My Time in the Kitchen

Since Ethan is very mobile now and he has to be wherever I am, he can always be found hanging on to my leg. He especially loves to crawl to the kitchen and grab on while I'm making dinner or baking something fun for an event with friends. Sometimes he'll be distracted with a spoon and a mixing bowl to bang on, but most of the time he's hanging on me.

IT'S A GIRL!!!

No, I'm not having another baby. I scared you, huh? Emily and Mike had their baby girl on Tuesday at 2:08 pm. She was 8 lbs 11 oz and she's beautiful! They haven't finalized the name yet, it's between Olivia and Aliyah (I think that's how it's spelled). Some of us went up to see the proud parents and get a glimpse of what's been baking for the past 9 months. It's amazing for me to think that Ethan was that small since they weighed just about the same at birth. Ethan and Marky enjoyed seeing their newest playmate to join the bunch. So congrats to Mike and Emily, she's so beautiful and so perfect.

Funny Guy

Hey everyone! Sorry about the "lurking" entry. I think I just freaked everyone out instead of being funny and finding out who checks my blog that I don't even know. So thanks to everyone for your comments (even though you guys are the ones that comment usUally). I don't care how often you come, as long as you check out what's going on in our life. Anyway...Here's a little video of Ethan laughing at dinner time. Sorry for all the highchair videos, but that's all i've recorded lately.

Are you "lurking" on my blog?

It's hard to understand when people are being serious or funny so please read this in a humorous light. Okay, I have to address this issue...who is reading my blog? I have a counter on my blog that counts how many people visit, their location, how long they spend on my site, and if they were referred by another site. Now I have an idea of what kind of activity my blog brings and what parts of the country people are from. So here's my issue, if I'm giving you some entertainment of videos, pictures of my family, and funny dialogue then I deserve a little something from you. Is a little comment here or there too much to ask? I just think it's weird that people come "lurk" around my blog and peep into my life, but don't leave anything behind. So if you read my blog, leave a comment. It doesn't have to be every entry, or every day...just a little somethin' somethin' so I know who's checked my blog. I also want to address to all my family. I hate asking, "Have you checked my blog?" I'd like to think of it in this respect, I don't call someone to ask them if they got the e-mail I sent them. That is the whole point of sending an e-mail...so you don't have to call them! So if you leave a comment, then I know you've checked my blog. So all you friends of a friend, husbands of my friends, co-workers of Ryan, and any other "lurkers" out there. Please leave a comment and let me know who you are, what you think, and anything else. And please who is the person checking my blog in San Leandro, reveal yourself! I'm grateful for your visits and I don't want to discourage you from coming. So please continue to check out my blog and enjoy what I have to say.

Babies at the BBQ

Our ward had a little BBQ at the park on Tuesday. Here's a picture of Janelle's little girl, Sydney, Michelle's little boy, Marky, and Ethan. It's very hard to get all the babies to look at the camera at the same time as well as getting them to stay in place for more than 5 seconds. These kids are so cute! I would love to get a picture of all the little babies in the ward. That picture would be a baby wrangling mess!

The Ponder Chair

When Ryan's parents left for Australia we were lucky enough to inherit "the ponder chair" (ie the chair that Ryan's dad would sit in to ponder on the scriptures...and maybe take a little snooze sometimes). I swear it's the most comfortable chair ever!!! Anyway...Ryan does pretty much the same exact thing in "the ponder chair" so I figured we should train Ethan a little early. These pictures are of Ethan ponder the thoughts on "That's Not My Truck?" in Papa John's ponder chair. We'll upgrade to scriptures eventually, don't worry. I'll know his training is complete when Ethan sits in the chair and actually takes a nap in it. That may take awhile.

The Singing Teether

Here's a little video of Ethan singing in his highchair while he's eating some watermelon. He's been doing this singing/screaming thing lately and it's really funny. I went to the grocery store the other day and he was singing up and down the aisles making everyone laugh. In the video you can see how he'll sing for a little bit and then stop and push on his mouth. I think he's starting to get his first set of teeth in so he's been pushing on his cheeks and mouth for the past few days. Enjoy our little singer!

Arrrr, Savvy!

I went to Pirates of the Caribbean - Dead Man's Chest tonight with a group of friends. I actually got the night off to go play. It was sooooo nice! I think it's more fun to go to a movie like Pirates on the first day it's out since everyone is super excited for it. There were tons of people there and a lot of them were dressed up like pirates! Maybe people can be a little too excited...Anyway, it's just fun to be able to experience the joy of cheering with the crowd for Jack Sparrow!

Five Factor Personality Test

I think this whole test sums me up pretty well ( some of them not so much). What od you think?

Your Five Factor Personality Profile

Extroversion: You have medium extroversion. You're not the life of the party, but you do show up for the party. Sometimes you are full of energy and open to new social experiences. But you also need to hibernate and enjoy your "down time." Conscientiousness: You have high conscientiousness. Intelligent and reliable, you tend to succeed in life. Most things in your life are organized and planned well. But you borderline on being a total perfectionist. Agreeableness: You have low agreeableness. Your self interest comes first, and others come later, if at all. In general, you feel that people are not to be trusted. And you're skeptical that anyone else really feels differently. Neuroticism: You have low neuroticism. You are very emotionally stable and mentally together. Only the greatest setbacks upset you, and you bounce back quickly. Overall, you are typically calm and relaxed - making others feel secure. Openness to experience: Your openness to new experiences is low. You're a pretty conservative person, and you favor what's socially acceptable. You think that change for novelty's sake is a very bad idea. While some may see this as boring, many see you as dependable and wise.

The Five Factor Personality Test

What European City Do I Belong In?

You Belong in Paris

You enjoy all that life has to offer, and you can appreciate the fine tastes and sites of Paris. You're the perfect person to wander the streets of Paris aimlessly, enjoying architecture and a crepe.

What European City Do You Belong In?

Wow! I would love to got to Paris!
What city do you belong to?

Here Fishy Fishy Fishy

Well, my lovely friends brought me over some salmon since they needed to make room in their freezer for some good meals before their baby arrives. I've never experimented in the fish arena before since I'm not really a big fan of eating fish and it seems a little hard to make. I guess it's all a little foreign to me. So tonight I had no excuse (after all the fish was free). Well, I made a really good rub with all sorts of spices, marinaded it for a couple hours, and broiled it for a little while. You know what...it was really good! I was pretty darn proud of myself! I'm not a big fish fan, but I actually really enjoyed it. Now that I've conquered my fear of making sea food, I would love to try having one of those big crab boils where you just throw out some newspaper, hand everyone a few hammers, cut up some lemon wedges and have at it. I've seen people do it on the food network and it looks like lots of fun. After all, I live in the San Fran Bay area. We're wll known for our awesome crab. I just need to be a little more adventurous with my cooking.

8 Months

I can't believe it's been 8 months since I had Ethan! I'm going to take him to Maternal Connections tomorrow to get him weighed and measured so I'll let you know how the little guy does. Lately he's been in the 25th percentile in his weight and height, but what do you expect when he's got parents like us?

Ethan has been progressing quite well with his milestones. He's been crawling, pulling up to stand, saying "dada", feeding himself, and learning to fall on his bottom when he gets down. He's such a funny kid! He loves to make me laugh and smile and his little grin is infectious. I notice that he loves to make others happy. Whenever we're out whether it's at the store, library, or with friends, he loves to have people smile at him. He's a pretty happy kid and I love that. It's fun to see his sense of humor begin to form and find out what kinds of things make him laugh. I hope you enjoy this picture of our future comedian.

Pregnant Dance Dance Revolution!!!

Thanks to Emily's good detective work, she found the long lost video of the infamous "Pregnancy DDR" video. This video is just a little snippet of the time I had on the Dance Dance Revolution machine after the Stake Youth Halloween Party. Needless to say, none of the dancing and jumping helped Ethan to come out any faster. Although now that I watch it, I'm beginning to see a possible reason why my kid is so freakin' active! Please leave a comment after you thoroughly enjoy laughing at my expense.

Children's Discovery Museum

Ethan and I had quite a fun today at the Children's Discovery Museum! They have a really fun exhibit completely designated for infants and toddlers. It's called the "Wonder Cabinet" and it has all sorts of stations for the little ones to play in. Ethan especially loved the station called the "Crawl Space" where it had mirrored cubby holes, cupboards to open and pull out stuff, musical instruments, and tons of toys. Other stations included story time area, a smelling station, art wall, building blocks area (with huge soft blocks), and tunnels to crawl through. He had so much fun investigating everything they had to play with. We also went down to their water exhibit so he could watch the bigger kids play. The cool thing was, they had a water exhibit just for 4 and under too. Ethan loved splashing in the water and picking up the balls and throwing them. He ended up getting totally soaked and his smiley picture was taken right after he got done. I think we will be going again very soon. I had so much fun watching him discovering new things and just being a kid. As we were leaving he turned his head around to look at me and gave me the biggest smile and that totally made my day. I hope that Ryan can come along and experience this with us sometime.

Standing

This is just a little video of Ethan playing on his car set. Hopefully it isn't too dark to see. He's so cute!

It's Been Awhile!

I feel like I haven't posted in a super long time. There is a reason...I've been super sick! I started getting over my sinus infection and then ended up getting food poisoning or some sort of stomach bug on Friday. It was awful! I really didn't enjoy having little Ethan bawling his eyes out every time I got up to run to bathroom to throw up. Luckily I have wonderful support people in my life that my things so much more bearable! Ryan came home for lunch so he could take Ethan for an hour and then Mike and Emily took him for the rest of the day. I don't know what I would have done without them! It's just a shame I had to use my "alone time" being so sick. I started feeling better on Saturday, but I think I got going to quick and got sick again in the afternoon. I swear it's the worst feeling in the whole world! Good news though, I'm back in action. I started to realize how much I really get done when I'm feeling good. I had 4 days worth of "chores" to do and I finished them all in one day. Go me! So now my house in clean, my fridge is stocked, and I even have some meals made in the freezer. Now I'm just going to have to sit around and sip lemonade by the pool. Just kidding (although I will have to get some serious pool time in this week).

Here Comes Trouble!

I heard Ethan rustling in his crib after his nap on Tuesday so I went in to go get him. Well, I was shocked to find him standing up and lunging over the railing! He has learned to pull himself up, climb on top of the bumper, and try to lean over the bar! We lowered the mattress all the way down, but he still trys to do mini pull ups so he can look over the edge. Now that he's learned his favorite new trick, he won't go down for naps. He just stands up, grabs the bars, and shakes them like he's in jail and he wants out NOW! I guess it's bad timing for this no nap thing since I'm suffering from a serious sinus infection and just need a little bit of sleep. I feel bad since I usually take him out everyday to do something whether it's to the store or out for a walk. I just don't feel like doing ANYTHING and he's got all this energy. He crawls all over the house and climbs on everything. Maybe he has tons of boy energy, but I feel like I've got an energetic (and a little mischievious/curious) boy on my hands.

Childhood memories

So I discovered some old videos on the internet of some of the childhood shows that I watched. It was so crazy that I could sing every word to every song even though i probably hadn't seen these shows in like 18 years! I want to post just a few of the wonderful treasures that I found. Maybe it will spark a few memories of your own.

Sunday Lesson

I'm teaching Relief Society on Sunday and it's about the talk that Elder Stone gave at this past April conference. The talk is "Zion in the Midst of Babylon". I'd love for all of you to read it and email me your ideas, impressions, comments, etc. I'm interested on your thoughts on what kinds of things are "Babylon" in our lives? What effect does our American culture have on our lives (good or bad)? How do we create our own "Zion in the midst of Babylon?" I'd love to hear from you!

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!

Old Pictures

As I was looking through Ethan's old pictures I also found some good oldies of us before he was born. Enjoy some more good photos.

Making a really good cake for my best friend's baby shower while we were living in lovely Wymount June 2004
Family vacation in Orlando June 2005 I think I was about 21 or 22 weeks pregnant at the time.
Some of my nursing school buddies trying to revive "SAM" in our ICU lab. Unfortunately "SAM" didn't quite make it :( August 2003
The graduates August 2004
My cousin Stockton and me at Grandma's Christmas Party 2003 ( I think Ethan looks a little bit like him)
In San Fran with Xander & Tanya and Mike & Emily Sept 2004

Another Pool Day

Hello to all my fellow blogmates and family! Today was a pretty good day. Ethan slept for just under 2 hours for his morning nap and then we went swimming at the pool with our friends. Ethan LOVES the pool and swimming with Mom. All of us girls were running races in the water(trying to get in a good workout) and Ethan totally cuddled up to me and enjoyed the ride. All the swimming totally knocked Ethan out and he slept over 2 hours for his afternoon nap. I hope he sleeps well tonight, but at least I got tons done today while he napped.

The Early Days

I know Ethan is only 7 1/2 months old, but I was looking through some pictures of my little guy from when he was born all the way through now. It's so interesting to see how he's changed, but also stays the same. Enjoy some fun pictures!

Progressing Through the Months

Paper Wrestling

So I was talking on the phone with my wonderful sister-in-law (she's pretty much my own sister) and trying to get ready for my friend's baby shower. Basically, I wasn't paying too much attention to what Ethan was doing and he got into Ryan's Young Men's papers. I looked down to find Ethan wrestling with a wad of "Zion's Camp" forms. He was crinkling the paper, flinging them around, tearing them apart, and then trying to chew them. I was finger sweeping slobbery globs of paper out of his mouth for like 10 minutes. I'm sure the "parenting" classes advise not to allow babies eat paper. Oh well, put me on the bad mother list.

Such Cute Spikey Hair!

I decided to put a little gel in Ethan's hair the other day and spike it up. It looked so cute! For those of you who were at my wedding were warned that I loved playing "beauty shop" with all my cousins when I was little. Ryan isn't a fan of the "spikey do", but I'll spike Ethan's hair when Ry's not home.

They Have Arrived!!!

Finally, the pictures have arrived straight from the White House! I'm hoping to post the official "Presidential Pictures" soon (once I find someone with a scanner). The pictures are so cool! I got 2 8X10's of the President holding Ethan and you can even see Ry and me in the picture. They included a card with a presidential insignia on it and it says "With the compliments of the President" and then the pictures say "To Ethan Elmer with Best Wishes" and then they are signed by the President!!! This will be framed and on Ethan's dresser forever!