Nash Family Adventures

Scuba scuba scoobie woobie wooba

2011-04-10T15:35:00.001-07:00

Jameson loves the water. It has been this way since he was an infant. Put him in the bath and all worries washed away. I got him a snorkel and fins once at the dollar store. His bath time then exponentially increased. He would be under the water for hours with that thing. Well over the summer he used it in the pool. Eventually it fell victim to dirt, sun, and water damage. He was devastated.

Yesterday while getting some essentials from Costco, I saw a snorkel set that I had actually wanted to get for Dave for quite some time. I figured with all of the call I have taken lately and the hours I am now picking up at another clinic, I could afford a splurge and finally get Dave the set. He is leaving to take a group of women on a cruise in a few weeks and I thought the gift would be timely.

I don't know that Dave will ever be able to enjoy the present as I have barely been able to pry the fins and mask off Jameson long enough to go to church. In 10 minutes we will be leaving for Everett and Amber's house and you'll never guess what we are taking with us?!? I can't wait until the day he can actually snorkel in the ocean with the reefs and the fish. For now he is finding all the toys in my bathtub, it is a view like that from the movie "Splash" the fins and the body have a hard time making it in the tub at the same time, but that didn't stop him. Enjoy!

And I guess as a bonus there is a random picture of Dave...Can't seem to get it off...

Turning 2

2011-04-05T20:45:00.000-07:00

This past month my baby turned 2. I couldn't believe it! Time really has gone so fast. I actually found myself mourning this advancement. I would miss his little bum and his little feet, and just the general sense of having a little one around the house. Now Dave reminded me several times that if I wanted to, we could just have another baby. That is not a very practical idea given our current life circumstances, but I won't completely dismiss the idea for the future. I had truly hoped that we would be well into our adoption process by now, but we have had to completely hold that plan off while Dave starts his own business. So in the literal sense for the time being, my baby is growing up and there is nothing that I can do about it. Pretty soon, I will blink and he will be 4. That is what happened with Jameson. For now I have to take each day at a time and hope that it doesn't change too fast. Gregson came into this world in a hurry. I was 8 cm dilated upon arrival at the hospital. I recently was back in Washington and interviewing for a job. We walked over to the hospital and down the same stairs I clearly remember trying to manouver on that blessed day. I don't think the nurse wanted to alarm me, so she told me I was 6 cm. But then she left the room and yelled "when are we going to have a room available, I've got a lady who is 8 cm in here." Things moved quickly from there. I achieved my medication free delivery, but not without serious hopes at times that they would just give me something. The adrenaline rush after delivery was incredible. Then came the struggles with nursing. For being a childbirth educator, you would think that I would have this all down, but somehow it was like starting all over. Gregson has been a joy ever since. Despite really not liking driving in the car which made for some unpleasant trips, he was been such a sweet boy. He started walking at 10 months, nothing has slowed him down since. He talks so well and loved helping the "babies" in his day care class. We are so proud of him and can't imagine life without him. He loves dogs...no matter where we are, if we see a dog he will say "I hi doggy." He will walk right up and give them a kiss or pet. He loves food especially "canny." Thanks to his grandma, there is always plenty of that around. He loves light up shoes and for a couple months even wore an old pair of Jameson's that were far too big, but he didn't care. He loves the Falter girls and sometimes even makes me call Kylee on the phone just so he can say hi. He loves to sing...after several weeks of hearing him sing "mo mo mack" I finally realized he was singing move on back...all through the town. While he loves nursery, he has never done it on his own since Dave and I were the leaders in our last ward. We have been to our new ward 3 times and he has yet to last on his own. He loves to ride his bike and tries to do everything his brother does. Greggies, we love you and are so glad you came to our home! Happy Birthday. I'm so glad that you won't remember that I didn't even have money to buy you a present. Funny, but I think I always will. Life has taken us on an interesting ride the last 2 years!

Summer comes to an end

2010-09-12T14:30:00.000-07:00

We really did have a lot of fun this summer. We had visits from a lot of Washington friends. Christie and Todd Carlson, Daren and Sandy Falter, and Ben and Emma Wall. I regret to say that my camera ended up in my car the entire time Emma was with us at Thanksgiving Point Gardens. It was so fun to see her and her kiddos. Caitlyn is 5 now, Logan is 3. Our kids had a great time together. Andrea joined us with Olivia, Calvin and Everett. And my mom brought Hanna down. I took 1/2 the day off to spend with them. Emma's Caitlyn and my Jameson are 2 peas in a pod. They did great together. Logan and Gregson also have similar personalities. Ben made a brief appearance before heading to the care center to see his grandpa.

We were able to spend a family night at Trafalga thanks to some free tickets. The kids each got 2 tickets, but since no one there was really taking tickets, they each rode about 4 rides. Since both of my boys love roller coasters and such, they had a great time.

Our little puppy Camo has really been growing these last few weeks. Elliot gave birth to him on her 2nd birthday; August 4th. He is such a cutie. I know my kids really want to keep him, but I am not really thrilled about the prospect of having a puppy. Look out shoes, cords, toys, and anything else that will fit in his mouth. He will be 6 weeks old on Wednesday.

Yesterday Dave did his first wedding expo. He started his own business about 8 weeks ago. Sunset Adventures mostly does incentive travel, but as a supplement, he is doing some honeymoons and destination weddings. It was a lot of work, but a real success all in all. I am now working at Utah Valley Women's Center, and fill in at the Cancer center 1 day a week. Hopefully the 48 hour schedule will pay off in the end. For now it just makes me tired!

Oh and last but not least is the trouble that a certain little boy in our house has gotten into this summer. He has a friend Cadence who lives across the street. She seems to bring out the rebel in him. 2 weeks ago they were buck naked and mud bathing in our front yard. I put Jameson on time out and took him in to the tub. I sent Cadence home (they had been throwing mud at the house). Well Cadence usually doesn't listen to me, so 10 minutes into Jameson's tub, I go back in the house to check on him. I find 2 little faces peering between the layers of bubbles. The floor was soaking wet. They had cut the leaves off of my plant, and Cadence cut a huge chunk out of her bangs. Jameson just cut a little. You gotta love kids. My bathroom was a disaster.

Well...goodbye summer 2010! We will miss you.

Weekend at Herzog's cabin

2010-09-12T14:17:00.000-07:00

As it is, my brother Hazen has accepted a position in Coos Bay Oregon with the Orthopedic surgery group. We are super jealous, but that aside, we are thrilled for them. We decided to have one last hoorah at the Herzog's cabin. There is a lot of history at the cabin. My Grandpa has owned it as long as I've been alive. A few years ago he had to sell it to my Aunt Jayne because he was no longer able to take care of it. My mom organized for all of us to go up there for the weekend to spend some time together before Hazen and his family leave. It is absolutely gorgeous up there. We had fun hiking, going for walks, and just hanging out together playing games. Sunday we were surprised by a power outage that made our meals difficult, so our trip was cut short, but all in all, it was a really fun weekend. Thanks mom for planning all of it! Hazen, Janet, Graham, and Will, we will miss you all, but can't wait to come visit.

Visit from the Northwest

2010-09-12T14:00:00.000-07:00

It was so fun to have a week with uncle "D" Daren Falter. The week included a trip to the dinosaur museum. Daren was a sport. During the month of August every venue at Thanksgiving Point is just $2 per person. Things like the Dinosaur Museum are usually $10 per person, so this is a great deal. As soon as I got home, we ate some dinner and headed out. Dave had a meeting, so he was not able to join us. Other than Jameson getting in trouble for climbing on a real bone display...(sometimes hard to know what they can touch and what they can't), and getting kicked out at closing, we had a great time. One of the best parts of having Daren here, was that we were graced by the presence of his entire family at the end of the week. Sandy came down Thursday night, and the kids came down on Friday night, so we could all have dinner together. My boys were in heaven! Gregson hasn't seen Brooklyn since Thanksgiving last year, but he couldn't get enough of her. In fact when it was time for them to go, Gregson managed his way in the car with Brooklyn and then cried and cried for her when it was time to get out. We feel like our friends in Washington are part of our family. We have missed them desperately since our return to Utah. It was wonderful being able to see them. Lauren and Kylie are now college freshmen at USU. Now at least there is a better excuse for the family to come to Utah.

Summer 2010

2010-07-31T13:54:00.000-07:00

We are having such a fun summer. We made a trip to this is the place state park for my mom's Mormon Youth Chorus reunion. The kids had a blast. Their favorite things were Jameson's shave in the barber shop. He spent the rest of the day telling everyone to smell his cheeks because they put after shave on him. We always love horses, but the ride is never long enough. And last of all was the goats. There is just a gated area where the goats and sheep roam free among the kids. Gregson got trampled and Jameson got kicked, but they still absolutely loved every minute of it.

Then there was a day at Liberty park where the kids spent time in the little river, enjoyed rides in the little amusement park, and best of all Grandma spoiled them with cotton candy and snow cones. Gotta love Grandma!

I woke up at 5:30 am so that I could pick up Gramps and Darlene for my mom's Temple Square concert on the 24th of July. We decided to stay for the parade. Dave brought the boys and met us down there. Our favorite float was the one that was from How To Train Your Dragon. Jameson and Gregson loved the parade. Gregson kept saying "ooh ooh" every time a float would come. We spent the evening of the 24th up Millcreek canyon where Dave grilled us some delicous pork tenderloin and Mailee and Everett entertained us with the guitar.

There is still more summer to come, so stay posted!

A welcome visit

2010-07-31T13:06:00.000-07:00

We were so excited to have a visit from our dear friends the Carlson's from Washington. Christie was one of Jameson and Gregson's babysitters. She was absolutely amazing. Their little girl Callie was one of Jameson's best friends and he has missed her desperately since moving. They talk on the phone occasionally, but it is not the same as seeing her. We were thrilled that they made it a priority to stop by and see us while they were here visiting family over the 4th of July. Ashlyn wanted to hit In n' Out burger since the California phenomenon has not made its way up to Washington. My favorite memory not caught on camera was Jameson and Callie walking hand in hand through the parking lot to get their burgers.

We spent the day at the Highland City park where there is a water park. The kids had so much fun and could have kept going for hours. We truly feel so blessed to have such wonderful friends and can't wait until we live back in Washington with them. We miss the Salmon fishing, shrimping and crabbing on Todd's boat. We miss trips to casino buffets for crab legs. We miss play dates at eachother's houses, and most of all we just miss them! Thanks Carlsons! Sorry we missed Dallin who was at EFY.

Caught red handed

2010-06-12T16:16:00.000-07:00

Jameson has an obsession with Binkies. When we had Gregson, it was like the flood gates opened and Jameson just couldn't get enough of the soft green soothie bink. We have tried several things to get him to give it up, but he finds a way to get back to it. So we tried money. A dollar a day for every day that he went without it. Just this morning I said "dang it has been 10 days with no trouble." Then I found this photo on the camera...taken today! BUSTED!!

Karate

2010-06-12T16:11:00.000-07:00

Jameson started Karate this week. He had a great time and told me that he wanted it to be his new school. Guess he is tired of day care and what 4 year old would not want to play all day in the karate studio. He is a natural. All that pent up energy and natural instincts to punch and kick! I hope it helps him release his wiggles.

Grammie and Bumps

2010-06-12T15:55:00.000-07:00

We sure had a great time when Grammie and Bumps came to see us from Michigan. We wish we could see them more often, but they live far away making frequent visits difficult. We went to Chuck E Cheese, Krispy cream doughnuts, The Mayan and How To Train Your Dragon. Thank you guys so much for treking out here to see us. Even if the weather was probably better in Michigan. We also got to celebrate Brandon's birthday while the Nashes were here. Dave and Brandon grew up together in Michigan, so it is fun for us live close again.

Yoli Cruise 2010

2010-05-08T08:15:00.000-07:00

Dave and I had the fantastic opportunity to go aboard the largest cruise ship in the world last week. This was an insentive trip for the top distributors at Yoli. Dave took me because he needed an assistant to help him and the company didn't want to pay for another cabin. So...darn it, I had to go! We left the boys with friends and family and flew off to Ft. Lauderdale Florida to start preparing for the adventure.

We had an absolute blast running around like crazy making sure that everything ran smoothly. The Yoli distributors were very gracious and appreciative. The cruise ship in and of it was amazing!! At a mere 4 times the size the size of the Titanic, this floating city came equipt with many swimming pools, tennis courts, a soccer field, a park, shops, restaurants, and more. We were fortunate to have the broadway cast of Hairspray on board the ship. Upon closing the production on broadway, the cast has set sail on the high seas. We were able to get to know some of them over the week which was fun. They had an Ice show, a diving show, an acrobatic show, and more!

Off the ship we were able to go to Nassau Bahamas. This is home to Donald Trump's Atlantis hotel. It was also fun walking through town and bartering with the locals (at least Dave is good at that...not me!)

We went to St. Thomas where we enjoyed snorkeling. I have been wanting to certify to dive for a long time, but sometimes snorkeling is just as fun. We saw some beautiful fish.

Our most interesting day came at St. Maartens. This island is split in 2. 1/2 is owned by the Dutch and the other the French. We ended up on a French beach where there were nudies, and topless alike. Hmmm I am quite fond of my bathing suit and have no idea what the attraction to being nude on the beach is. I mean the average age of the nudies was like 65. Is it just cuz you're old and you can??? Anyway that was a blast. We played volleyball on the beach, sipped Pina coladas (virgin of course) and enjoyed watching those who just got plastered.

Yoli had some great meetings for the distributors that were very motivating and uplifting. I feel like I could use a lot of the information with my patients.

So...now that I am officially a world travelor...or at least have added another location to my list of places I've been, I can't wait to go back. Next time I want to see more marine life, eat less (lol) and do some of the things we were just too darn busy to do this time. Oh yeah, and I want Sandy to be there. I really missed having her. It was great spending the week with Dave. I have a new appreciation for all that he does. I think the cruise could have been a disaster without him.

Thank you to the Yoli founders who joined us on board, and all the wonderful distributors. Can't wait to see you next year. And for those of you saying "what the heck is Yoli??" check them out at yoli.com.

The rest of the pics

2010-04-17T20:35:00.000-07:00

See post below. For some reason it only let me post some of the picture. Although I did forget to mention our very eventful trip to Moab and Eastern Colorado. It was wild!

Catch up time

2010-04-17T19:41:00.000-07:00

I finally after 8 months have been able to pull what still exists from our hard drive. I am hoping an expert will be able to retrieve the rest. I am going to take you back over the last 8 months because it has been a long haul!

We left our beautiful home in Washington and headed back to Utah where we started...Literally. We moved from our beautiful 1 acre lot to our townhouse where we lived when we had Jameson. We packed up the 4 of us and the 2 dogs and started over.

Shortly after we arrived here, our little "Ranger Boy" passed away unexpectedly. It really threw us for a loop. Leaving Washington had been hard enough, but Ranger was such a great dog and we were all really attatched to him. It was Jameson's first experience with death, and frankly he handled it better than Dave and I who cried for days! The morning after Ranger passed away, Dave and I left on a trip to Dallas for the BYU/ Oklahoma state game in the brand new cowboys stadium. It was nice to have some time away just the 2 of us. Grandma took the boys and Elliot for us. Dave and I also hit 6 flags while we were there. We love roller coasters.

It was also nice to spend a few weeks with my friends and family before I started working. We went to Thanksgiving point to the gardens a few times, and hit the indoor Lehi pool with a fun water park.

Halloween was fun with the Herzogs. So different than when we were growing up. Ev and Amber had the best costumes as Ben franklin and his wife. Erin looked like a KKK member though she was supposed to be a ghost. We trick or treated the old Canyon Rim hood, and that was it.

In November we had the opportunity to go back to Washington for Thanksgiving. We rented an RV to try to make the trip a little easier on the kids. We had a tag along for that trip...our new dog Bolt. He was supposed to be a pure bred (though not papered) mini dachshund, but we think he is part rat terrior. We did great on the trip. When I stepped out of the RV and Sandy and Darin's house, the first sensation I had was the smell. Ahhhh, I was at home! I was back in the trees and the moss! One of the wonderful things about that trip was that my best friend Emily from high school who had just moved to Bellingham (just as we move away of course!) came to Thanksgiving with us. If any of you know Sandy and Darin, they are the ultimate host family. They are fantastic about including everyone! Emma and I went to see New Moon the night before and it was so great just to be with her. We had a great time up in Washington and even made time for some family pics by Dave Wolf. An unexpected bout with the stomach bug kept me from seeing my girls from work, but over all it was a great time.

Jameson turned 4 in December and we had a great time seeing Princess and the Frog and bowling with family and friends. Then on Christmas Eve we spent the night at Herzog's just for fun. We had fun opening presents with them and as always, enjoyed my dad's famous breakfast on Christmas morning.

In December we decided that we were not really doing well in our little town house. Jameson was sleeping on the floor in Gregson's room because after Ranger died, he would not sleep in his room downstairs. So Dave started looking at buying a home. With the market being what it was, he was sure he could find a deal. And that he did. We were told we would close the end of December, so Dave found renter for the townhouse and we moved out on 12/31. We moved in with the Herzog's thinking it would just be a couple of weeks. 9 weeks later, we were still not sure the house was going to work out. I cursed the stupid house many times! We decided that we needed to get out of my parent's house and into something of our own and a little closer to my office. the commute was killing me. So we rented a basement in Pleasant Grove for a month. 2 weeks into the month we closed on the house and moved in. That was 4 weeks ago.

In March, our sweet little "Bug" Gregson turned 1. I could not believe it. He is such a sweet little boy! He loves his big brother, his dogs, and soft blankets. Oh yeah...and food! He has been so funny about food. In day care they are required to follow state guidelines for feeding and activities, so they were not allowed to feed him solid food (other then baby food) ubtil the day he turned 1. He would get so jealous of the other kids in his class and was constantly trying to steal their food. What a goof ball.

Dave and I are headed off on a cruise. I am so excited to go with him. He has been on several cruises for work over the years and I have not been able to go. This year will be my first. I am sad that Sandy won't be there, I was really looking forward to spending some time with her. Her husband Daren is one of the founders of Dave's company. I am glad it keeps us tied to Washington.

Unfortunately I do not have much vacation time with my new job. 5.2 hours per pay period. I used to get 2 weeks a month. So with sick kids this winter, I used up most of what I had. We were really hoping to make it to Washington for Lauren and Kylee's graduation, but as I am taking the cruise unpaid, we can't afford any other unpaid time off. Thank goodness my sister in law just started as a flight attendant and this fall with qualify for buddy passes. I am going to have to start visiting more often.

I have started Zumba and absolutely love it. I am on a quest to lose the 20 lbs that pregnancy and unavoidable stress has left me with. I love that I can dance for an hour and sweat my guts out. I just wish they had it every night so I could go more. Dave is playing basketball MWF at the Stake Center. He seems to really like it and has made some friends that way. I am hoping that I will get to know some of the ladies in the ward soon. We are definitely not in Lacey 3rd anymore! I miss the closeness of the ward.

Sorry it has been so long, but hopefully now that we are stable I will be able to blog more! I missed it.

Starting over

2010-03-01T13:59:00.000-08:00

Last night I was crying to Dave yet again about why we had to move to Utah in the first place. He being the level headed guy that he is has not been the least bit shaken by all the trials we have faced this year. I find my ability to roll with the punches is not what it used to be!

So a house update. About 4 months ago now, Dave came home one night and told me that he couldn't live in our townhouse anymore. He was too cramped and felt like we were all living on top of eachother. So he got with a realtor and started looking for a home. Being a business minded guy, he wasn't looking for our dream home...a place where we could raise our boys and spend time in the yard, no...he was looking for a DEAL! with the recession, there are many homes on the market that are shortsales, or bank owned. He found this house in Lehi that was HUGE! It was way more than we needed on the inside while offering a less than ideal outside. It was beautiful don't get me wrong, but way more than we need. So an offer was made and bartering went back and forth. A price was determined and...we waited. We waited for loan approval, we waited for rock wall repairs, we waited for Mortgage insurance, and we waited for the final appraisal. As it turns out, it wasn't meant to be! The appraisal fell way short of the asking price, but the bank was unwilling to budge. So...goodbye big house on the hill. After 3 agonizing months that is where we ended up.

So we start over...

In the mean time I have been very tempted on several occasions to get in the blue scoobie and drive home. I mean Washington. My rational mind knows that someone else is living there now, but I can't help but hope the house would just be waiting for us. So, we start over. That is what we have to do. We have to find another house, and barter with another bank, and somehow I am supposed to maintain faith that the end result will be better this time around.

They always say that when life gives you lemons, you are supposed to make lemonade. Sometimes I just want to suck on those lemons and let everyone know how sour they are. Isn't that pathetic??? I know in hindsight this will stand out as something humerous we endured, and remember all the crazy times we had sleeping in one little bedroom in the parent's basement. But for now...it just isn't very fun.

The wait continues

2010-01-25T13:49:00.001-08:00

Are any of you control freaks like me???
Is it so bad that we want people to come through when they tell us they are going to, or have things happen on the dates promised?
I am in the midst of a house battle! All I want is to drive by it and see that someone actually came to work on the rock wall. All I want is to have the loan officer call me back when she tells me she will. Is that so much???
We are on day 26 of imposing on my parents. Our closing date has changed so many times I am not even sure when it really is now. The dates for the wall construction have come and gone, and unless the construction compay employs deer...they haven't come either. I am commuting an hour each way to work, and sleeping in a room with my husband, 2 kids, our 2 dogs, and 1 bed!
The saddest part...we still have no idea if this house is going to work out! Our loan is squared away, but the mortgage insurance is holding us up. So...we continue on waiting and waiting. The sad part is, the answer could be "no." I hate to be pesimistic, but it is a possibility.
All I know is that when we finally do get into our house (no matter what house it may be...) I am going to celebrate in some major way. I will keep ya posted on that. In the mean time I am thankful that my mom has made dinner for us almost every night since we've been there, and I get to go on early morning walks with my dad up Millcreek. Those things are nice!
I just want some answers...and today is not soon enough!!

Chaos

2009-09-16T09:00:00.000-07:00

I have not posted for a long time!
We moved to Utah the end of July and things are now just starting to settle down.
I have a new job in Provo. For all of you who know me you are probably in shock! I know, I bit the bullet and work in Utah County, but I love my job. I am working in Radiation Oncology. Of course this job brings with it lots of ups and downs. I spent 40 minutes of my day yesterday being yelled at because a patient had failed to follow up with us for 15 months and now has metastatic disease and it is our fault because we should have called him to remind him to come in. Most everyone is great though. For the state they are in, they are always gracious. I never cease to be amazed by technology and what we are able to do now. I just yesterday joined the board of an adoption agency in American Fork. They work with 3 countries, one of which is Taiwan. I will be over their upcoming humanitarean project in North East Taiwan next spring. I am thrilled about that...not to mention the fact that we will eventually adopt through them.

Dave is working for a new company called Yoli! It is Vitawater the way it should have been done. You can google it if you like. He only went to church at our ward one time and was called as the Executive Secretary for the Bishop. One of the things that comes with moving back into a ward you used to live in. He has a lot of late nights! He has put up with a lot as his crazy wife has struggled to adjust to being here.

The boys are doing well. Jameson's puppy ranger died unexpectedly a few weeks ago which was really devistating. He is doing pretty well with it though. The only problem is that he is constantly asking if he can go live with Jesus too! He is in day care which includes pre-school. He is learning so much. Today when I dropped them off there was a note from one of his teachers. They just love him. She said she just about died laughing when he said "oh snap" when she dropped something in class. He is still our challenge at home. He must wear out all his good behaviour at school and not have any left when he gets home. We just started doing "daddy dollars" this is a way for him to earn rewards and time with his dad by making good choices. On Sunday the opening song at church was "Home can be a heaven on earth" I started crying during the song. Dave started laughing. Dave said "Anna the song says "CAN BE" not "IS." He is so funny!

Gregson is getting so big and has proven to be so mellow.He will be 6 months old on the 25th! He is going through a wierd phase of getting up in the night. He goes right back down with the binki, but I sure wish he would just sleep all night! He is sitting up, and rolling all over the floor. Nothing makes him laugh more than good old Jameson. He loves his big brother. Day care has kind of spoiled him. He is never alone in a room. Whenever I leave him in the front room while I go to the kitchen, he cries. His smile continues to light up the room. That and his big blue eyes are the things that everyone comments on.

So...that is us. I promise I will post photos as soon as I find the box with the cords to the camera.
Going from our house in Washington with a 2 car garage and an acre of property down to no garage and very little yard has been a big change.
Hope you all find yourselves well.

Post baby hair cut

2009-06-14T20:57:00.000-07:00

Some of you moms may empathize with post partum hair loss. I decided to cut mine off to make it less obvious. Plus I was needing some style anyway. Best of all it was only $23 at the kids salon where Jameson gets his cut.

PS I did like 4 posts today so check them all out.

Family From Michigan

2009-06-14T20:42:00.000-07:00

It was awesome to have Dave's family come out here for Gregson's blessing. Dave's parents had been out here before, but his sisters had not. His mom and dad and their 3 girls along with Dave's sister Sue, her husband Allen and their 5 girls all came out to see us! We had a great time playing while they were here. We usually try to go to Michigan once a year. Dave has been more since he has gone for funerals and weddings. It was a blast spending time with them.

We did a lot of fun things from Olympia to Seattle. Thanks for coming guys! It was great having you all here.

Utah

2009-06-14T20:29:00.001-07:00

We were able to spend 10 days in Utah at the end of my maternity leave. Jameson asks us all the time to move to Utah. Of course he just associates Utah with Grandma. He had a great time there. We were able to do some fun things like swimming with Everett, Amber, Madi and some of Amber's family; We went to the Mayan restaurant wjere they have cliff diving; we were able to spend some time with Brandon and Aubrey; and finally of course we were able to see our family. I was able to be there for Hazen's medical school graduation (PA School.)Jameson had a blast playing with Graham and Hanna. The only disppointment was that Janet's baby decided to wait till the day after we left to finally make his enterance. So we were not there to welcome baby Will.

Growing boy

2009-06-14T20:10:00.000-07:00

Gregson will be 12 weeks this week. I cannot believe it. I wanted to post some pictures over the weeks. He is such a sweet boy.

Grandma's visit

2009-04-25T08:49:00.001-07:00

One of the perks of having a new baby is that no matter what your mom has to come visit. My mom brought my younger sister Madi who is Jameson's favorite. We planned lots of fun activities while they were here as Jameson and I were in great need of getting out of the house. We visited the park, the Woodland Park Zoo, the hands on childrens museum, Charlie Safari, and our own back yard. Gregson was an angel the entire time they were here. He would sleep 4-6 hours at night and was rarely fussy when he was awake. I was able to get some much needed sleep between 5 and 8am, it was great. Jameson is missing them already and keeps asking when we can go to Utah to see Grandma.

I am feeling very humbled having 2 kids. I keep asking how in the world people do it. I can't seem to get anywhere on time. Jameson will have undone himself by the time I get Gregson ready, and I am always amazed how much damage can be done to my house in the amount of time it takes me to feed the baby. I love all my boys don't get me wrong...I just find the whole experience humbling. I also feel like all I talk about with friends and family is breast feeding. I feel like I am doing this for the first time and I want so badly for it to be a smooth experience, but somehow it is not. I am trying not to give Gregson formula, but after 6 feeding in 7 hours I usually give in to the crying. Everyone keeps saying it will work itself out...I sure hope so.

Last of all Grammie there is a zoo picture on here just for you. I know it won't take you long to figure out which one.

Happy Easter

2009-04-12T20:26:00.000-07:00

It seems like we have never really had an Easter celebration since Dave and I have been married. You know how it is...the Easter egg hunts are for the kids and when you don't have any or yours is too young to understand sometimes you just let it go. This year Jameson was old enough to understand and get into it, so we decided to indulge. I hid a bunch of eggs outside and thank goodness hit the 20 minute break from the drizzle. We bundled up Gregson and headed outside to find the eggs. I was manning the video camera, so there were no pics of the hunt itself, but I took some before and after pics to share.

I am finding as many of you with multiple children can attest, that having 2 kids is a huge adjustment and everything seems to take place in slow motion. I can't seem to get anywhere on time due to feedings or just getting both kids ready to go. Jameson seems to undo himself while I get Gregson ready. They say it will get easier...I sure hope they are right.

Sweet baby Gregson

2009-04-05T14:58:00.000-07:00

It was 5:30am on 3/25 when I was awakened by Jameson kicking me in the back. Dave had just left not long before for seminary. I realized I was having some contractions, but as I had been having a lot of them for weeks...I passed it off as false labor. After a shower I realized they were getting stronger. I got dressed and did my hair and by then I figured I better call and have Dave come home instead of going straight to work like he normally does. I called Christie to let her know we would eventually be dropping Jameson off. I wanted to wait at home as long as possible since I was trying to avoid medication. But Dave burst through the door and he was rushing around grabbing everything we should need. By this time the contractions were really bad. I could hardly get in the car. We dropped Jameson off at the Carlson's and as we were pulling out of their neighborhood Dave said "so how does that epidural sound?" I said "better and better every minute." He laughed. When we got to the hospital I was in a lot of pain, but I was in good spirits. Everyone kept offering me a wheel chair and the maternity department is in the back of the hospital down lots of stairs. I insisted on walking although I had to stop and rest through the contractions. We were all checked in by 8am. They instructed me to give a urine sample. I could hardly get a few drops out and was hurting and feeling a lot of pressure. I had to have Dave pick my clothes up off the floor for me. The nurse checked my cervix and I was 8cm. She began to run around like a chicken with her head cut off. There were no labor rooms available and we were in a tiny little triage room. Though my contractions were really bad, they were spaced enough that I could get a few minutes rest. When they came with the wheel chair to move me to the first available labor room I could hardly sit down because the baby was so low. When I got settled in that room my Dr. came in to check me. She said there was a tiny lip left on my cervix and needed to give it 10 more minutes. She told me there was no time for an epidural and I had not had enough fluid to get IV pain medication. She said we would be doing this the old fashioned way. I was scared I admit. A sister who used to live in our ward is one of the charge nurses there and though they were slammed, she stayed with me through the delivery. Everyone was amazing. After 40 min of pushing Gregson was born at 10:19am. I was on a high. I just kept telling everyone; "I can't believe I did that!" He was 8lbs 1oz and 20.5 inches long. He was perfect! He is now 11 days old and the best baby ever! Besides the breast feeding that has been much more painful than I imagined, things have been great. I did cry last night in the drive through at Jack in the box. Dave started laughing at me. It was quite funny. I have no idea why I was crying. Jameson is doing great with him. It took him a few days to get used to being home with Dave and I, but he loves the baby.

Greeners

2009-04-05T14:46:00.001-07:00

Here in Washington there are people we call "Greeners." They are the tree huggers who dedicate there lives to protecting the environment from injustice. You know you have lived here long enough when you get really ticked off when you see them clearing trees for new construction. In this case we had a bad storm that cost us a really funky tree in our back yard. I had to take a picture of it because I was really sad to see it go. I love living in the trees and definitely get ticked when they start ripping out trees so that people can live in their little neighborhoods where they can reach out and touch their neighbors house without leaving their's. So farewell to our funky back yard tree.

Jameson's Stranger

2009-02-15T16:32:00.000-08:00

This is Jameson who is not feeling very well today and had to miss church. Lauren Falter came over long enough for me to run and teach Sunday school (which was really sweet of her.) When I got home Jameson only wanted to lay on the couch. He was running a fever and just not feeling well. He and "Stranger" cuddled up on the couch together for a little R&R.

Elliot's Valentine

2009-02-15T16:20:00.000-08:00

Many of you know we got Elliot in October. We love her despite her being the hardest dog to house train that I have ever had. She has been very lonely as I work full time. We have talked about getting her a beau that she can have as a companion and may be some day a mate.

Dave has been working very hard trying to find her a friend. Many breeders were worried about us becoming breeders and would jack up the price if they knew we had a female and were looking for a male. We were ready to give up and just wait until after the baby comes since we will have a lot on our plate. We were worried how Elliot would react once the baby came though, so Dave kept calling and yesterday we finally got lucky. We drove down to Tenino to pick up our little boy. I told Dave he had to pick the name since I had named Elliot. He picked 3; Cowboy, Jackson, and Ranger. Jameson insisted on Darby which he was getting from a Veggie Tales movie. Then Dave tried to tell him Ranger was also from a Veggie Tales movie about Moses. The only problem is on the movie he is called "The Lone Stranger" instead of the the lone ranger. So Jameson insists that the dog's name is "Stranger." Elliot has been in hog heaven, and I have been too. She and Ranger have spent the majority of the day outside chasing eachother around. Ranger is already doing well going potty outside since that is what Elliot does. I think we made a good choice.

My Valentines

2009-02-15T16:03:00.000-08:00

Today we decided to take Jameson to Charlie Safari. He loves the place and had been begging us to take him there ever since Dave got home from Hawaii. It is so hard explaining to a toddler that we will go tomorrow, not today. He wanted to bring his best friends, so we took a couple of his close friends. He is the only boy his age, so he was taking Emmalee and Callie. We were there for about 2 and a half hours and by the time we left Jameson and Emmalee could hardly keep their eyes open they were so tired.

Dave and I were able to go out 2 nights in a row. We went to a local casino with Todd and Christie on Friday night, and sushi with Daren and Sandy on Saturday night. Dave got me a new camera for my birthday, but said he was giving it to me on Valentines day so I could get used to it before the baby comes. So here are some of the pictures of the day.

The belly

2009-02-08T18:20:00.000-08:00

Many family members have asked to see me pregnant. I finally asked my brother in law to take some pictures for us when we were in Utah a couple of weeks ago. This is really the only one I liked. Of course it is my belly and I see all the flaws. I do know that the kiddos are worth all that we go through though.

Sleep

2009-01-29T12:24:00.001-08:00

Recently Jameson has been found sleeping in the most interesting places. The kitchen counter, hanging off his toddler bed, and today I found him in the hall. I will give the guy a break since he went to the dentist this morning and they gave him nitrous oxide to help relax him so they could fill some cavities.

Last night we got home and Dave was working late, so Jameson was playing in his room while I was folding laundry. I realized it had become very quiet and went to his room to see what was going on. The boy was lying on about 1/4 of his toddler bed with his feet up on the wall. He had his "bop" in one hand and a bag of baked lays potato chips in the other. It was pretty funny. I just thought I would share the humor with you. Another funny thing you will note in his pictures is the boy loves to wear socks on his hands. I am not sure why, but he does. Sometimes he sleeps all night like that.

You gotta love kids!

Happy Birthday!

2008-12-25T19:42:00.000-08:00

As most of you know Jameson was a Christmas Eve baby. That was not planned of course, but just happened that way. We have worked hard to try and make Christmas Eve Jameson's birthday and not the prelim of the day to follow. Tues night we had some of Jameson's close friends over for cupcakes and a pinata. We had a great time! His favorite gift was a playdough toy that Hailey Mae gave him. The kids got a kick out of it. The spiderman pinata was also a hit...no punn intended! Jameson has a special way of showing his 3 fingers...he puts up his 1st, 4th and 5th fingers...no standard 1, 2 and 3 for him. On the 24th I had to work half of the day, so Jameson was home with Dave. We opened gifts and went to dinner and spent the rest of the evening at Grandma/pa "B's" house. We managed through the night with just one small battle wound on his bottome lip that he got trying to crawl under the table at the restraunt.

Some of the Hi-lights of the year for Jameson include...

Changing babysitters as Christie got pregnant

Learning twinkle twinkle in Chinese

taking music classes with Vanessa Oblad (we can't get him to stop singing now!)

figuring out how to manouver his Jeep including forward and reverse

graduated to a toddler bed...and later overtook Everett's queen sized bed

became a master of kung fu (thank you kung fo panda!)

became a fan of Dora and Kai Lan

Found out what "pop" and chips were :(

vandalized his first (and hopefully last) car...if you want the full story let me know!

spent time on time out for bad words, and started thinking he should put mom and dad on too if he caught us saying bad words!

went down his first water slide and loved it

became a fan of zip lines

went to his first amusement park...is there a recurring theme with adrenaline???

Spiderman became his hero

"you're making my nuts!" was his version of what mom would say.

Favorite things include his silky, buzz and woody and spiderman blankies. His "bop" has made a come back (I've heard it's normal when mom is having another baby!)

He thinks popsicles should be a food group!

Well I could go on and on, but I am really thankful for such a smart, handsome son! We look forward to all that next year will bring!

Blogging

2008-12-20T13:43:00.000-08:00

Just wanted to thank Nicole Kesten for making our new blog title page. I am not very good at this and I know there are websites with all sorts of fun stuff, but I have never used them so I feel a little lame. Nicole probable whipped out this image in a matter of seconds. So thanks to her for sharing her talent!

Snow days

2008-12-20T13:12:00.000-08:00

Over the last few days we have received about a foot of snow. Since our county doesn't even own a snow plow, it is really difficult getting around. It took me 2 hours to get to work on Wednesday this week. Thank goodness I was off on Thursday and I ended up not going in on Friday because the roads were still so bad. I had a Dr. Appointment on Thurs and it took me 3 1/2 hours to go there and run one errand after just because no one can seem to drive in the snow.
Today Dave, Jameson, Elliot and I spent the morning playing in the snow. Elliot loved it! Dave spent a few hours Thurs night pulling kids on sleds behind the tractor. Jameson thought that was the best. I am hoping this isn't going to be a trend as it is hard to get to work with the weather this way. We are expecting a big storm tonight and they have already canceled church for tomorrow, so hopefully we will be able to go back to work without problems on Mon.

Baby Nash #2

2008-11-15T18:30:00.000-08:00

I had my 20 week ultrasound this week and though it would have been very easy to cheat, I did not peak at the gender. Dave was in Texas and unable to be there. The 3 Drs. I work with were in the room and were all good not to look either. I had the pleasure of having some 3d images done. I am just so amazed by the technology these days. I remember watching Mailee's ultrasound 16 years ago and it was nothing but fuzz. This ultrasound was so clear you could see the aortic arch, the foramen ovale and the lobes of the brain. It was incredible. We look forward to this addition to the family!

Puppy love

2008-10-20T18:51:00.000-07:00

We want to introduce you to our new puppy "Elliot." She is a mini daschaund. We are so happy to have her. Some of us a little too happy. Jameson is constantly chasing her around the house trying to hold her. I guess it is good practice for when our baby gets here.

Dave got Elliot from one of the seminary teachers he works with. She raises these cuties. We are happy to have her and only hope that we can convince her to sleep in the laundry room! So far she cries and cries. We surrender and put her in bed with us where she is happy as a clam! I had to leave her alone all day while I was at work today. Dave stopped home in between seminary and work and said she was just crying like a baby! Hopefully we will make a fast transition!

Deer

2008-09-20T10:50:00.000-07:00

Dave and I had to get rid of our dog Chancho because he bit Jameson. We have beeen waiting for just the right dog to replace him. I am more the dog person in our family and Dave would rather not have one...or that is what he thought until a huge portion of our beautiful garden was devoured by deer. They were kind of a novelty when we first moved here. We enjoyed watching them out the windows. But now that they are steeling our food...the novelty has worn off. I am sitting here thinking...we better get a new dog soon or next year we might as well forget the garden. They ate almost all of our beans and peas. They don't like squash, zuccini, or pumpkins thank goodness, but don't turn your back for a minute...carrots are still out and apples are just coming on. We have cages around all the veggies, but that doesn't seem to phase them. As I sit here they are out there eating whatever they can get ahold of. They don't take me seriously, they just keep on eating.

Dave!!! we need a new dog!!!

Michigan trip

2008-09-12T18:16:00.000-07:00

More Beautiful Mackinac scenery!

Mackinac at last

2008-09-12T17:27:00.000-07:00

We went to Mackinac (Mackinaw) Island all the way back in early Aug, but I am just now finally posting about it. This is my absolute favorite vacation place. For those of you Westerners who probably have no clue where this place is, Mackinac Island is a small island in Lake Huron. It belongs to Michigan. Dave and I went on our honeymoon there and then had several years we were unable to make it back. This is our second summer in a row we have been able to go back. It is so fun and so quaint. Many people ride around the island and spend most of their time "Fudgin'" but the inner part of the island holds many beautiful secrets. Mackinac is known for its home made fudge. One other unique thing is that there are no cars allowed on the island so you have the option of footin it, bikin' it, or taking a ride on a horse and buggy.

We are fortunate to spend this time with Dave's parents and his 3 younger siblings, Dave's older sister Sue and her family, Some aunts and uncles, and last year Sarah and her fam came too. Dave's uncle Gary has a Cottage on the island and spends most of the summer up there. We rent a house with the family and make all of our own food. Jameson loves the island. He loves riding in the Burley! Sometimes he even protests his car seat when we get off the island. This year I forgot to dump my Utah photos before we left, so I did not have any disk space and had to get pics from Dave's sister. Jameson loved spending time with his "friends" aka his cousins. All the cousins that came to Mackinac are girls, so he got lots of attention.

One of the highlites of the trip was a Nash family part at Dave's parents house the last night. It was my first time seeing several of the neices and nephews. Jameson got to take a ride on Bumpa's motorcycle with his uncle Tim, and the kids swam in the pool. We also had the opportunity to see Dave's grandparents. This was particularly important because Dave's Grandma passed away about 3 weeks later. Grandpa is not far behind.

We had a great time other than the facft that my early pregnancy did not allow me to enjoy the giant carmel apple that I normally look so forward to. Oh well. I am sure we will go back!

Oh yes last of all...Dave was ever so proud as to hit 100miles on his bike while on the island. Unfortunately I only made 88.

Crabbing

2008-08-25T20:31:00.000-07:00

We went out crabbing with Dave's boss and his wife. Jameson loves being on a boat and we love crab, so it was a great evening. We got kind of a late start since Dave didn't get home from work until almost 6. Now the sun is going down sooner, so we didn't have much time. Rich and Erica had made a delicious meal for us that we enjoyed once we got all of our crab pots down. Ideally we would have had more time to leave the pots down, but we got lucky and did get some crab. We got some surprises too. We got a sea star which was cool. It was funny my rough and tumble Jameson got a little freaked out when the crabs were trying to get out of the pots. He was afraid they were going to bite him.

After losing one crab pot to a cut line, we headed in to enjoy our catch. It was wonderful spending time with Rich and Erica, Royce and Zoe. Jameson hasn't stopped begging to go back out on their boat since.

I forgot to mention how incredibly georgeous it was out on the sound that night. We saw seals and jelly fish. The day was clear and warm, it was just perfect. It made me realize how much I love living by the water. May be part of it was growing up in Utah where we really didn't have any, but I love it. Some people ask me how I can stand living in a place where it rains so much. I don't know what to say other than it is one of the most beautiful places I have ever been.

Our trip to Utah

2008-08-14T13:15:00.000-07:00

It was such a needed vacation. I have not been able to go to Utah and actually have time to enjoy it, in a very long time. Jameson and I survived the airport by ourselves despite my failure to charge his DVD player for the trip. My mom and Madi picked us up. Jameson LOVES Madi and was thrilled to see her. When we got to the house there was Hazen, Everett, Pops, and Dennis up on the roof. It was over 100 degrees that day. Everett ended up getting heat exhaustion, and Hazen had to study for finals, but Pops bless his heart, he lasted all day. It was quite the project, but Dave was excited to participate once he got into town.

Our first night was a baby shower for Erin with the Russell's. Hanna was almost 3 months old, but she did not have any showers before she was born just in case the adoption fell through. It was fun to see all the cousins. Jameson and Graham hit it off well.

I was able to see my old friends Sydney and Tracey McDonough who I have not seen in a long time, and Tracey married one of Dave's old roommates from BYU, so it was fun to see them. We had a great week in Utah...but we have forgotten how hot it is here. Jameson was swetting the whole time. Enjoy some of the highlights of our trip!

Zoo Date

2008-08-14T13:05:00.000-07:00

It is sooo hard to try and see everyone when we come to Utah. I spent most of my life there, so there are many great friends I want to see. I decided to plan a day at the zoo in hopes most of my girlfriends could bring their kids while we caught up. We had a great time. I got to see Kelly McAfee who is one of my best friends that I worked with in the OR at the UofU. I have not seen her since I was in PA school. Andrea came with Olivia and Calvin. Janet and Graham came, and my sisters, mom and Dave. I had really hoped Lynnell could make it, but she works graves in the NICU at LDS. I never did get to catch up with her, but she knows I love her! The zoo has changed a lot since I was a kid. Though it was really hot, it was fun. We were actually surprised by a thunder storm that showered down some pretty heavy rain just as we were getting ready to leave. The kids thought it was just like running through the sprinklers.

Fire Trucks!!!

2008-08-14T13:01:00.000-07:00

Brandon is a fire fighter in Orem. Jameson LOVES fire trucks. So we got to do the coolest tour of Orem fire dept. Jameson knew just what to do!

Orem

2008-08-14T12:55:00.001-07:00

One of the things we try to do every time we make it to Utah is see our friends Brandon and Aubrey. Dave and Brandon grew up together in Michigan, and later Brandon encouraged Dave to come to BYU where they were roommates. Brandon is amazing, and best of all he married an amazing girl. Aubrey is the best! Now they have a little guy named Austin who is almost exactly a year younger than Jameson. We went to dinner with them as well as Dave and Brandon's bishop from BYU. Bishop Williams is awesome...and again married a very great woman Paula. We have felt like family since the good old days at BYU. We went to tailgate parties for each home game at their house. They are just the best sort of people to be aquainted with. They suffered a major loss this year as their 24 year old son died of stomache cancer. We were not able to be here for the funeral, so it was wonderful to share this time with them.

Lagoon

2008-08-14T12:39:00.000-07:00

My family has loved lagoon since I can remember. It was fun introducing Jameson to the adventures. He spent most of his time on the kids rides, which were really fun. He drank about 2 gallons of sprite, and that kid could have kept going for days. He loved Puff the magic dragon, the WWII fighter planes, and the cars. My highlite was when I got to go on Wicked with my dad, Dave, Ev, Madi and Mailee. Dave had a back pack with him, but it had our camera, his debit cards, and things like that in it, so the guys at the ride told him just to carry it on his front during the ride. For those of you who have been on it...you know how crazy it is. On the first drop Dave's water bottle flew out of his back pack. I was freaking out thinking it was going to come back and hit someone as we would fly right into it on the ride. Thank goodness that didn't happen. He also thought he lost his hat, but that ended up on the floor of the ride. If the line hadn't been so long I would have loved to do it again!

Lagoon

2008-08-14T12:22:00.000-07:00

Lagoon was one of the highlites of the trip! Jameson is such a little thrill seeker. I am not sure where he gets that from! haha. It was sooo hot though. A few funny things happened on our Lagoon adventure. First Dave and I drove our own car and took Madi with us. My mom and dad drove their exploder. For some odd reason my dad asked my mom to drive. When she cam through the parking gate and payed for parking, all the kids kept telling her she was too close, but she ignored them. Evidentally when she pulled away from the toll booth, she was so close it hit the mirror and pushed it in. By now Everett and Mailee are yelling at her, but she just continued on. Next thing they new they heard an explosion. My mom's tire got ripped open on the bottom of the gate! Not so funny for her, but it was funny hearing about it. I also got a never ending bloody nose as we waited at the park wondering what in the world was taking my parents so long. I tend to get them when it is really hot out. I guess living in Washington for 2 years has made me less tolerant to the heat.

Utah

2008-08-14T12:11:00.000-07:00

We spent our last evening up Millcreek Canyon. We roasted hot dogs and Jameson played in the dirt. We had some family pictures taken up Lamb's Canyon right before heading up. It was fun having all the kids together. Jameson just loved Graham and of course loves Hanna as well. It is always hard trying to get everyone to look perfect at the same time...especially the kids.

Point Defiance

2008-07-03T20:38:00.001-07:00

Today Jameson and I headed up to the Point Defiance Zoo in Tacoma. We went with a my friend Anna Hellyer and her daughter Tegan. The kids had a great time playing. We even ran into Scott and Tina Larsen who are from my home ward in Utah. They were up visiting their daughter who moved up to Auburn this past year. Tegan was the first scuba diver. She was hunting for the creatures that were shown to her by one of the workers. She even got a fish stamp on her hand for her accomplishments. She was so cute she kept kissing the stamp and saying how much she loved it. Jameson was asked which animals lived in the water. I wasn't sure he would actually know that. In the end he didn't care at all about the stamp, but I thought we were going to have to buy the outfit because he loved it so much!

It was nice getting out. It has not been too hot this past week, so it was a perfect time to get out. It was also nice to spend time with Anna and Tegan who we see and music class, but had never had a chance to hang out with.

Summer

2008-06-29T22:20:00.001-07:00

Summer has finally arrived in the Evergreen state. It has been a long spring with temperatures in the upper 50's and 60's. This weekend it hit 90! I know many of you are like "whoopdie doo!" This is big for us OK!

Jameson took this time to enjoy his favorite thing! Water!

He even snapped a shot of me!

We have been enjoying the weather. I have been taking him for rides on my road bike! He loves being in the trailer. It is nice for me to get out too!

Yard update

2008-06-29T22:16:00.000-07:00

Here are some new photos of the yard. Things are coming along. We worked really hard on Saturday in the garden as well as the front yard. Dave enndured the heat all day. I of course was in and out with Jameson.

Salishan

2008-06-22T19:59:00.000-07:00

If you are reading this post, I put them in the order of events which means if you skip down to the post labeled "weekend get away" you will be at the beginning.

Dave likes to stay busy when we are on vacation, so I offerred to take him golfing. I do not golf, but I know he loves it, so I could do it for fun. He said he would like to save the money and get massages. So we started calling around in Lincoln city to see if there were any openings. We ended up getting in to the Salishan resort. Dave who travels a lot for work knows that there are great deals to be found, so we ended up getting a room at the resort with a spa package which only cost us $100 more. We were supposed to stay at some rinky dink motel. So we played 18 holes of executive mini golf, watched glass blowing, and enjoyed the resort. Againts the advise of the hotel manager, we went to the local casino for dinner. BIG MISTAKE! The food was terrible!

When we got back to our room we had good intentions of playing a few rounds of dance dance revolution, but we passed out on the bed and I woke up at 1:15am face down on the bed with my feet haning off. I knew we must have been really tired to do that!

This morning we went to the spa over an hour early to take advantage of the pools that they have. I went in the outdoor pool. It was heavenly. Only 85 degrees, but with the cool sea breeze, it was incredible. Dave enjoyed the steam room, the rain showers and sauna. Then we went in for a couple full body massage! The whole time I was thinking of poor Christie and Todd taking care of Jameson in sacrament meeting! I can't wait to go back. It was amazing. If any of you find yourself going to the Oregon coast, you'll have to check it out. The bummer is I did not bring my camera, so I only have pictures of glass blowing.

Tillamook

2008-06-22T19:53:00.000-07:00

I took Dave to the famous Tillamook Cheese factory. I have a good friend from there and have been there a few times, but Dave loves cheese, so I thought this would be a hit. He loved watching them make the cheese, and the ice cream is absolutely amazing. We headed up to Cape Mears light house after. It is so gorgeous up there overlooking the water. The light house is no longer in use. GPS has replaced the need for them, but it looks great.

Flying kites

2008-06-22T19:44:00.000-07:00

Dave wanted to fly kites on Cannon Beach while we waited for the tide to got out so we could do the banana bikes. We went to the oldest kite shop on the coast and bought some good looking kites. I think the 5 drunk girls on the beach got more entertainment out of it than we did. We could not get these things off the ground to save us. Kids can do it, but not us. We resigned to lack of wind and decided to play frisbee instead. When the tide was finally out enough Dave and I went and rented the banana bikes. This was a blast. I highly recommend it. Just take my advice and don't wear gaucho pants! I spent the whole ride back trying to keep from giving a free show to anyone on the beach!

We had worked up a pretty good appetite by now, so we headed up to seaside where our hotel was for dinner. We checked in at the hotel and asked for a dinner recommendation. The lady recommended a place called Mckewen's. It was really good! Then we went back to the hotel and spent some time in the hot tub before bed.

Cannon Beach

2008-06-22T19:40:00.001-07:00

I know this will end up being posted out of order. I forget that I have to reverse the order.

The next thing we did was drive down to Cannon Beach. This is one of the most amazing sites on the coast. I love the ocean. I think because I did not grow up around it, it just fascinates me. We ate lunch and walked through the shops and galleries. Then we went to Ecola State park. See next photos.

Weekend get away

2008-06-22T19:23:00.000-07:00

This weekend I surprised Dave with a trip to the Oregon coast. It was his birthday on the 17th and I wanted to do something different and fun. I called his secretary about a month ago and had her schedule him some bogus meetings. Then I arranged babysitting for Jameson and got the day off for me.

I managed to keep it a surprise. I had thurs off as my normal day and packed the bags for us. Then fri morning I left like I had to go to work only I just headed over to Dave's office to wait for him. I leave early on Fridays so Dave takes Jameson that day. Only of course he ended up going to the dry cleaners and running some errands, so I waited a long time. Then he was in the middle of a business call when he walked in to his office. He just looked at me funny and kept on talking for like 20 minutes. Finally his secretary Sammi came in and told him to get off the phone and turn it off. That is when I got to tell him we were going on vacation.

We headed first down I-5 and over to Astoria, OR. for those of you who know Goonies, this is where that was filmed. We did not go to the house this time, but I have been there a few times. Nothing special...just a house. We did go to the Astoria Column which is built on the highest point and overlooks the Columbia river. From there you can see Mt. St. Helens, Ranier, and Hood on a clear day as well as Oregon, Washington and the ocean. Take a look.

Father's Day

2008-06-15T21:44:00.001-07:00

Of course amid all this competition, I have to stop and remember the amazing men in my life that make this day a great one for me. I have an incredible dad. OK I am totally a daddy's girl, but he really is amazing. He set a great example for me of a husband and father. Now I have Dave who is every bit as awesome as my dad. He is a great compassionate husband and a fabulous father to Jameson. He looks up to dad in all he does. There is no doubt he has that Y chromosome! I also have a wonderful father in law Gregg who has taken me in and accepted me from our first time meeting.

So...we had a great day that started with Dave's favorite breakfast; the omelet. I got up early and made him a Ham, cheese, onion, mushroom and green pepper omelet. I did serve it to him in bed, but he brought it out to the kitchen to eat. After church we went for a tractor ride. Grandpa B made an attachment for the lawn mower so it can pull the wagon behind it. We rode through our neighborhood and down the equestrian trails of the next neighborhood and down to the falter's house. Jameson thinks we have no need for a car now!

Finally Sandy and Daren had invited us to their house for dinner and we spent hours out playing, eating and talking. The night ended with Jameson and Emmalee their little girl going missing. They just moved in to a 7,000sf house, so they could have been anywhere. We found them in the Jacuzzi tub taking a bath. At least they had taken their clothes off, but the water was ice cold. I kept telling Jameson it was time to go home and have tubs, so I guess he figured they had a better tub.

All in all it was a nice day. I love all the dads in my life and am thankful for them!

Happy Father's Day!!!

The finished product

2008-06-15T21:34:00.000-07:00

I forgot to mention Friday night we went over to Grandma and Grampa B's. The Belnaps are a wonderful family in our ward who we feel are as close as we get to family up here. They raise rabbits and have over 350 at a time. Well for those of you who do not garden, this manure is the best you can get for your veggies. We spent several hours shoveling this for our garden. But since we do only organic vegetables, this is the only thing we add and it works great!

I didn't get any photos of me planting. Dave and I took turns riding the lawn mower with Jameson and working, so hopefully this won't count against me in the competition.

It is so nice to have it done.

The "Project"

2008-06-15T21:17:00.000-07:00

My friend Suzanne who was a former companion in Taiwan recently sent out an email encouraging us to start and/or finish a project by June 16th. Dave and I have been trying to get our garden in for over a month, but darn Washington weather and "La Nina" has prohibited that from happening. We bought our vegetable plants and seeds a long time ago and the rabbits and slugs were taking a toll on them. So I figured this was the perfect project for Zanner's competition. The prize ( I failed to mention) is a Prada bag. Suzanne lives in Shang Hai, so they are either manufactured there or it is a cheap knock off and she is not telling us. Haha. Either way it was the right project for us.

I have posted a before and after photo of the 9 hour project. We have to use chicken wire around the boxes to keep the deer and rabbits out...oh yeah and Chancho and Jameson as well. Evidently Dave cut the wire very precisely. Of course we would not want to waste wire right?!? It took us 3 hours just to get the wiring done because we would get one almost done and find we were 9 inches too short so we'd have to undo that and try it on another one. We will make sure that we label them to avoid the hassle next year.

Another sneaky moment

2008-06-07T21:38:00.000-07:00

I should have known with Dave out of town the past 2 weeks, that something would have gone awry. I have yet another mess to share with you. Last Thursday was my day off and I needed to get my garden tilled and planted. Normally we are well into the process by now, but it has been unusually cold here this year. We are still only in the 60's.
So Jameson and I got out and mowed the lawn first thing and just as we were finishing it started to pour. So we parked the "tractor" in the stable and headed in. Grandpa B called to tell me it would be too wet to till the garden today, so I resigned myself to an inside day. Jameson loves Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban has been the movie of choice lately. (Don't worry he went to the babysitter last week with a chopstick as a wand!) So in the afternoon the rain slowed down and I needed to get some weeding done, but Jameson refused to take a nap and he hates being outside when it is raining, so I figured we would have to compromise. I put him down in front of Bugs life and headed outside. OK, OK, I know your are all wondering what I was thinking!! I came back in to find Jameson "cooking" in the kitchen. (see pics) I had just cleaned my kitchen and mopped the floor the night before and here it was destroyed. I was only outside may be 30-40 minutes.
Well, my mom used to say "motherhood isn't for wimps." boy was she ever right on that one! And she did it 6 times!
I have attached some other photos of the recent yard adventures including Dave's early father's day present.

"When the cat's away"

2008-04-19T21:10:00.000-07:00

Every time Dave is in Canada over a weekend...which is all too often, Jameson tends to give me a run for my money. Today was no exception. I was trying to clean things and get the guest room ready for when my sister and her husband come up to get their baby. Jameson was only out of my sight for 3-5 minutes! I found him in the family room doing this...(see picture!)

Good news we have microfiber couches and they cleaned up pretty well, but it definetly set the course for the day. I think my house is less clean now that it was when I woke up this morning. Just before we were needing to head over to the church for a fireside jameson dumped powdered sugar all over himself. My hat is off to those of you who have more than one at home! As much as I want another one...I am not sure I could handle another one like him!

Ah the joys of being a mom!

Still learning

2008-04-09T15:25:00.000-07:00

I have no clue how all this works so bear with me. Also evidentally I do not take pictures of myself. I have plenty of Dave and Jameson, but none of me. I will have to work on that. Any suggestions on the layout of these pages. I don't like how mine is set up with the 2 large pics at the bottom, but I couldn't manage to move them.

Yard work

2008-04-09T15:05:00.000-07:00

When we moved in to our home here in Olympia the realtor warned us it was a jungle! The wonderful people who lived here previous were a bit reclusive and planted all manner of foilage to avoid visual contact with any neighbors. We have finally taken the steps to tame the wild beast. We had a holly bush that was 12 feet high and magnolias that were about 14 ft. It will be nice to make things more manageable. And as a bonus Jameson has been riding around with Rob Gifford from our ward on his John Deere tractor! Each morning he wakes up saying "mom ta tor" He was in heaven! I will post updates as the yard starts to take shape.

New to blogging

2008-02-05T12:59:00.000-08:00

Many friends and family member have asked if we have a blog. After a while I started feeling like a big loser for not having one. So here we go, I will try this out. I hope it turns out to be a great way to stay in touch. I have enjoyed seeing the blogs that many of you have established. I hope you will enjoy these postings from the rainy land of the Northwest.