Merry Christmas Eve!

Wow, I have a day off with the hubby around to give me a spare moment to finally make a new post in my blog. You wouldn't believe how impossible it is for me to try to get on the computer with Gwen around. As soon as I sit in the computer chair she comes over and wants to "type" on the computer. I used to let her, but she destroyed one of our shift keys and pulls off the caps lock key and trys to eat it. If I don't let her she screams and pulls herself up on the desk causing more problems. Needless to say, that's why this blog has been so neglected lately. That, and nothing new has been going on.

For once, we're all healthy. Gwen's 2-year-old molar on the bottom right has been coming in this week and it's been making her grumpy. At least it's not strep or croup this time. I can deal with a bit of teething even though I know it'll last a few weeks and we still have to do it three more times until her 5-year-old molars come in.

Jonathan is enjoying his school break. He did well in his classes and got all A's and a B in history (oh no!). He's going to bite the bullet and take five classes next semester in a big push to be done with his associates degree by next Christmas. He'll be taking History, English 2010, Biology, World Religions, and a conversational Japanese class so he can stay up on what he's learned. It's going to be a tougher semester, but he's so smart he can do it. He also sold some old Dungeon and Dragon books and saved his Christmas money and pre-purchased a Nintendo Wii. He only gets one chance with it and if his grades suffer then I get to sell it on E-Bay and keep the money. I hope he's learned some good self control because I've heard how addicting the Wii games can be.

Nothing new's going on with me. I spend each morning with my little girl. I'm happy that she's finally saying Mama as more than a swear word, though she still reverts to a whiney version of it when she's tired or angry. She's been saying Dad for a long time now and I've been trying to get her to say my name. She also started saying Baby (she's getting a toy baby for Christmas tomorrow). She'll repeat words sometimes, but they don't seem to stick. At least that's a step forward in her language development.

I have a ton of piled up pictures to post, so, uh, there.Here's me, Boot, and Gwen first thing in the morning. Ugh, morning hair for us all. We like to snuggle on the couch as Jonathan makes us breakfast. Gwen eats real cereal out of a bowl with a spoon now. She even drinks the milk out of the bowl after.

At the beginning of the month we went to the Festival of Trees. Here's Gwen drooling over the Elmo tree. We had to drag her away from it. Needless to say, most of her Christmas gifts are Elmo related this year.

They were holding hands right before this. Gwen's cousin Noah is 9 months older than her and it's neat to see what she'll be like in such a short time. He seems like such a big kid to us and boy, is he fast.

Gwen's "chair" is really our metal collander. It's in one of our non-baby-proofed cupboards and she recently found out that it's the perfect fit for her little bum. Don't worry, we wash it out before making spaghetti. The trouble is finding where she's put it.

A couple weeks ago on my day off we went up to Ogden to the Treehouse Museum. They have a Japanese exhibit there until the end of December and we wanted Jonathan to see it. Gwen loved wearing her kimono and pouring the tea. And eating the plastic sushi. She's had the real stuff once before (California rolls with all cooked stuff, no raw stuff for a few more years). She was pretty good at using the kiddie chopsticks so we're going to see if we can find a pair around somewhere to buy for her.

That's President Gwen in the Oval Office. What do you think, by 2060 will the world be ready for a Mormon woman as President? I don't know how I'd like being the First Mommy though. I think I'd worry about her all the time.

Out of all the different toys and exhibits they have there, here's Gwen's favorite thing: a kid-sized rocking chair. I wonder if she'll remember it the next time we go back there.

We'll take more pictures over the next few days and I'll try to post them before too long. Merry Christmas to everyone! May everyone be safe and healthy over the next few days so they can enjoy being with friends and family.

We're Still Alive

I'm sorry I haven't posted much lately. Like everyone else at this time of year, we've been extra busy getting ready for the Holidays. We still have shopping to do and Christmas cards to send out. Gwen is getting over croup this week. I swear our little family catches every bug we come across lately. Jonathan and I are doing well. He's finishing up his semester at school. He only has two more finals to go and he's off until January 7th. I won't know what to do with him around the house all day. I'm sure I can come up with some things to keep him busy though.

It's snowed a lot over the last couple weeks here. Gwen likes to stand in the doorway as it snows and watch it come down. She also likes to truck through it in her big snow boots that Jonathan got her. She doesn't like touching it or sitting in it though. Boot loves the snow. It's hard to get her to come back inside when we take her out to go potty. She's obsessed with biting it and chasing it, especially when you kick a big pile of it. It's funny to watch the first couple times, but it really gets annoying after a while when you're trying to go on a walk with her and the baby.

Of All the Bad Luck

So, yesterday I woke up at 4:00 am with a horrible sore throat and the worst body aches I can remember having. Yup, you guessed it: I have strep throat. I got a couple shots in the bum, an antibiotic and a pain killer and I felt somewhat better for a few hours. Then this morning happened. My throat is killing me. I can barely talk or eat. This strep throat is no fun. Luckily, I got someone to cover my shift for tonight so I can rest. Hopefully I'll be better for my 5:00 shift tomorrow evening.

Now the countdown starts again to see if Gwen comes down with it. She's been exposed by Jonathan, Grandma, and me. I don't think the odds are in her favor. We'll just have to keep a close eye on her because a 14 month old can't really tell you that her throat hurts. Well, that's all the energy I have right now. I have to go lie down some more. Ugh.

Gwen's First Trick-or-Treat

First off: thanks to all who sent good thoughts and prayers in our direction for Jonathan. He's feeling nearly 100% better. He's actually eating and hasn't missed school this week. Gwen and I are showing no signs of having it yet. Incubation is about 7 - 14 days so we're not out of the woods yet, but I'm still hoping.

Yesterday was Gwen's second Halloween and her first chance to go trick-or-treating. We dressed her up as a lady bug. Jonathan dressed up as a wizard and I was a tiger. I had to go to work so Jonathan got to take Gwen out by himself. He found out that it's not that easy to wrangle a now mobile one-year-old while trying to film it for your working wife. Gwen only made it to a few houses but she really loved that she got to knock on the doors and the people there gave her "num-nums" - her word for candy or treats. We didn't get a single trick-or-treater at our house. Oh well, we'll just have to find something to do with all our candy.

Front of my little lady bug.

Back of my little lady bug. We bought her hat and just cut out black felt spots and glued them on a pair of red sweats that a friend from work gave to us.

Roar. I'm a tiger. We didn't have too many patients at my work but it was fun to dress up. None of our doctors dressed up but some of the other nurses did.

Gwen thought that my costume was so funny. I got lots of hugs and snuggles because I think she thought I was a giant stuffed animal. I love this picture because we are both giggling hard. I don't have a picture of Jonathan in his costume. He had a fake beard and a tall wizard hat that he wore with his old graduation gown. Gwen liked his costume too.

Strep Throat

Over the last week our family has been dealing with Jonathan's strep throat. It started last Sunday with body aches and fevers. He had no other symptoms at all so I was thinking that he had a bad cold or the flu. Then on Tuesday he spiked a temperature of 103. He was miserable so the next morning we took him in to my urgent care clinic and tested him for strep throat. I had told him on Monday that he smelled like strep - it does have a smell and since I'm around kids with it all day I can usually pick out the ones with bad infections. He didn't have a sore throat though. Well, I looked in his throat to swab it for the test and almost lost my lunch. It was GROSS! Of course the test was positive so the doctor put him on antibiotics and a cough syrup with a pain killer in it. Two hours after being at the clinc, Jonathan's throat finally started to hurt.

Over the next few days, Jonathan didn't improve even though he was taking the antibiotic. He continued to run high fevers and his throat got more swollen and painful until Saturday night when I came home from work to find him running fevers and nearly in tears from the pain. We got through the night and first thing Sunday morning we went back to the InstaCare for some IV fluids, IV steroids, and IV pain medication. All that plus a mouth wash with lidocaine in it and he was finally starting to feel a little better. They also started him on another much stronger antibiotic. We took him home and let him rest all day and this morning I think he's finally turning a corner with this illness. He's even headed off to class this morning. He's still very weak and his throat hurts a lot. If you remember, we'd really appreciate any prayers you can offer in his behalf.

Now only time will tell if Gwen or I will end up with this killer strep throat. So far, we're feeling okay, I hope it stays away from us because this has been a really hard week for all of us and I can't imagine doing it much longer.

Gwen Climbs On and On

Gwen now walks up and down the stairs like a big person. She's getting much better at her toddling and can go about 15 feet before falling. She did fall outside on the sidewalk the other day and got her first big scrape, right on her cheek. She loves to be outside so hopefully the nice fall weather will stay for a long time. I'm not looking forward to having to be indoors more once it gets cold. It will be fun to watch her play in the snow for the first time though.

It's so neat to watch Gwen change from my little helpless baby to a very helpful toddler. She has to be right in the middle of whatever it is we're doing. She loves to load and unload the dishwasher. Here she is in her jammies putting her still full sippy cup away after breakfast. Speaking of sippy cups, Gwen weaned herself from her bottles this week. I went to give her her bedtime bottle as usual on Tuesday and she threw it at me. She hasn't picked one up since. I guess she just decided that she didn't want them anymore. What a relief that was. We've been trying to get her to give them up for the last month and weren't having any success. I fear that this is probably how things will work with Gwen. We'll try to get her to do things and she'll resist until she decides to do it.

Anything and everything is a toy to a one-year-old. She loves to crawl on her stroller, or in it if it's set up. She treats Boot the same way. That poor dog puts up with so much from her. Gwen tries to ride Boot at least a couple times a day. Gwen now says "Boot" sometimes. I think we'll have to count that as her first word. She also says "Sit" pronounced "Shet" and will hold her hand out with a fist (that's the hand signal we use for sit) and command Boot to "shet". If Boot does, then Gwen gets to give her a treat.

Did I mention that Gwen loves to get into things? The other day she got into the fridge and found an open bag of carrots. Yummy. Of course, when eating carrots, it's best to have one in each hand. Another one of Gwen's favorites these days is the Itsy Bitsy Spider song. It's the ONLY thing that keeps her remotely still for her diaper changes. It also cheers her up if she's having a mini meltdown about something. She does some of the hand actions too. Sometimes when we're driving I'll look back and she'll be doing the actions in her car seat. It's really too cute.

Couch Potato

Immitation is the sincerest form of flattery, right? We're such good role models for Gwen.

I love this picture so much because all you can see of her is her cute nearly bald head focused on the TV.

Our Little Pedestrian!

So, after my last post I went with Gwen and Grandma Buckholts to visit Heidi, Sam, and baby Jami in Layton. Sam had a cold, but Gwen was going stir crazy and I really wanted to see my newest niece again. Jami is so cute. She has so much hair and is so little. I can't believe that only a year ago Gwen was almost that little. She seems so big now. Well, after our visit we were packing up to leave and I handed Gwen her sippy cup and walked away to get her diaper bag. I turned around and she was walking after me. I started to yell "you're walking! Hey, Gwen's walking!" That startled her and she fell down but she had taken about 10 steps all by herself. I had forgotten to grab my camera when we left but Heidi had hers handy and captured Gwen's second attempt. It was a couple more steps this time before she fell. Each day she practices and gets a little better. She's taking it slow but I think we can say that, "We have another pedestrian in our midst."

Random Pictures

I was looking through my pictures and found some more cute Gwen ones. I thought that I'd just pile them all together and give brief explanations for them. Mostly, they're from moments where you go, "grab the camera, Honey! You've got to see this!"

Also, I forgot to update about Gwen's 12 month check-up. No, that's not a check-up that takes 12 months to complete. She weighed in at 26.6 pounds. No wonder my back hurts if I have to carry her for more than a few minutes. She's in the 97% for weight. The doctor told us to put her on 2% milk instead of whole and to really encourage her to start walking so she won't get too flabby. Being too rolly can make it harder for her to walk and do the other big motor movements. She's in the 75% for height and head circumference. Ideally her weight should be in the 75% or there abouts. He told us not to worry because most toddlers stop gaining weight for the next year or so and start to thin out after they start walking.

Yeah, so no, Gwen's not walking yet. These last few days she's really been more focused on staying on her feet though. She'll cruise for much longer distances and hold out her hands and "ask" you to help her stand and walk to where she wants to be. She still reverts to a crawl if she wants to get anywhere quickly. Her doctor said she's actually right on target for her age - most babies don't walk until 13-14 months. Gwen's also not talking much. She doesn't use any words, but instead jargons at us. Jargoning is where she strings sounds together and uses inflection to sound like what she thinks we sound like. It's more complex than babbling, which is just repeating sylables without the pauses and tones that are included in jargoning. Most babies Gwen's age have 3-4 words by now. Her doctor was a little concerned about that, but asked if she points and shows enthusiasm for something. She does do that and she seems to understand quite a bit of what we say. He said that the ability to point and show enthusiasm for an object is a big determiner for autism. Most autistic babies her age don't do that. He thinks she's just a slower talker but she'll catch up.
For her actually birthday, we took Gwen out to eat at Fazoli's. She loves spaghetti.See.Gwen's been trying to use utensils lately. She can get the food on the end sometimes, but then she picks it off with her fingers and puts it in her mouth. When I'm at work, Jonathan gives Gwen piano lessons. She's very good at eating sheet music and banging as loud as possible. She's a genious!When we went to visit Heidi and baby Jami at the hospital, Gwen found a nice place to climb into and hide. She was so happy with herself until she realized that she was stuck. Then Daddy had to rescue her.Gwen gets attacked by prunes and loses the battle.This is why all our toilet paper rolls are empty and we seem to go through the stuff so much faster these days.

2nd Anniversary

This last week was a busy one for us. It seems like they're all that way these days but this one was especially so. On Monday, September 10th Jonathan and I celebrated our 2nd wedding anniversary. We didn't do much; he went to school and I worked that evening until 11:00.

Our celebration came the next night. We got a sitter! That was a first for us. Gwen's been watched only by us and her Grandma Buckholts, so we didn't know how getting a sitter would go. One of the women from our ward volunteered to watch her for us. It went perfectly, of course. Harder on me than on Gwen, I'm sure. Well, after pawning off our little one, we went to Tepanyaki's - a new Japanese-style restaraunt were they prepare your meal in front of you. It was good food and a fun show. We're definately going back for their sushi. They had some of the best I've tasted and it was cheaper than other places we've been. The one down side was that Jonathan got sauce all over his nice new shirt when he was trying to catch flying shrimp in his mouth.

After dinner we drove downtown to see Spamalot. Spamalot is a broadway musical based on the Monty Python movie: Monty Python and the Holy Grail. Sounds weird, right? It is. We had ordered our tickets a few months ago and we got some good seats in the middle sort-of close to the front. When we got the tickets we also ordered the soundtrack, so we knew the songs already. The show was a blast. It was very funny and lived up to our expectations. If you like Monty Python and you ever have the chance to see this show then do it.

There's an Olive Garden right across the street from the theater and Jonathan remembered that he still had our gift card from his dad and step-mom from Christmas. We ordered some dessert to-go and ate it in the car while waiting in the line of traffic to get out of the parking garage. What a yummy end to a great evening out.

Day at the Fair

Yesterday we spent the evening at the Utah State Fair. Gwen loved it. She had been refusing to take a nap and even though she was really tired she loved seeing the animals and other people there.They have a whole area for kids where they get to pretend they're working on the farm. Here's Gwen in her apron with her bucket ready to go gather eggs.There were fake chickens in coops and wooden eggs. Gwen was good at gathering them.She got to pick plastic apples from wooden trees in the "Apple Orchard".After gatheringa block of Hay, Gwen got to ride the tractor to the sheep barn. I think this was her favorite part.After we had harvested and gathered, we went to the store and sold our goods for a pretend dollar. Gwen got to choose a treat with her dollar and she picked fruit snacks - her favorite.We found out how many hands high we are.

We Have a New Puppy!

Unfortunately she used to be our little baby. That's right, Gwen has started acting like she's a dog this last week. She pants, whines, and barks, and she eats Boot's dog food although that's not really new. It started when we were on a car ride with Boot over to Grandma Buckholts' house. Boot starts to whine loudly when we pull onto their street. Gwen thought that was neat and immitated her. We laughed, the rest is history. It's really funny to watch her crawl across the floor panting excitedly. She's so weird. That's how we know she wasn't switched at birth.

New Job Update

It's been almost a week since I started my new (old) job at the Taylorsville Instacare. It really hasn't changed all that much since I left. I don't know if that's a good or bad thing. At least it means that I can pretty much pick up where I left off. I've been scavaging for shifts because they didn't have very many needs until October. I'm a 40 hour a week employee though, so I guess that means if I have to come and sit around doing nothing to get my hours then that's their problem.

Jonathan quit his job last week at the Maverik. We got some federal financial aid for school to make that possible. We'll have to scrimp and save, but we're getting better at doing that. Now he can really focus on getting through school quickly. He's still getting great grades - he's a straight A student with one little oops from last spring's English class. This semester is English again, Japanese II, History of Western Civilization from 1300, and Bowling for PE.

Our days are pretty busy. He has school from 9:30 to 1:00 and I work from 3 or 4 to 11 pm. I watch Gwen in the morning while he's a school and he watches her while I'm at work. So far it's working out very nicely. I'm sooooo much happier not having to work graveyards. Even though I get home sometime after 11:00, I'm getting 7 - 8 hours of good sleep before getting up with Gwen in the morning. Before, I'd sleep for an hour or two before my shift and have to stay awake until Jonathan got home from school before napping for a few more hours. I rarely got a solid 8 hours of sleep. It was KILLING me. I was grumpy all the time and had a hard time thinking about anything besides how much I really wanted to curl up and nap. Now, I'm thinking that I can get up and go on walks with Gwen and Boot or get in a quick workout in the mornings before her midmorning nap. I feel so much more alive this last week, it's been such a good change. The one downfall being that since Jonathan and I are on opposite "shifts" we have to make use of the short hours we have together. He usually stays awake doing homework after Gwen goes to sleep until I get home from work. That's nice of him. When he was working swing shift I almost always fell asleep long before he got home.

Happy Birthday Gwen!

Gwendolyn turns one today! Wow. I can't believe my little baby has gotten so big so fast. I've been looking back at all my journal entries and pictures from the day she was born and it's hard to believe that it was a year ago. It feels like it was just yesterday. Right now she's playing with her toothbrush and watching the Elmo's World video we got her for her birthday. What a big kid she is. She's still not quite walking - she cruises on the furniture and will walk if we hold her hands. She's also not saying any specific words yet. She "talks" all the time but hasn't said her first word. Today we will probably find something fun to do with just the three of us. We had her big birthday party on Saturday. Lots of her cousins came and went swimming and ate pizza.
Here's Gwen diving into the cake we made her.She thought it was yummy but really wanted to get back into the water.She got lots of fun presents from everyone.Everyone had fun swimming, especially our little Birthday Girl.She loves making BIG splashes in the water.Gwen's cousins had fun. Noah kept wanting to jump in the big pool with his dad. You really have to keep a close eye on him.
Samantha and Heidi played in the kiddie pool. Side note: Heidi's due in a few days and little baby girl ?? still doesn't have a name. I'm voting for Shanquekwa.
Mason is getting more and more adventurous in the pool. As long as he's wearing his floating vest.Gwen looked so cute and comfy in her new sweats from Daddy. It was such a fun day. We all wish that every day we could eat pizza and go swimming with our friends and family.

More Road Trips Please

Yesterday we drove out to the Great Salt Lake for a day-trip. We went to the biggest island on the lake called Antelope Island. There's a causeway out to the island and the island is a State Park. That means that they charge admission. It was $9 for our car. I guess that's not too bad since it ended up being $3 a person to drive around the mostly barren island. There are lots of American Bison to see though and that was neat.

We also went out to the little ranch that was built by the Mormon settlers in 1849. They let you just roam around by yourself and I guess they really trust people because you could pick up and play with all the museum-like stuff they had lying around on display.
We got attacked by mosquitoes at the ranch. Seriousely, I go at least 5 bites on my legs before I could grab the bug repellant and spray them. I hate mosquitoes. Gwen needed a nap after the ranch so we changed her diaper and gave her a bottle and she was out.
We drove all over the island and visited the visitor's center. There, we bought Gwen a small stuffed Bison. She immediately started to try to eat him.
We also saw a nest with baby birds in it.
We even walked the 1/2 mile out to the actual lake and walked around in it. Gwen loved splashing in the water and feeling the sand in her toes. It really wasn't worth the long walk in deep, hot sand mixed with sharp rocks in 93 degree weather. The lake has a thick layer of brine flies at the edge and it stinks like rotten garbage - although you get used to the stink fairly quickly. Plus, when it was time to walk back to the car (which was now uphill as well) Gwen had a fit because she didn't want to get out of the water. She struggled and cried all the way back trying to squirm out of my arms. That was really no fun.

After we left the island, we stopped in Layton and ate at Red Robins. Jonathan went through 4 rootbeers and 2 glasses of water. I had forgotten to pack water for us but remembered it for Gwen at least. I think we were both dehydrated. After we got home, we all showered and felt much, much better.

Family Reunions

Last week we went to two family reunions for my maternal grandmother's side of the family. The first one was at Murray Park on a Friday evening. I dragged Jonathan and Gwendolyn along with me. My great-aunt Gwen was there which was neat because she hadn't seen our Gwen since her blessing. We didn't know too many other people there, but I guess they're all related to me somehow.
Gwen and my mom.
Gwen up-close.

The second one was more intimate - mostly my first cousins and their families. I forgot to bring the camera along so there's no pictures from that one. One of the best parts of the evening for Gwen was playing with my uncle's 3-month-old labradoodle. Gwen loves doggies.

I Got It!

No, not the flu, the new/old job at the InstaCare that I applied for recently! They called this morning and offered it to me but with a significant pay cut from what I'm making now. I told them that I needed to make at least what I am now and that it was a deal breaker if they couldn't do that. I told them that with my five years of InstaCare experience and with the staff there already behind me and supporting me, I was the perfect nurse for the job; requiring little training and already familiar with the job. The recruiter told me that she didn't know if it was possible to pay me what I wanted and that they only counted my two years of experience as a nurse. I insisted that the staff there was already hoping to work with me and that I would be the best candidate for the job but that I needed to be paid my current rate or it wouldn't happen. She told me to think about it and she'd see what she could do and get back to me.

After I hung up with her I laid there in bed - I had worked the night before - and had a small panic attack. I really wanted this job and I thought that putting up a fight for my pay might have cost me, no pun intended. I talked it through with Jonathan and decided that the pay cut was a big deal and I was right to stick to my guns. Everything I had said was true and if they were too dumb to see that I was the nurse they need there, then I'd keep working at my current job and just make do. I went to sleep and actually slept pretty good. The recruiter called back at 4:00 and told me that she had gotten the okay to pay me what I'm currently making. So, now I have a new job. It's the job I had 3 years ago at 3 times what I was making then. It means no more graveyard shifts and no more 12 hours of being a glorified waitress or cleaning up poo. It's working with doctors that I like and having a five minute commute. I start in two weeks and I can hardly wait. After three years, it's like going back home.

Miles and Miles

These last few days we did some traveling. We drove to Layton on Sunday for a family birthday party and to eat turkey. We drove up to Layton again on Monday to go swimming with Gwen's cousins at the fitness center. While we were there we actually ran into some of Jonathan's cousins - go figure. Then yesterday we decided that we needed to put more miles on the car and drove up to Preston, Idaho to see Grandma and Grandpa Thompson.

Gwen was not to keen on sitting in her carseat for the 2 hours it took to get there. We had to stop once on the way up to change her diaper and give her a break. Once there we toured Grandpa's workshop in progress. They were in the middle of getting it insulated so everything was pretty messy. Gwen loved meeting their yellow lab puppy, Lady. She loves doggies and didn't even mind having the puppy chew on her fingers. We went to lunch with Grandma and Gwen got her own ice cream cone.
After lunch we went with Grandma to her work at Pepperidge Farm where she packs cookies. We bought pounds of yummy cookies and goldfish crackers. We're set for life now. Grandma had to work so we said goodbye and went on our way back home. We made it to the WalMart in Logan before we had to stop for Gwen again. It was her nap time but she was having a hard time falling asleep in the car. We took a break and walked around the store and bought Gwen a birthday present with some money that Grandma had given us for her. Gwen was able to fall asleep after that and I was having such a nice time driving that I decided to take some of the back roads back toward Salt Lake. We got to see some of the little towns like Benson and Mantua that way. Gwen woke up once we hit North Ogden so we stopped for dinner at a McDonalds in Bountiful. She was more interested in watching the other little kids play in the play area then eating her dinner. We made it home 10 hours after we had left that morning. Jonathan put together the present for Gwen and we let her play with it. Yay for Gwen's first birthday present. It's a giraffe that she can sit on and ride.She loves it, can you tell?