An attempt to start blogging again...

Hello friends and family.  I've been feeling for a while now that I should return to blogging so I could keep you updated on our lives.  I hope to blog once a week or so (ambitious, I know) maybe on Sunday nights reporting about the previous week and what we have coming up.  We are so far away and I want you all to feel like you are still in our lives.  We love and miss you.

Week of June 17th

Sunday was a lovely Father's day.  The boys were so excited to give Brent the cards they made and their gifts.  Daniel made him a fun tie in his primary class.  I made him fried chicken for dinner.  Our friend Polly joined us.  Her hubby was out of town and, like me, she has lost her father.  After dinner we all went over to another friends house for smores.  The kids had a great time and the adult conversation was entertaining.  It was a great day.  I am so grateful for Brent.  He is a wonderful father.

Brent with the kids before church.  Too bad D's eyes weren't open

Monday

(Most of you know about my sacroiliac joint pain.  If you don't, email me for details.)  I started physical therapy on Monday morning.  It killed to have my joint worked over and it brought me to tears.  As of today I am feeling some improvement already and have hope that this just might work. I can't wait for this trial to be lifted from me.

Monday night mom and dad Turner came to stay the night on their way home from Canada.  We had a lovely time chatting late into the night.  Brent was feeling unusually under the weather and went to bed early.  So unfortunate for him to feel that way on the rare occasion of his parents being here.  They left bright and early Tuesday morning.

Tuesday was an average day.  I went to a relief society service night in the evening.  I enjoyed the hour I was able to spend there sewing pillow cases for the local children's hospital.

I love finding my boys playing together.  I often find them sitting on our deck rail staring off into the distance.  I had to capture the moment.

 

The boys started Karate this week.  They go on Mon/Wed.  Jacob did great.  Daniel was a pickle and a half!  I wanted to thump him on the head.  His antics were embarrassing!  I think this was the first time I've been truly embarrassed because of my child's poor behavior.  He isn't ready for that kind of discipline yet and has a difficult time following instructions.  So I've decided to still take him (since I paid for it) and have him just sit on the side and watch and participate as he chooses.  With that in mind Wednesday went a lot better.  I had high hopes for him but he just isn't ready yet.

 
Thursday was a gorgeous day.  We had Jacob's friend Kiara over and we all went to the park to have a picnic lunch and play.  It was fun to swing and let Lydia pick at the grass.  There was a friendly Mexican family there and the dad was very active running around with his kids.  Pretty soon my boys were chasing him around too and it was so fun to hear their constant laughter.

That night my friend Brindy and I tried Bikram Yoga for the first time (also known as hot yoga) 90 minutes of fast paced yoga in 108 degree heat was intense!  I was hurtin' by the end of it though and I thought I was taking it easy.  Gotta go even easier next time.  I can't wait to be able to get back the exercising and it felt really good to work my body last night.  It was quite an experience.

Today was pretty low key at home.  I cleaned and made lots of cookies for tomorrow.  We're hosting a BBQ/baby shower at our home tomorrow.  We have a covered deck and rain is forecast so it got relocated to my house.  We'll have 40+ people in our home.  It will be crazy fun.

UPDATE
Saturday was spent continuing to ready our home for the party.  We had a wonderful time with our local friends and the pot luck spread was one of the best (variety wise) we've had.  The kids had a ball and fun was had by all.  Except poor Daniel.  He was greatly anticipating the evening with friends and then woke up from his nap with a fever.  He spent the evening cuddling with Brent or I and went to bed early.  =(  Poor "little D".

Lydia cut her first tooth yesterday.  She is six months old tomorrow (Sunday the 24th) and is fussier then normal but otherwise unaffected by the teething.

31

Yesterday I celebrated my "baskin robbins" birthday. I am sad to see 30 go - I had a wonderful year. I worked so hard before turning 30 so that I would be in the best shape of my life and enter this new phase/decade head on and strong. I achieved that goal. I was in a great place as a wife and mother, planned for baby #3 and I look forward to having a girl. I will always look back on this past year as being one of the best years of my life. I hope to continue strong and make every year a good one.

We took some pictures before going out to dinner to celebrate my birthday. I am 30 weeks along (7.5 months) and feeling great. I can see the weight gain in my face now... hopefully I can start running again after she's born.

HALLELUJIA!!!

This day has been 3 years in the waiting. Daniel saw his surgeon this morning and was cleared to no longer wear braces! His feet look fantastic and he is expected to do well long term. He doesn't need to be seen for another year or 2. I am all smiles and beyond happy. This has been such a long journey and to see it end is thrilling. Of course will still have issues to deal with (mega wide shoes, low muscle tone, etc.) but that is all nothing compared to where we've come from.

Take a look at the before and after of his feet.

1.5 weeks old

3 years old (taken today trying to recreate baby pose)

sitting normally

And to top it all off, my brother called me on Monday and while he and his family were in Brazil they learned that Vanessa's cousin has an infant born with clubfeet and they are struggling to pay for the shoes/braces and clothes to fit him. Plus, they are using the old style Dennis Brown Bar and Daniel had the far superior Ponsetti style brace. So I am going to donate Daniel's shoes and bar plus some of his baby clothes to this family. It makes my heart happy to know I'll be helping out another mother going through this journey and making life more comfortable for her little one.

Can you think of a happier ending?! We've had so many prayers on our behalf along the way that have helped lift us up. To be at the end vs. the beginning of this is an incredible feeling and I couldn't be happier on this day.

24 weeks Preggo

Hey everyone. I've had several people ask me for a preggo pics so I had Brent take these of me this morning. I hadn't put on makeup or done my hair yet... so just look at the belly. :o) I am in my 24th week (6 months along) and for those who don't know yet, we are expecting a girl. I'm feeling good and all is well. Can you believe I still have 3 more months?! I'm going to get as big as Jupiter I'm sure.

Almost a year?

I can't believe it's been almost a year since I posted. Sorry for the long, unintentional, hiatus. SO much has happened in a year. I guess I'll just bullet point some of them.

*I reached and exceeded my weight loss goals. I lost a total of 50 pounds and for the first time in my life I was in the 170's, a size 12, and at a healthy BMI.
*I completed my first half-marathon in October and my second half-marathon on April 23, 2011. Both were fabulous experiences!
*Jacob had his tonsils and adenoids out in December. Thank goodness my mom was here over the holiday's to help me.
*Jacob finished his first year of preschool (a co-op I did with some friends in my ward). He loved it. He is so excited to be going to a "real" school this fall for pre-k.
*Daniel completed one year of early intervention speech therapy and has improved so much he is no longer eligible for services! YAY! He is such a fun 2-almost-3 year old.
*We have owned our home for one year now!
*We have lived in Oregon for 4 years and Brent is still enjoying his job.
*I was released as Compassionate Service leader last August and am now the Primary chorister. Brent teaches Elders Quorum. Jacob is a CTR4 and Daniel still attends his beloved nursery.

and the biggest news of all...

*We are expecting baby #3 - due in December!

For all the ladies...

because the guys wouldn't get it.

Yesterday I put on a size 14 and it was comfortable - not too tight! I haven't worn a size 14 since I was 15 years old.. that was half my life ago!!!! So I'm very proud to say that I've put all the size 16 items in the closet.

One more pound to lose before I hit another big milestone - 40 pounds lost.

I am beyond excited about it and had to share.

Major Milestone

So most of you know how hard I have been trying to lose weight. Well, last night I stepped on the scale and was delighted to see that I have finally reached my wedding weight! I was so excited about it that I was unable to go to sleep until after midnight. I have lost 36 pounds since I started on this journey in January 2009.

I didn't expect to reach this goal before summer so now I am thrilled that I can reevaluate and make a new goal to reach by end of summer. I want to reach the weight I was at my lightest which is when I lived with my grandparents when I was 15 and a sophomore in HS - that is 8 pounds away. It doesn't sound like much, but with how hard I have to work to lose even a single pound, it is a lofty goal.

To help with that goal my neighbor and I are training for a 10k. This morning I jogged 4 miles, the farthest I have ran in a single run since college. I am seriously flying high right now and it feels GREAT!

To top it all off my father in law will arrive tonight to help us with some larger projects we need to do to get our new home ready to move in. I am very excited to see him and so are the boys. Good times people. Good times.