Sweet Boy

Collin is 7 1/2 months and seems to be growing up so fast to me! He now sits up on his own for long periods of time before crashing. He is making all those "consonant/vowel" sounds like ba ba, da da. On his tummy, he pushes his whole upper body off the ground and has attempted to get the knees involved a couple times. About a week ago he even {reached} for me when Trav was holding him. Kinda a bummer for Trav I think, but I was elated. I suppose when you spend the majority of your time with him and provide all his sustanance, that's bound to happen. And my favorite yet, is that he's discovered how to scrunch up his nose and blow air in and out really fast so it sounds funny. This cracks him (and us) up.

Last week, I was folding clothes on our bed, when I realized that the second I stopped paying attention to him and kept folding, he'd do the nose thing. The second I'd turned to him, he'd laugh and enjoy the attention, but once I went back to folding, it would only take about 15 sec. for hime to do it again. What a mischievious boy!! :)

Also last week, we were shopping at Sam's Club, and had stopped to talk about something when we noticed Collin light up and smile so big. That's when we realized we had conveniently stopped right next to a large, high def. t.v. that was playing a cartoon. He was loving it, Trav I'm sure was seeing this as another good reason to purchase said t.v., and I just groaned.

My back is feeling better, but it has been a long (and boring) few days trying to rest and take it easy. On one of those days, we were chilling on the spare {chiropractic} bed and Collin was hamming it up, being SO happy. I love this picture.

If you enlarge this one, it shows really well what his eye color looks like. We still don't have a "name" for them. Are they hazel, brown, grey?? Who's to know. Perhaps on his driver's license, next to eye color it will just say: trippy.

This clip would only be interesting to grandma's and maybe a doting aunt :) Nothing special, just a bit of his mannerisms and laughing.
Well we had a few weeks of {this} kind of weather. Say hello to marshmellow boy.

But for the past several days we have had glorious {fall} weather. Trav looked out our window and commented that we had a "traffic light" in our front yard. I think he was right :)

Sorry if fall leaves bore you, but I'm fairly fascinated by them. Must have been all the deprivation of them growing up. I think the Shaws have the prettiest tree on their street. A big mix of color!

Just a few we enjoy on our walks.

I've been doing some crafting lately.... I pulled out my decoration box and found a grocery bag full of wooden "parts" that I thought made a turkey. I missed an enrichment activity in my old ward, but had paid for the craft, so they gave me a bag full of parts to assemble on my own. Two years later and I had forgotten what it was supposed to look like. Thanks to Facebook, someone posted a picture and I was able to copy it. Funny thing was, she showed me that I had the parts for a turkey AND a cat. And here I was trying to make them all work into one decoration. Would have been a pretty ugly turkey. :)

And for our last bit of exciting (but not really that exciting) news, Ole' Dirty (remember, pronounced Deer-tay) hit 100,000 miles! What a trusty old car we have. Although not so trusty, since it's still doing the whole "rocking" back and forth occasionally if you're going over 65mph.

We had the Elders over for dinner on Sunday, and Trav was dropping them off at their next appt. when they were nearing the monumentous 100,000 mark. When they arrived at their destination, Trav realized that Elder Mckee had directed him via the "scenic route" to get to the house because he wanted to be there when the odometer struck 100,000. Oh, Elder Mckee.

Back on my Back

Let me introduce you to my new stance. It's not comfortable.

Thursday afternoon I felt a twinge in my lower back that usually tells me it's about to go out. But it can't be!! It just went out two months ago! Oh, but it can be. By evening I was hunched over once again, like a little old lady. What a cruel joke.

It really puts meaning into the part of your prayer (I know you all say it too!) when you thank Heavenly Father for your health. I know I'll be ship shap in 4-5 days, but what if I wasn't? What if I was one of those people who had to deal with chronic pain? I can't imagine. There's nothing worse than being limited by your own body, consequently making you feel unproductive or useless.

This back back pain alone is pretty debilitating. I can't lift Collin for very long, or far for that matter. And it's worse this time. I can't even get relief laying down. It's just too painful. I finally fell asleep last night on my side, in the fetal position. I took a couple Advil, but for some reason I just don't want to take too much medicine. I'm kind of weird about pills, sometimes I have no problem popping them in, and other times I just feel like I should do it on my own.

Yesterday evening I was sick of being inside and so we went to Babies R' Us and then to dinner with some friends. After walking a few minutes, my upper body is pretty much horizontal (much worse than the picture) and I'm a little embarrassed for myself because people stare and I'm sure they understand why I'm hunched over, but just in case, I feel like holding up a big sign that says, "Yes onlookers- my back went out. I know I should be at home resting, but I'm bored so don't judge!!" And thankfully Trav isn't embarrassed to be seen with me. Or maybe he is, but he knows well enough to not let me know.

There is a silver lining. At least it seized up this weekend and not next weekend when all the Halloween parties are and we have a guest staying with us. And I always know there is an end in sight. Unlike those who suffer with much more serious health issues. So, I guess I shouldn't complain. And I feel like I can still truthfully say, "Thank you Heavenly Father for blessing me with good health."

Family Pictures

Amidst all the fall festivities it occurred to me that soon after Halloween comes Thanksgiving and then of course Christmas! And I really wanted a family picture outside for our Christmas card. Lucky for us, we've made friends with some talented folks out here and Megan was able to snap a few for us before the weather turned too nasty. As it was, Collin didn't last too long in the 50 degree weather before his nose and cheeks got red and his fussiness got to be a problem! He was pretty amused by this crate, but thankfully didn't try to suck on it, as he does to everything!

I LOVE the background of this pic.

 Don't I have a handsome hubby?! I think he's pretty darn cute. And I just want to eat my babers up! How did I get so lucky?!

Thanks again Megan! Once again, you've outdone yourself :)

A Bit Down

Tonight, I went to a Stake Leadership meeting and listened for nearly two hours about all the things I should be doing in the YW presidency. They talked for quite a bit about Personal Progress and I couldn't help but feel frustrated. We have 29 girls on our YW rosters. There are 13 names of girls that I have never even met in over a year of living here. I can think of only 3 girls who I can say are truly "active". I was astounded during my first time to YW to learn that it was a struggle to get the girls to not just be modest, but to even wear a dress to church. My first presidency meeting was completely depressing. It seemed like every girl was struggling with trials I can't comprehend, let alone relate to. Broken homes, drugs, eating disorders, abuse (of ALL kinds), depression, poverty. When I dropped off one girl after mutual, no one was home at her house, so she came back to the car to tell me she was going around the back to let herself in. I seriously worried for her safety as she disappeared into the darkness. She lives in a SCARY neighborhood! These girls are up against HARD things. We are just trying to get them to finish high school! How am I supposed to make sure they also finish experience #4 in the faith value? I feel like every time they come to mutual or make it to the lesson on Sunday, it's a huge victory. I want them to feel the Spirit. I want them to know I care. I know we are making a difference, but when I am told the standards the stake wants us to live up to(really the general church standards), I just get discouraged.

Then I come home and Trav and I watched the tape of the Glenn Beck show that aired earlier today. Did any of you see it? Leah? If not, you should. He showed a tape of Anita Dunn. She is the White House Communications Director and was a major advisor to Pres. Obama during his campaign. She was speaking to high school graduates in June earlier this year and said that she considers Mao Tse Tung to be one of her favorite political philosophers. In case you didn't know, Mao was a Chinese dictator that killed millions. MILLIONS. And he is one of her favorite philosophers. Oh, right next to Mother Teresa that is. Seriously, that is exactly what she said. This is why I struggle with learning more about politics. It either gets me hopping mad or so depressed. Another clip I watched today... Keith Olberman. He is a political commentator who has a show on MSNBC. He declares people to be "the worst people in the world" on his show and yesterday he gave the "bronze" to Elder Oaks for comments he made to BYU Idaho students regarding same sex marriage. At the end, Keith says, and I quote "these are subjects on which he should shut the hell up". I must say, this was just the icing on the cake for what has been a pretty depressing night. I can only assume that when the media slanders the Lord's apostles, things aren't looking bright. Sorry for the downer post, it's just how I'm feelin.

For ev ev ever, For ev ev ever!

I know I've been a blogging fiend the past few weeks, but I am an addict. The first step is recognizing you have a problem, right?!

Anyhoo, my musings for the day are that:

* Snips and snails and puppy dog tails, that's what little boys are made of!

Does anyone else think that saying/poem is really, really weird. It's on almost all boy baby shower invitations and I think we should just put a stop to the madness . I mean really, snails and tails?

(Grandma Sharon gave him this hat and it is PERFECT for this chilly weather we have been having.)

* We took Trav some lunch at school today (Mickey D's to be exact. Soooo healthy)

We ate outside at a picnic table and some of Trav's friends stopped by to coo at Collin (they were girls) And they loved his mohawk. Only, they wanted to know if WE did it to his hair. No, future dentists, it grows that way.

Then Trav made the mistake of tossing Collin up and down after he had just eaten. Maybe I should have warned him. What's funny is I caught the moment at the perfect time. Isn't Trav's face that of a loving father? Haha.Much better!*This pic is more for my mom, than anyone else, but I wanted to show off the new sling that Kendra gave me (thanks again!) He loves it. I actually folded clothes, vacuumed, and brought in the trash cans all with Collin on my hip. Fantabulous.

* And last, but possibly most important- I LOVED the Office episode last night! I'll admit it, I got teary just watching the previews of Jim giving his toast about waiting for Pam because he knew she was going to be his wife. (Leah, you did too, right?!) And then when we watched the episode, they actually got married at Niagra Falls!!! What the heck people! Why wasn't I informed of this?!!! Just ask Trav, throughout the whole episode I kept lamenting that we were SO CLOSE and didn't go to the filming. I mean, I don't know if those are actual tourists on the Maid of the Mist, but they sure could have been!! Major sigh. And then the last five minutes of them dancing down the isle was so good. I know I'm Mormon, but maybe Trav and I could like renew our "vows" or something and do the same thing. It could be awesome. Apparently the dancing was an idea from a You Tube clip of some people doing it at a real wedding. If you haven't seen it, click on this link. If you're anything like me, it will make you so happy. :)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-94JhLEiN0

BaBy FooD - YuCk!

HELP!

Gerber has failed me. Collin is such a stinker when it comes to eating! We started giving him rice cereal a couple weeks ago, which he tolerated ok, until he realized he could blow it off the spoon and all over Mama! Case in point below:

Then on Sunday we started with real baby food. No bueno. You know those Funniest Home Video clips of the babies making hilarious faces while eating? Well, come to find out, those faces aren't that abnormal! Collin makes them EVERY time he eats!

I believe these are carrots he is disdaining.

Oh, that happy face isn't going to last very long....

Meal time consists of at least a half hour endeavor to sneak the spoonfuls in. After a while he gets smart and purses his lips tight until I get him to laugh, then shove the slop in. THEN, he discovered, he doesn't have to swallow! Why not just let it chill in your gaping mouth, until the saliva starts accumalting and slides out? Sigh. The past couple times I've literally become nauseous after watching this ordeal.

Well I stuck with the veggies since I heard that was what was best to start with, then yesterday I broke out the pears. He just loved them. Can ya tell?

He loves to nurse. What is going on here?! Hmm, I remember he loved that candy apple. I may have produced a mini me. I'll nickname him Mr. Sugar Addict. This is not good news.

Seneca Lake

We had the best time up at Seneca Lake with some friends last weekend. Seneca Lake is one of the Finger Lakes in NY and the church owns property and cabins next to it. It's actually the second deepest lake in the US and they test submarines in it!It's about an hour and 45 minutes away and is also where they have girls camp. Crescent's husband, Dave, headed up all the plans and we were going to stay in one of the cabins that sleeps 16 people. The wives saw through what could have been a disasterous night of the kids all waking each other up all night and Crescent figured out that there was also a house you could rent. We decided it would be well worth the money. Boy were we right!

Friday rolled around and it was a horrible, stormy, rainy day. I still have anxiety when it comes to road trips, so Trav was kind and kept it around 70 mph. Even so, in the pouring rain, our car would suddenly start to rock as though it were fishtailing. The first time it happened, I kid you not, it felt like my heart stopped while my legs simultaneously went numb and the rest of my body got hot and tingly. He tried to assure me it was the road. I knew it wasn't. That continued to happen at least 7 or 8 other times. Thanks to a protective Heavenly Father, we arrived safetly. (Now we just need to get our car checked out. Any ideas what the problem could be?!)

I didn't know what to expect when we pulled up to the house, but it certainly wasn't this! The house was huge, with five bedrooms and three bathrooms. ChaChing!

We picked up some pizzas in town for dinner then put the little kids down to bed so the games could begin!

I guess Megan loves ice even more than yours truly. Since the freezer didn't have any, she resorted to "ice cups" (water frozen in a cup). Here is Bron showing off his ice cup now :)

We started out tame with Loaded Questions, then got a bit more rambunctious with Spoons. (not spooning, the game spoons - although spooning was brought up :)Then Brad introduced us to the best game EVER-
NINJA!
So, you stand in a circle, bow, then strike a ninja pose. You are frozen in that pose unless someone tries to "attack" you. Then you can move to avoid the attack, but are stuck in the resulting pose. One person starts by trying to hit someone's hands. If you get your hand hit, you're out. If the person misses. They have to stay in the pose they ended in and then it's the next person's turn to "attack". Don't know if that made sense, but watch the video to get an idea of how it works.

We were still learning, so everyone is pretty slow in the video, but after we got the hang of it, it moved faster and was seriously so much fun!


There were a few shocking poses. This looks bad, but no, Trav did not slap Crescent. (Dave took care of that for him - just a few mishaps :)Sometime you got stuck on the floor if you dove for someone's hand. Bron enjoyed the floor.

We must have played Ninja for over an hour. We got so hot and sweaty we actually opened the windows to the freezingness that was outdoors! After that we figured there wasn't going to be another time that we had a whole huge house without fragile decorations all to ourselves. That's right, it was Hide and Seek time! Can you picture it? Lights off. Grown adults acting like children. Running amuk. It was hysterical. We played different versions like Sardines and Murder in the Dark. By about 1:30am, it was time for a ghost story. Serioulsy. Dave actually had a pretty good one. Bron snuck out and tried to scare us by jumping out and screaming. Nice try Bron :) We talked until 2:30am then decided to call it a night.

The kiddos woke up nice and early and we shared a big pancake breakfast. We took a walk down to the lake and I was more than amazed to see this:

Since when can you see through lake water?! Oh, right, I'm just used to the polluted nastiness that is Saguaro or Canyon Lake. Haha.

Well what comes next is something I'm going to claim bragging rights to for a long time! On October 3 in New York, we went.... WAKEBOARDING!

Crazy? Yes, most definitely. The thing was- after a cold and rainy day the day before, we were duped into thinking the sun meant warm times on the lake. Warm times to us is 67 degrees. The church had a ski boat they rented to us for $20 an hour. We just couldn't turn it down.

Here is our trusty driver, Brad. (Notice Jen has on a ski jacket.)

Dave went first with a full wetsuit on and claimed it wasn't too bad. Then Jen was next but her wet suit didn't have sleeves. This is what she looked like each time we circled to pick her back up after falling.

And here is my crazy husband. We haven't been wakeboarding in years and he gets out there and starts jumping and ....throwing back flips. Seriously, this guy = nutso. No tower, but he tried anyway.

And then I come along. I screamed when my body hit the water. And kept screaming. I've never been immersed in water that cold before! ICY. (I looked it up later and the water was around 65degrees.) I was afraid I wouldn't be able to get up, but that wasn't a problem after all. Although, I'll admit that right after I got up all I could think was "AHHHHHHHHH, SCAAAAAAAARY!!!!!". I put on quite the show by sitting behind the boat, just holding on. That was plenty of fun for me!

Here is the whole gang before we headed home. Thanks for a great time Marchants!!! We would do it again in a heartbeat! (Next time with the Shaws! We missed you Rach and Doug!)

Happy Yom Kippur (pronounced "kipper!")

Ok, maybe it's "Yom Kippour", but it's way more fun to say "Kipper"! :) And if you're wondering why I'm saying it at all, it's because UB likes to give it's students a day off on Jewish holidays. Thus, last Monday Trav had a little break! We thought it would be fun to have one last BBQ, but woke up to awful, horrible, nasty weather. Just a preview for what's in store, I'm sure.
So this little monkey got bundled up while we ran a few errands.

And after much deep contemplation, I decided we should do the BBQ anyway! So my very obliging husband grilled in the garage. I felt terrible. It was freezing outside, but of course he didn't complain. He's too sweet to me.

We invited a few friends over and ate in the basement. The kids had fun playing....

While the adults visited (and did some dancing to Miley Cyrus :)

When I uploaded my pictures I couldn't remember why I took this one. Then I looked in the background. I think that's Ryan's impersonation of a periscope, haha.

You may have noticed a few fun toys in our basement, and that's because last Saturday we hit up some AWESOME

GARAGE SALES!!

I grew up with some biased opinions of garage sales. Mostly that they're white trashy. (I believe that's thanks to my mother, haha) But then some friends helped open my eyes to the true beautifulness of a good yard sale. And last weekend we found the mother load at a block sale. Trav even scored a grilled hot dog (WAY better marketing than those dinky cups of lemonade!)

I was having a great time. By the time we left I could tell I was on one of those "shopper's highs" I've heard so much about.

And here is the loot! Complete with a Johnny Jumper, basketball hoop, slide, and tuby thing. (It's amazing how much fun kids have with a tube!) And all for under $35! A friggin' steal if you ask me. :) Especially since the slide alone is in the $40 range if bought new. And after we had a Clorox and Lysol party, my germ phobias were satisfied. Hopefully now, we're fairly well stocked with fun for Collin through the winter. Sigh.... winter. :(

I am DISGUSTED!!

Just about every morning I wake up and turn on the Today Show. It's usually pretty entertaining and I get the 411 on what's going on in the world. Occasionally I'm annoyed- even outraged- at the latest stories. In fact, there was a story about a 24 year old girl who went missing outside of an LA Sheriffs Office last week that absolutely sent me off my rocker and I even spouted off an email, being incensed as I was (not about her missing, but about her ridiculous parents)- seriously it was infuriating.

But on to the latest blood boiler. Have you heard the latest about funny man David Letterman? Apparently he had several affairs with women who work on his show and was blackmailed about 3 weeks ago by a guy who threatened to go public with the info via a book and movie, if Letterman didn't pay him 2 million. The guy is now in jail for extortion, but David decided to share the story with his viewers last night on his show so that no one could use the info against him again. Now for the part that ticked me off. I watched the clip of his show and realized that instead of acting remorseful for what he did, he made it out to be a big joke! He had everyone laughing and even CLAPPING when he admitted to the "creepy" things he had done. Some might argue that the audience really thought it was a joke, but after viewing it, I think it was quite obvious that he was telling the truth. But I'm so disgusted with David Letterman for 1- being a horrible person and having the affairs but 2- even more so for treating it so lightly!!! Even the dirty politicians who are caught in these situations at least APOLOGIZE for their actions (admittedly maybe not sincerely). Letterman completely villified the man who blackmailed him (yes, that man WAS in the wrong), but basically got himself off the hook. UGH! And then on the Today Show, Al Roker was interviewing a few editors in chief of online magazines who seemed very supportive of Letterman, even claiming this might do him MORE good than bad with his ratings and popularity!! Lets remember people, David didn't come clean on his own!!!!! He was "forced" to because of this blackmailer. If the blackmailer hadn't come along, this nastiness would stayed hidden, tucked in the closet of David's "creepiness".

What is the world coming too????!!!!!

I am {beyond} grossed out and infuriated by the evilness of the world we live in.