Mini Miracle Prayer

(50th post!)
 Since Ty has been teething (he has 2 little bottom teeth now), he's been a little more irritable and a lot more difficult to calm when he cries.  Sometimes he'll just be happy, then immediately bust out into tears, and in 3 seconds is full-on wailing.  My dad appropriately nicknamed him "0-60."  Not only does he get worked up quickly, he's also very loud.  Like pierce your ears loud.  Like "sorry about the screaming baby keeping you awake, neighbors" loud.  Anyway, because crying is generally a sign of discomfort or otherwise unhappiness, lately in our prayers we've been asking for Ty to be happy--pretty general, right?  A couple of nights ago Ty Guy was all worked up and inconsolable.  He wouldn't take a binky, refused a bottle, and even kept crying through looking in the mirror while bouncing.  What the heck?!  This all happened just as Russell and I were sitting down to dinner.  Finally, Ty calmed down enough for me to hold him while he ate (drank) and with tears still rolling down his chubby cheeks, I said our prayer for the food before we ate.  In it I asked that Ty could be happy.  Immediately after I said that, Ty stopped eating and looked at me (yes, I opened my eyes during a prayer), broke into a huge smile, and started laughing!  Russell and I cracked up, too and Ty kept laughing throughout the prayer as I tried to finish with whatever teeny bit of reverence was left.  Although many of our prayerful pleas are not so quickly answered, I suppose the message here is that there is no prayer too small that our Father in Heaven doesn't hear and respond to.  I'm grateful for the opportunity to pray and for a family with whom to pray.  I'm also grateful that Ty is generally a very happy little boy, but if he's not, I know just what to do.  ;)

Merry Belated Christmas!

For actual Christmas day and up through the New Year we were up in Washington with Russell's Dad (Big Papa) and his wife (Gramma Vicki).  We had a fun time sleeping in, relaxing, eating TONS of good food--seafood included--and visiting. 

Coming from the airport to go see everybody!  We got to break out Ty's "cold weather" apparel, like this little hat.  He was being so cute on the airport shuttle.  I guess because there are no seat belts, it's really the only time he could look out the window.

 Baby's 1st Christmas.  (This was Christmas morning before the festivities really began.  Can't you see those sugar plums dancing?)

 Russell had been hinting ever so subtley (yeah, right) about this game and was SO happy to get it from his Dad.

 Russell helping Ty open his first present.  We recorded him opening this and when he tore a piece of the wrapping paper off, we all cheered...and scared him, so he started crying.  Whoops!

 All Christmas-ed out.

 We went to a basketball game with the Grimmers of Russell's HS alma mater.  Ty loved it!  (By the way, Russell is not holding Ty, in case you couldn't tell.  That's Marley, Amanda and Jared Grimmer's daughter: one of Ty's potentials.)

 While we were in the mountainous area, it snowed!  Ty watched out the window while it was falling, and while he played, of course.

 We went on a date--just the 2 of us!--to the top of the Space Needle for lunch.  It was really cool to see all of Seattle (well, lots of it anyway) from way up high.  The restaurant rotates slowly so you can see all around.  Of course, we got a picture in probably the most boring spot.  Whatever.

 Outside on the observation deck where it was cold, but an incredible view.  Thanks for the date, hunk!

 We stopped and visited Star and Dave Fischer and their little guy, Blake.  He'll be a good big brother in a few months!

 Ty got to meet his Great Grandma Gwen, too! (Russell's Paternal G'ma)

 Great Grandma Gwen gave Ty a stuffed monkey wearing a leather jacket, so I cut a few threads and moved the jacket onto Ty.  This is his total BA outfit: Baby Awesome.  Please note his adorable high-top chucks with skull & crossbones on 'em.  Unfortunately, our little chunker's feet were too big to fit into a size 2 shoe, so he's only part-way wearing one.  Still, cute.  (Oh, and ignore the fresh spit-up on his pants.)

 This lovely contraption was a present from his WA g'parents.  Ty loves playing in this thing!  It was great for him to have his own seat in the house and a bunch of toys surrounding him. 

 3 generations of relaxation.

 Handsome guys playing together.

 Ty loved spending time with Big Papa and Grammy Vicki and I'm sure the feeling was mutual.  :) 

Useless.

Yesterday I threw in a load of dark clothes including our futon cover (okay, so it's a black fitted sheet) in the washing machine at around 3:30.  I turned it on and went about my business.  A little while later, I realized that I hadn't heard the washer and went to check on it.  The whole thing was full of water, but was not doing anything.  I tried turning the knob thing and pushing it in and pulling it out...nothing.  Then, because I'm smart, I went and switched the breaker off and back on, but this did nothing.  I even reached down and unplugged the machine and plugged it back in, but still no wish-washing.  What the heck?!  This wouldn't be such a huge problem, but we had people coming over at 7:30 and I was leaving at 5:30 and wouldn't be back until about 7:25.  The biggest problem is that our futon is Ugly (capitalized on purpose) without a cover.  Besides, I really didn't want a bunch of clothes stewing in their own watery filth. 

So, I called maintenance at about 4: 30 (the front office closes at 5) and they said they'd see if they could send someone over to look at it.  A little while later 2 guys show up and go to the laundry room/closet.  Maintenance man #1 turns on the light, opens the lid, closes it, and pushes in the knob and the washing machine starts.  Seriously?!  I told him it really wasn't working earlier and I had tried the knob among a bunch of other things.  He looked at me like, "Whatever, woman."  I felt so purposeless.  What's a woman who can't even work a washing machine?!  Useless. 

Pre-Christmas Festivities

We left our home on December 16th not to return until the 2nd of the next year, but we still got in a little holiday magic--Vegas style.  The Freeman fam introduced us to the incredibly lit up cactus garden at the Ethel M (M for Mars candy) chocolate factory, which I obviously didn't get a great picture of, but Ty was very excited to see.

 

Here he was checking out some snowflakes (Fake ones.  Come on, folks--we're in Vegas!) and kept throwing his head back so he could see the blue and white lights.  If you look closely through the window you may be able to catch a glimpse of an Oompa Loompa.  Then again, maybe not.  Come to think of it, a chocolate factory is probably a terrible place to work if you're in to fake tanning.  

 

 Back at the ranch, we did a little (emphasis on little) holiday baking, too.  "We" would be Ty and I.  Sorry if there was any drool in your treats.

 Here you will see our Christmas scene before we packed it all up.  Check out our little tree--it made the trip from Reno with us and is still alive in its pot.  :) 

 Because of Matt & Isa's wedding, we went up to Fairfield for a few days before taking off for WA on December 24th.  Since the rest of my family was there, too, it was lots o' fun, but super crowded.  Good thing Russell and I like cuddling, because we got a twin bed to sleep on.  No complaints; the company was worth it and Ty still slept like a champ.  It rained most of the time we were there, which really was no surprise, so someone tell me why I brought about 0 rain-proof shoes.  Duh, Carolyn.

 My cousin, Neil was married to Dani (I started to write "My cousins Neil and Dani were married," but that's not quite right...we don't marry cousins where I'm from.  We're not that kind of family.)  Anyway, they weren't so lucky with the rain, so we waited under a big golf umbrella (thanks, Da') for the bride and groom to appear.  We're only missing Jula in this picture!  Do we look related?

 Hunter, Soren, and Tina are demonstrating the most popular position/placement of most people at the house: lounging on the couch.  

 Aww...sisters!  Sawyer looks a little lost.  That's probably because he's not a girl and can't participate in the "girl talk, got ta be girl talk..."

 I like this one.  The gentlemen are upstairs playing Mariokart and such.

 Ty LOVED being around the "big" cousins!  It was so funny to see Carl make the babies laugh.  More on Ty and his cousins later.

 Suh-weet!  Check out this awesome CD Russell got!

 Ty-Ty and Mor-Mor and Far-Far.  (No, he was not flirting with his grandparents, that just happens to be the bib he was wearing.)

 How cute is this?  Ty loves his Far-Far!

We were sad not to be with the Pedersen fam for Christmas, but are glad we got to see everyone and spend some time together!

A Quick Poem

Ty-Ty it’s time to close your eyes.

Sleep’s not new; this should be no surprise.

I want you to be happy,

So please take a nappy.

You’re tired now--please recognize!

(For real, this kid hasn't taken more than a 30 minute nap in a couple of days--what the heck!?  Let's blame his teeth coming in.  Thanks a lot, new little chompers.)

Ooo, I love a Wedding!

I realize I'm a little slow on this, but whatever; I'm trying to catch up.  Ty is happily playing in his excersaucer, so we'll see how long I have.  [He lasted up until I uploaded the pictures.  So, here's take 2.]  My sister, Annelise was married to her twue wove on December 21st in the LDS Oakland Temple.  We were glad to be there!  It was a beautiful, clear day in the bay, which was surprising considering all of the rain that came before and after!  Anyway, it's always work putting together a family wedding, but it was fun to gather together and celebrate.  Congrats, you crazy lovebirds.

Quick family picture waiting for the bride and groom to come out.

 My HS/FFBFF, Michelle was there!

 The Espinozas (My sister, Leslie, her husband Curt and their boys: Carl and Sawyer).  We were going to get pictures in this gorgeous spot, too, but Mattelise arrived.  Way to ruin it, bride and groom!

 Speaking of which, here are the Bakers!  Presh.

 This picture was incredibly difficult to take.  I guess that's obvious because out of the 7 or so Russell took, this was the best.  Pretend that everyone is looking at the camera and Soren is smiling big, not crying.  Cute outfits though, huh? 

 This little Ty man was so well-behaved all day!  :)

 And what would a trip to the temple be without some kids playing in the fountain?  Soren (2) and Carl (6) are so funny together.

 What handsome gentlemen!  They were probably both tired, but only one of them got carried in a blanket and got to fall asleep.  Maybe next time, Russell.

 The exposure on this picture was funky, but we'll just say we meant to make it like that.  I love this guy.

My Baby

A friend of mine is having a baby in March and I was reading her blog about some concerns she has and anticipation of the big event that changes everything.  This is totally normal.  She had a couple of comments from others saying that she'll be wanting her baby back in because it will be easier to take care of him and less trouble.  Pardon my late-night soapboxing, and I don't mean to offend, but this is something that I actually feel strongly about.  I have never wanted Ty to go away or to put him back.  Sure, it's not super fun when he's teething and screaming so my ears ring or wakes up earlier than I want to or poops all over his clothes when we're in the grocery store which has no changing table, but the good far out-weighs the bad.  Since when were babies supposed to be "less trouble" or convenient, anyway?  I'll confess that as the due (induction) date drew closer, my biggest fear was not labor pains or a long recovery, but was that I wouldn't love my baby right away/enough.  I seriously was concerned.  It's hard to know that you'll love someone you haven't met, that you didn't choose, and carries some of your own traits which may (unfortunately) be the less desirable ones.  Luckily, my fears were quickly dispelled and I couldn't get enough of just looking at my new baby boy.  As you may know, Russell had to leave to go back to school the day after Ty was born while we were still in the hospital.  My mom can attest I cried a lot anytime I thought of what Russell was missing out on.  THAT was the worst part of being a new parent--not having Russell to share in how incredible our baby was.  Pretty sure I only got a couple of hours of sleep each night and, frankly, the whole first week of Ty's life is a blur of dr.'s appointments, unsuccessful feeding, administering to my traumatized body, and being in complete awe at this new baby. 

I feel sorry for anyone who wishes they could put back their baby, hormone-wackiness aside.  Sleep deprivation and inconvenience are small prices to pay for being a mom.  Maybe all babies aren't as awesome as mine so others have justification for their thoughts.  I already miss teeny tiny Ty and tiny Ty and now we have little Ty who is super fun and playful.  Seriously, although he has lots of toys and I have lots to do, I love just playing with him and laughing together (he has started laughing when we laugh).  Maybe it's easier to feel this way while Ty's sweetly asleep in the other room, but I know that's not it.  Our little family isn't perfect, but thanks to little Ty, the joy has been brought.

So, to my friend, love your baby and love every part of your life with him.  There is no such thing as too tired or too worn-out when you're taking care of your new little guy.  There's just too much good stuff.  :)

Home at Last!

We sure had a fun holiday season, but it's good to finally be home and (almost) unpacked.  We went from NorCal with my family and sister's wedding to Washington with some of Russell's family then home for a couple of days before leaving for Disneyland and SoCal.  I love visiting with friends and family and I'm so glad we got to see many people, but even fun visits aren't "fun" anymore when you stay too long.  Luckily, we stayed just long enough...there's only so much living out of a suitcase that one wants to do.  Anyway, just letting you all (if anyone even reads this) know that we're alive and well.  I downloaded pictures from our camera today from our travels and don't have the energy to sort through all 335 to post any.  I suppose this is a pre-post post.  Lame-o.  (I started to write "lamo" but that looks too much like "lmao," which I completely don't mean.  But that's beside the point.)  For now, here's a brief video taken yesterday of my favorite little dude.