4 Generations

Here's a picture of my mom, my grandma, me and Ethan during my grandma's trip to Texas. Ethan is the first great grandbaby on my mom's side of the family so that was pretty exciting to have us all together. As my her trip was ending we realized we hadn't had a chance to get any pictures together so we ended up taking some while we were shopping at Kirkland's, hence the "decorative" background.

Progression and Sickness

We're checking things off the list right and left around here. I'm starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel with all these boxes, thank goodness. My first official night at the house was on Monday night and it was so weird to walk around my own house. It's so different than living on our own in a 700 sq foot apartment and also very different than living at my parents. Ethan is transitioning quite well too. His naps are right on track and he has been in a pretty good mood these past few days. My mom came up and helped me unpack boxes all day Tuesday and helped me get my kitchen all organized. What a relief! I feel like the kitchen is the center of my home and once that thing is organized then the rest falls into place. We also had our study painted by one of the guys Ry works with and he did such an awesome job! I'll post pictures when we're done with the floors.
Anyway... Later that night both Ryan and I ended up getting super super sick. It was terrible! We got that nasty stomach bug that's been going around and we were both up all night. I waited and waited until it was a decent time to call my mom and see if she would take Ethan until we felt better. My mom is such a star! She drove back up to our house, packed Ethan's bags, and took him the whole day and night! Ryan and I spent the whole day aching, sleeping, throwing up, and watching movies. Thank goodnes we didn't have to do all that and take care of Ethan. I went by yesterday and picked him up since I was feeling tons better. It seemed like he never even missed me. It's a good thing though since he feels so comfortable at Nana's. So far Ethan hasn't been sick yet so I'm hoping that we're out of the woods soon. We'll just watch him and see.
So now we're back at it, trying to get things organized and out of boxes. I'm missing my dishes and that's the only thing that I'm looking for right now. I can't find them anywhere! I had some old nasty ones from college that I threw away because I wanted to actually open and use the ones that I had registerd for when I got married (4 years ago!) so I figured I wouldn't move the old ones and just threw them out. Well, now I can't find my wedding dishes anywhere! I am so bummed about it. They were super nice and I loved them, I never even got to use them! We've gone through every box and no luck. Wahhhh! I hope I will find them somewhere!

Mornings with Papa

Whenever my dad leaves a little later for work, Ethan loves to spend a little time with his Papa. He'll sit on his lap and read the paper and even sneak a little of his cereal. Sometimes Papa only has time for a quick cuddle, but Ethan loves it! He also loves talking to Papa on the phone or anyone that will talk to him. He will seriously carry on a full conversation of gibberish, carry the phone like a big person, and even uses his hands when he talks. It's hilarious! He also laughs during the conversation. So call Ethan up some time and get an earful!

Eventful Weekend

So this weekend was full of just stuff going on. First off, Ethan was starting to sound, look, act sick so I asked Ryan to pick up some medicine on the way home from work. Right before I got off the phone with him, he asked me if I needed him to get anything so I told him just pick me up something fun (totally just joking). Well, he handed me the bag when he got home and it had a 30 GB IPOD in it!!! Oh my gosh!!! Now you have to understand...the only person in the world that doesn't like to spend money as much as I do is my husband, so this is huge! This is the most he's spent on a gift for me since my wedding ring. I'm not even kidding. I've wanted an IPOD for a really long time and I've put away some money from birthdays and Christmas to possibly buy one, but I just couldn't. I guess I just didn't want to get one and then have them come out with something new next week or something. Plus, they're kind of expensive and with us buying our house and everything I've wanted to save my special money for doing stuff to the house. Well, I'm thrilled to be a new owner of an IPOD! You have to understand how lame I am. I've been working out with my old discman. Yeah, the one that I've had since high school! I swear the thing is so old and I even dropped it off the eliptical the other day and it broke in half, but luckily Ryan fixed it. The thing will never die. So now I can go out and get one of those armband things and be cool when I work out.

Another big event this weekend was Ethan getting sick. Ethan has had some sniffles here and there and maybe a few bad diapers, but never sick like this. He's been a very healthy kid so far. He started getting some chest congestion and his nose was a little stuffy, but later in the night it got worse. He slept probably 3 hours max on Friday night. He did not feel good at all. I listened to his lungs with my stethoscope and he sounded really crackly and a little wheezy and with all the bad stuff going around like RSV and pneumonia, I wasn't going to chance it. We took him in to urgent care on Saturday and waited 2 hours! It took forever! The doctor said his throat and ears looked great, but he has bronciolitis and he just needs some liquid albuterol. He also wrote me a prescription of amoxocillin in case all his stuffiness turned yellow or green. He seems to be doing better and his night last night was much better than Friday. Thank goodness and his naps have been tons better too. He hadn't taken a nap at all since Thursday when that stupid Fex Ex guy came. Anyway...Ethan seems to be doing a little bit better, he has his 15 month well check on Thursday so our doctor can see how things are going.

And our last major event...I got to go to my first Dallas Mavericks game!!! Ryan's dad gave him the company tickets for the evening so we had awesome seats! I'll post pictures later. I got to see my man, Dirky the Turkey (that's my nickname for him)! It was so much fun. My parents watched my little sick Ethan for us and we got to go out for a night on the town. We went out before for a little BBQ and then hit the game after. The last time I was at an NBA game was at the Detroit Pistons with my dad back in the 10th grade. We had a great time to just have a fun date and not have to worry about Ethan at all. It was really nice to get out and do something after being at the urgent care all day long. So yeah for an eventful weekend!

Christmas Catch Up

So I haven't taken the chance to write about our Christmas holidays. This was my first Christmas without travelling in 5 years and my first Christmas not in Ohio since 1998! Crazy! The majority of the holiday we spent with Ryan's family since this is their first Christmas being back from Australia and we had the whole family together. Ry's sister and her family came down from Utah and stayed the week and the rest of us were in the area. Here are some pictures from the activity that Ry and I headed up for some of the kids. Ryan had the awesome idea to do gingerbread houses so we did them out of graham crackers and had a hey day. Here's the spread. Christmas Eve we went to Uncle Joe and Aunt Steph's house for the Nativty recreation by the kids and then a little musical program. So much fun! It's so fun to be adopted into the Elmer clan and enjoy all the festivities and family. That night we stayed over at my in laws and had Christmas morning with the kids. Ethan got a junior set of golf clubs from us and once we saw how good he was with them, we decided that it would have to be an "outdoor toy." Grandma gave him is first basketball hoop that starts out small (3 feet) and can go all the way up to 6 or 7 feet. He loves it already and he can bearly make a basket. Nana K got him the Little People garage and a set of Mega Blocks that he plays with like a maniac. He is so funny these days. Uncle Aaron got him this awesome Texas Longhorns warm up suit with a Texas t-shirt that he looks like such a stud in. Anyway...we had a wonderful time with everyone and Ethan loved playing with his cousins. They are so sweet to him and I love to watch them look out for him and take care of him. It's so cute! It's also so nice to have my parents in the area too so I could spend time with them on Christmas Eve and then I came down to my parents later on Christmas mornign so I could be around for my brother's phonecall from the mission. He's doing so good and has already been out 7 months! Wow! Time flies! So Christmas turned out better than I thought and everyone was so generous to us with gifts and time so I want to tell all of them thank you and we love you!

My Dad's Company Christmas Party

My dad had a big company party this weekend and since my mom was unable to go due to her surgery, I volunteered myself as his date. It was a dinner and Casino Night at the Bank of America Plaza Building in downtown Dallas (the building all lit up in green in the Dallas skyline). My parents bought me a cocktail dress and I got all fancied up for the first time in ages. It was so much fun! They had a big dinner buffet with a huge reindeer ice scuplture, a wonderful chocolate fountain, tons of gambling games (many that I didn't know how to play), and great prizes. Unfortunately I didn't win anything, but we did get our picture taken by the photographer as our consolation prize. Good enough for me. I don't think I'll ever have an opportunity to go to my dad's Christmas party again so I enjoyed the moment while it lasted. Thanks Dad!

All Is Well!

Everything went great with my mom's surgery. They were able to remove all the cysts/tumors and found that they were benign. Good news! She's now recovering and will be in the hospital until possibly Saturday since her surgery ended up being so late in the day. Only bad news is that the weather has been terrible here so I haven't had the chance to go see her today. Yesterday it was 79 degrees and now it is 28 with a wind chill of 19!!! We have rain, freezing rain, sleet, and snow here and more on the way. I can't believe I was running around in capris and flip flops less than 24 hours ago!!! Crazy weather! At least I have the chance to prep some meals and stick them in the freezer and make some muffins for the guys for breakfast. It's definately cuddling weather, too bad Ethan is not a cuddler. He runs constantly! He was always wiggly as a baby, but now he's out of control! The kid never rests and never sits still. He does some of the funniest things sometimes and I have to go in the other room so I don't laugh in front of him since I don't want him to think it's funny. Yesterday I went to get him from his nap and he had stripped himself down, threw all his clothes out of the crib, took off his diaper and threw that across the floor, and I found him marching in his crib! The kid is barely 13 months! I am so worried of what is to come!

Family Emergency

So my mom went into the doctor (after some strong coaxing from yours truly) to get some problems checked out that she's been having. Well, the doctor found a fist sized tumor/cyst in her uterus and an ovary full of cysts. She had an emergency hysterectomy today at 2 and is now safely recovering at the hospital. She did really well and the tumor/cysts were all benign so now we just have to worry about recovery. She'll be down for quite a while no lifting, housework, etc for at least 6 weeks. I guess I know why the Lord hasn't helped our house go through. I'm a little worried about taking care of my mom, Ethan, the house, and my dad & Ry. I think PB&J will be on the menu for a few nights out of the week. Sorry guys! At least my mom will have a live in nurse available 24 hours a day and I can use my nursing skills that she helped pay for. haha! Say some prayers of us.

Ethan's Party

Here are a few pictures from the party festivities. They include opening presents, pinanta, pin the face on the pumpkin, and cake of course! The weather was perfect and I think everyone had a great time. Ethan had so much fun playing with everyone and checking out all his new toys. Thanks everyone!!!

Pumpkin Patch Part 2

A Day at the Pumpkin Patch Part 1

This Saturday we met up with Molly and Matt and some of her family and friends along with Papa John and Grandma at the Pumpkin Patch. Ethan had a great time walking through the rows of pumpkins and patting all his favorites. He especially loved taking a ride in the wagon while holding his "Great Pumpkin". The pumpkin patch was a great experience. They had hayrides, those bouncy things for the kids, wagons to lug around your pumpkins (and kids), and it was all free! The weather was perfect and it was great to be with family. Ethan had so much fun that he took a 2 hour nap after!

Velma Lucille Terry

My Grandma Terry passed away on Wednesday at the age of 88. Her funeral was on Monday and I was unable to go out to Idaho so this is my way of doing a little tribute of my own. She was born in 1918 on a farm in Southeastern Idaho. She went through Nursing school and served on many different nursing boards and worked in various medical clinics in the area. She raised a family of 6 kids (my dad is the youngest) and served in many areas of the church.
This is a great time to reflect on what effect she's had on my life. I feel a special tie with my Grandma especially with our love of Nursing (I'm a 3rd generation nurse!). Although some of the responsiblities of a nurse are different from back then, the same feeling of service and care are the same.
I have so many memories of my Grandma that I've been thinking about lately. She always had a beautiful garden and the best raspberries ever! I loved it when she'd have a container full on the table and let us have at it. Her organ was my favorite play toy when I was over there. It was totally 60's, but it had the best cha cha beat. She loved watching the Price is Right with us and thought that people that over bid someone by a dollar were dirty players. She always gave me Vitamin C tablets cause I thought they were good. She was a great journal writer and she introduced me to the world of journaling. I remember going to her house when I was in 5th grade and reading some of her journal entries and it made a big impression on me. I haven't stopped writing since and I probably have about 10 journals full of my bumbling thoughts.
I have a lot more memories of her, but I'll stick those in my journal and save space for some pictures. All of these pictures are from Nursing school.
It's weird to think she's gone now, but to know that she's with my Grandpa, her son, and her family, makes me feel happy that she is reunited with her loved ones and starting her time with her eternal family.

Texas Adventures

So I've been up to quite a bit lately. I haven't been doing so hot with updating stuff on a regular basis and I'm sure some of you want to know what we've been doing since our big move. First of all my mom and I have been involved in some crazy experiences the past few weeks. Two weeks ago we went down to Fort Worth so I could get fingerprinted for my nursing license. As we were leaving the building to come home, we got stuck in the elevator! The lights went out, the elevator turned off, and Ethan was screaming! We had to use the light of my cell phone to try to find anything. Of course the elevator was old school and didn't have any help buttons or an alarm. Nobody even knew we were in there! I kept pressing buttons and eventually it turned back on and we got the heck out of there! A couple days later we were driving down the highway and saw 2 helicopters hovering. I was wondering if there was possibly an accident and it was life flight or it could have been some kind of helicopter flight school. So we drove underneath the helicopters and on to our destination. Later that night I saw a high speed chase that went on near Dallas on CNN. I checked out more on the internet and found out that the helicopters were recording the high speed chase! We were right ahead of the whole police pursuit and didn't have a clue! The guy was stopped for "mental health issues" and tried to run over a police officer. They shot him to get him to stop, but he just kept on going. He drove through all these cities, over spike strips, and past police barricades. He ended up crashing into a Budweiser truck at a gas station 2 streets down from where we were! So so weird! Crazy things usually happen in 3's so I'm wondering what crazy adventure we're getting ourselves into next time!

Snakes on a Birthday!

I don't know what the deal is with that stupid movie "Snakes on a Plane" and it has nothing to do with this post, but I thought it was a good title. Anyway, It's my mom's birthday today so my Dad wanted to make her a special cake. We asked her what kind of cake she would like for her "special day" and this is what she said..."I just want a yellow cake with chocolate frosting and have it decorated really cool." So we took what she said and made a beautiful creation. You have to understand. My mom HATES snakes! I think it stems from a horrible childhood exprience with a snake in a paper bag. So we thought up this great idea (with a little help from the internet) and created the "Birthday Snake" yesterday. We took two bundt cakes, cut them in half and connected them together in a snake pattern, used M&Ms for decoration, and fruit by the foot for the tongue. As you can see from the pictures, it was a big hit.

Family Pictures

This is what family pictures is all about! I love the first picture...Corbyn is trying to make Tyler laugh, Calvin is trying to make Ethan laugh, and Kenzie is just lovin' her Papa. It just shows the fun of being a family and having our Grandma Cheryl and Papa John back from Australia!

Lake Chelan, Episode 3

This is Cousin Tyler at Ethan at Blueberry Hills
Cute little Matthew giving Ethan a love pinch
Corbyn loved feeding Ethan at every meal.
These are just a few fun pictures with Ethan's cousins at reunion.

Lake Chelan Episode 2

I was flipping through the Lake Chelan travel guide a few weeks before reunion and I saw an add for a fun place to go berry picking. I told Ryan, "No matter what, I have to go!" I checked it all out on the internet and you can too at Blueberry hills and I got all the directions, the whole thing. So just as Ryan promised, we went berry picking the first full day we were at reunion. It was great since just about everyone wanted to go too. They had blueberries, blackberries, and raspberries to pick and they were about $2/lb. My favorite was the raspberries since they're the best tasting and pretty easy to pick. Aaron, Dave, and Ryan tried to throw berries over the row at each other and catch them in their mouths and the kids sneaked a few while they were picking. So all in all I think we all had fun. When we got back Grammie made 3 Jumbleberry Pies for all of us to eat. A slice of that with a little vanilla ice cream...heaven!

Lake Chelan, Washington episode 1

I've called it a night in order to end my packing frenzy. I am so tired and Ethan is tired of me packing. I swear he sits in the floor and cries all day as I walk back and forth, go in and out of rooms, and he has no idea what to do. I feel so bad, but I have to get this stuff done. Anyway...Now that I have a little bit of time, I can start to share my trip to Lake Chelan (pronounced She-lan not She-lon, we found that out the hard way). So for those of you who don't know, the Elmers have a big family reunion bash every 2 years and each family takes a turn planning and carrying out a reunion. So Uncle Jeff and Aunt Peg planned a fun filled event in Washington. Unfortunately they were unable to come since they left to be mission presidents in Peru, we really missed them. So here's a map of Washington so you can see where we vacationed and a beautiful picture overlooking Lake Chelan in the evening. In the next few evenings I'll post some pictures and stories of some of the experiences we had. Enjoy!

Happy Father's Day!!!

Today was Ryan's first Father's Day as a "Daddy." We started out the day with no pre-church meetings and a side of fresh pancakes. Then at church Ryan got a special Father's Day candy bar from the Young Women. We did a post-church grill out complete with homemade ice cream cake (made by yours truly). Ryan even got a special gift of Father's Day shirts and a nap. I hope Ryan felt special today. He's such an awesome dad and Ethan and I love him so much! I just wish I could have given him a win for the Dallas Mavericks tonight!

A Brother on a Mission

This picture was taken back on January 1st when Ethan was blessed.

My brother goes into the MTC tomorrow and I can't believe it! He's headed to the Tempe, Arizona mission. This entry is dedicated to my bro, see ya in two years (unless we end up moving to Arizona and living in your mission)!