. We had them over for spaghetti dinner, cake and ice-cream. Emma was so involved in playing that she didn't even want to eat her birthday cake. For her birthday we bought her a small climber/slide. I wanted to get her a play kitchen as well, but that will have to wait. She is in a very imaginative/active stage right now and so we wanted to get her something that she could use. She has loved her slide and so far it has been worth it.



Emma is sure growing up quickly. She amazes me everyday with the new things she can do and say. Her favorite phrases are: "Hey, what you doing there?", "Get Down" (to the cat on the table), "I'm coming!" (She never really comes), and "Mommy, Diaper change please".

Emma has also begun to help us say prayers. She gets so proud, as do we, when she repeats the things we have her say. It's pretty cute to listen too. She is really trying to repeat most of everything we say now, and is such a chatter box.

She is still sleeping really well in her toddler bed, and waking up at 6:15 EVERY morning. Urgh! I sure wish her internal alarm clock was set for 7:30 instead.

I am getting HUGE! I am starting to feel like a whale. I think I am about as big right now as I was when I delivered Emma.:) I've really got to keep an eye on my calorie intake because I have a few more months to go yet. Baby #2 is moving more and more which is always a joy.

Oh, Emma also got her 1st official hair cut. She has needed it for awhile now. So, she not longer has a mullet. She has a cute little bob. She was so good getting her haircut, hopefully that will continue.

Utah trip and more

It was so nice to be able to go back home to Utah to visit. Mike was nice enough to let Emma and I tag along on his work trip. We originally weren't going to be coming home until Thanksgiving so this was a great opportunity. Thanks to all who helped out, especially Dave who really made it possible. Although it was silly I had a good time surprising my mom. It took her awhile to realize what was going on when Emma came knocking on her door. I loved just spending time with our families, and eating at some of my favorite places, it brought back good memories. Luckily the flight back to Vegas went well and it was nice getting home to Bakersfield. I don't think Emma realized how much she missed being home and seeing her dad, she just couldn't stop hugging him when she saw him. It was pretty cute.

In other news, Emma slept her first full night in her toddler bed. Some friends of ours were getting rid of theirs, and were kind enough to let us have it. I was worried that she would fall out, or wake up a lot, but she slept really well the whole night. The hard part is "nap time" since she just wants to play, but luckily I haven't put any of her toys/books in her new room with her yet.

New Addition

So last weekend we added a new addition to our family. No, it is not another pet, but another car. After a month of stress and discussion we finally decided on getting another small, fuel efficient car that Mike will be able to drive after the Corolla dies. Once we have more than 2 kids we will move on up to a van or something. I have never purchased a vehicle before and so had no idea how time consuming the process can be. Luckily Mike handled most of the research and figures.
Emma loves the "blue car" and wishes that she was able to ride in it more. For the time being I want to keep the new car from getting as trashed as the Corolla so Emma has not spent too much time in it. We ended up getting a 2010 Hyundai Elantra, but it was brand new and a super great deal since they really just wanted to get the older model off their lot. It is so nice having 2 vehicles now, just a lot more flexibility with our schedules. Glad that process is over for at least a few more years.

Pretty in Pink

So we found out today that we are more than likely going to be having another girl. I had been feeling that way, but it would have been fun for Mike to have a boy. Maybe the next go around. When we had Emma Mike was able to be there for the whole ultrasound, and they were wonderful at pointing out and describing everything we saw. This time, I was taken into a room by myself while they spent 30 minutes just taking pictures for the radiologist to look at, and then they let Mike come in to see the baby. Definitely not as nice, but I'm sure every practice does things differently. Mike thinks this baby is going to look a lot like Emma. At least the ultrasound pictures sure look similar. Perhaps they always do. We're sure excited, and can now help Emma understand that she is going to be having a baby sister. If only we could decide on another girl's name.

Mini Vacation

So since Mike had President's Day off of work we decided to take advantage of the extra time and head to Vegas to visit Merilee and Mark. It's nice having some family at least a few hours away. We enjoy spending time with the Andal's because we just relax and eat a lot of good food (thanks to chef Mark). It is also fun watching Emma and her cousin Annadele interact. They are only 3 weeks apart in age, but so different from each other. Annadele is a lot more calm and Emma is very inquisitive and likes to get into everything and anything that she shouldn't. She is the instigator of trouble, but so cute.:)

They got matching pj's

We also decided to bring our dog Rusty along. We sure love our pets, but it is always a struggle trying to decide what to do with them if we ever want to get away. We found a reasonable kennel in Vegas and decided that if he was having too hard of a time that we would just put him there for a couple days. I, especially, was so happy with how well he did being around other people and in a different environment. The Andals were wonderful to let us bring him and were so patient, which helped a lot. We also discovered a hidden talent of his. We didn't realize that he is part sheltie, part seal.:)


I also wanted to show this other video because it just cracks me up. Emma, and Annadele, are both really into dressing up in dresses. I didn't realize that Emma was in this stage until we got some cute new dresses from some friends of ours and this is the first thing she did after I put it on. She knew she looked so pretty, and just loves to dance and twirl around, especially in front of the mirror. Unfortunately our silly dog likes to get in on the action as well. For some reason he hates twirling dresses. Oh boy, girls are funny.




Emma sure loves Rusty


Just another cute pic of Emma

Cranky child and more

So this past week Emma has been sick. Poor girl gets colds a lot. I guess it's just the age. This time she had a fever so it called for a little extra special treatment. We just had a standard thermometer which she hates. She refused to let me put it under her arm, and the rectal at this age is a joke, so we broke down and got an ear thermometer. I was leery because we went to the doctor recently and she freaked out when they tried to check her temperature, or anything for that matter. She is in this stage where she thinks things are going to "hurt" her. She says "hurt you" if something hurts. As soon as she saw me pick up the thermometer at the store she pushed it away and said, "hurt you". Well we got it anyway and although I have to hold her down to use it I think she'll survive. Funny girl. So she finally started feeling better and then the last few days she has begun waking up screaming at 4:00 and 5:00 in the morning and refuses to go back to sleep. Her mother has been pretty tired the last couple of days. Luckily last night she slept a whole lot better. I'm not sure exactly what it is, but she is going through a faze.

On a happier note, Mike and I were able to go on a date last weekend. We just went out to dinner, but it was amazing how nice it was to go WITHOUT Emma. We were actually able to talk and enjoy our meal. We really need to make it a priority and get out more. Also, Mike surprised me and made us breakfast this morning. Pink heart shaped pancakes and eggs. I slept right through it so it was fun to wake up too. I'm sure lucky to have such a sweetie.