2012... The year the world was supposed to end. Ryan and I had a lot of fun joking about the end of the world in the years of marriage leading up to it. As it turns out, in our tiny view of the grand scheme of things, 2012 really did look to be an important year. That being said, it was easy to use the demise of said world as an excuse to avoid a lot of uncomfortable topics. School. Jobs. Children...
Our fall back answer for pretty much any life altering question was, "Hey, if the world is going to end, why bother?!"
It's amazing how life works...
2012... The year the world was supposed to end... and the year ours truly began.
The year began in the most miraculous way possible: new life. Yes, Pierscen was technically born in 2011, but I went home from the hospital on New Years Eve. Our new life was beginning with the dawning of the new year. We experienced our first major diaper blowout that night. I was getting little P up out of bed for a feeding in the middle of the night when I felt something all over his pajamas and bed. I had no idea what to do or where to begin. I frantically woke Ryan up, who in his groggy state, came to my rescue and together we managed to clean everything up. Not much says "Welcome to parenthood" better than that! So sure, the first night was a bit of a rough one, but it was the beginning of the most glorious experience I could imagine.
Becoming a mother and watching my little boy grow is something I cannot find words for. It is joy beyond joy. Hope beyond hope. Purpose beyond purpose. But watching Ryan become a father is something that tugs at my heart and threatens to bring tears each time I think of it. He is such an amazing father. We were both nervous about the transition and what it would mean to our way of life, but Ryan took to fatherhood like a fish to water. There is something magical, exciting, and humbling in watching him interact with Pierscen. He is a wonderful father and I am so grateful to have him as my husband and best friend.
I returned to work to March. It was both easier and harder than I thought it would be. I was still working full time to keep the health benefits. I went back to teaching piano as well, though I had to switch the days and times around to accommodate for our new schedules. Life felt pretty normal, though obviously very different.
Our balancing act was short lived as Ryan was offered a job in Wyoming. We were totally thrilled at the offer and the excitement of "moving on" but it was still a big thing to adjust to. We always said we wanted a chance to move away - to have our own little world experience, but the reality was still intimidating! (Especially considering I would need to stay behind for a while to work and prepare for Pierscen's surgery.) He was given a month before he had to "report" and he moved out in April. At that point I dropped all but a couple of my piano lessons and cut down my hours at the hospital to part time. Thanks to my PTO hoarding over the years, I was able to stay at the full time rate for insurance using my saved up PTO hours, but only work a fraction of that time. And of the hours I was putting in, I was able to work most of it from home. It was such an incredible blessing, one which I cannot thank my boss enough for. I owe so much to her!
Two quick months later Pierscen underwent major surgery for Craniosynostosis. The surgeons did an amazing job, but wow - what an emotionally trying thing. Ryan was able to come back for the surgery itself and then had to go back to Wyoming the following day. It was a huge relief to have him there. I could not have done it without him. We stayed in the hospital for 5 days. Following our release, Pierscen and I moved in with my parents so we could pack everything up at our apartment. One week following our release from the hospital, we moved to Wyoming.
Two months after moving to Wyoming, we bought our first house! Somehow in all of the crazy things that had happened that year, this was the most surprising. Not so much the act of buying a house, because we knew we wanted one, but the speed at which it happened. We thought we would be looking for a long time. In fact, I am still not sure why we started looking so soon after our arrival, but I am glad we did! We moved into our home the very end of August.
Since Pierscen and I moved to Wyoming, we have made 5 trips to Utah, one with my sister-in-law Jodi, one by myself, and 3 with Ryan. It is an all day ordeal to drive out there, but we are really glad that if we had to move away, that going home is still a feasible act.
In 2012 Pierscen attended his first parade (which he slept through), took his first airplane ride (x3), went to the San Diego Zoo and Sea World, watched his first 4th of July firework show, helped with a Trunk-or-treat activity for Halloween, ate turkey and mashed potatoes with family in Utah for Thanksgiving, celebrated his first Christmas and had two huge birthday bashes for his first birthday. It was a good year. :)
It's amazing how life turns out. We think we have things planned and under control and that we know what's best for us. I am so grateful for a loving Heavenly Father who knows us better than we know ourselves and is always there to guide and direct us. If you had asked me what I thought the year 2012 was going to be like, I don't think there is any chance I could have accurately guessed any of it. Ryan and I have been married for 6 years as of this last July. Each year has been new and exciting and has come with its ups and downs. But nothing compares to the year the world was supposed to end. Not only did we survive, but we truly LIVED. Yes, we are alive and thriving in windy Wyoming and are looking forward to a new year of this incredible blessing called life.
Monday, February 4, 2013
Thursday, January 31, 2013
Another Pierscen Post: Stats and Fun Facts
I know I have posted several Pierscen posts celebrating the big first birthday... but here is one more. :)
P had a successful 1-year check up. He is still on the small side, but the doctor says it's in line with how he has been all along, so he is not worried. The stats:
Weight: 18 lbs 5.5 oz - 2nd percentile. Oh tiny, tiny child.
Length: 28.5 in - 12th percentile
Head Circ: 46 cm - 38th percentile
I posted one of these pictures on Instagram and my friend's comment was, "Part nudist, part Eskimo?" Haha pretty much. They had me strip him down for all the measurements, but he was so cold, his little chin started quivering. So I put on his jacket while we waited.
He is not walking, but does just fine when you hold his hands. Like the doctor said, he has the movement down. Now he just needs the balance and the confidence.
Here are a few fun things about our 1-year-old boy.
He has now had 3 "real" haircuts. The last one was not one I was very proud of. He went into melt down the moment the clippers touched his head. He would not hold still and sobbed the whole time. Poor kiddo. It turned out okay, but it wasn't as even as some of the others. His hair grows crazy fast so it will be ready for another chop soon.
This is his "kissy" face. It is hilarious. I think he started doing it this way because when I make kissy noises at him from a distance, I always jut my chin up at the last second. So now when we make kissy noises at him, he will put his chin up, purse his lips, and squint his eyes. It's so funny! He knows we think it's hilarious, so he will do it just to make us laugh. If we get close enough to actually kiss him, he will burst into giggles. Either that or he will keep his chin up and let me nibble his neck which makes him laugh super hard.
He is goofy with his eating. He is doing better with eating whatever food we are eating, but it is still a hit and miss process. He seems to either like the plain baby food - no chunks, or chunks of real food he can pick up. If you give him baby food with chunks - no dice.
P has this funny little bum dance he does when he is excited or happy. He will come cruising along on all fours and then will stop and wiggle his bum like a puppy.
I just love the picture above. It makes me laugh every time I look at it. This was at Five Guys Burgers and Fries. He looks pretty chill to me!
Speaking of puppy, P has picked up quite a few habits from Dodger. He loves to pick up items off the floor with mouth and carry them around - primarily his socks. I cannot keep them on his feet. The other day he brought me his sock in his mouth and offered it to me in a way that said he wanted me to take it with my mouth. I did so, and then he backed away and tried to start a tug-of-war. Funny little guy!
The little man loves to point and now can point at your nose, the clock, and lights if you ask him where they are.
He has never been much of a cuddler, unless it is his brown bear. He sure loves that guy. Lately he has started something that I find irresistible, and he knows it. When I go to lay him down for naps, he will wait until just before I put him in the crib, and then he will throw himself against me in a big hug and just cuddle. I will wait until he starts getting restless before I try to lay him down again. But the moment he feels me shift my weight or move my hand to better lay him down, he will curl up against my chest again. He knows I am a sucker for cuddling and this usually buys him 5 more minutes of wakefulness before I finally put him down.
He loves his pacifier, but we only let him have it at night. Doesn't he look like a little bird waiting for his dinner in that picture?
Pierscen loves the dishwasher. I think he is especially excited about it because we only just recently started to use it. He could be across the room and if he hears me open it, he comes crawling as fast as he can.
Bath time is always an adventure. I feel like the last two baths or so that he has had have been the most successful. Normally he just stands there, won't sit down much. He still likes his baths and will play with his toys, but he has finally started to really sit and play. It's pretty cute.
Dodger does not like baths, but he will invite himself in from time to time if it gives him a chance of recovering some of Pierscen's bath toys.
This little guy is the best thing that has ever happened to us. He has five teeth and is working on one more. He has a silly little chipmunk laugh that he does when he is fake laughing or crying. He adds a little quiver to the end and that's why we call it his chipmunk laugh. Lately all he seems to want to do is cuddle with Dodger if Dodge will give him a chance. If the pooch is laying down, P will crawl up to him, lower his head until it makes contact with the puppy, and then lay down or roll over on top of him. Dodger does not love this, but he is pretty patient for the most part. Pierscen loves getting others attention and is quite the show off if given the chance. This makes for entertaining, but disruptive Sacrament meetings. There is a cashier at Wal-mart that knows and loves him and P is quite the flirt when he sees her. He has not had a bottle in a week or so and doesn't seem to care. The tough thing is that he is not very good with sippy cups. He understands them and can get a drink from them, but he won't hold the cup on his own. No, that's not true. He will hold it, but he doesn't quite seem to get the tipping it up and back part. We are working on that. He loves oranges. Cutties are the best thing in the world and he will devour one without a second thought. That and string cheese. He also likes to strike a pose while crawling around. He will stop mid-crawl, extend his back right leg, point his toe, wait for a moment, and then keep crawling. He is learning to nod (he has had the "no" shake down for a while). He seems to contract and extend his spine more than bob his head, but it's coming along. He loves to mimic noises we make, especially siren, owl, or cow noises. He will also mimic laughs if they are big hearty Santa Claus laughs - Ho Ho Ho! He is a total delight and we are so lucky to have him. I could go on and on, but these are just a few of the things I really want to remember. :) So glad you are ours, Pierscen. Love you big guy!
P had a successful 1-year check up. He is still on the small side, but the doctor says it's in line with how he has been all along, so he is not worried. The stats:
Weight: 18 lbs 5.5 oz - 2nd percentile. Oh tiny, tiny child.
Length: 28.5 in - 12th percentile
Head Circ: 46 cm - 38th percentile
I posted one of these pictures on Instagram and my friend's comment was, "Part nudist, part Eskimo?" Haha pretty much. They had me strip him down for all the measurements, but he was so cold, his little chin started quivering. So I put on his jacket while we waited.
He is not walking, but does just fine when you hold his hands. Like the doctor said, he has the movement down. Now he just needs the balance and the confidence.
Here are a few fun things about our 1-year-old boy.
He has now had 3 "real" haircuts. The last one was not one I was very proud of. He went into melt down the moment the clippers touched his head. He would not hold still and sobbed the whole time. Poor kiddo. It turned out okay, but it wasn't as even as some of the others. His hair grows crazy fast so it will be ready for another chop soon.
This is his "kissy" face. It is hilarious. I think he started doing it this way because when I make kissy noises at him from a distance, I always jut my chin up at the last second. So now when we make kissy noises at him, he will put his chin up, purse his lips, and squint his eyes. It's so funny! He knows we think it's hilarious, so he will do it just to make us laugh. If we get close enough to actually kiss him, he will burst into giggles. Either that or he will keep his chin up and let me nibble his neck which makes him laugh super hard.
He is goofy with his eating. He is doing better with eating whatever food we are eating, but it is still a hit and miss process. He seems to either like the plain baby food - no chunks, or chunks of real food he can pick up. If you give him baby food with chunks - no dice.
P has this funny little bum dance he does when he is excited or happy. He will come cruising along on all fours and then will stop and wiggle his bum like a puppy.
I just love the picture above. It makes me laugh every time I look at it. This was at Five Guys Burgers and Fries. He looks pretty chill to me!
Speaking of puppy, P has picked up quite a few habits from Dodger. He loves to pick up items off the floor with mouth and carry them around - primarily his socks. I cannot keep them on his feet. The other day he brought me his sock in his mouth and offered it to me in a way that said he wanted me to take it with my mouth. I did so, and then he backed away and tried to start a tug-of-war. Funny little guy!
The little man loves to point and now can point at your nose, the clock, and lights if you ask him where they are.
He has never been much of a cuddler, unless it is his brown bear. He sure loves that guy. Lately he has started something that I find irresistible, and he knows it. When I go to lay him down for naps, he will wait until just before I put him in the crib, and then he will throw himself against me in a big hug and just cuddle. I will wait until he starts getting restless before I try to lay him down again. But the moment he feels me shift my weight or move my hand to better lay him down, he will curl up against my chest again. He knows I am a sucker for cuddling and this usually buys him 5 more minutes of wakefulness before I finally put him down.
He loves his pacifier, but we only let him have it at night. Doesn't he look like a little bird waiting for his dinner in that picture?
Pierscen loves the dishwasher. I think he is especially excited about it because we only just recently started to use it. He could be across the room and if he hears me open it, he comes crawling as fast as he can.
Bath time is always an adventure. I feel like the last two baths or so that he has had have been the most successful. Normally he just stands there, won't sit down much. He still likes his baths and will play with his toys, but he has finally started to really sit and play. It's pretty cute.
This little guy is the best thing that has ever happened to us. He has five teeth and is working on one more. He has a silly little chipmunk laugh that he does when he is fake laughing or crying. He adds a little quiver to the end and that's why we call it his chipmunk laugh. Lately all he seems to want to do is cuddle with Dodger if Dodge will give him a chance. If the pooch is laying down, P will crawl up to him, lower his head until it makes contact with the puppy, and then lay down or roll over on top of him. Dodger does not love this, but he is pretty patient for the most part. Pierscen loves getting others attention and is quite the show off if given the chance. This makes for entertaining, but disruptive Sacrament meetings. There is a cashier at Wal-mart that knows and loves him and P is quite the flirt when he sees her. He has not had a bottle in a week or so and doesn't seem to care. The tough thing is that he is not very good with sippy cups. He understands them and can get a drink from them, but he won't hold the cup on his own. No, that's not true. He will hold it, but he doesn't quite seem to get the tipping it up and back part. We are working on that. He loves oranges. Cutties are the best thing in the world and he will devour one without a second thought. That and string cheese. He also likes to strike a pose while crawling around. He will stop mid-crawl, extend his back right leg, point his toe, wait for a moment, and then keep crawling. He is learning to nod (he has had the "no" shake down for a while). He seems to contract and extend his spine more than bob his head, but it's coming along. He loves to mimic noises we make, especially siren, owl, or cow noises. He will also mimic laughs if they are big hearty Santa Claus laughs - Ho Ho Ho! He is a total delight and we are so lucky to have him. I could go on and on, but these are just a few of the things I really want to remember. :) So glad you are ours, Pierscen. Love you big guy!
Tuesday, January 22, 2013
New Years In Utah
The Friday after Christmas, the 28th, Pierscen and I picked up Ryan from work around 1 pm and headed out of town. We told our families that we were planning on coming for New Years, but that it would all depend on the weather. Thankfully that weekend looked clear weather wise, but there are still no guarantees when it comes to I-80. Often it gets shut down not because of snow, but because of the wind. Thankfully we made it through just fine and arrived Friday evening around 8ish. We stopped by my parents to say hello, and then headed to Ryan's parent's for the evening.
We had a fantastic weekend. I was able to go to lunch with some of my dance friends Saturday afternoon and Saturday evening I went to see Les Miserables with Necia, Bill, my mom, and Ryan's mom. It. Was. AMAZING! I have always loved the music and have been wondering what has taken them so long to turn it into a full scale movie production. They did that with Phantom years ago, which was incredible, so I was surprised it took them ages to do Les Mis. Seriously, it was so, so good. I don't think anyone made it through with dry eyes. As we were leaving and discussing it, I realized that we were all crying for different reasons. It all hit us in different ways. For me, even though I know the story and the music, now that I am a mother, I was seeing it in a whole new light. Everything Fantine puts herself through to help Cosette - wow. Is there anything a mother wouldn't do for their child? Is there anything I wouldn't do? I don't think so. That boy means everything to me.
Sunday Ryan and I went to my parent's ward to listen to my mom give a talk. She is an incredible speaker and did a great job. A lot about news years resolutions and being our better selves.
Monday I spent a little bit of time with my dancer pals again. It was my friend's Allie's birthday so we had to celebrate. :) That evening was New Years Eve so the big party was at my parents. We doubled up on the celebration and had another birthday party for the little man. The really cool thing about this party cake was that I got it at Macey's... for free. That's right. Any of you moms out there in Utah, Macey's gives out free 8" round cakes for your baby's 1st birthday. No need to preorder. Just go in, pick it out, have them write on it and that is that. It's pretty huge for a baby cake - but it's butter cream frosting which is a big plus and a negative. Plus - super messy fun. Negative - super messy fun. Hahaha. It is so hard to clean off!
Anyway, whereas his birthday was only a few days before this, Pierscen didn't hesitate at all with this cake. He was still a little dainty with the frosting, but he knew what it was for, and before long, he was covered in it.
Pierscen wasn't shy about handing out kisses during the cake fun. Messy, but sweet. :)
P made good work of his cake before we finally called it done as he started to toss chunks of it overboard. He really only did damage to half of the cake, so that left the other half for us to eat. I scooped him up and carried him with my arms outstretched and ran him upstairs to the tub. It took a luffa sponge with some exfoliating body wash to scrub that frosting off of him. It's not easy! But he had a lot of fun.
My mom and niece Samantha made a delicious Texas sheet cake for everyone else. It says "Happy 1st Bday Pierscen" It was awesome.
After the party, Ryan and I stopped by my friend Lisa's in-laws to say hello for a second. Lisa and her hubby Andy are living in Texas right now while Andy gets his masters. I wish we could have stayed longer, but Pierscen was exhausted. We excused ourselves, went back to Ryan's parents, put P down for bed and then hung out with Tallon and Karma Sue until midnight. We all felt like old fogies. Getting to midnight was quite the task. In fact, we almost called it a night before that, but it was so close to midnight we figured we might as well wait a little longer. Ryan and Clair went to find some fireworks from the garage and we went outside in the snow and lit of lots of bottle rockets and some ones Ryan had given his dad from Wyoming for his birthday. It was actually a lot of fun. Ryan and Tallon are such goofy boys together. They revert right back to teenagers. Especially if there is fire, guns, or fireworks involved. Haha. It was pretty entertaining. No fingers, eyes, or limbs were lost. It was a fantastic evening.
Tuesday morning we packed up and said our goodbyes. The pictures below are of P and Uncle Asa. You would never know Asa is adopted. They look a lot alike!
We stopped by the hospital to see some coworkers and then hit the road. Pierscen was utterly exhausted and passed out not far up Provo Canyon. He traveled really well and we made it home safely even though we did drive through horizontal snow for the last 45 minutes of the drive.
It was a great weekend. I am grateful that Ryan has holidays off. It sure is nice not to have to worry about that any more! I am also grateful that the weather was so well behaved to give us the chance to make it home for a while. We sure love our family!
We had a fantastic weekend. I was able to go to lunch with some of my dance friends Saturday afternoon and Saturday evening I went to see Les Miserables with Necia, Bill, my mom, and Ryan's mom. It. Was. AMAZING! I have always loved the music and have been wondering what has taken them so long to turn it into a full scale movie production. They did that with Phantom years ago, which was incredible, so I was surprised it took them ages to do Les Mis. Seriously, it was so, so good. I don't think anyone made it through with dry eyes. As we were leaving and discussing it, I realized that we were all crying for different reasons. It all hit us in different ways. For me, even though I know the story and the music, now that I am a mother, I was seeing it in a whole new light. Everything Fantine puts herself through to help Cosette - wow. Is there anything a mother wouldn't do for their child? Is there anything I wouldn't do? I don't think so. That boy means everything to me.
Sunday Ryan and I went to my parent's ward to listen to my mom give a talk. She is an incredible speaker and did a great job. A lot about news years resolutions and being our better selves.
Monday I spent a little bit of time with my dancer pals again. It was my friend's Allie's birthday so we had to celebrate. :) That evening was New Years Eve so the big party was at my parents. We doubled up on the celebration and had another birthday party for the little man. The really cool thing about this party cake was that I got it at Macey's... for free. That's right. Any of you moms out there in Utah, Macey's gives out free 8" round cakes for your baby's 1st birthday. No need to preorder. Just go in, pick it out, have them write on it and that is that. It's pretty huge for a baby cake - but it's butter cream frosting which is a big plus and a negative. Plus - super messy fun. Negative - super messy fun. Hahaha. It is so hard to clean off!
Anyway, whereas his birthday was only a few days before this, Pierscen didn't hesitate at all with this cake. He was still a little dainty with the frosting, but he knew what it was for, and before long, he was covered in it.
Pierscen wasn't shy about handing out kisses during the cake fun. Messy, but sweet. :)
P made good work of his cake before we finally called it done as he started to toss chunks of it overboard. He really only did damage to half of the cake, so that left the other half for us to eat. I scooped him up and carried him with my arms outstretched and ran him upstairs to the tub. It took a luffa sponge with some exfoliating body wash to scrub that frosting off of him. It's not easy! But he had a lot of fun.
My mom and niece Samantha made a delicious Texas sheet cake for everyone else. It says "Happy 1st Bday Pierscen" It was awesome.
After the party, Ryan and I stopped by my friend Lisa's in-laws to say hello for a second. Lisa and her hubby Andy are living in Texas right now while Andy gets his masters. I wish we could have stayed longer, but Pierscen was exhausted. We excused ourselves, went back to Ryan's parents, put P down for bed and then hung out with Tallon and Karma Sue until midnight. We all felt like old fogies. Getting to midnight was quite the task. In fact, we almost called it a night before that, but it was so close to midnight we figured we might as well wait a little longer. Ryan and Clair went to find some fireworks from the garage and we went outside in the snow and lit of lots of bottle rockets and some ones Ryan had given his dad from Wyoming for his birthday. It was actually a lot of fun. Ryan and Tallon are such goofy boys together. They revert right back to teenagers. Especially if there is fire, guns, or fireworks involved. Haha. It was pretty entertaining. No fingers, eyes, or limbs were lost. It was a fantastic evening.
Tuesday morning we packed up and said our goodbyes. The pictures below are of P and Uncle Asa. You would never know Asa is adopted. They look a lot alike!
We stopped by the hospital to see some coworkers and then hit the road. Pierscen was utterly exhausted and passed out not far up Provo Canyon. He traveled really well and we made it home safely even though we did drive through horizontal snow for the last 45 minutes of the drive.
It was a great weekend. I am grateful that Ryan has holidays off. It sure is nice not to have to worry about that any more! I am also grateful that the weather was so well behaved to give us the chance to make it home for a while. We sure love our family!
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