The Ames Family

Christmas 2011

2011-12-27T23:07:00.001-08:00

This Christmas was one of the best Christmases we have ever had! Traditions and holidays are more magical and meaningful with a little family of our own. I've had a very nice break from work getting to spend much needed time with Cache. We have been doing a lot of cuddling, laughing and playing. It has been so fun.
This Christmas I tried a few recipes that were so good! I made Berry Butter and Baklava from Pioneer Woman. My outcomes looked pretty much like her pictures which to me is a first! Also, I have loved smoothies again recently. I know it's weird because it is cold, but seriously, they are good. I especially love throwing in stuff from my basket which always makes it a little interesting.

This was a big party hit! I put a two layers of walnuts and a layer of chocolate chips. It was great!

This year was the Bradley's side turn Christmas. We had everyone come over to our house and sleep over. It probably wasn't the most comfortable sleeping on an air mattress (or the couch) but we had a blast. My mom made her traditional Cranberry French Toast which is to die over and snarf down as fast as you can. We got to Skype with Brad which as so great to talk to him AND SEE HIM AT THE SAME TIME! He is doing good and we can't believe that he is coming home this next year. Oh how the time flies! Here's a picture of Cache and I on Christmas morning and the "wrapping" I did this year and will probably do for the next few years because I bought so much of it!
Some funny things to remember: Cache loved watching presents being opened, had no clue what was going on, Santa got Cache a little play gym thing that he can swat toys and look into a mirror. He loves playing in it and talks to the toys like they are his buds. He was hypnotized by the Christmas lights this year. Smiled at the people behind us at church when they weren't even looking at him (so sweet), When Lance was feeding Cache in the morning he said, "Babe, we really need to get a savings account set up for Cache." Cache said, "Yaaaah." Right after. Weird and totally funny!!
Cache is is four and a half months old! Crazy how time flies! He has been a crack up these last few weeks and is making THE funniest faces and experimenting with noises. He has all sorts of noises that he uses now and is totally a charmer. He is all smiles and coos. However, when he is hungry he is HUNGRY! It's like he hasn't been fed before and is starving. He now weighs 13 pounds! Is getting chub everywhere and is getting the cutest cubby cheeks! We are just loving this boy and are so glad he is doing so well! Happy Holidays!

A Smile To Melt My Heart/ Update

2011-11-25T04:17:00.000-08:00

Cache is 3 months! I can't believe how big he is getting! When his "Kids On The Move" lady came a couple weeks ago he was almost 11 pounds. We are shocked that he is getting chub on his arms and legs. He has started smiling and cooing which seriously melts my heart. It makes it so hard to put him to bed but of course sleep prevails! His "happy" sound is one of the best sounds I've ever heard in my life.

The background is sort of weird in this picture because our sheets look like they are the same color as the wall... ha ha

The last four nights Cache has slept all through the night. We hope this is a trend we are experiencing! The first night it happened Lance looked at me in the morning, "did you get up with him last night?" "No, did you???" We had a little celebration! I actually woke him up at 5:30 to feed him because he was asleep for 10 hours! Crazy town right? He ended up not having a polyp in his nose and we are so relieved that he didn't need anything special with that. As he has been getting bigger/older his nose has been a lot clearer. We haven't had to go to the doctor since fall break and we don't go until January so we are excited about that! However, if his belly button doesn't get better he will be having surgery on that.
My 24th birthday was a lot of fun. A mom in my class brought me some yummy fall bread, warm, straight out of the oven. That is what happiness is made out of! I had a wonderful yummy lunch break and it was amazing! Lance had to work on my birthday which was on a Saturday this year so I got a pedicure with my mom and we went out to lunch. It was heavenly and just the boost I needed! My mom watched Cache while Carson and I went to the mall and perused some stores finding some great deals on shirts which is always exciting (shopping with kids is just not the same). My mom surprised me with some Fiestaware which I am LOVING! Then when Lance came home, we went to dinner and watched a movie. It was a very nice day and I loved every minute!
This Thanksgiving was wonderful! We went to Lance's parents house in Altamont and it was lovely, peaceful and tons of fun! One of my favorite traditions that I have been able to be a part of with them is cutting down our tree on Thanksgiving day. We had such a blast! Charlie, Andy, Lance, Cache and I all went in one truck, while the rest of the family went in another truck. I just love the conversations we had up and down the mountain. Cache was really into it this year and snoozed through the whole thing-which was really nice! We hiked around the mountain side and found our winner for this year. Don't you really feel the push to get/revive traditions when you get married or start a family? I just love this tradition and we will be doing it FOREVER! Dinner was also lovely and yummy! I saw that a student of mine had "Muddy Buddies" in their lunch one day and I was craving them ever since! So I made those to snack on plus pop corn covered in white chocolate. I brought our favorite Broccoli, Bacon, Cheese salad and we had a wonderful feast filled with all the trimmings. It was great to hang out, play games, talk and just be with each other.
I love all the "In The Moment" posts I've been seeing around the web so here's mine:
Right now I am:
-Coming off the high of "Black Friday" No I did not camp out or do anything crazy. This was from the comfort of my own home online! Thank you anthropologie for for the great 50% off sale items! I got some seriously nice deals!!
- Loving the Michael Buble and the She and Him Christmas albums.
-wishing I could buy these
-wanting to make a paper chain for a "Christmas Count Down" because I am so excited!
-Thinking about applying to the masters program at UVU (I'm about 90 percent sure.)
-Mustering the will to deep clean my house in time for Cache's Baby Blessing (Next SUNDAY!)
-Hoping Lance took everything for his hunting trip.
-Most of all cuddling with my sweet, handsome boy.

Busy As Can Be

2011-10-19T19:38:00.000-07:00

Well needless to say, we have been as busy as we possibly can be. Lance has been working six-twelve hour days a week for the past few months, I have been having super busy weeks at school with Parent Teacher Conferences and Pumpkin Walk. Not to mention still getting in the swing of things and establishing my class. Even though we are in the thick of it, we know we are so blessed. We have the energy to do the things we need to do and we have a lovely handsome boy in our lives. Cache is doing great. At his last appointment he weighed 7 lbs 14 oz. I just feel like every time we go to the doctor it's something else. This time we got referred to see an ENT specialist. Our pediatrician saw a little polyp in Cache's nose and we are seeing him tomorrow. We are also seeing our regular doctor tomorrow for shots and a check up! Good thing it's fall break. It's been crazy town here, but we have tried to stay organized and we have great help. I am so grateful for my sister! She is doing a wonderful job and sends me cute pictures on my phone while I'm at work. It's great.

Cache has been loving the cuddle time. I hope we aren't making some bad habits here, but we just love to have a cuddle nap in bed every once in a while. If he's super fussy we just hold him tight, lay down and he calms right down. Now that I think about it, yeah, we are probably doing some "no-no's" in establishing a routine but right now I don't care. I love it too much.

He started figuring out how to suck his thumb. Every time he does it his finders stick straight out like a fan and he has a serious look on his face. It's super cute! He also enjoys sucking his fist. We can tell when he is very hungry because he will be going to town on his hands and licking us when we pick him up. It's pretty hilarious!
Scout has been an angel! He has sort of been put on the back burner of receiving our attention. He has been so calm and even though he is curious about Cache, he is gentle. I are relieved that it's going this well!

6 Lbs. 6 oz.

2011-09-25T05:25:00.000-07:00

At Cache's doctor appointment on Thursday he weighed 6 pounds 6 ounces and 19 1/4 inches long. I was shocked when I looked at the scale! He still is in the 0% for basically everything but he is doing great. When we were in the NICU the occupational therapists and the doctors all said to count him like he wasn't here yet until his actual due date. So if you go back 5 weeks on the scale, he is pretty close to where he needs to be. A little side note- it was weird for me in the NICU when a doctor would ask the nurse how old Cache is and she would say something like 38 weeks gestation. It's still weird!
Anyway, I go back to work tomorrow and I am excited, nervous and a tad bit sad. It's also a little weird because I haven't even met my students! It's going to be like the first day of school all over for them. Wish me luck!
It is hard having to leave Cache at home. However, it is so much easier leaving him at home with my sister then having to leave him at the hospital for four weeks not being able to hold him very much or be with him. We totally get to spend more time with him now that he is home then when he was in the NICU.

He has been so much more alert lately and it has been so much fun! He is starting to suck his thumb/fist and it is so fun to watch his development.
At our previous appointment Cache's doctor has to cauterize Cache's belly button. He had a central line in the NICU that went through his belly button and it wasn't healing as fast as we would like. At our appointment last Thursday it was better but still isn't healing very well so we are going to see a pediatric surgeon on Tuesday. Cache might have to have surgery on his belly button. I know, one more thing right? It's not an emergency situation, but it is something that needs to be taken care of and then hopefully we can be done with the hospital visits after this!

Things I Want To Remember ...

2011-09-20T19:44:00.000-07:00

Here are a few things I want to remember about Cache. Month 1
He:
loves to be wrapped up tight but his hands always make it out some how
knows when medicine is in his bottle and drinks it slow till it's gone
loves to be held tight
hates to be bounced when being held (stresses him out!)
grabs his hair or my thumb when he eats
does NOT mess around when he is hungry
takes a while to burb
eats a whole whopping 70-80 mL now!
hates to be naked
usually cries when he is being dressed
likes baths once he is in the water
loves tummy time, specially on dad's tummy
likes Blake Shelton, puts him to sleep every time! (Specially this song)
only cries when he wants something
loves to be held (We think because we only were able to at certain times in the NICU. sad or what?)

sleeps 3-4 hours so far
wakes up about twice a night
likes his back rubbed
is getting his dad's hair line and cowlicks
finally fits into newborn size diapers and almost new born clothes. Not quite.
produces a lot of boogies
doesn't mind when they are being sucked out
likes his car seat and car rides
likes the moby wrap
is always awake at 8PM wide awake
favors his left side when he is sleeping
stares at the little blue owl on his rocker till he is asleep when he sits in it
makes a lot of laundry, like a load or two a day!
toots loud, like a man!

makes this face every so often but is NOT crying! Maybe just a nightmare? Hurt tummy?

Home And Thriving

2011-09-19T05:10:00.000-07:00

Home! Cache is home! But first, here are some lasts. One of his last nights in the NICU. Shortly after this picture his tube got professionally taken out by the nurse. I thought I had a picture of it, but it got deleted some how. After my last post of going "back and forth" with progress, Cache took off. Every nurse and doctor told me that it would happen and I guess I couln't believe it until he really did. After that post he did one day of 4 feedings which he took his full amount and then after that day the feeding tube was just used for his medicine. He did a 12 hour request, then right after that he did a 24 hour request and then he did a day of demand. They took the tube out and he ate like a regular baby all day and night long. To pass that test and to be able to be discharged he had to gain 20 grams and he gained 30!! We were so excited after the nurse did the math, we just new that we were going home!

To us he is getting so big! He left the hospital at 5 lbs 5 oz. We are still loving the hair! He could almost use a trim in the back, it's getting a little mullety.

Last bath in the NICU, this was a couple days before he got discharged and he was being Mr. Cute that day. The nurse put his hair in a faux-hawk, isn't he handsome!

I feel like we should call his discharge day "gotcha day" like they do with adoptions. For exactly 4 weeks we were just able to be Cache's "visitors" and now he ours. See the little yellow band on my arm? I am so glad that I don't have to check in and sign in at the desk on the 5th floor, go down to the 4th floor, and go through 2 security checks just to see my baby. He was discharged on September 12, at 9:40 AM. Here he is seconds before we put him in his carseat, no monitors or feeding tubes, just a regular baby ready to go home!

After we put him in his carseat we were ready to go! Thankfully he passed his "carseat test" so he was able to sit in the back seat by his self and he did great!

Thanks to nurse Lisa, we got some great pictures. After we got all of our stuff packed she asked, "did you bring a camera? You brought a camera right?" and after I told her yes, that in fact I did she was the photographer for the morning. I love this picture. I know that I already look tired! It was hard to sleep the night before because we were so excited, like first day of school or the night before christmas excited. Then I had to be there early to feed Cache, make sure everything was in order, sign papers, talk with his doctor, pack up etc, ect...

Lisa also sent us something in the mail a few days later that we left at the hospital. She made sure we got all of the stuff we would want from the hospital so we could start making a baby book for Cache. What a great lady! We sent her a thank you note back, hopefully she gets it! She was one of our favorites!

Here is Cache's one month picture! We went to the doctor and he is 5 lbs 10 oz and 18 1/2 inches long. We just love our doctor, he was actually my pediatrician and he is so funny. On discharge day he was telling the nurse and I a story and some swears slipped out. I just love that guy!

You wouldn't wish this experience on anyone but Cache did come home on a nice little schedule from the NICU. From pretty much day one they always fed Cache at 2, 5, 8, and 11 am/pm if he was hungry or not. So when he started doing request and demand he stuck pretty close to that schedule. Now that we are home he does great and sticks pretty close to those times. We also feel like we are good enough caregivers for Cache because we had to pass off things like bathing and CPR, we had to go to classes and we had occupational therapist helping us with feeding, we got so much information and help, it was really nice for first time parents.

Thanks to all the great people around us we have just been taken care of! Family and ward family bringing us dinner, my great sister in laws threw a baby shower and we have just had so much help! We love you guys!

Back and Forth

2011-09-09T17:13:00.000-07:00

So remember the other day that I forgot my phone? Yeah, well I forgot that I left my lights on that day too (which I didn't even need to use them! I think my brain is going a little wacky). And my lights don't automatically turn off. Result? Racking my brain for any numbers I can remember and using the courtesy phone at the hospital (which I was thinking to myself the other day "why do they still have those?") and calling for a jump. THANKFULLY Kelsey and Wayne came to my rescue and got my car going. Now that was a really bummer!

Cache is doing well, he is just growing, growing, growing. To us he seems so big! He is 5 lbs and some change. Not sure the exact on the ounces but it's close to a quarter of a pound. The last few days we have been doing some back and forth with progress though and can I just say that it is hard having your baby in the NICU? We went from 4 a day feedings to 12 hour request back to 4 a day feedings. Request is when Cache tells us he's hungry by crying or fussing, you know, what babies do when they are hungry. To pass he has to take the minimum amount and eat every three to four hours. So he doesn't eat through the feeding tube at all for 12 hours if he takes his minimum amount. He did great wanting to eat every 3-4 hours but he failed in taking the minimum amount. So we went back to 4 a days for 2 days and then tomorrow he will try 12 hour request again. If he passes this time he will go to 24 hour request and then he will go on demand where they take the tube out and he gets all his feedings regularly. To pass this test he needs to show that he can eat regularly and gain weight. Let's hope he does well tomorrow because failing the first time was really hard to take. Like, really hard.

We tell Cache about all of the fun and cool things he has here at the house to entice him to do better, you know some extrinsic motivation? Well this sock monkey from grandma Ames, Scout and among other things have been on the list so hopefully he will find those motivating enough to come home. har har har
Here is a picture of Cache with out his feeding tube. You might wonder how I snapped this one? Oh because he totally grabbed onto it while I was holding him and yanked with all his might and in a split second it was out. Tape, tube and all. See how his cheek is all irritated? Yikes!

4 feedings and 3 Weeks in the NICU

2011-09-06T10:56:00.000-07:00

I am writing this post from the hospital and I forgot my phone at home. Bummer. The real bummer is all of Cache's recent pictures are on it so this post is just an update, no exciting pictures. Bummer. Anyway we have been bumped up to 4 feedings a day! Yesterday he did every other feeding through a bottle. It was exciting! He did really good his first two feedings and then okay his third feeding and not so okay his last feeding, he was a little sleepy. Today we are trying two feedings back to back and I just got done doing his first one. He got 40mL which is just six shy of what his feeding amount is right now. Then we will try again at 2 to do a regular feeding. Hopefully he will take most of that feeding, but if not we will just practice for the next couple days doing one back to back and then the rest every other (through the tube and regular bottle feedings). Word on the street is you are at this phase for a couple of days because they get so tuckered out.
We also got to bring his car seat in and he was a champ and totally passed his "car seat test." Also, our baby can hear which is great! He passed that test too. He got put on acid reflux medicine and iron which is normal for preterm babies. All in all we are doing good. It's crazy to think that yesterday was our three week anniversary of being here in the NICU. In the words of Cache's doc this morning, "I think we may be at the end of this stay." And oh I hope he is right. I just really want to have him home! However, the nurses have been great! There are several that I think could be my new best friends. They are so personable, nice and genuinely care which is awesome. If you have to be in a situation like this, it might as well be as pleasant as it can be.

3 Feedings!

2011-09-02T22:48:00.002-07:00

Today we got the go ahead to start doing three feedings! What an accomplishment and a celebration! Three times to change his diaper, three times to take his temperature, three times to hold him, and three times to feed him! What a great day it was. He took 32 milliliters once and a whopping 40 milliliters twice! Lance has Friday's off so he was able to get in on the action today too. The even better more important thing was that he took all three feedings fully. He didn't have to use his feeding tube for three feedings! We are making progress and it feels oh so good. Today was one of the best days that we have had in the NICU.

Here we are getting in on some cuddle action. He has been so alert lately it's been such a treat! He has been looking right at us and we couldn't be more excited we come and he is wide awake.

Tonight was bath night and he just loves his baths! He still hates being naked and cold, but hey, who doesn't?? We are becoming pros at bathing and we can do it pretty fast if we tag team. We love being there for bath night even if it means we get home late, it is SO worth it.
Tonight when our nurse weighed him, he weighed 4 lbs 11 oz! We are sure excited about that! The occupational therapist gave us a prediction that this might be our last weekend in the NICU. We are not trying to get our hopes up, but if that is true, that would be the best gift. Oh and another celebration is that my ring fits again. Yay for me.

Bassinets and Feeding Tubes

2011-09-01T06:01:00.000-07:00

The other night the night nurse told me that she had the order to put Cache in a bassinet! Even though I knew that he was going to be in an open bed, I was so excited to come the next day and see him not in an incubator. He can hear our voices better and he is keeping his temperature great. One thing he is really good at is keeping his temperature. So we hope he keeps it up because if he doesn't he goes back into the incubator to conserve energy. If he can't conserve energy he will start loosing weight and we do NOT want that. Right now he weighs 4 lbs 3 oz! It's sort of weird because the hospital talks in grams so for instance we had to hit 1800 grams to get into a bassinet. So we don't always know what he weighs in LBs which is hard for the grandmas. Here is a very poor picture of what it looks like. It is so hard for me to remember my camera so everything is just taken with my phone.

We are still at 2 feedings a day. Cache has been taking anywhere from 17 to 33 milliliters a feeding. He has to take 75 percent consistently to go to three feedings a day. We have been working with the occupational therapist (who is so wonderful!!) to work on his sucking ability. We have little exercises that we do and it has made all the difference. He has done 100 percent better on a bottle and we are excited about that! All of the nurses and his doctors say he is on the verge of taking off. I really hope they are right because we just want our baby home so bad!

Last night when I went in for his feeding and his bath he totally pulled out his feeding tube! It was intense! And it was sad to watch the nurse put in back in. He was fussy and who wouldn't be getting something shoved up your nose and down your throat.

My mom got him some preemie clothes and they fit just right! We went and got some preemie onsies and a little sleeper. It was fun buying him clothes, except Lance was disappointed with the selection of boys clothes. He asked the nurse if she knew of any place that had preemie boys clothes and she suggested the places that we went. Then he said, "there are just no choices for boys" and she said,"get used to it buddy!" We also got a gift of preemie diapers which was so nice! He wears preemie diapers at the hospital and they are still a little bit too big. We have to either fold them down a little or really bring in the sides.

Home Is Wherever I'm With You

2011-08-27T03:28:00.000-07:00

Oh this song sums up my feelings sometimes! Here is a picture of Cache's temporary home. It keeps him nice and warm. You can kind of see the little roll that is around his sides and legs. This is a faux womb. It is researched that preterm babies need boundaries like they were in the womb to help them develop. Also, since Cache is early his nerves are not all the way developed so he will shake his limbs awkwardly or punch them out. Also it is interesting because when he is stressed he will throw out a limb, get hiccups, sneeze several times in a row and hold his breath. It is so interesting! So we want Cache to get out of this bed ASAP because he will be closer to coming home when he is in an open bed. The open beds are just the bassinet beds that healthy babies are put in in the well baby nursery. When he is in one of those beds he has proved that he can keep his temperature and gained a little more weight. He just has a couple more grams to go!

When we are holding Cache in the NICU it is so relaxing! It's usually warm, you're rocking your sweet baby who is also perfectly warm. It's really hard to stay awake sometimes. Lance usually gets a little bit of a cuddle nap with Cache. I secretly love it! It makes me feel like we are home and they are taking a nap together.

When I was holding Cache after his feeding the other day I couldn't resist taking this picture. He just looked so peaceful. He always has his arm by his face which I learned is a comforting thing for him. So in this picture he is the picture of relaxed and comforted. He's with mom, has his hands by his face, is wrapped up tight and snoozing.

Don't you just love that hair??

Cache's "Cares" and the 15 mL Miracle

2011-08-25T04:10:00.001-07:00

Every day when I go to the hospital I get to do Cache's "cares." It is such a healing experience for me because it helps me feel more apart of his care. His cares consist of changing his diaper, taking his temperature, switching his oxygen monitor to the other foot and swaddling him up tight. He HATES being naked and cries through pretty much the whole thing, which I think is cute. I think he just doesn't like getting out of his warm cocoon and gets a little angry.

After we do his cares it's feeding time. I get to try and feed Cache twice a day. We started this a couple of days ago and we haven't had much luck until last night. Before he tries to eat the nurse weighs him. Then we try to feed and he gets weighed after he is too tired to try any more. Then we get to see how much he actually ate. The last few days it's only been 2 milliliters and the first day it was negative one milliliter. But last night he got a whole whopping 15 milliliters all on his own! I was so proud, impressed and overjoyed! We still have a long ways to go, however, it was a celebration!

Cache is really lucky to have so many visitors! The NICU has a program where you can have 4 people besides you and your spouse enter the NICU with out you having to be there. My mom and sisters have gone pretty much every day. Here is a handsome picture my sister Carson got of Cache while she and my sister Kelsey were visiting. We are so lucky to have such great family around us.

One Week Old

2011-08-23T16:33:00.000-07:00

Cache is one week old and we are wondering where the time has already gone! He had a couple of sad looking IV's in the last couple of days. One that was on his head, which I think was the worst of all and then one through his belly button. The one on his head was sad because his hair got a goopy and they used that strong medical tape all over his face. The one through his belly button was the most serious and we were glad when he was able to have that one removed, what a celebration! Now that he has no need for IV's he gets to have all of these privileges. Such as a regular bath and the ability to wear clothes, real clothes! Here is a picture of Cache after his first real bath and his first real outfit. He loved getting the onsie put on him. It was like instant comfort.

He loved the bath and the nurse gave a lot of really good tips on how to bathe him. She kept him covered with a wash cloth to keep him warm and just uncovered one area at a time. He just sat there in the tub loving life and was so calm. We are always amazed at how calm and content he is when we get to hold him.
I just had to post this side picture of all his hair. He is such a fur ball! He has "side burns" and we just love styling his hair. His nurse the other day gave him a fo-hawk. It was pretty handsome! He is so active and his hands are always moving. The other day he just about pulled his feeding tube out and it was a little intense. However, the nurse said that babies do it all the time. I guess I would too if I had something up my nose and down my throat.
On a side note, today I blow dried my hair, put make-up on and wore jeans. It's nice to feel like a human again! Also, I passed the PRAXIS which I took a couple weeks before Cache was born which is another celebration!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY CACHE!- a birth story

2011-08-19T14:55:00.000-07:00

On Sunday the 14th, during church I was not feeling good. I could barely keep anything down and I was seeing "stars." I didn't think too much of it because I had been having really bad heart burn and thought it was because of that. After Lance and I taught our lesson we went home and I took a nap. After a two hour nap I still wasn't feeling good and my siblings were coming over for dinner (thank goodness!). After a we ate dinner, I sat there sipping a gatorade they convinced me to call the hospital. I called the on-call doctor and she told me to come in and get checked out. Even on the way to the hospital I threw up several times in the car, poor Lance.

My blood pressure was sky high and they admitted me with in 45 minutes of monitoring. They determined that I had toxemia. Lance and I were shocked! We were not supposed to be having this baby yet! We felt so unprepared. No car seat, hardly any clothes, just some essentials. We didn't even come to the hospital prepared. I just grabbed a pair of PJ's and a pillow (thank goodness!). They started me on pitocin and gave me an epidural because my blood platelets were so low that it would be hard to get one when I wanted one. Since I was so dehydrated it took several sites and pokes to get an IV in. Once they got it in they started me on Magnesium to prevent seizures because my blood pressure was so high. That magnesium is rough stuff! It makes you feel disgusting and I did not do very well on it at all. They just put the epidural on half way and we started the process. Lance went home and grabbed our tooth brushes, took care of Scout and got an outfit for baby. They had to monitor my blood pressure every 15 minutes which was the most annoying of all. A little bell would go off after every reading because my blood pressure was out of the parameters. My grandma and aunt kristi came and sat with me all night to keep me company. It was nice to have them there.

Once the pictocin started kicking in it started put Cache under stress so they had to back it off and then start it again. When they started it again his heart rate went down and my blood pressure went up. They decided to break my water to see if that would help things. My blood pressure stayed the same and Cache's heart rate was doing loop-de-loops. After being in labor for 12 hours my Dr., Lance and I decided that C-Section was the safest route for all of us. I was so torn! It never really crossed my mind that I would have a c-section. I never considered it one of the options. It was the one thing I didn't want! Because of the health risks to me and to Cache, I am glad that we did it. Once I saw him and how small and fragile he was, I new it was the right choice. It was hard, but it was worth it.
Once we decided on c-section it took about 10 minutes for them to flush my epidural and get everything ready. It felt like ice rushing down my back. It felt weird to be able to move my feet but not feel them. It was odd to me that I felt so cold. They got Lance dressed so that he could be there and they wheeled me into the OR. Once in the OR they gave me more medicine and started preparing me for the surgery. Lance was right there by my head, holding my hand and stroking my hair. He was such a great companion through all of this! While they were preparing me for surgery we both said "happy anniversary!" After 3 years of marriage we are having our first kid. It was the last thing on our minds at that moment, but now it feels like the best gift we could have ever given each other that day. The 15th is a special day in our family!
While they were getting Cache out I had a hard time keeping my eyes open. I just kept thinking "this is the birth of my son! the least I can do is stay awake!" The nice nurse Jill told me to keep them closed till she said and then it would be easier. Thanks to Jill we were able to get some good pictures too. I am grateful for her!
Once they got him out I got to see him for a few minutes. Lance brought him over to me and I couldn't believe my eyes. He looked so perfect. I was so shocked that this little guy came out of me! Since he was so small and early they had to take him away fast to get oxygen on him and warm him up. Lance went with Cache and they took him to the NICU. Once we saw his weight 3 lbs 7 oz (not our 9 lb preemie my sister posted on my facebook! haha) we knew that he would have to spend some time in the NICU. They sewed me up and wheeled me back into the labor and delivery room for observation for about an hour. The DR. came in to tell me that everything went good and Lance came back with pictures of our little guy and a report on what they were doing with him in the NICU. At that point we knew that we would not be coming home with our baby the same time that we would be going home. It was sad, however, we know that he needs to be there so we have learned to accept it.

After I stayed in the labor and delivery room they wheeled me down to mother baby. There in mother baby I had to stay on the magnesium for 24 hours. It was so hard to feel like a person after a c-section and being on the magnesium. I was so tired and was really sick. I had just had my abdominal muscles cut through and this stuff was not fun. I spent the whole day in bed in and out of sleep. The next day I tried to be a little more mobile, however, I was still out from being on the magnesium and going through major surgery. It was really hard for me to see visitors and Lance be able to go see Cache and I hadn't even held him yet. I told my nurse that I wanted to go and see him but she said I could when I could sit it a wheel chair. At that point I just started to cry. There was no way I would be able to sit in a wheel chair and make the ride up to the NICU. After she saw how heart broken I was she called the NICU to see if there was room for my bed by Cache's bed and there WAS! They wheeled me up there and I got to hold him for a good 30 minutes. It was the most magical feeling in the world. The nurse explained to me that his oxygen went up and his heart rate stabilized while I was holding him, because he knew that it was me, his mom. Holding him and seeing him made me feel better and gave me the energy I needed to start healing. Here is a picture of that.
Even though we only get to hold him twice a day we are sure glad that he is a fighter. He is always on the move. One of his nurses called him a "mover and a shaker." He loves to be wrapped up tight and when he is being held he likes to be held tight. He always has his hands on his face which can be a little tricky when he has a feeding tube or oxygen. However, now he just has a feeding tube is off the oxygen.
But the thing that we like best is discovering his personality every day. We get to visit and hold him twice a day. Even though it was hard leaving the hospital with out him, we are glad our little fur ball is getting taken care of. He always has great nurses and his doctors call us daily with updates. We feel so lucky to be his parents and can't wait to have him home.

Thanks to all our friends and family who have visited us, helped us and contacted us. We really appreciate you guys!

Prego Woes

2011-08-13T04:13:00.000-07:00

The last couple of weeks have been tough! I can't believe the amount of heart burn I have been having. Doesn't that mean my kids going to have hair though? JK, I'm not for all that wives tale stuff, but that would be cool... Anyway, back to the heart burn. I feel like my chest is on fire and nothing can smother the flame. It also comes at the convenient time of 2:30-4 A.M. I've got a prescription for it now and it is getting better however, my loves in eating have been squashed. No more chocolate, Cafe Rio, and even dairy sometimes which is SO hard! Goodbye ice cream! You're just not worth it. I even ate a couple handfuls of trail mix the other day that had probably 10 M&M's and it. was. awful. In times like this I am so grateful for my DR though. I was telling him about a really hard week of heart burn I had and his reaction to my retelling was great. He kept making sympathetic faces and making sounds like "OOh" and "OUCH!" and saying "That's awful!" and grabbing his chest. It really made my symptoms feel valid.
Any suggestions of things that worked for you??

Is That Skunk I Smell?

2011-07-31T14:29:00.000-07:00

This Saturday I took the Praxis. I had to be on BYU campus by 7:30 AM. Besides not being able to sleep the night before, the morning of the test took a turn for the worst. Lance had gotten up at 4:30 (seriously) AM to get ready to go fishing with his friend. While he was getting ready I heard so much noise going on down stairs, however it was 4:30 so I didn't really investigate. Lance later called me to tell me that he and Scout had encountered a skunk and he thinks it the smell might have gotten into the house! They met the pesky animal in the garage and it sprayed Scout and a little bit on Lance too! I had no time to waste, I had to get going to take this $140.oo test. I got some quick breakfast and went to take the test. Then, through the whole thing this lady sitting next to me kept saying things like, "Does anyone smell that smell?" and "I think it smells like skunk in here." And all I could think of was this guy...

Pepe Le Pew and how he does not give off the love scent to attract his dear lovers. No he gives off the most awful scent in the world! And here I am trying to take a 2 hour test and smelling like a skunk! So needless to say, after I got home we totally aired out the whole house and have been febreezing like crazy. We went on a date with Lance's cousins that night and they swore they couldn't smell anything. Lance says he can't smell it anymore but this prego nose of mine can catch a wiff every now and again.
I guess living in the "country" part of American Fork has is perks and pests and skunks come with the territory. I just hope they are NEVER in our garage again. Ew, double ew.

Blah Then Yay

2011-06-22T15:38:00.000-07:00

Monday I...
.made strawberry freezer jam with the girls of the family
.deep cleaned my car (washed inside, outside, the works)
.deep cleaned my fridge because my husband demands the use of a little jug for country time lemonade
. studied for the Praxis (kill me now)
.made waffles and totally burned my arm, blisters and all. Ouch.

Tuesday... was totally wiped out from Monday, I just did the essentials. They aren't kidding when they (baby books) say don't over do yourself. Sheesh!

Today I went the lab to take a glucose test. You have to fast for 12 hours in order to do this test. For me, this was the hardest part. Since January when I found out I was pregnant every morning I have had a nice bowl of Cheerios. It's been my daily routine for 6 months!! So coming down the stairs this morning and by passing my Cheerios was extra hard. When I gave the secretary my information and she asked "So, are you going to still work after having your baby?" I replied with "Yep! I am." I was slightly (really) offended when she gave a good, hearty, slightly (really) sarcastic "well, good luck with that." Why does it matter to her?? Plus isn't that a little personal! Anyway, the test is totally lame because you have to get your blood drawn. Always a pleasure. Drink the orange sugary liquid and wait an hour just to have your blood drawn again. I know it's essential, but seriously, it was kind of hard.

But it's all good because I received good news today. Mad Men is still going to happen. The End.

Taco Pizza

2011-06-07T13:49:00.001-07:00

This Summer my theme is "do with or do with out." AKA: Simplify. I first wanted to start by making dinner most days. We have made a goal to only eat out once a month. We are going to take the money that we would have used (eating out once a week) and putting it into projects in our house.

First item on the menu: Taco Pizza. I love The Pioneer Woman and her ideas.

I had to cut the pizza in half and put it on plates to do the next batch of pizza. Hence the 2 huge slices in this picture. The recipe for the dough is enough for 2 pizza's. We really liked this recipe for the crust. It was awesome! Instead of black beans I used kidney beans because that is what I had and I added olives. I also just put ranch on top of the pizza because we don't really consume hot sauce.

I made the next batch regular peperoni and cheese. It was really good. We want to try making chicken Alfredo or bbq chicken next. I think that making pizza once a week as a family would be a fun tradition. It was easy and it would be easy to please everyone if they made their own little pizza. See the Hershey's in the corner? We made S'mores for dessert. Yeah Summer!

Graduation and Fishing

2011-06-06T12:02:00.001-07:00

Carson's Graduation

Go Carson!

See the baby bump? I am counting this as my 24 week pic. Even though PHS had to break the tradition of 7 pm graduation we were able to go at 2 and then have dinner after. It actually was pretty nice!

School is out for the Summer and we've been having some fun!

We went fishing and took Scout along. He was a good little dog, even if someone hurt his feelings (more like ours) when some said he was ugly!

He looks slick and drippy because he took several dips in the river.

We took a break from fishing to take evidence that I was there.

I even squeezed into my waiters which wont fit much longer. We went up Provo Canyon and the water was so high! Usually you are seeing rocks and people catching fish at this spot. We caught zip!

Tonight I am making this. I can't wait to try it.

It's A

2011-04-27T16:26:00.000-07:00

BOY!

We almost had to walk away with out knowing the gender, but at the last second we were able to find out! We are so excited! Yay boys!

Spring Break-House

2011-04-14T14:52:00.000-07:00

Spring Break so far has been great, but nothing too exciting is going on around here. I have been organizing, deep cleaning and getting things done that really really needed to be done.

Our yard stops at the fence, however if you squint your eyes you can see some deer in the field behind our house! The other day when it was snowy there were deer right in our yard. It was cool.

Scout has usually been a calm dog, however moving into this house we have seen a new degree of calm. He has his "spots" where he lays in the sun and watches out the window.

Here are some not very good pictures I took on my phone of our kitchen. We love the counter and cupboard space. Our stove has 6 burners... It will be nice to cook on that thing for holidays. So far we've only used two. It's a gas stove and oven and I love it! We bought our fridge shortly after moving in and Lance loves the crushed ice.

I am so excited to have a garden! I started seeds today and I am hoping that everything turns out well. We are extending the garden 5 feet so that Lance can grow a "giant pumpkin." He's done research online and is pretty convinced he's going to get an award winner.

A House With A Bun In The Oven

2011-04-04T18:09:00.000-07:00

Well, I have been a little absent on this blog... and there are very good reasons why. Not only have I been teaching my first year but two very exciting things have happened recently. 1. Lance and I bought a house. 2. We are 16 weeks pregnant! So need less to say, our lives have been a little crazy. House: Pictures to come when the camera is unpacked and memory cards are found. We love the owning life and we are itching to do some projects. First on the list is lighting, who would have thought that would make the top with an electrician in residence? Lance is always measuring and talking about the options... however, I seriously have no clue in that department so I agree to his suggestions. We have basically moved in and are starting to choose paint colors. The whole house is pretty much white. On thing I am really excited for is the garden! I have already ordered seeds and we mapped out our rows this weekend. There are so many things to say about this house. We love it. Baby: I have been morning and evening sick, however, my Dr. has graciously prescribed me some anti-nausia medicine. Having the medicine has been very life saving. However, I feel great and we can't wait to find out if baby Ames is a he or a she. We don't have preferance, I just want a girl sometime and of course Lance wants a boy, sometime. Lance has been so wonderful getting our house in order when I haven't had energy or have felt well. He does a lot of cleaning and organizing and is such a great guy.

Going Private

2011-01-31T20:04:00.001-08:00

Hey! Please give me your e-mails if you would like to still read my blog. I am going private. THANKS!!

It's Been A Monday

2011-01-24T17:26:00.000-08:00

First, my make up bag fell in a sink of running water. It made for one wet, sopping, mushy make up bag. The worst! Then I looked for 20 minutes for my keys, called Lance and he said "SHUT UP, they're in my pocket!" Needless to say, I was a little upset. So I thankfully I was able to grab the truck keys and made it to work on time. Then, when I got to work I noticed that I didn't have my room keys. The secretary nicely let me borrow her keys and I opened my door to start the day. We were scheduled to do a big "soda bottle machine" project today and it really takes it out of you to do an involved project with 30-ish kids! There were so many little things that happened through out the day that I was just DONE with this day. But now that I'm able to look back on it a little bit, it's sort of funny and definitely a Monday.

List-Aholic

2011-01-10T20:13:00.000-08:00

These are all of the things I want to do/make. If you want to refinish or build something, here is the place. It is amazing and wow is it motivating. You can even sign up and make your own "to-do" list. Pretty fancy!

1. Re-paint the drop leaf table we got at the Antique Mall in Springville for 29 dollars.
2. This lovely Farm house Bed. Same color, same everything.
3. This desk. I want to use it for a future craft room. Doesn't it scream organized? I probably wont use as many cubby drawers, but wow, this will help you stay organized for sure.
4. I can just imagine spending summer days reading books on this.
5. Lastly, I have all the fabric cut for this adorable quilt using parts and pieces from this fabric.

Wish me luck. Obviously a couple of projects are for a future house... but I'm still motivated none-the-less. (crazy, but true)

Ahh, Christmas Break

2010-12-27T21:02:00.000-08:00

It's been soooo nice to be on Christmas break from school. Lance and I have had a great Christmas and it has been nice to have time to get a couple of things done. Like this here quilt! Quilting and binding done and ready for snuggling. The pink/brown on the left is the backing and I am just so proud of this! I love to use it while reading or watching TV and it's super warm and soft. I just love moda fabric.

Scout has been such a good boy! He's been super lovey and cuddly which is so cute!

Next up is my recent obsession, Fiesta! I just love the colors (it's like color therapy for me). I just love the Fiestaware I got for Christmas (thanks mom and lance!) and I am feeling like a little kid needing more for the collection. I spent a good hour just touching and deciding on a color today at Dillards. I want all the colors to mix and match. (I know I sound like a freak)

We had a great Christmas at Lance's sister Charlie's house. Her and husband Andy made the most decadent dinner that was so mouth watering, I am salivating at the thought of it. They themselves cooked Filet Mignon with Gorgonzola sauce complete with cheesy soft potatoes, garnished with long green string beans. No picture can give justice to the color pallet that was this meal. Needless to say, everyone had seconds. Even when we woke up on Christmas morning my words were "I could totally have more of that Filet Mignon" not "Merry Christmas babe!" It was that good.

Why Did I Wonder?

2010-11-29T19:47:00.000-08:00

Why did I wonder what came next a couple of posts ago?? I have another UTI.... lame sauce!

In other news... Brad is going into the MTC on Wednesday. It's so surreal! I'm really excited for him, even though we are going to miss him. I think it's hilarious that he has a "curb" time. Having Thanksgiving with him and the family was great. We got to play some games and watch some football games... we really had a good time. How was your Thanksgiving?

Relaxing...

2010-11-24T22:02:00.001-08:00

well, kind of. I am making sweet potatoes for tomorrow's fiest while Lance, Brother and Abby are playing Mario Party. Old School. I love hearing the nintendo 64 jargon go on as they are winning mini games and trying to get coins. Abby is saying things like "let's practice before we do this one." and "How was I supposed to know I didn't have any coins!" It's pretty hilarious, however, the boys are being nice, which I think is very cute. We all went with mom and dad to Harry Potter which did not dissapoint. I love how they stuck pretty close to the book on this one. However, that snake made me jump about 3 feet in the air! Brad was laughing at me every time the thing came on.

I recently discovered the whole curl your hair with a straightener and I think it ended up pretty cute. The only thing I hate is having hair in my face... so it falls in the front unless I pin it back (thus no curls in the front).

Let's Play A Game...

2010-11-21T20:59:00.001-08:00

... How Many Things Can YOU Fit Into A Week?

I feel like that was this past week with: Relief Society activities, grades due, my birthday, salt dough landforms with my class (it really takes it out of you!), an early Thanksgiving with the Ames clan and my brothers farewell... I am ready for this Thanksgiving break!

(This is Lance and I at Olive Garden after Brad's Endowment)

Word Vomit

2010-10-23T16:26:00.000-07:00

Well, it's been 2 months since my last post... it's crazy how things like blogging get put on the back burner when you have 10 million things going on all at once. So here's what has been going on with me.

1. I love my job. Yes, it has it's hard days, however, those hard days dare to compare to the hard days of other jobs that I have had. I think it has to do with the fact that teaching is something that I love, believe in and enjoy.

2. Due to my job I feel like my life is a little chaotic sometimes. Specially when I realize that we've been late on a payment because we were just too busy to get online and pay it! This was the craziest feeling for me! I am and organized person! How did this happen?

3. I have been sick for almost a month... I started off with a cough for a week, then I felt better for a day. After one day of feeling better I got a cough, runny nose and flu like symptoms. I felt better for a day then this last Monday I had to go to the insta care after my cohort meeting that I went straight to after school till 6:30p and waited for 2 hours for them to tell me I had a UTI. Then waited another hour at Rite-Aid for meds. I wonder what will be next?

4. I was featured on Fox 13 news... it was a lot of fun. It was pretty low key and you can see it on their "cool school" website.

5. I have had to add simple " you should already be doing this" items to my planner. Such as "do the laundry" "take Scout for a walk" " deep clean the bathroom" "put clothes away"

6. Lance and I ate out more than we ever have our married lives this week. I feel SO GROSS. So last night I made dinner, even if it was ready to eat at 10p because that's when our life stopped enough for us to sit down, eat and talk.

7. I haven't been into TV as much this season. However, the few shows I do watch, I JUST HAVE TO WATCH... even if I'm up late catching up on hulu.

8. I have still made some time for crafting. I've found that doing small simple projects like a pillow or appliqueing letters on onsies feeds my need for crafting without overwhelming me. Except I started an hourglass quilt, however, it's not going to be too big and I can start and stop it... it will just take me my standard year to get it done.

9. I've become an on online shopper because I am too tired to shop but need some new clothes. Specially when I had a student say, "uh, Mrs. Ames, you wore that last week."

10. Scout has been an angel. He's behaving better than ever and he's been super cute and cuddly. He had burr in his beard and it was getting too close to the skin so I cut it out and accidentally took a huge chunk of hair. After I cut it he got depressed. Like seriously depressed. It was actually pretty funny.

News and Scout

2010-08-13T20:39:00.000-07:00

News: I can't believe that I haven't blogged about this yet, but I GOT A JOB! I am so excited to be at Legacy as a Third Grade teacher. This week I have been in my classroom, or at a workshop everyday. It's been good to get back into the routine of waking up, getting presentable and going somewhere. I have been able to get back into the routine of cleaning and organizing as well because I don't have all day to do something anymore. It's such a blessing to have this job. I feel so fulfilled and grateful to have my dream job. (cheesy but true!)
School is starting soon and I am so excited to meet my students and get the year started off right. I was the kid who couldn't sleep the night before school started and I am pretty sure that will happen to me this year. I am already so excited to get all of my ideas out on paper, planned etc. I feel like my mind is racing a million miles a minute (in a good way). My classroom is almost all the way set up, I just have a couple of things to do. The biggest part I have now is curriculum planning and organizing my files.

Also, one of my very best friends got married to her perfect match. I was able to go to her endowment session as well as their sealing. They looked so beautiful and they are truly a great match for each other. Their sealer had so many good things to say. One of my favorite quotes is "if it is to be, it is up to me" Meaning that if whatever you want in life is to happen you have to do your part. This quote is quickly becoming one of my favorite.

Scout: Here's a picture of Scout being a stinker! The last month Lance has been putting Scout through some obedience school. He's not allowed to be on the couch, in our room, or bathroom ever. He has to stay in the kitchen when he eats (he used to drag his bowl around). Also Lance is starting to train him for hunting things and the usual sit, stay etc. Scout is doing well and making progress everyday however, he still has some days where he isn't an "angel." For example, this picture! I gave him a treat and he takes it straight to the couch and is eating it. Doesn't he have that "I'm a bad boy and I know it" look? What a stinker!

I Wonder When...

2010-08-04T17:02:00.000-07:00

I wonder when I will no longer have rocks in my washer. Having an electrician for a husband is great; he is so handy. I feel like he could fix anything! However, on the other hand... I check his pockets and there is still a hand full of rocks in my washer. Is it just rocks you ask? Nope! I've found ear plugs, metal washers, sharpies, and electrical tools just to name a few. Love you babe!

Let's Call The Whole Thing Off

2010-07-07T09:35:00.000-07:00

You say potato, I say potahto. You say tomato, I say tomahto.

Abby says Sega

I say Saga ...

Let's call the whole thing off.

Bountiful Baskets

2010-06-26T15:50:00.000-07:00

I have heard about this basket co-op from my sis in law and I thought it was only a "salt lake" thing ... then my mom said that she was going to one down here and I was so jealous! So I was a crazy person and signed up for the Levan one because it was the only close one left... the drive only took 45 min., the people were super nice and I really had a great time! We went early to help unload the truck and help sort the fruit and veggies. This whole basket was 15.00 which included this week a bag of carrots, 2 avocados, 6 tomatoes, lettuce, swiss chard, 4 onions, 1 stalk of celery, 18 plums, 1 box of strawberries (i got one more for volunteering), one cantaloupe, 6 apples, 6 bananas and a bag of grapes... all for 15.00. I also got a box of peaches to can for 12.50. This whole program is run on volunteers and it was so efficient and organized! I'm excited for the challenge of using this awesome produce in our meals this week. I am so IN LOVE with this program. Next time we are going to get a regular basket and some granola... lance said it smelled "too good to be true."

A Year Later....

2010-06-22T16:36:00.000-07:00

A year later and it's almost done. I am sort of shameful that this project has taken a year so far. However, I have done a lot of things during this past year... so I guess I don't feel too bad. Now I just have to sew the rows together, decide on a backing, maybe a boarder, quilt it and bind this bad boy. It will end up being a twin size quilt, just perfect for movie watching. I just LOVE these pinwheels.

(Scout's here checking it out. He was licking it last night, wierd-o!)

Smitten

2010-06-18T21:37:00.000-07:00

Today I am smitten with a little more love for my husband. While he is gone fishing with his dad for fathers day he did something that made me really happy. he. took. his. scriptures. to keep up with our challenge. I was so in awe of him being willing to pack his scriptures and read the pages in the midst of having a fun weekend with is dad. Seriously, I could almost feel the level of love rise in my heart as he had a smile on his face willing to read the pages. This may seem weird or too small to even celebrate to you, however, there are fireworks going on over here. Seriously.

Last Five Purchases From iTunes

2010-06-17T17:05:00.000-07:00

1. Baby Boomerang - The Shins
2. Bitter Heart - Zee Avi
3. Faithfully - Glee Cast Version (may or may not have teared up watching the finale)
4. Secrets -OneRepublic
5. July, July! - The Decemberists

Abundance

2010-06-12T19:40:00.000-07:00

I have been thinking about getting a teaching job a lot lately. I WANT ONE SO BAD! I feel like I have been doing everything in my power to try and get one. I still haven't heard anything about a job... yet. I still am not giving up... however, I had the thought in my mind that even if I end up with out a teaching job next year i. still. will. be. fine. It will be so hard for me, i mean, all I want right now is to teach. It's not even that it will be an extra income for our family- it's something I love, something I am good at and something that I know I want to do. BUT i. still. will. be. fine. I have also been thinking about how we have been so blessed. Lance loves his job as an electrician, he is SO handy around the house... and even other peoples houses as well, we have had the means to take care of our needs and we. are. fine. We have been blessed with abundance and we are grateful.
Update on Scripture challenge...I picked my date of when I was going to read the Book of Mormon and the pages a night and Lance is doing it with me. We have been pretty consistant with reading and I can feel this calmness about me and it feels good. Plus, reading the amount of pages we do a night I can actually understand it better.

Whirl Wind of a Day

2010-06-07T16:05:00.000-07:00

So my brother is leaving to go to New York today for a LONG time- maybe until he goes on a mission in November... sad : ( Also, today I took Scout for a walk and he totally ran off and I was calling him and using his shock collar thing and he just looked at me and kept on running. I was pretty much freaking out because it was starting to get hot and I didn't want Scout to over heat. So I basically went all Sacajawea and went of the trail, ran up the mountain and chased him down. After he saw that I was so mad, he came. THANKFULLY!! Then we came home and I gave Scout a bath because he was super muddy and dirty and while I am drying him off I get a call at noon. A call for an interview-for today at 1:30. I took one look at my sweaty, wet dog self and almost had a freak out. Took a 5 min shower, which for me is a miracle, got ready and then looked at the gas tank.. on E. Stormed into the gas station pump, put in 10 bucks - all I had time for and started going to the school. Thankfully I'd been to this school before and got there with 7 minutes to spare. I usually have this "pre-interview" routine that I go through and I felt like I went to the interview so un prepared! However, I feel like it went well and I would love to work at this school! What a whirl wind of a day!

Today I ...

2010-06-01T22:10:00.001-07:00

did a TON of laundry
down-loaded THE best album (Glee 1)
listened to said album a billion times
started my first day as a tutor
walked Scout
did days worth of dishes
organized my life
hung up days worth of clothes
threw away clutter
deep scrubed the bathroom
swept and mopped
put the million movie cases away
bought some cilantro, parsley and green pepper seeds
threw away the dying yellow daisys
loved on the thriving living red daisys
wished I had a little farm or some land
today I... had a very busy and fulfilling day.
and it feels good :)

Chairs

2010-05-30T18:22:00.000-07:00

Since my technology savy neighbor Elisha came over and showed me how to put my memory card right into the computer ... I have some pictures to show.

First, graduation... I am SO happy to be done with school

...now just working on getting a job.

(all the bradley kids)

Me and Lance

My brother's graduation dinner at Goodwood ... happy graduation brother!
I made a candy/money lei for his present. I think a candy/money lei is going to be my "signature" gift for things like this... They are easy to make and fun to wear.

Next up: chairs.

I just love these chairs we got at a yard sale. I painted them Pencil Yellow from the Martha Stewart collection and the process was super easy (except when the paint is in the can it looks like nacho cheese. So, if you use this color you may have to just go buy/make your self some nachos because your mouth will be watering). There were only 2 so we are going to have to hunt for at least 2 more. I think I am going to do the next 2 a royal blue color or a sage green. This picture was taken before the finishing coat so the paint looks more matte and they are a little more glossy now. I love the detail on the top of them and they make me feel happy just looking at them.

Ode To Camera Cord

2010-05-26T17:02:00.001-07:00

Both... yes both camera cords are lost. How is that so? I have NO CLUE. I have scoured our apartment looking for them with no result. I want to show you these cool chairs that I painted, or the plates that I spray painted, and graduation pics just to name a few things. So camera cord, oh camera cord please reveal thy self!

Ups and Downs

2010-05-18T20:39:00.000-07:00

Today was filled with ups and downs. I am so grateful for kind words and words of motivation Thank You Jen for putting that sweet book together! It really helped me keep some confidence through this tough time for me! ... I really feel blessed to have such great friends and confidants. Seriously, where would we all be if we didn't have a good friend out there?

In other news... I have taken on a challenge that was set during sacrament meeting on Sunday.
1. Pick a date.
2. Divide number of pages by the number of days.
3. Read.
So I am going to be reading about 5 pages a day and I feeling better all ready. Seriously I feel much more calm and centered.
Maybe you should try the challenge?

Thank YOU Steph, Mitchell, and Bryce!

2010-04-13T18:22:00.000-07:00

Last week was Spring Break and I turned in my portfolio! That is a big accomplishment... it includes all of the important and not so important assignments from this 2 year program. I turned it in on Tuesday, so all I have to do is show up for graduation! I can't wait till April 30th and I can say..."I have a bachelors in Elementary Education!"

Back to the title of this post... a THANK YOU is in order. I totally drove to school with my lights on Monday -which I totally didn't need to even USE THEM- and my car was dead when I went out to go home. Monday was such a good day! The kids were great, class went well, we had a good time catching up about the events of Spring Break and then I go out to a dead car. I frantically called Lance and he made a call to his cousins who live in AF. So.. I was saved by Stephanie and her kiddos Mitchell and Bryce. Mitchell pulled out his electronic instructions, read word for word, put the clamps on all of the right places and kazam.. he did it with a little help from us ...and a few calls to Lance. Bryce was our cheerleader and accessory holder... they are so cute and I am forever grateful that they came to my rescue! Thanks Guys!

Random

2010-03-13T16:53:00.000-08:00

So... today I was all ambitious and went to the 9a. spin class at the gym. After I had arrived I noticed that: I had doggy poop on my shoe (EWW!), toothpaste down my shirt, make-up halfway down my face and bigger bed head then a thought. Needless to say I am glad that we "spin" in the dark so everyone didn't need to see my disgusting self.

School is going well however, very very busy. I am loving my class and the school that I am working with. I am just crossing my fingers for a job next year.

One of my sweet students has a funny sense of humor. We sing this "icky sticky bubble gum" song and the students a place to stick it. .. well this student said "ummm, Mrs. Ames, your lung!" Usually students pick items like the desk, chair, floor, etc... but not him! I find myself getting some sort of chuckle from him and it brings joy to my day. Seriously teachers could be good comedians with all of the material that is presented to them during the day.

Plates

2010-02-22T20:54:00.000-08:00

Beyond popular belief (Bobbi!) I did not go to DI to buy plates to eat off... I bought some plates to do THIS. While the first few attempts were HORRIBLE (maybe because I totally took out the "spray evenly" part of my spray paint can!!). Bobbi set me straight and we got one ity-bity plate done that looks good. Off to DI for more PLATES!

Also, while doing homework at our house Bobbi got to know how adaptive Lance is. He was building the birds a new coop at this new place and there wasn't an outlet near by. So he brought an extension cord from the kitchen, out the window, out side for his drill. We were un aware at the time he had done such a "innovative" thing and we start to laugh when we heard everything in the kitchen jingle.

**both cameras are dead so there is no evidence, you'll just have to believe Bobbi and I : )

I Am Thankful For...

2010-02-07T10:40:00.000-08:00

... A hard working husband!
... Great friends.
... Sunday's.
... D. I. (plates, plates, plates)

and this song

Doesn't it make you just want to dance?!?!

Uncommon Names

2010-01-29T20:10:00.000-08:00

It is common knowledge that my name is Portia. Now, how many Portia's do you personally know? One, maybe two at the most...three just may be pushing it? Especially in the Elementary Education program at UVU. Now, why I go through length to point that out? Well, here you have it. As I was getting ready to leave class one day this week I look at my phone after all of the students had left. I saw that I got a text from a friend that just got into the program. Her text reads as follows:

Friend: Hey what's your new last name? And did you teach a class a bit ago with math or something and (insert name here) (your supervisor) observed you?

Me: Uh, yeah, did she talk about me or something?

Friend: YES! ha ha ha ha

Me: Umm, when you get a second can you call me and tell me EVERYTHING???

So, as you have it, my supervisor talked about me in her class about the lesson that she observed me teaching. Okay, okay, it was nice things but she could have used an alternate name... you know, one that doesn't stand out as a name that is uncommon. Here's the dilemma, do I confront her about it? Just let it die and hope she doesn't bring me up again? Where's the confidentiality? Well, at least they were nice things... this time!!

Changes

2010-01-18T15:43:00.000-08:00

Small: My "BAN" deodorant only comes in a nasty roll-on. EWW! I HATE ROLL ONS!

Small: My "G" style of choice has changed... not sure if I like it yet. I only bought one pair... and they come in different styles. For example, if you are not "large hipped" get the "A" style. If you are get the "B." IT IS REALLY CONFUSING because they have all of these letters on them. When the sweet lady was helping me ... she didn't really know either. So if you need some, I would suggest you wait... or you could gamble like I did and get one pair.

Big: I am student teaching full time now. I have just done one week and have nine more to go! The class I am working with is great, and my cooperating teacher is totally great as well. I have been teaching science and when I am in front of the class my face still gets red... and I get hot. My red face is sort of like old faithful.... you can always count on it!

EVEN BIGGER: Lance and I moved to Provo this weekend. We have been talking about it for a little while and scoping out places to move... we weren't really sure if we wanted to. It was just an "up in the air" sort of thing. We wanted to be closer to work and school and save on gas. Also, our apartment had some plumbing issues, you know, like stuff coming up the pipes? DOUBLE EWW! Then the icing on the cake of the decision to move was that our neighbors dog attacked our little Scout. I was the only one home when it happened and it. was. scary (our neighbors weren't very sympathetic or even cordial). He is doing well, even better now that we are in Provo. This incident happened two weeks ago. Every thing is falling into place and it already feels like home. Our new neighbors are GREAT! We have had dinner with one of our neighbors and visited another one last night. Every thing is great. Scout has a good friend here that plays nicely with him and he is happy! So today I have been unpacking and planning lessons like a mad woman and blogging instead of homework. We are excited to be closer to friends... so maybe you will have to come over more!

Smitten

2009-12-28T19:34:00.000-08:00

Today I am smitten with love for Lance. Seriously. This guy does SO much for me and is such a hard worker. He assembled our Christmas present even when he was really tired. He went to work today even though he really didn't want to. He totally supports me 100 percent and says things like, "I am so proud of you."

I have actually had a second to download our wedding pictures. Isn't it a SIN I haven't even done that yet? HELLO! It's been well well over a year of marital bliss... Anyway here are some of my favorites.

It's Starting To Feel Like Christmas!

2009-12-17T17:03:00.000-08:00

Christmas is almost here! I think because finals are over and I have my life back... I have finally feel like Christmas is here. Today has been a great day, I had my last final which was easy pesy (breakfast at the professors house) and have been doing some LONG needed things around the house....

We did our annual Christmas tradition cutting down a tree on Thanksgiving in Altamont.

Here is the full view... I need to work on making a tree skirt! We couldn't put any ornaments on the bottom because of our little Scout. Putting them higher doesn't stop him though. One day he started looking guilty and I looked under where he was standing and he had jumped up and snatched an ornament... and WAS EATING IT! Luckily everything has been okay... no injuries.

Next up are some of my favorites on the tree (as last year we are using our "hand-me-down" ornaments from SIL Charlie and MIL Laurie. THANKS!)

These colored gems are to die for. I think they make our tree feel glam. They look great against the lights.

I love the unique shape of this one... as well as the color. I am totally into wearing yellow/gold colors this season.

Some red gems... I love the color, we also have some clear ones not pictured.

I just love this one, it came on a present I got last year and I just put a hook on it. I love the glitter and fabric. It also has wire in it so you could change the depth.

Keeping up with a tradition from my family (the Bradley's) I made some English Toffee (on my own!). It turned out okay... the second batch was totally better then the first.

Here's a close up of the sugar, butter, and almonds... yum!

Finished Product!

.
Along with organizing the dickens out of our house (which is much needed!) I rounded up SOME of the scrap paper I have used in the ELED program. Seriously this is only a third of it. I didn't just want to recycle it or throw it away, so this is my "green" plan. I called a copy store and they can cut the paper and glue it into pads of any size. I want mine quartered for list making... those of you who know me know that I make daily lists. This will be great list making paper.

I'll be posting some projects next!!

Thoughts and Catching Up

2009-12-15T17:42:00.000-08:00

I am over half way done with finals. I have two more left and I couldn't be happier. Seriously. This semester has been very loaded with content, projects and responsibilities. I am glad to be done in a couple of days. However, today for one of the two finals that the eight A.M. cohort had, our professor was over an hour late. Is is weird that I am still bothered by that? Maybe, BUT SERIOUSLY we were all ready to pull our hair out with boredom because we didn't really have anything else to do.

I fed the pigeons today and they all came flying out at me. I hope that someday in the future I never have to touch one of those things. BUT my husband loves them so... they are here to stay:)

In class I said a phrase that I would have never said unless I was married to Lance. The group behind us was taking our answers that we weren't exactly saying quietly and I said "answer poachers!" That would have never come out of my mouth.... seriously never.

This week I have channeled my inner Bobbi and Toni (very very organized girls in the eight A.M. cohort) and organized my school stuff that had been piling up for THREE semesters. Frankly it's way too embarrassing to post a "keeping it real" before and after picture because I think I was keeping it too real.

Lance has been so good at his calling. Even tonight when I had dinner made on the table, and the pigeons fed, he still had to come straight home, shower and leave to go visit a family in our ward. Along with ward things, I am getting sad that I only have a few Sunday's left with the Sunbeams. I was teaching a lesson called "I am thankful for the Book Of Mormon and the Bible" and I was talking about how the Book Of Mormon is like a map. Then one of the girls in the class said "is that like the map on Dora?" It was too cute!

I signed Lance and I up to take dinner to an elderly couple in the ward. We had never met them and they talked to us for a good 45 minutes. They are both 93!!! and when they were 80 they were sick of being lonely and got married to each other. Bringing dinner to them was a lot of fun... I hope we get to sign up again. Speaking of signing up for things... I signed up to take mashed potatoes to the ward party... hopefully it all goes well (it's tomorrow).

Recently I have been and etsy fool. I have a mile long wish list of things that I want. A couple things that I have bought are these really cute headbands from "blueeyedfreckle" She has the most adorable shop and she is so friendly. I saw a picture of a headband she did for a give away. I wanted to buy it so I went to her shop and it wasn't for sale. I convo'd her and she made one up just for me. I'll post a picture later because my sister Carson has my camera for her photo class because her really nice one that is a heck of a lot better than mine broke. I also bought two of these feather pads from the shop "FromCalifornia" and hot glued them onto headbands. I wore one of them to church the other day and got some stares... however, the sunbeams loved it and... I love it too. That's what matters right?

I have vowed to make all of our Christmas gifts this year. I am almost done and have really enjoyed it! Even though things turn out better in my head then they actually do Lance has given me some compliments. Here's a sample, "these pillows are a lot cooler than your earlier stuff. Some of that stuff was scary!" Got to love the honesty right?

Last week my mom, sister Kelsey (who is having a boy.. due in April) and I made delicious candy. We made turtles and english toffee. Lance and I ate most of ours before we gave it away so I tried a batch of english toffee tonight on my own. It turned out okay but nothing like how my mom does it.

I'll post some pictures later when I get my camera back, picture posts are a lot more interesting anyway. I am excited for Christmas and I can't wait to "doggy" babysit Ramsy and Lacy the most adorable Shih Tzu's around.

Trick or Treat... NOT

2009-11-01T18:48:00.000-08:00

This is the first year ever... but we didn't get any trick or treaters!!! It may be that we live in the middle of no where... (last year we only got 1). We didn't go to our ward trick or treat because the whole stake was doing it (plus we have no kiddos)... so I guess Lance and I are just scrooges! We did have fun watching a scary movie and eating treats!
This next week I start fall field experience... wish me luck!

Grey's Love

2009-10-20T18:53:00.000-07:00

Listen. Enjoy. Repeat.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dHzr7wdnuqw

Catch Up August, September... and part of October

2009-10-12T15:19:00.000-07:00

School is in full swing and life is busy! This blog was the first thing to "go" on the list of importance. So here is an up date of some random-ness that has been going...

This is what I looked like on Sunday in my Costco good find of the day dress.

I baby sat Gus the neighbors dog.. and lets just day it was a little crazy! This looks like a calm picture... but it was only achieved after a splitting up of the dogs. But even though it was crazy with Scout jumping off the couch and body slamming Gus, he sure is cute!

This is a good profile of Scout, he's getting so big!

Brother Brad and sister Carson out on the lake for the "This is our last time of the season try all your tricks" day. Carson was getting surgery on her knee the next day... what a dare devil!

Here's me in the wonderful clear water of Utah Lake.

Trip to Dugway Geode Beds

Lance looking up the way on the map making sure we don't get lost.

"X marks the spot"

"Are we there yet??"

We saw about 300 wild horses and they were so so pretty! We also saw some antalope but they were hard to get pictures of... but these horses were quite a sight.

Pony Express station... it was pretty cool to look around the little shack they had. Could you imagine that for your job?
Here they are, to the untrained eye these are ugly, but inside they are so pretty with crystal formations. They are very easy to find, you just dig off of where someone has already been before and they just start popping up. We even found some cool ones that were already broken up just laying around. I am excited to show the 4th graders in Novemeber because it is in their core when I will be there.

Here's a funny face Scout made the other day...

I canned peaches for the first time...

I've been into making hair accessories, and I really am liking it. Let's see if I'm brave enough to wear them to school .... This first one is a fabric yo-yo (extra large size you can buy it at JoAnn's) with a fabric button sewed on.

Flower head band hot gluedI'm not sure if I like this one, but it is hot glued as well.

So I wanted to make some pumpkin cookies the other day for a little "cheer me up" treat. I opened the can of pumkin puree stuff and then pushed down on the lid and got this.

9 stitches! I couldn't get a hold of Lance because he was at the job sight so I had to drive up to the insta care by myself. The only tricky thing was that my car is a standard so shifting and trying to appy pressure wasn't really working that great. Also I didn't know of an insta care around here so I had to drive all the way up to Provo which took 35 minutes because of construction traffic. So need less to say I was a wreck! ... But it's all good now:)

So that's what's been going on!

Projects... always got one.

2009-08-25T04:50:00.000-07:00

Is this you? Because... right now, it is ME! I am usually not one to have several crafty things going on at once, but I just started seeing blogs like THIS where I got the tutorial for the rug and the pinwheel quilt and I just can't help my self... seriously could you??

First up: earing (idea from this tutorial)

I did 14mm and 18mm earings... and I LOVE THEM!

Sort of not a summer project, scarf making, but us Elementary Ed girls have to start thinking early with all of our assignments and stuff... these are pretty easy and anyone can do them... and THEY ARE SUPER WARM!

This is one of my favorite blocks that I have EVER done... I really like how they look and the way V&Co (link at beginning) made the tutorial it is "easier" I still need help in the -cutting straight- department. I used generic white and hushabye charm pack from moda... these are the only ones I have done so far... but I can't wait to finish it!

Last but not least... braided rag rug... also from V & Co ... I used 3 yards white, 1 yard desert rose, and one avery honey bun (all moda0 instead of knotting the strands I sewed them with the machine as I went and I like that look better... it worked better for me anyway... but as the rest of the projects ... this one is far from done... it's about half way BUT you've got to hand sew that baby! I have been working about one-ish hours a day on it and well... it's coming, slowly but surly.

Need less to say... these are the only projects I am going to have time for in 2009 with school starting tomorrow!

Blog-Slacker!

2009-08-12T21:24:00.000-07:00

I have totally neglected this blog and have just been enjoying the last lazy days of summer. In the next two semesters of school (which are my last!!) I am going to be working with a 4th grade class and I am so excited. Part of our assignments before school starts is to help our teacher that we will be working with all year long prepare his/her classroom... so in the next couple of days I am going to meet my cooperating teacher! I am really excited and hope that this year goes great! I have been crafting and making our house a home one project at a time... maybe that will be my next post? Anyway... here is a picture of how big our "baby" is getting...

Scout: 4 month 23LBS

(he always has something in his "beard")

Scout: 7 weeks 6LBS
Oh and this summer was a success just in the fact I caught my first fish. See it? That little thing?? We definatly let that one go.. my next fishing goal is to catch one big enough to eat! This was at Scofield ... it's "our spot" as we like to refer to it. Also, my mark of a true fisher-woman is that the rods and chairs have been in my trunk so we can just go on the "fly" as Lance says it.. haha

Scout LOVES water, he was in and out, rolling around and of course drinking it all in.

I hope your summer is ending with a bang!

Before and After

2009-07-22T08:11:00.001-07:00

Here is a little before and after for your Wednesday.

BEFORE:

These bad boys came with the apartment, I had NO part in the creation...

AFTER:

I was going to the fabric store to get some fabric for THIS and I started thinking about those nasty green curtins we have and impulse bought this fabric. I thought it turned out good, I just had a picture in my head and with minimal seam ripping came up with this!
(it looks crooked because I ripped out the rod for the curtins to hand on by accident, Lance is going to fix it... I just couldn't wait to put this up!)

This picture is sort of blury but I just love this lace...

You Know It's SUMMER when...

2009-07-21T07:59:00.000-07:00

I know it's summer when I get to spend a lot of time with this guy! It's going to be a heart breaker to leave him home longer in the fall :( He is such a cutie! When I shower he waits outside the door and when we are sitting on the couch he has to be on the couch too. Oh and he can crawl onto the couch AND run and jump on to it... it's funny to watch.

Scout is also known as the bandit or the "bug slayer" of the house. The other day I saw a HUGE spider on our floor and need less to say I was getting scared to kill it because it was so big, NO LIE. Scout started investigating the situation, I think he just liked the fact that it was moving. I thought in my head -it would be really nice if he just ate that and... he actually did! Ever since he has patrolled our floor pacing back and forth in hopes of finding another creepy crawly.

I know it is Summer when... we get to WAKEBOARD! It's been such a fun summer tradition in our little family to wakeboard and we love it! We have only been able to go a couple times so far but we love every minute.

Here are some pictures of Lance, my friend Nan has some of the rest of us on her camera i'll have to get.

farmers tan?

Lance is really good, I just had a hard time capturing the air he gets because of the delay of the camera...

This picture is my favorite.

Location: Utah Lake

And yet, another sign of summer. I love fresh veggies and fruit all summer long! We loved the peas we got from our neighbor.

The End.

My Quest

2009-07-14T05:42:00.000-07:00

Okay, I know this picture is small... BUT I am about 17-ish in the picture and I have LONG HAIR! This is my quest. Before going to my last hair appointment I made a silent promise to my self: "only a trim this time, remember I WANT LONG HAIR"

Then after I got there, I caved and cut a couple inches off. Back to square one.

So, now that I have it in writing and I have gazed at this picture of my long hair of the past, I am going to promise my self: ONLY A TRIM TOMORROW!

*This my seem insignificant to some, however, the dilema of cutting or growing my hair consumes me, almost daily.

His 4th of July

2009-07-11T07:04:00.001-07:00

This Fourth of July Lance was able to go riding with his dad in the high Uinta mountains! They had a great time!

According to Lance this horse has no name- but he really liked riding her!
While riding they found a place where you could ride by the hour. Pretty horses!

They loved the scenery.

Circle of trees.

Steven riding Rosie aka "the grey mare"

Lance riding... no name?! (they borrowed this horse from a friend) The first day they rode 20 MILES and the second they rode about 6. After not riding that much in a while, needless to say Lance was sore. He loved every second! Here are more pictures I chose, that I liked.

The End.

4th Of July

2009-07-06T11:16:00.000-07:00

Lance and I had a "His and Hers" Fourth of July. I'll post his next, but as for me? I hung out with my family and it was GREAT!

Making the trek to the stadium of FIRE! Our family ended up being in three separate sections so I only have pictures of the people with me:)

The ENORMOUS flag that they raised.. and later retired.

The Parents

The fire of the stadium of fire

Fire dancers.. they had a fire jump rope... COOL or what?

No fourth of July complete with out some of these...

Of course the main attraction, the Jonas Brothers. I feel like an oldie, but I may or may not have watched youtube videos of them before we went so I knew some of their songs...

The fire works were great as always! It rained a little but nothing too serious.

and I couldn't resist putting a picture of the new additions ...

6 pigeons... no names, just "the pigeons" (we are so creative... I know)

Scout

2009-07-03T06:04:00.001-07:00

He's getting so big and has easily doubled in size since we've brought him home...

His "beard" is getting more full too! The kids at the family reunion were excited to play with him. On our way home we went fishing and HE GOT IN THE WATER BY HIS SELF! Need less to say Lance was really excited!
Giving High Fives

New Collar! ... I think it looks good with his coat!

He's getting so grown up, he just gets in his kennel and sleeps all by his self. The other day he was taking some socks that were in our room one by one and putting them in his kennel. We thought it was funny.

Husband

2009-07-02T08:19:00.000-07:00

I cut Lance's hair last night, I think it looks good. (don't look too close!) He's very patient to let me cut it! It takes me forever!! I am just grateful that I have such a great husband who is willing to let me cut it.

Scout thinks it looks good too! ... oh and scout is getting so BIG!

Life, Thank You's, and Projects

2009-07-01T05:52:00.000-07:00

You know when life just happens? Like how your dryer stops drying or the water heater goes cool? Well, here at the Ames/Charles residence we know first hand. This week Ammon, our upstairs neighbor scraped out all of the minerals that have been preventing our water heater from heating and changed out the elements. EIGHT years worth of mineral junk! It took several hours and was definitely NOT FUN!

Up close and personal view... EWW!!

Here is Ammon with our "junk bucket" and it is almost full! He got so much out of that thing! (note to self, if you have a well like us... do this at least once a year!)

THANK YOU AMMON

And to be an even better neighbor, he brought back our bucket with some fresh eggs in it!!

THANK YOU AGAIN AMMON!!

Other GREAT reasons to be thankful.

A freezer full of meat, THANK YOU Laurie and Steve (lance's wonderful parents) for giving us this freezer full of deliciously soft and fresh meat. We love you guys!!

Last and certainly not least, THANK YOU Charlie and Andy (wonderful sister and brother in law) for allowing us to have their dryer. CONGRATULATIONS on your new beautiful HoMe!!!

Here is the fabric for my next project, Aviary honey bun by moda, dessert rose (i think) by moda 1 yard and some white fabric 3 yards to make a braided rag rug!

what to do, what to do...

2009-06-24T19:35:00.000-07:00

This weekend I am excited for the much anticpated fun that is coming our way. Camping, boating, family reunion, not having to work... who could ask for more?? Honestly I am just excited to get away from work! It's only been a month since I started and I have made up my mind that I am going to quit, plus I only have 2 semesters left of school!! WHAHOO! I am just itching to get back and finish, gradute and then get a REAL job. You know, one that I will finally enjoy!!!
As of right now, I am just trying to decide what project I want to make... there are SO MANY! Should I make a quilt with jelly rolls and cake stacks or should I do something more small like a grocery bag holder with charm packs... who knows... just check out this blog and you know what I mean..

Happy Fathers Day!

2009-06-21T21:16:00.001-07:00

Today was a great day, I had a really good time at church teaching my Sunbeam class! They are such cute kids!-seriously. The wonderings of three-year-olds is amazing. Today one of my class members shouts "you can only be my church friend because I already have a neighbor who is my BEST friend!" I was cracking up at that one. Also when we were learning the annual fathers day song that the primary sings, one of the other members of my class was singing the tune of the songs with loud and then soft "nah-nah-nahs." Sorry to say, but I was pretty funny!
We went up to my parents to play games after we ate some dinner and we played "oh heck" (card game)
We also got to see the gift that my sister Abby did for our dad. She decorated his chair with paper streamers of dark blue, light blue and hot pink drapped over it with glued (on to the paper) gems. It's a shame that I forgot the camera!

Also Scout it getting so big! He has been eating food like crazy and sleeping a LOT! He is just a thriving puppy that is for sure! We have had to puppy proof the house in the past couple of days because he has been getting anything he can get his little paws on!

Like clothes and bags...

Also he loves being on the couch when we are... he isn't big enough to get up by his self but he sure does try. He likes taking naps on the couch.

Photo Friday...

2009-06-12T20:44:00.000-07:00

Photo: This picture was also taken on our honeymoon in Yellowstone. It is of the "Beauty Pool"
Why I like: This picture has so many colors!! I wish it could be something you swim in to get beauty!! You wouldn't want to though because it is 113 degrees Fahrenheit. Can you say hot?! I also like that you can see our shadows in it.. even though that should be a "no-no" in pictures I guess?

Freezer Jam!

2009-06-11T20:11:00.001-07:00

Freezer Jam!!

Today I was able to go up to my parents house and make freezer jam with my MOM!! It was so much fun! My dad was like why are you guys mashing it? Why don't you just use the modern technology of the blender?...My mom hissed, "we are doing it old school!"

Scout came along for the fun. Abby had a fun time with Scout playing and petting him (she wants a puppy now). Everyone thought he was cute and he pretty much slept the whole time.

Miss Abby posing for a quick picture on her way through (mom in the back round). I read 3 chapters of one of my new favorite books Clementine to her. I LOVED IT! It brought be back to last semester. Thank you DR. P. for introducing us to that great book!! Every kid should read it and every parent/teacher should make it a read aloud.

washing the strawberries

cutting and mashing the strawberries

the finished product

Rainbows!
Tonight Lance and I went to "T-BONE" a Chinese restaurant in Springville ... why it was called T-BONE, who knows. We were greeted with a "sit where ever you want" and flickering lights. The food is actually really good and was a pretty cheap hole-in-the-wall. On the way home we saw this beautiful rainbow!! It was HUGE and it made my heart happy.

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Another thing that made my heart happy is I heard a faint "15,14...3,2,1 ready or NOT HERE I COME!!" My neighbors were playing hide and go seek!! It was so cute, I want kiddos!!

Rain, Rain, Go AWAY!

2009-06-10T20:32:00.000-07:00

What's this you say???

Hot Chocolate in JUNE???

I had to dig deep into the pantry to even find it... there was enough left for a mug full. I am drinking it to warm my cold June bones! Today has been sort of depressing with all of this RAIN! When I think back to last June.. I think sweltering HOT!! I know I am a nerd, but today I had the day off from work and I even penciled in when I got my schedule a couple of weeks ago "go to the pool" (haha nerdy I know). So basically I am trying to say is THIS RAIN IS A LET DOWN!!

On to a brighter note... Scout and I played all day today and he found his love for ripping up paper. He found my left over Sumbeam coloring activity and shredded it with in minutes. He dragged his bed, chew toy, stuffed animal and all of the little bits of paper into the middle of the floor and took a nap there, it was so funny. It was like saying "all of these things are mine!"

scout

2009-06-09T08:06:00.000-07:00

THIS is who I got to wake up to this morning...

... and we like to give kisses.

Catch Up!!

2009-06-08T05:24:00.000-07:00

This last week has been WONDERFUL! So wonderful in fact... no posting, and here's why..

Announcing the NEWEST member of the Ames family...

SCOUT Vom Zion

(Vom Zion is the kennel name)

7 weeks... 6 lbs

He's SO SO SO cute and lovey!! He loves to play outside (all day) and do puppy things like chewing on stuff (none of it valuable ...yet). I am happy to report that there have been no accidents in the house yet! yay! I held him the whole way home in the car and he was so calm! He hasn't cried very much ... Lance thought he was going to scream bloody murder all night. But he didn't! His coat is so shiny and I gave him a bath the first night he was home with us and his fur was fluffy and SO CUTE!

Logan Friends!
We have family friends in Logan and they are moving out of their beautiful home (because it is too big! who's ever thought their house was going to be too big??)! So my mom and I went to go and help them pack up. It was more like help them play (2 hours of work for 4 hours of play!) We went to a cute fabric store in Preston ID. This fabric store is SO cute! I think this fall when Lance is driving up to Idaho to hunt, he is just going to have to drop me off their so I can get their CUTE FABRIC. It's called Suppose and the website does NOT do it justice, but you can still buy their fabric online! Here are some of the fun things we made!

Pin Cushion with attaching Bag

Pot Holders

Scout!! Here are some more pictures of our adorable puppy! We love him so much!!

He loves to be under the couch.

He loves to be in blankets and nuzzel his head under the covers!

He LOVES to play with Lance outside. Yesturday he met our neighbors. He and Hadley are best buddies!

LOOK AT ONE OF UTAH'S NEWEST JOURNEYMAN!!

YAY!! I am so proud of Lance for working so hard because it all paid off! As of Saturday May 30ith approximatly 12:00p.m. Lance is a journeyman electrician!!!

He has enjoyed this last weekend because it had been one of the first free weekends he has had since we have been married. He worked on the boat, cleaing, waxing and fixing it for this summer wakeboarding season!! I can't wait! He's going with the Young Men this next weekend to Uba to go boating and camping!!

Oh and if you are allergic to cotton... do NOT come to my house! I Looked out of our house the other day and it almost looked like it snowed! Thankfully it was only cotton.. except.. I am sneezing like crazy and having itchy eyes! But I'll take that over the snow any day! It rolls up into little balls from the wind and Scout chases it and gets white stuff all over his beard haha..

Must Read

2009-05-28T23:13:00.001-07:00

I was directed to this story in regards to my last post. Everyone MUST READ this story. I have never met this woman. I wish some day I may meet her BECAUSE... her story has helped me have a new attitude. Seriously. It is amazing to see how people react when they have "rocks" in their roads.

Thoughts...

2009-05-27T22:25:00.000-07:00

Do you ever wish you could fast forward your life? Maybe skip some parts? I'll admit it... I think about it. I catch myself saying, "Only 2 more semesters and I'll be a teacher... why can't that just be NOW!!" or "I wish I could skip to the part when we own a house!!" Then comes the truth... life is like the bell curve. Seriously. I have been feeling it lately. Life (or at least my life) is full of ups and downs. AKA tRiAlS. But why do we have to do things that are so hard some times? Well the only solution I could come up with were the "primary" answers.

1. Heavenly Father knows what we are capable of.

2. We have all the tools to over come our trials ...we just have to ask.

3. Heavenly Father won't ask us to do something we cannot do.
So I guess what I am trying to tell myself is... just buckle down for the full length ride. We are given trials to learn and grow from. I know that we are here for reasons and we just can't skip over them because they are hard...

I started The Book Thief today and wow... it is pretty good so far. I am only in the first 50 pages but it is catching my attention. Have any of you ever read it??

Passed!

2009-05-26T09:11:00.001-07:00

Lance has been studying really hard for his journeyman tests. There are three: a practical, the code and the theory test. Last Friday he took the code part and he PASSED!!! This was really so great for him to boost his confidence for the next two tests he is taking this Friday and Saturday at the end of this week. I am so lucky to be married to such a hard worker!

Photo Friday

2009-05-22T15:03:00.000-07:00

Welcome To Photo Friday!

Photo: Taken on honeymoon in Yellostone... I think it should be a harley ad.

Why I like: the guys riding the harleys behind those bison are really cool... they followed us the whole time on our drive around "the loop." They were just four guys from nashville who needed a "guy week." They would take turns driving the truck and riding their sweet rides! Oh yeah and one of the guys got close enough to pet one of the bison... those harley riders have got GUTS!

Chase's 2nd Birthday

2009-05-21T22:14:00.001-07:00

Here are some pictures of our cutie nephew Chase on his second birthday... We had such a great time at his party/bbq!!

Eating the cake.. he actually took a bite out of it but we didn't get a picture in time!!

It was priceless! Opening presents...

Nothing better than playing in the pool with cousin Jayden... FULLY CLOTHED!

Happy Birthday CARSON!!

2009-05-20T18:38:00.001-07:00

I feel old. Carson my younger sister is turning 16 folks ... and woohoo she is a hot one!! I picked her up from school and we went to THIS PLACE, I got the vaNIElla cupcake delight while Carson got my other favorite Peanut butter cup with chocolate. It was pure heaven, in a cupcake! Then we went to the mall and this really pushy person at The Body Shop was trying to pressure me into buying more stuff when I ONLY WANTED WHAT I GOT!! It was super annoying.. I don't care if I am not living up to the potential of my point card!! Anyway when we walked out Carson just started laughing! Pics to come!

Stretching & Puppies

2009-05-19T05:07:00.000-07:00

We humans are pretty amazing, I mean we can stretch ourselves in so many aspects of our lives. We can stretch ourselves to do hard things, endure pain and even stretch our imagination. I was thinking about this as I got a call from a job that I applied for on a mere stretch, and then I had 2 interviews yesterday for the same job. I accepted the job. Even though it's going to be a stretch for me... we humans are pretty good at stretching, right? I accepted the job because I knew that I could stretch to work there. I guess I never saw myself working here ever in my life, it wasn't even in my radius of thoughts till I applied. I HAD to get a new job because my other job was A. not sending their checks on time. B. the work was slowing down (I haven't worked the last three weeks!) C. I was getting a little stir crazy!! D. the company was doing some shady things so I decided to bail. I have sent out my resume or filled out applications for 14 places, with only 2 interviews!! I was starting to get down on myself because I thought I had good qualities and I consider myself to be a hard worker, who wouldn't want me to be their employee or co-worker???? That is why I accepted the job... plus the checks will come on time, the job is stable, the job is flexible when school will start up and it is part time.

On Sunday Lance and I drove up to my sis-in-laws house to celebrate our nephews birthday!! (i'll upload pics and more details later because I lost my camera cord!) We had such a good time and the fruit salad I brought was a hit, well atleast I think it was because it was gone by the end of the party... or maybe I didn't make enough... who knows. The fruit dip I made was

1 pack of cream cheese (I used the light kind and it was still good)

1 jar of the marshmello fluff stuff

1 Tbs of vanilla extract

I is sooo good and I totally recomend it. I even made it the day before and doubled the recepie. It stayed well chilled till it was time to go to the party.

Then after the party was slowing down Lance called our friend Joe. Joe's dog just had puppies with Willie (the brother of our dog Doc who has passed on). The puppies are SO cute. They have one female and 3 males. We can pick one puppy out of the three males and they are all so so so cute. All of the males are dark liver (which is unique for a wirehair) and they have white paws. I was in love with one at first sight... he was licking my toes and was pulling on my jeans. The female looks like her dad... a dark head with a mix of liver, and white hair all over her body. I just can't wait for 4 more weeks till we get to bring one of those cute puppies home! Plus I feel like these puppies are part of Doc as well... who we miss SO bad!!

Fishing...

2009-05-16T20:30:00.000-07:00

Today Lance and I went fishing, it was a lot of fun!! We went to Sportsmans to get some supplies and a fishing license for me before we went... Of course we forgot the camera but this is a picture of what we were catching... rainbow trout. They were pretty!! I caught 2 little ones and Lance caught one that was a pretty good size plus some little ones... but we let them all go. While we were there I snapped one of the rods OOPS!! Lance we patient with me though, which was good because I kept getting the line tangled... maybe fishing isn't my thing.. but I sure thought it was fun!

Glue...

2009-05-14T20:54:00.000-07:00

Last night Lance was rubbing through his hair after he got home from work. He just kept feeling it... rubbing it over and over. I asked, "uh..honey, what's the matter with your hair?" He still just kept on rubbing it for a second and then it hit him like a ton of bricks... "I've got glue in my hair!!" After the shock of having some high power electrical glue stuff in his hair we just Laughed! Can you imagine working all day with a big glob of glue in your hair?? I probably would have cried... but not my tough man, he just laughed! So he took a shower... and it was definatly still in there so I picked it out with my hands... it was pretty close to the scalp so we couldn't cut it out but it was sort of funny... and he wasn't in the mood for a photo op.. I wouldn't be either if I had a glob of glue in my blonde locks either...

Today...

2009-05-13T10:05:00.000-07:00

Today... was not what I thought it would be.
Today... was hard.
Today... I had an interview... but it tured out to be a group one, lame right?
Today... for dinner we are going to have latch... latch on to what ever you want to eat! (left overs)
Today... I started a new work out.
Today... went a little differently in my head.

New Blog with the best update EVER...

2009-05-12T15:12:00.000-07:00

HELLO SUMMER
It is now summer and I am free from school! It's relaxing... maybe even too relaxing but I am having fun! Work is slow so I started applying for summer jobs and I have an interview tomorrow with a summer camp called TURN for students with disabilities. I REALLY really want this job super bad and I hope everything goes well! (cross your fingers for me)

So here is the best update ever of things that have been going on the last couple of months... (in no particular order..)

You know one of those many days it rained? Well as you know Lance and I live in a basement Apartment and it flooded!! Here is a pic of the water... and you can't see Lances face but he is getting mad at me because I was taking a picture instead of cleaning it up right away...hahaIt took almost all of the towels we own!!

Welcome to Book Club at the Salem Library!

Here is Mrs. Johnson reading at our first book club!!

Here's me... I really liked the fake tree they have there.. built in seat an all.

Here is a Picture of one of the "new meals" I was trying....

...and Lance wouldn't eat it because it had yummy peppers on it!
P.S. the plate was painted at color me mine.. no judgements.

Abby and her new kitty Moonlight at my parents...

Lance and I waiting, waiting and waiting for Brad to come down with his date at prom.

Here is Brad and his date Kynzie they looked SO CUTE! Also Brad brought it home for the Bradley team by getting voted PROM KING! Group Shot

Here are Jesse and Hadley... they are our cutie upstairs neighbors and they bought their grandma ducklings for mothers day! They are so fun and love animals!! (nice helmet hadley!)

...and here is a shot of our back yard. I love it, it's green, nice, soft and shaded by trees.

So.. here it is the best up date ever.