Hi Mom!!! Hi Dad!!!

I think it is normal that when I visit at home, I never like to leave.  At the same time, the thought of living with my parents all the time isn't appealing.  It's funny how it works out like that.
Here's a video of Katelyn having a good talk with Grandma.  She's just too cute so I am putting the whole video up.

I love that we live close enough to visit, and this visit was great too.  I was able to sneak away a bit early to catch my sister and her husband, and their beastly dog Gus.  It's been too long since I've seen them!  They know so many card games. . . endless possibilities with them and card games, no joke. 
I was able to make it in time to watch Luke's football game.  He did awesome!  He is one of the linemen and you have to try so hard to focus on him to see him play because he isn't ever the one with the ball running or catching.  He sets up blocks and protects the quarterback.  He's so stinkin' strong and he "pancaked" a couple of guys. . . meaning he knocked them over flat on their backs!  He's not the usual chubby linemen, but he's one of the strongest and definitely the fastest, so the coaches like him up there on the line.  Apparently the coaches have told him not to touch the ball as he has "stone hands" so he just knocks people out of the way instead :)  Their team is doing really well and is two games away from the state champoinship game.  Football is ok to watch, but when there is somebody you know, it is so much more fun and he plays almost the whole game too!

A boy in the ward here is doing a service project to collect food for people in need.  He made up a list of what a family would need for a good Christmas dinner and then handed those out to those that wanted to help and fill a box.  So we decided to do two boxes and we went out all together to the store.  Dad turned it into a competition as we parked and he and Luke jumped out of the car and took off running into the store saying, "You snooze you lose!"  or something to that effect.  Us ladies were not about to be beat.  We are the real shoppers and we wouldn't go without a fight.  We got going and we had found so much of the list on the entrance aisle since it is the holiday season.  Dad and Luke didn't notice that aisle and they were walking in and out of all the aisles frantically because our cart had more in it so quick.  I know that some people would have a hard time believing this, but mom really does have a fast shopping mode!  Though some may have already guessed, the ladies creamed the men.  They had no chance.  Dad tried to make excuses, but they really didn't have a chance, even though they ran off and got a head start.

We finished off the night with brownie "surprise" and icecream.  Mom and Abby got a nasty surprise in theirs and nobody knows how it got inthere. . . I'm guessing the men had something to do with it. .. .sore losers ;)
I had pictures taken of Katelyn in her blessing dress.  I was pretty dissappointed how they turned out.  This dress has amazing little details and I think the lighting was too bright or something with the camera, but the dress was completely washed out.  It looks like she's wearing a plain white dress.  But the dress has beads and hand woven ribbon and little bows and they are all whited out!  Katelyn's face is cute of course, but there were even cuter faces that were caught.  The cuter faced shots didn't show the whole dress, so I chose the one that showed the whole thing to be printed, but it came out as a white blob.  I am bummed about it, but I will just have to do more pictures somewhere else or on my own.  I will post pictures of it once I get some good ones that do it justice.
The last time I went home I was going to take the dress with me since mom was finished with it.  Dad packed my car up and David unpacked the car and I never really thought about the dress.  When I came back, I mentioned that I hadn't seen the dress and we all got kind of nervous that it got lost.  I had David look around our apartment, and I looked all over the house.  I was backtracking in my head to the last time I saw it . . .. ta-daaaa!!!  I found it!  I was so relieved.  Before I found it I was joking around with Dad and we decided that Mom probably had it framed down in her craft room with spotlights shining on her beautiful work and she was pretending she didn't know where it was.  I better double check to make sure I still have it :)
I am too lucky to be so close to family.  I know my parents don't mind it one bit either.

I'm at Mom School

While I was pregnant with Katelyn I thought I was ready for all this mom stuff.  I was tired of being pregnant, so I was ready to be done being pregnant.  But I had no idea that there would be so much that I would learn.  A lot of this stuff, you just learn as you go, so maybe I was as ready as I could be. . . oh well, it's too late to worry about that now, she's here.

• Rocking chairs are heavenly!  In our house, if you are holding the baby, you get the rocking chair if you want it.
• Babies, girls, ladies, women of all kind (even the crazy ones) like to see babies.  They will peek over your shoulder as you are standing in line at a grocery store.  They will stare at your baby as you pass by them in the aisle and smile when they realize you've noticed them and they seem to wonder how long they've been staring.  Little girls and babies usually point and if they can talk they blurt out something like "Look mom, she has a baby!"  The mom's either apologize for their child's loud mouth or take a moment to ooh and aah about how tiny theirs used to be.
• Boys and men don't really seem to notice the babies, but the old grandpa's do and have often complimented me like I am a hero of some sort for being a mom and wish me luck. . . very sweet.
• David loves having his time with Katelyn once he gets home.  He hasn't even gone to play ping pong since she's been born because it would cut out some of his time with his girls.  He must really love us!
• It is a million times harder to get out the door.  It is all about timing when Katelyn wakes up, when she'll be hungry, when I get to eat, and when I get to shower and get ready.  Then I have to make sure I have everything she might need while we're out along with whatever I need to bring with me for whatever I am leaving the house to do.
• She is finally sleeping all the way through the night and I feel like I am human again.  No longer am I hoping that she takes a long nap so that I can get some sleep too.  It is a lot easier to get up with her at first, but the no sleep thing set in about 3 weeks after she was born which was a few days after mom left and I was worn out.
• The cute little burp cloths get un-cute really fast.
• Diapers have a terrible job.  I would rather be a mom any day.
• One time at a grocery store, my cart and I were blocking the whole aisle.  I didn't realize this until a lady was just standing and waiting patiently.  I apologized and moved my cart more to the side, but she told me the apology wasn't accepted and that she owed me an apology for "bothering the new mom and her baby."  I never thought we would get such special treatment but I still try to stay out of the whole aisle.
• "Talking" with Katelyn is the funniest thing ever.  She moves her eyes and eyebrows so much like she is telling me something SO important, but all I hear is super cute "coos" and "goos" and "doos".  She looks like she is always really proud of what she said.  She makes us laugh and we always enjoy our conversations with her.  She doesn't really like it when we laugh when she's talking.  We are just rude I guess.
• Our spacious one bedroom apartment isn't so spacious anymore.  Our bed has made it's way into the corner of the room so we can fit all of Katelyn's stuff in there.  I'm definitely ready for a two bedroom. . . or three so we have room for guests too!
• A day can go by with nothing getting done very easily.
• Wearing pink and having a pink bow on your head doesn't mean that everyone will notice you are a girl.  I think some people don't even try and just take the 50/50 chance and go for it.
• Play-dates are for moms. . . and a little bit for the kids.
• Katelyn doesn't have rubber bands around her thighs, arms, and wrists.  Just some extra food storage for winter.
• Baby belly fat is unlike any other which I hope doesn't mean it is harder to work off.
• Katelyn tries so hard to stay awake sometimes.  She tries really hard to be happy, but a little sad cry comes out instead. . . frown and all.  She just wants to stay up and play.
• Letting her cry herself to sleep didn't work for either of us.  We came up with our own method.  Her night time routine is great.  We make sure we keep her awake for 2-3 hours before she goes down.  She seems to like it when dad reads stories to her.  She loves bath in the sink time and kicks so much I have to put more water in the sink.  She doesn't like getting out of the warm water where it is so cold.  Her little chin shivvers and she seems so sad to not be splashing around.  We finish off the night with one last feeding and she is out!  She's now been sleeping for forever. . . 10-11 hours a night!  No waking up to eat or anything!  I am enjoying it while I can until teething starts or something else.  I can't even sleep that long, but it's nice that she does so I can get up and do something before she's up.
• I think baby's have nightmares.  I finally caught one on video.  She will just start doing this really sad cry and then go back to sleep. If you can tell, she even sticks out her bottom lip. . . so sad!  I think my voice woke her up, but then she went back to her nightmare or tried to fake it, then back to sleep.  
• I love that Katelyn loves her bouncer and her swing.  We can now eat dinner together, or clean or shower or do something while she's awake.  Not that we don't love snuggling up with her, but sometimes we have to get something done.
• I can throw a diaper across the room and make it in the trash. . . every time.  I have had lots of practice.  Don't worry though, the really full diapers aren't thrown, just in case I miss and they explode.  Gross I know.
• I have learned to say "thank you" when someone compliments me for my beautiful baby in some way. . . instead of saying, "I know."  I do know she is beautiful in every way, but I don't know when I started being snobby.  I think I have fixed that.  I hope.
We are loving our little family!  

David and I made it out on our own for the first time last week for dinner and a movie.  It was rough on me since I left the phone in the diaper bag with the babysitter. . . whoops!  Better luck next time :)

What A Chunk. . . A Cute Chunk!

Katelyn weighed in and was measured up for her 2 month check-up.  I cannot believe this little girl! She has gained so much weight for being so little.
At birth: 8 pounds 10 ounces
1 month: 10 pounds 9 ounces
2 months: 13 pounds 8 ounces!
Some babies don't even weigh that much at 6 months old.  We had been noticing her legs getting a LOT chubbier, and she is growing out of her 0-3 month clothes now.  She is growing longer too.  She has grown 3 inches since birth.  Not as crazy, but normal, so that was good to know.
I had a few questions about starting a regular sleep routine and eating routines because I usually just feed her whenever and don't keep track of time too much.  If she wakes up any time during the night, I feed her.  If she cries and it seems like it has been a while since she last ate, she gets fed.  I didn't mind.  She sometimes sleeps through the night.  About half of the time.  Otherwise she'll sleep 4-5 hours and then wake up, eat, and be asleep for 4-5 more hours.  I didn't mind this.  The doctor mentioned several times about how she's not going to starve anytime soon.  Somehow he also knew that she was eating very well and when he saw how much she weighed, he shrugged his shoulders and said, "That number looks right.  About what I would have guessed."
So if there was any worry in my mind that she wasn't eating enough, I can let that go :)

Our chunky baby sure is fun!  Here you can see her chubby legs, but lately she has liked hanging out upside down almost.  I just play with her feet and she lounges.  Weird, but she'll lay back for so long.  She is all smiles after she eats and we love that!  She lets us know when she's not happy which isn't always as cute.  She sure can snuggle though and then be kicking and squirming really quick.  She's wiggly, snuggly, cranky, smiley, and who knows what else will come out of her :)  We sure do love our baby, chubby overlapping layers and all!

Happily Married

It was 35 years ago today that it happened.  These two little lovebirds went up to Canada to be married to each other for forever.  She was beautiful, and he was handsome.  They were in love.

He's taking her out on a date tonight.  You two are still cute as ever. 

Just you two, and then one at a time, each of us joined you.  Mom, you once joked with someone about how mormons have a lot of kids and said, "It's not like I'm going to have ten kids or anything!"  Well that joke must have been really good, because by then we started walking out on our own. Hopefully we haven't made these 35 years seem like too long! I don't know how 10 kids is done, but it sure is amazing that we turned out so well!  I love to take vacations, but I think the best vacations are just hanging out with the family you two have put together.  As silly and crazy as we are (thanks Dad), I love that we can just sit and talk and relax (thanks Mom) for hours.  I wouldn't want us any other way. 

I think you two deserve this special night out.  A night without worring about making/cleaning up dinner.  A night for just the two of you.

Happy 35th Anniversary Mom and Dad.  We love you!

Disney Villians Please Don't Come To My Rescue

I was at the DMV with my sister-in-law last week.  We were waiting for her number to be called so she could get her license.  Just waiting.  Katelyn waited with me.  She filled her diaper. . . very full.  It leaked out the top it was so full.  Gross, I know.  She got fussy, which I have learned means she is done filling it and would like a new diaper.  I was sitting in the back row of chairs and decided to change the diaper on the floor.  Her diapers don't stink regardless of how nasty they look.  I still only breathe out of my mouth because it is gross, so I am pretty sure they don't stink.  I know she didn't smell bad before the diaper change.  So I was changing the diaper and had to change her clothes too because of the overflow.  It was a very cute outfit, and the new one wasn't as cute so that is why she probably started crying.  Her flower headband wasn't going to match her new outfit so I took that off.  I think she really wanted to wear it anyways and so she told me that by crying louder. :)  The lady sitting in front of us turned around and told me, "Don't worry, her crying is a lot louder for you than it is for the rest of us.  Most people don't mind and know it is more embarrassing for you as a mom and we are all just thinking back to the days when we had a little baby to love and take care of.  You really are the lucky one.  Let me know if I can help you with anything."
She was really nice, and I would not have minded asking her for help, but I felt just fine changing her diaper and her clothes.  I didn't ask for her help.
Not more than a minute later I now had a baby with a clean diaper and no clothes . . .and still crying.  I had just put the new outfit over Katelyn's head and was starting to put her arms through the sleeves.  A lady with a wild hair do which I was not sure if it was real or not, comes back and kneels down next to us and says, "I'm a grandma to four kiddos, I'll dress your baby."  She picked up Katelyn off the ground and dressed her.  I was not very happy.  Not because Katelyn was still crying.  Who was this lady?  I couldn't stop looking at her.  She reminded me of the lady from The Rescuers, Madame Medusa, except she had platinum blonde hair.

Not even kidding. . . this is too close of a match.  After she dressed Katelyn, well she had one of the three buttons done up, I reached out and grabbed Katelyn back.  As I was pulling her back, this lady continued to wrap the blanket around Katelyn which meant she awkwardly was situating the blanket between Katelyn and I.  As I was holding Katelyn and snuggling her up to me and attempting to calm her down, the lady said, "my grandbabies called me and said 'Gromma, I'm hongray!' and your little girl sure is 'hongray'" (I spelled these words how they sounded, so just sound out the words and say them with teeth stained coffee breath and make up and hands like Madame Medusa and you will be surprised how weird this was. Promise.) The situation probably looked very close to the picture above. . . I was holding Katelyn turning her away from the real life Disney villian who felt the need to invade our personal space.  My face probably looked identical to Penny's.  I couldn't believe it.
I said, "Thanks for your help, could you throw this away?" and I handed her the soiled diaper. Luckily, that was all it took to get this lady to go away.
I stood there in the back of all the rows of seats at the DMV swaying back and forth, and Katelyn snuggled up safe and sound stopped crying.  She was happy now.  The nice lady sitting in front of me, turned around and looked very concerned and asked, "Are you okay?"  I wasn't sure if I really was, but I said yes.
I stood there and rocked my baby to sleep.  It didn't take long.  She wasn't "hongray" she was just tired and uncomfortable with the mess she made.  I would be too if I had a mess in my pants like that.
I stood there and realized there are lots of people different people out there.  I encountered two very different ones that day.  One of them felt that by telling me she was a grandma, that made me feel comfortable with her grabbing my baby.  She was wrong about that one.  I wouldn't have felt comfortable if she was a grandma to 100, she wasn't my baby's grandma, and I had no clue who she was.  The other lady cared.  She let me do my thing as the mom, and offered her assistance, if I wanted it, and checked up on me after the craziness was settled.  Thinking of these two people made me tear up.  First at how crazy that Madame Medusa lady was, and second for how caring the other lady was.  I am honestly thankful for the latter.  
So for all the grandmas out there, you are not entitled to handle every baby simply because you are a grandma.  It doesn't work that way.  Not for me and my baby, sorry.  I know babies are cute, and mine is no exception. But I can dress her.  

Let the Real Competition Begin

I had my 6 week appointment. . . can you believe that over 6 weeks ago I had that little baby in my belly? . . . anyways it went well.  Nothing too crazy.
I was weighed at the one month appointment and weighed again at this 6 week one. . . . nothing changed.  So I am hoping that by publishing this that I will have all the more motivation to work extra hard.  Don't be mean, but if you have something nice to say I'll take it :)
Before I got pregnant I weighed 145ish (plus or minus a pound or two depending on a fast sunday dinner, Christmas brunch, Christmas dinner, Turkey dinner, Day-after-Thanksgiving pie and roll eating day, or any other occasion to eat more food than usual :)  The Monday before I had Katelyn I weighed 184 meaning I gained about 40 pounds.  At both of the before mentioned weigh ins, I am proud to say that I now weigh 155.  I am excited that 30 pounds really were "baby weight" or "extra water weight." I was a little worried honestly, but I am glad that so much has come off since I really haven't exercised one bit unless you count washing dishes, taking out the garbage, showering, or any of the regular daily (hopefully) tasks.
So here is my before picture. . .

But I would like to give everyone a fair chance so I am willing to restart this competition.  Chad didn't seem to get the memo of when the last one started. . . likely excuse. . . so this is for you Chad :)  This competition starts today, October 13, and we will see how we've done on Christmas 2010 (Chad that is on December 25th if you didn't know) before dinner :)
I really hesitated to put this picture up, or to even take this picture, so once again, be nice :)

This is for motivation.  No this is not a pregnancy picture. . . I wish it was. . . no I don't wish I were pregnant again, I wish I could blame the belly on being pregnant, but I can't.  This is me at 155 pounds.  I am hoping to lose 10 pounds, and hopefully an extra 5 to get back to 140.  I have cropped out my face because it is red and sweaty due to my first run! (you are lucky my armpits didn't get too sweaty)  The doc said I am free to start my physical activities of all kinds.  I am serious about losing this nice flotation device I have so nicely around me.  I'm a big girl now and I don't need floaties, so it has to go. . . . and the pool is closed for the winter so there is no more swimming.
Good luck to you all!  We will see who the real biggest loser is.

Blessing Blowout or Party Pooper. . . take your pick

 Last weekend we had a lot of family come into town for a special occasion.  Nobody came to see David, or me.  Okay, maybe they wanted to see us a little bit (probably to see what kind of contenders they were up against for the weight loss competition. . . or weight gain, for Ben and Katelyn)  We were not at all offended by this.  I promise.  We knew going into it that they were excited to see the baby.  We were excited for them to see the baby too.

Friday night the excitement began.  David's dad flew in and he came ready to chat.  Katelyn didn't seem to mind.  Chad and family came in a little later.  Edison and Emelia were excited to see their newest cousin.  They brought some gifts for Katelyn.  She got some cute new clothes and flowers for her headbands so people know she's a girl.  The girls helped pick out some of the gifts.  Edison picked out a blanket.  It happened to be the same one that Katelyn had wrapped around her.  Edison had a very excited face that looked like she had just found a match playing Memory, and she began to sing, "I picked out the same one."  You know that song right?!  Amber reminded Edison that it isn't very cool to give a gift to someone when they already have it.  Edison didn't get it and was still proud of her match :)

Emelia liked holding Baby Katelyn.  Sometimes she was a little rough with her.  She liked giving her hugs and making Katelyn do silly faces.  She would also give Katelyn her pacifier...whether she wanted it or not.  When Katelyn was sleeping, sometimes Emme liked to suck on the pacifier.  I think she thought it would be fun to be a baby again.

She tried to sit in the car seat, but she had arms and legs hanging out of it in all directions.  She's not so little anymore. Sometimes I would mention that it was time for Katelyn to eat.   Emme wanted to share her snacks with Katelyn too.  Katelyn doesn't like goldfish, rolls, or cheetohs :)  Edison and Emme watched me feed Katelyn.  I'm glad Tracie sent me this nursing cover.  It made it just in time for the weekend!

They would peek under the cover to find out what she's eating.  They weren't quite sure about the whole secret eating thing :)  Katelyn can be a noisy eater, but when she wasn't being noisy, the girls checked up on her to make sure she was still eating.  They asked me how she eats. . . she doesn't even have teeth.  Very curious and concerned for Katelyn.
Saturday Chad and family swam and we enjoyed a picnic in the wet grass.

(good thing Emme's raft was yellow ;) )

This is her serious face with her squirt gun:)

The rest of the family came that night.  Ben must be fighting with his wife again, he came alone. Or she could be pregnant and is trying to hide the belly from us.  Or the reason Ben gave us, she went to the blessing of her brother's baby. . . likely story :)
We watched the Boise State game, ate pizza, passed the baby around, talked and enjoyed everyone's company!  Katelyn didn't seem to mind the attention and let anyone know when she was hungry.  Sometimes she will bob her head with her mouth wide open in search for food on your arm or chest. She hasn't quite figured out who is who, or who has her food and who doesn't.

Katelyn kind of moved around and nearly ended up on the floor. . . just trying to snuggle I guess.

Abby is "sleeping" with Katelyn.  Nice try.

Ben showed up with two big bags of Coco Dino Bites in hopes that we can show Katelyn what breakfast is really about and get her hooked young, even if they have to go through me first to get to her.

Ben holding a fake baby. . . or a headless one. . . or just a blanket :)

Dad couldn't wait to his turn.

Sunday was the day we had all been waiting for.  Mom had been working off and on on this dress for a while now and spent the two nights before working hard to finish it up.  Abby said that she hadn't seen mom in a while, and had no dinner for the week either.  Poor Abby.  We got to church early and I had her fed so she would be happy.  We put the dress on her and it was beautiful.  Katelyn was still a little fussy so David and I were working hard to keep her quiet.  David was also trying to remember what he wanted to say.  Katelyn had other plans.  David and the men in the family stode in the circle as David gave her blessing.  It was so neat listening as MY husband blessed MY daughter.  Still unreal to me that I am so lucky to have these two in my life.  The blessing was great and very sweet.  Katelyn only fussed a bit.  As all the men sat down, David stood there a bit so he could show her off.  He had a smile similar to this one. . .

This smile is reserved for things that make David extra happy.  While Oreos, Cookies and Cream ice cream, and spider man stickers bring out this smile, the one he did as he held Katelyn up for everyone to see seemed a little bit bigger than the rest.  I sure was a proud Mom and wife!
Within seconds of sitting down and wrapping Katelyn up in her blanket, the bomb went off.  Katelyn's fussing was explained.  She created one huge mess in her diaper.  That mess quickly made it's way out of the diaper and all over the back of her dress. . . .the dress that is supposed to be passed down from generation to generation as a family keepsake.  Not only did it make it through the dress, but through her pink soft and fluffy blanket, and on to David's shirt AND pants.  David just said, "I think she needs her diaper changed." and we were singing the sacrament song and I figured she'd be fine if we changed her diaper after the sacrament was over not knowing how bad the mess was.  David had an idea it might be bad, but he didn't really know either.  He gave me that look telling me he needed to go now, so I handed him a diaper and some wipes quick and sent them on their way.  I got a little nervous about the dress hoping she didn't get any poop on it. . . little did I know.  After the sacrament I looked out into the hall.  David was standing there with our baby.  He motioned for me to come and had a scared/worried/urgent face on.  Oh boy!  I walked out there and saw the damage.  I never knew that sweet little baby of mine could ever have so much in her!  We weren't sure what to do.  We didn't know how we would ever get the dress off of her without getting the mess all over her.  and would it come out of the dress?  Could we wash the dress since it has little beads, ribbons, and since it is homemade?  I didn't want to ruin it!  Luckily I had another little dress that I brought for her, so after carefully taking off her dress, I wiped down her whole body and dressed her.  David took the dress and blanket home to wash.  He washed his clothes too and came back with good news, that the dress wasn't stained.  Mom said she would remake the dress, but I didn't want her to have to do that.
So no pictures of this great event and I am sure you are all glad.  I now know that in exchange for her being such a great eater, she is also a great pooper!
She was good as ever for the rest of church and snuggled up with Chad and Mom.  I think Chad wanted to take Will to the bathroom so he could come and steal Katelyn before anyone else got the chance :)  We loved having everyone here.

Our tiny apartment sure does fill up fast with just a few bodies!  Dad played Uno with Will and Emme and I think he's peeking at Emme's cards.  Will probably won because he has since he was born.  Luke looks like he is 10 times too big for the couch. . . he probably is because he's huge and cool like that.
I think there was a total of 16 of us here and it was great!

A nice family picture with the three little Bares. . . .cute.
Here's the crowd. . . there were 5 of the 10 Bares and Ken.  Quite the party!  I promise Katelyn is in there. . . her legs are dangling and her belly is showing a bit.