Well, it's been quite awhile, as my last blog post was in February and here we are in the middle of August!
JON:
Still going strong in school. The light at the end of the tunnel is getting brighter though and we can almost smell the fresh air that consists of nights that won't end in an all night study session for daddy/husband. Jon graduates in December. Yes. THIS December!! Not next year, not in two years, but in just four short months! And we could not be more happy, proud, excited, elated, nervous, anxious and any and all other emotions that one would expect to feel at the winding down of any big accomplishment. To say that I am proud of Jon would be a huge understatement. I am constantly in awe of my wonderful husband and of how hard he works. He is amazing and I love him so much and am so grateful for the example that he is setting for our children, and for me. He truly is fantastic, and I know that he is more ready than we are to be done with this first schooling accomplishment! We are going to be waiting about a year and then he's going to jump in to get his masters done. Then maybe a Ph.D? Who knows? He's got the two Doctors of my family to catch up to!
His new semester starts in just a couple of weeks, so he is soaking in as much free time as he can right now.
BRITTNEY:
So much!!! I finished music directing Seussical at North Davis! The kids did a good job and Duncan was adorable! Brittany and I were just starting to discuss what show to do next year and then she got a part time English teaching job at Clearfield High, so I actually won't be at NDJH next year. It was sad, but kind of relieving because of the time it would have required. And with my dad having to go to the VA for his cancer treatments I really need to make sure I'm not putting too much on my mother. Because Jon will have about five classes next semester, so I really don't want to put stress on him either. It was a sad moment, because I have loved working with Brittany, but I am actually quite relieved!
Then we finished Once on This Island at Syracuse Jr. High, and let me tell you, that was the best show I've ever seen done by a junior high. The music, the dancing, the singing, the acting, the costumes, the set. Everything was executed perfectly and I feel like my life was truly changed by this show. It was such a good show, and we had such a great cast to pull it off. Then after the show was over, we went into the music review, which- holy moly- was hard to put together. We did Mary Poppins, and there was so much music for not a ton of rehearsal time, but the kids stepped up to the challenge and did great! I was so proud of them, and it's so sad to think that my time with some of them is done!! The ninth graders were seventh graders when I started at SJH and so it's really sad to see them off, but they are going to do wonderfully in high school.
I had a birthday! And Jon totally spoilt me all day long!! We had a fantastic day, and it rained.... like it does every year on my birthday, so that's cool that things don't change. I like to think that it's a little gift from England every year on my birthday.
I also auditioned for Seussical at Terrace Plaza Playhouse. EEK!!! I was seriously so nervous!! I almost didn't audition because I was so nervous and I had actually been feeling pretty down about myself lately. But I got up, and I got there and I auditioned and I was called back for Mayzie, Gertrude and a Bird Girl. I was seriously so excited to just be considered for anything!! I hadn't done a show for so long, that I just needed to be in something!! So I went to the dance call back and then the vocal callbacks and sang my little heart out and then I waited...... for the rest of Saturday, all day Sunday, and then half way through Monday. Then finally, I refreshed the website and the cast list was posted!!!! And what happened??? I was cast as Gertrude!! I cannot tell you how excited I was! Gertrude is one of my dream roles, and I am so grateful that I've been given this opportunity! I'm also just excited to be in it. So we've been doing rehearsals during the week and on Saturday mornings, and I love it! I love having purpose outside of mom mode!
We opened the beginning of August, and I cannot reiterate enough how grateful I am for this opportunity! We've had really good audiences, and it's been so much fun to perform again and to get so involved in a story. Jon brought me the most amazing opening night present! He brought me a bouquet, but not just ANY bouquet, he brought me these folded flowers that had been made with Gertrude McFuzz's pages in her story. Then he wrote me this cute note that I had to stop myself from crying because I already had put on my makeup!! But just know that I have the most amazing husband ever and that he is fantastic!!
LIAM:
Liam is now three years old!! And boy, does he act it. I had heard from several people that threes were harder than twos, and I believe it. He woke up on his birthday and immediately he was more trying. I didn't think it would happen, but it totally did.
Liam is doing so well!! He is learning so much and he is such a sweet little boy- with a little sass.... ok- a LOT of sass. He is becoming very opinionated and definitely tells us what's what. He is in preschool now, I got him into Bravo Arts Academy last year and he has flourished. It was definitely hard for him in the beginning because it was a lot of "no's" from his teacher, but she was so good and so patient with him, and he learned so much last year. Today we got to go to his school for "meet your teacher" day! We walked him in and he saw Ms. Jensen and ran up to her to give her a hug, and proceeded to go into her classroom. We told him that he got to have a new teacher, and he didn't seem too pleased with that prospect, but he followed us into his new classroom. His new teacher is really sweet. But, Liam definitely wasn't the most hyper child in there, so I hope that she can handle them this year. Friday is his actual first day, but he has been so excited to go to school, so that is a good thing!!
We made the attempt to potty train during my Hell week, which wasn't the smartest idea on my part, but I had run out of diapers, and I didn't want to go to the store to get more. So the first day was great, he went on the potty, and only had one accident! The second day was a little bit more difficult... and needless to say, I broke down and got diapers, because I wasn't ready to focus all my time on it. The only problem with that is he needs to be able to go potty for school, otherwise they will call me to come change him. Which I don't mind, but now I'm constantly on call while he's at school.
Liam has been having a rough time lately, he's so smart and so sweet, but I like to call it a big spirit in a little body. He gets so frustrated very quickly and it takes a long time for him to calm down. I have to admit that I had a crying session the other night, because I worry that I'm doing something wrong, and I worry that I'm not doing enough for him to flourish. He's such a free spirited child, that I worry that he will be labeled as the "bad child" or that people will dread having him around. He has gotten so belligerent and so stubborn that it's hard to handle him sometimes. I'm trying my hardest, but honestly, I have no idea what I'm doing! He's my first. Jon keeps telling me that if he doesn't need intense therapy later in life, we are doing a good job. He really is a sweet kid, he just has a difficult time focusing, and I know it's not his fault, but it is frustrating to have to constantly remind him to focus.
DUNCAN!!
Oh my goodness. Duncan has completely stolen our hearts. We have to keep telling Liam that Duncan is out cute-ing him, because he is just being so freaking adorable. All the freaking time!! He finally has more than his two bottom teeth. It took forever, but I am not complaining! I nursed Duncan til 13 months, and then one day, he just decided that he was done. It was like a bad breakup, I had absolutely no closure!! There was one night that I really broke down and just cried and cried! It was really an emotional night! Then, as if Duncan knew, he nursed one more time later that week. I cherished every moment of that forty minutes! The only problem with Duncan weaning himself was the fact that he still wouldn't drink from a cup, or a bottle or any other device. So he would eat just fine, and then I would put breastmilk in a the syringe that comes with infant tylenol, and I would syringe feed him. Finally, he picked up on how to drink from a straw, and that's what he's done for the past couple months. His and my relationship got a lot better when we weaned; all he saw me for a was food for the first year of his life. He didn't want anything to do with me except to eat, then he wouldn't pay me any mind. He didn't want to snuggle with me or play with me, all I was was food. He was constantly crying around me too, because he just wanted to nurse. Everyone would tell me that he was so cute and adorable and I would think, "No he's not. All he does is cry!!". But after we were done nursing, suddenly he was adorable all the time because he actually interacted with me.
About a month ago Duncan got hand, foot, mouth disease and it was a miserable time for all of us. We tried so hard to keep Duncan and Liam as separate as we could, but it was to no avail. Liam got it too. Thankfully, Liam didn't get it nearly as bad as Duncan did. Duncan had the rash all over his body, on his feet, hands, legs, groin, around and in his mouth. It was so sad! Duncan handled it all like a champ though! He was so sweet even though he was in pain. Liam acted like a toddler, even though he only got the rash on the bottom of his feet, on his legs and some in his groin area. Not fun, for sure! But definitely not nearly as bad as Duncan.
Last week was Duncan's first time in Nursery! I cannot believe that he's almost old enough to go in by himself! He did so good!! He sat and played with Playdoh without eating it, and then he sat so sweetly in Sharing Time and played with the bells that they gave him to play with. He truly was adorable!!! We only stayed for the first hour, because I had to be back in Relief Society to play the piano, but it was so adorable!! And it is so crazy to think that he's going to be in Nursery soon, without me. My baby is definitely not my baby anymore. He's growing up so fast!!
ABOUT OUR SUMMER:
In June, Jon and I were going to go to a marriage retreat that my brother and sister in law were organizing. It ended up getting cancelled and so we thought about lots of other things to do. One of which was to go to Tuacahn and see the shows they have going on. After much discussion, we came to the conclusion that since Liam was about two weeks away from turning three we would take him to Disneyland because he would be free. So, we dropped Duncan off to my parents house in the morning, and we started our journey to Disneyland. Jon drove for about seven hours, and then right before getting into California we swapped and I drove the rest of the way. Liam did pretty good for being in the car for 10 straight hours. We got to the hotel, and the thing that immediately caught his interest was the phones. So we had to unplug those for our stay.
The next day, we got all ready to go, and we went to Disneyland and waited in our first line.... to get into the park. Ha. It was magical!! To see Liam's eyes completely light up was the most adorable thing!! We rode on the train first so he got to see everything, and he loved it!! The train conductor even gave Liam a button that said "first time" on it. We went on Haunted Mansion first, and then we discovered that Liam was 2 inches too short for any of the other rides, so we mainly rode all the little kid rides, which you forget how awesome they are when you don't HAVE to ride them anymore. Liam's favourite ride was Ariel's Undersea Adventure over in California Adventures. And this little kid got to meet Mickey Mouse. We waited in the line for forty five minutes, but it was so worth it. We walked into the room that Mickey was in and Liam just stared at him in revered awe! Then he went up and gave him a hug and then just went off on a string of gibberish that no one understood. But it was so cute!! We had a fantastic time! And ever since we got home, Liam has been asking to go back to Disneyland.
By the end of the third day, Liam was done. We were in line for Pirates, and right as we were about to get into the boat, he started crying. So we knew that we were done. But it was a fantastic experience to take our child to Disneyland for the first time!
His new semester starts in just a couple of weeks, so he is soaking in as much free time as he can right now.
BRITTNEY:
So much!!! I finished music directing Seussical at North Davis! The kids did a good job and Duncan was adorable! Brittany and I were just starting to discuss what show to do next year and then she got a part time English teaching job at Clearfield High, so I actually won't be at NDJH next year. It was sad, but kind of relieving because of the time it would have required. And with my dad having to go to the VA for his cancer treatments I really need to make sure I'm not putting too much on my mother. Because Jon will have about five classes next semester, so I really don't want to put stress on him either. It was a sad moment, because I have loved working with Brittany, but I am actually quite relieved!
Then we finished Once on This Island at Syracuse Jr. High, and let me tell you, that was the best show I've ever seen done by a junior high. The music, the dancing, the singing, the acting, the costumes, the set. Everything was executed perfectly and I feel like my life was truly changed by this show. It was such a good show, and we had such a great cast to pull it off. Then after the show was over, we went into the music review, which- holy moly- was hard to put together. We did Mary Poppins, and there was so much music for not a ton of rehearsal time, but the kids stepped up to the challenge and did great! I was so proud of them, and it's so sad to think that my time with some of them is done!! The ninth graders were seventh graders when I started at SJH and so it's really sad to see them off, but they are going to do wonderfully in high school.
I had a birthday! And Jon totally spoilt me all day long!! We had a fantastic day, and it rained.... like it does every year on my birthday, so that's cool that things don't change. I like to think that it's a little gift from England every year on my birthday.
I also auditioned for Seussical at Terrace Plaza Playhouse. EEK!!! I was seriously so nervous!! I almost didn't audition because I was so nervous and I had actually been feeling pretty down about myself lately. But I got up, and I got there and I auditioned and I was called back for Mayzie, Gertrude and a Bird Girl. I was seriously so excited to just be considered for anything!! I hadn't done a show for so long, that I just needed to be in something!! So I went to the dance call back and then the vocal callbacks and sang my little heart out and then I waited...... for the rest of Saturday, all day Sunday, and then half way through Monday. Then finally, I refreshed the website and the cast list was posted!!!! And what happened??? I was cast as Gertrude!! I cannot tell you how excited I was! Gertrude is one of my dream roles, and I am so grateful that I've been given this opportunity! I'm also just excited to be in it. So we've been doing rehearsals during the week and on Saturday mornings, and I love it! I love having purpose outside of mom mode!
We opened the beginning of August, and I cannot reiterate enough how grateful I am for this opportunity! We've had really good audiences, and it's been so much fun to perform again and to get so involved in a story. Jon brought me the most amazing opening night present! He brought me a bouquet, but not just ANY bouquet, he brought me these folded flowers that had been made with Gertrude McFuzz's pages in her story. Then he wrote me this cute note that I had to stop myself from crying because I already had put on my makeup!! But just know that I have the most amazing husband ever and that he is fantastic!!
LIAM:
Liam is now three years old!! And boy, does he act it. I had heard from several people that threes were harder than twos, and I believe it. He woke up on his birthday and immediately he was more trying. I didn't think it would happen, but it totally did.
Liam is doing so well!! He is learning so much and he is such a sweet little boy- with a little sass.... ok- a LOT of sass. He is becoming very opinionated and definitely tells us what's what. He is in preschool now, I got him into Bravo Arts Academy last year and he has flourished. It was definitely hard for him in the beginning because it was a lot of "no's" from his teacher, but she was so good and so patient with him, and he learned so much last year. Today we got to go to his school for "meet your teacher" day! We walked him in and he saw Ms. Jensen and ran up to her to give her a hug, and proceeded to go into her classroom. We told him that he got to have a new teacher, and he didn't seem too pleased with that prospect, but he followed us into his new classroom. His new teacher is really sweet. But, Liam definitely wasn't the most hyper child in there, so I hope that she can handle them this year. Friday is his actual first day, but he has been so excited to go to school, so that is a good thing!!
We made the attempt to potty train during my Hell week, which wasn't the smartest idea on my part, but I had run out of diapers, and I didn't want to go to the store to get more. So the first day was great, he went on the potty, and only had one accident! The second day was a little bit more difficult... and needless to say, I broke down and got diapers, because I wasn't ready to focus all my time on it. The only problem with that is he needs to be able to go potty for school, otherwise they will call me to come change him. Which I don't mind, but now I'm constantly on call while he's at school.
Liam has been having a rough time lately, he's so smart and so sweet, but I like to call it a big spirit in a little body. He gets so frustrated very quickly and it takes a long time for him to calm down. I have to admit that I had a crying session the other night, because I worry that I'm doing something wrong, and I worry that I'm not doing enough for him to flourish. He's such a free spirited child, that I worry that he will be labeled as the "bad child" or that people will dread having him around. He has gotten so belligerent and so stubborn that it's hard to handle him sometimes. I'm trying my hardest, but honestly, I have no idea what I'm doing! He's my first. Jon keeps telling me that if he doesn't need intense therapy later in life, we are doing a good job. He really is a sweet kid, he just has a difficult time focusing, and I know it's not his fault, but it is frustrating to have to constantly remind him to focus.
DUNCAN!!
Oh my goodness. Duncan has completely stolen our hearts. We have to keep telling Liam that Duncan is out cute-ing him, because he is just being so freaking adorable. All the freaking time!! He finally has more than his two bottom teeth. It took forever, but I am not complaining! I nursed Duncan til 13 months, and then one day, he just decided that he was done. It was like a bad breakup, I had absolutely no closure!! There was one night that I really broke down and just cried and cried! It was really an emotional night! Then, as if Duncan knew, he nursed one more time later that week. I cherished every moment of that forty minutes! The only problem with Duncan weaning himself was the fact that he still wouldn't drink from a cup, or a bottle or any other device. So he would eat just fine, and then I would put breastmilk in a the syringe that comes with infant tylenol, and I would syringe feed him. Finally, he picked up on how to drink from a straw, and that's what he's done for the past couple months. His and my relationship got a lot better when we weaned; all he saw me for a was food for the first year of his life. He didn't want anything to do with me except to eat, then he wouldn't pay me any mind. He didn't want to snuggle with me or play with me, all I was was food. He was constantly crying around me too, because he just wanted to nurse. Everyone would tell me that he was so cute and adorable and I would think, "No he's not. All he does is cry!!". But after we were done nursing, suddenly he was adorable all the time because he actually interacted with me.
About a month ago Duncan got hand, foot, mouth disease and it was a miserable time for all of us. We tried so hard to keep Duncan and Liam as separate as we could, but it was to no avail. Liam got it too. Thankfully, Liam didn't get it nearly as bad as Duncan did. Duncan had the rash all over his body, on his feet, hands, legs, groin, around and in his mouth. It was so sad! Duncan handled it all like a champ though! He was so sweet even though he was in pain. Liam acted like a toddler, even though he only got the rash on the bottom of his feet, on his legs and some in his groin area. Not fun, for sure! But definitely not nearly as bad as Duncan.
Last week was Duncan's first time in Nursery! I cannot believe that he's almost old enough to go in by himself! He did so good!! He sat and played with Playdoh without eating it, and then he sat so sweetly in Sharing Time and played with the bells that they gave him to play with. He truly was adorable!!! We only stayed for the first hour, because I had to be back in Relief Society to play the piano, but it was so adorable!! And it is so crazy to think that he's going to be in Nursery soon, without me. My baby is definitely not my baby anymore. He's growing up so fast!!
ABOUT OUR SUMMER:
In June, Jon and I were going to go to a marriage retreat that my brother and sister in law were organizing. It ended up getting cancelled and so we thought about lots of other things to do. One of which was to go to Tuacahn and see the shows they have going on. After much discussion, we came to the conclusion that since Liam was about two weeks away from turning three we would take him to Disneyland because he would be free. So, we dropped Duncan off to my parents house in the morning, and we started our journey to Disneyland. Jon drove for about seven hours, and then right before getting into California we swapped and I drove the rest of the way. Liam did pretty good for being in the car for 10 straight hours. We got to the hotel, and the thing that immediately caught his interest was the phones. So we had to unplug those for our stay.
The next day, we got all ready to go, and we went to Disneyland and waited in our first line.... to get into the park. Ha. It was magical!! To see Liam's eyes completely light up was the most adorable thing!! We rode on the train first so he got to see everything, and he loved it!! The train conductor even gave Liam a button that said "first time" on it. We went on Haunted Mansion first, and then we discovered that Liam was 2 inches too short for any of the other rides, so we mainly rode all the little kid rides, which you forget how awesome they are when you don't HAVE to ride them anymore. Liam's favourite ride was Ariel's Undersea Adventure over in California Adventures. And this little kid got to meet Mickey Mouse. We waited in the line for forty five minutes, but it was so worth it. We walked into the room that Mickey was in and Liam just stared at him in revered awe! Then he went up and gave him a hug and then just went off on a string of gibberish that no one understood. But it was so cute!! We had a fantastic time! And ever since we got home, Liam has been asking to go back to Disneyland.
By the end of the third day, Liam was done. We were in line for Pirates, and right as we were about to get into the boat, he started crying. So we knew that we were done. But it was a fantastic experience to take our child to Disneyland for the first time!
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